Magnetic / detachable lenses suddenly make cellphone cameras fun

by Darren Murph, posted Dec 30th 2008 at 9:37AM

Not that we haven't seen patently absurd lens attachments for mobiles before, but we've yet to come across any that were this universal (and be to honest, this useful). Sure, one could argue that a detachable wide-angle, fisheye or 2x telephoto lens made for a cellphone camera is more likely to do nothing than something, but we prefer to look on the sunny side of things. In other words, it's totally worth $16.99 just to be able to make your subjects pause as you whip out the correct lens for the occasion... which you're photographing on your C905.

[Via OhGizmo]

Filed under: Multimedia, Peripherals

Tags: camera, fisheye, iphone, iphone 3g, iphone lens, Iphone3g, IphoneLens, lens, magnetic

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Neutral

Anthony @ Dec 30th 2008 10:56AM

Doubt it'd work on the SE C905 because of the metal ring necessary to affix the magnetic attachments. Though this was meant for a joke, once camera phones *do* get sophisticated enough (internal zoom, por ejemplo) this might be something that has value.

When my Hassleblad certified G1+ comes in I'll be sure to send $16.99 their way.

Neutral

aoi tsuki @ Dec 30th 2008 3:06PM

It already has value. i can't carry my Canon 5D with me all the time. i do carry my Touch Pro with me all the time. A wide angle or fisheye of decent optical quality given the use would be nice to have, and who really cares if the optical quality isn't top notch when the output is screen? Wide shots are often about capture landscapes and scenes and often don't have to have the tack sharp focus that telephoto and macro shots need. Sweeten the shot in 'shop, resample it from full res to something for my blog, and i'm good to go.

Neutral

carcomptoy @ Dec 30th 2008 12:22PM

Hmmm does the magnetic attachment that close to a phone worry anyone else??

Neutral

Sameer Surampalli @ Dec 30th 2008 1:48PM

Not really.. it's not like phones have hard drives.

Neutral

locus @ Dec 30th 2008 5:23PM

answer - NO

you do realise that your phone has speakers in it?
and that speakers run by the use of magnets

and that you can pick up around 4 paper clips with a modern smartphone.

i doubt a magnet by the lens (which is usually where all the antennas are, (the other end of the phone from all the drives/cards) would really matter

Neutral

T Hom @ Dec 30th 2008 1:56PM

and be to honest....

Neutral

Sara @ Dec 30th 2008 2:00PM

Umm,duh it's quite boring my friend has an apple iPhone like that.It's sorta boring,to be honest.

Neutral

Jeff @ Dec 30th 2008 3:04PM

I think this is an idea that would honestly fly. Cameras on cellphones are becoming better and better cameras. We all carry our cellphones with us all the time, but rarely do we have our cameras with us on the fly.

To be able to change lenses to get a better picture? Not a bad idea. Necessary? No. But useful? Ask a photographer - they'll tell you yes.

Neutral

jason @ Dec 30th 2008 6:02PM

I clicked on this article expecting to see the "cameraphones are useless, buy a real camera" arguement. But since it is for the iPhone it is the greatest thing since sliced bread. From the pics that i have seen from an iPhone, this will just magnify the horrible pictures it takes. If this attachment been for a Nokia N-series device, people would have been slamming it. And as I think about this, I would LOVE something like this for my N82. Just sayin...

Neutral

Brandon @ Jan 1st 2009 5:36PM

Get one. Find out what size would be needed to cover it and get one on ebay. I got the 17mm from fotodiox and it's great on the n95.

Neutral

David Robison @ Dec 30th 2008 11:34PM

Huh, I've gotten some great photos with my iPhone. Not all of them certainly—the lag is annoying, but many, esp. in good lighting.

Neutral

andrew @ Dec 31st 2008 1:18AM

i guess it would be a good option some time in the future. Since having a seriously sweet camera in a phone is only marketable to a certain group, they could sell a phone with a crappier lense and we could upgrade it later....but i think this would probably lead to just paying more money out in the long run.