The camera industry has gone through a number of transitions over the course of its history, with the most recent major transition being from film to digital. According to the latest numbers from NPD, however, the camera industry may be about to go through another big transition, this time towards smartphones.
Smartphones are increasingly being used to take photographs, as more people carry smartphones in their pockets than any other sort of camera. This convenience, combined with the ever increasing quality of smartphone cameras, could very well lead photography into its next major territory.
According to NPD’s latest data (via GigaOM), smartphones now account for nearly a third of all pictures taken, up a full 10 percent from this time last year, and consumer spending on cameras has decreased significantly.
Of course, one of the main factors in this transition will be the quality of cameras that are placed in smartphones, but considering how much the iPhone’s camera has improved over the years, it’s likely that all ultraportable camera modules will continue to improve.
If this trend continues, it could effectively make point-and-shoot cameras irrelevant for the majority of traditional users. The iPhone 4S can already rival most consumer cameras in image quality, stabilization and other key areas. It won’t take long for other smartphones to catch up.
This trend is only made more significant with the popularity of services like Instagram and other services, which make your photos much easier to share and encourage greater social connectivity.
In short, while smartphones may never pose a challenge to professional film and video cameras on a wide scale, they could very easily topple the consumer camera market.
Considering that some pretty amazing photos and videos can already be shot using only a smartphone, it’s only a matter of time until the smartphone revolution takes hold on the camera industry at large.
