...just these cheap $10 discs with lots of storage...because as these are write-once, folks will need to keep buying them. This is a business model that Kodak understand (and probably feel more comfortable with), after all, aren't Kodak a consumables company, not a camera company?...Could this be what is behind Kodaks thinking?
I can't possibly imagine Kodak execs would be this stupid. I could see them myopically going for this as a short-term solution, but still don't see how it makes any sense, as it represents such a commitment to a static status quo (if we're just talking about digicams).
CF is already down to under $1 per meg, so for $50 you can get a single card that will give you a decent-sized shooting session in perpetuity at standard print sizes. Not only that, but you could use the card in other devices if you so chose (including kiosks down the road).
$50 worth of dataplay will get you only 5 shooting sessions, however.
Not only that, but if as a new consumer I bought a dataplay camera and realized how limiting it can be, I would blame the manufacturer for choosing the lousy storage format and for not warning me. It is likely I would never buy that brand again if I could help it.
The reality, one which Kodak and Polaroid seem unable to fully digest, is that technology has struck a mortal blow to the photographic consumables market. Tomorrow's market will emphasize storage media and home printing consumables more, but over the long term this will easily be offset by a drop in conventional film and most likely photo processing supplies (unless you're like me and multiply your picture-taking 100-fold thanks to the ease of the new technology - and consequently ordering more prints than you might have otherwise ;) ).
Andre |
