Samsung unveils 8-megapixel camera phone

Samsung INNOV8 (i8510)
Credit: CNET Asia

With a 10-megapixel mobile phone in its handset lineup, Samsung is no stranger to high-end camera phones. But as if to prove that it really means business, today the company announced a new 8-megapixel shooter.

Called the Innov8 (the what?), it promises a full set of camera features to keep shutterbugs happy. Inside you'll find an auto-panorama mode; a bright flash; smile, blink, and face detection; wide dynamic range capturing abilities; and a video recorder that captures clips at 30 frames per second.

Beyond snapping shots, it also has an FM radio, Wi-Fi, a large display with an accelerometer, and an optical mouse. It has a 3.5mm headset jack, stereo Bluetooth, 16GB of internal memory, a microSD card slot, a music player, and A-GPS. And of course, it makes calls as well.

Also called the i8510, the Samsung Innov8 is a quadband GSM handset that supports the 1900 and 2100 HSDPA bands. It should launch in the European market by next month with other regions following in September. Pricing details are not yet available. With this new handset Samsung seems to be going after both the Sony Ericsson C905 and the Motorola ZN5.