BenQ intros "world's slimmest" 8-megapixel camera, the T850

BenQ has never been one to shy away from laying claim to world's thinnest / smallest titles, and it's done so yet again with its new T850 camera, despite the fact that it's seemingly identical in size to the company's previous T800 model. New this time around, however, is an increasingly-common smile-catching feature, as well as a "swipe" gesture interface, which BenQ claims is unique among touch screen cameras. Otherwise you'll get the same 8-megapixels, 3x optical zoom, and 3-inch display as before, as well as the usual anti-shake and face-tracking features. No word on a price just yet, but you'll apparently be able to get this one in your choice of black or red when it launches in the (presumably) not too distant future.

[lance @ May 28th 2008 2:27PM]

Yep, beat ya!
Me wants new toy!
Very nice, anyone have any experience with benq? Never had anything from them.

[Craig @ May 28th 2008 2:32PM]

BenQ's name reflects their corporate vision: Bringing Enjoyment aNd Quality to life.

[rektide @ May 28th 2008 2:45PM]

looks bigger than the Casio S770 to me, hard to tell

[KC @ May 28th 2008 3:54PM]

I'm sorry, but the S770 is a 7.2MP camera.
if you mean the S880, I'm sorry because it's a 8.1MP camera... can't compare 8MP with 8.1MP right?

damn marketing

[Ken @ May 28th 2008 3:06PM]

OK, these look nice, but after some quick Google searching, these don't appear to be for sale?
I checked Amazon, they don't list BenQ in their camera section.
I also went to a few "find the best price" sites, and only found batteries for Benq!
The BenQ web site only lists LCD panels and projectors.

So, while these look cool, they don't appear to exist for sale!

[eggothewaffle @ May 28th 2008 3:14PM]

"No word on a price just yet, but you'll apparently be able to get this one in your choice of black or red when it launches in the (presumably) not too distant future."

Unless you're talking about BenQ cameras in general.

[Raymond @ May 28th 2008 3:06PM]

Still got someway to go compare to the old Sony T7's 9.8mm

[Felix Fdot @ May 28th 2008 3:37PM]

Oh yes, and those 14.9mm sure don't include the zoomed out lense, while the good ol' T7 has the 3x fitted right inside..

[Ken @ May 28th 2008 3:19PM]

BenQ in general

[chaosrain @ May 28th 2008 3:24PM]

However cool touchscreens, geotagging, zoom multipliers, and megapixels are, they are further evidence that digital camera manufacturers have lost focus in the same way that cellular handset manufacturers have.

Cell Phone's Primary Function = Making calls & holding signal
Digital Camera's Primary Function = Taking a picture when you press the button, not three seconds later

Modern Cell Phone's Primary Function = Who knows anymore as long as it's the smallest, has the fastest data network connection, best web cam, most memory, gps included, media player and comes in a variety of colors

Modern Digital Camera's Primary Function = Not taking the picture at the instant you actually press the button...colors, megapixels, geotagging, zoom, wifi

Instead of pushing us cameras based upon tangential features which offer limited utility to the platform, just give us a damned camera whose shutter lag can be measured in nanoseconds instead of seconds.

I'm all for convergence...once you've exhausted improvements in the primary function of the device. Focus people.

[dosguy @ May 28th 2008 4:41PM]

And while you're at it, how 'bout making an LCD screen that we can see outdoors?

[Dave @ May 28th 2008 5:49PM]

If you want a basic voice-only cellphone, get yourself a Jitterbug.

Most people want more.

[BobTurbo @ May 28th 2008 11:22PM]

Sorry but I can't say I agree with you at all. If you want a camera with good quality, get a dSLR. I do not believe anybody has lost focus at all. Things like cameras on phones are pretty much essential to consumers when making their purchase decision. Some people don't even take voice calls on their phone anymore as they spend all day texting.

The phones are simply adapting to what people want. Of course, if you want the old fashion values, there is the Nokia 1xxx series, or dSLR cameras. And I don't know what camera you are refering to, but my point and shoot takes the photo a lot quicker than my old analog camera despite it having modern features such as face recognition.

[Michael @ May 28th 2008 4:19PM]

Sweet! Now just put a headphone jack in there and MP3 playback and lets call it a day.

[sinai @ May 28th 2008 6:55PM]

i still can't buy anything from a company named "BenQ"

[Limp Man @ May 30th 2008 7:27AM]

are you sure it is world's slimmest camera.coz there is no actual mesure number.i see casio ex-s10 is more slim then this also 10 MP.