Samsung in the photographic market

Good day to all Habravchanam and Habravchanka!

Today I will talk about one of the activities of Samsung - photography. We will a little dusty archival shelves and find out how it all began, and then move on to current developments and existing models on the market.


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How it all began

Now it is hard to imagine that once the company was not represented in this market. Moreover, she once did not do electronics at all. However, this is another story - we will not climb this far. Samsung appeared in (then still united) Korea in 1938. The first and only company profile at that time was ... fig. Trade was going well, and, gradually, the Korean-Chinese joint venture expanded its operations. A quality breakthrough happened in 1969, when the black-and-white TV production workshop was opened. Very soon the company was reorganized and renamed Samsung Electronics, which determined the future development vector. Today there is hardly a sphere of industry, which, one way or another, Samsung is not engaged. One of the most striking and important is photographic equipment and photography.

Photo shoot

The first Samsung camera was released in 1979. The pilot model SF-A could not compete with recognized leaders in the industry, but was made conscientiously and easy to operate, in short, fulfilled its primary task: Samsung introduced it in a new market. The mass consumer favorably met the novice, appreciating the cheap but reliable Samsung cameras. The next turning point was the signing of a partnership agreement with German optics manufacturer Schneider-Kreuznach, in 1995.



For photo enthusiasts familiar with German optics, this was a guarantee of Samsung's quality, and for the manufacturer itself - a noticeable breakthrough towards professional cameras.
In the late 90s, Samsung also tried its hand in the segment of SLR cameras, releasing its first DSLR - non-autofocus Samsung SR4000 with Schneider-Kreuznach optics. It was a good camera, however, he could not compete on an equal footing with the “bison” of the market. However, this was another step towards the success of Samsung.

We are in the matrix

Shortly before these events, in 1994, Samsung set foot on a new ground in the rapidly growing digital photography market. The SSC-410N, which looks more like modern binoculars or a small video projector, was equipped with a 1/3-inch CCD matrix with a resolution of 768 x 484 pixels, a zoom lens with an equivalent focal length of 40–120 mm and an integrated memory module of 4 MB .



However, the model hit the shelves only in 1997, and a year earlier came a compact digital camera with a more familiar design - the Samsung Kenox SSC-350N, which was also produced under the Apple and Fujifilm brands. Simple in content and management, the camera was one of the first of its kind, costing less than $ 1,000.

At the PMA 2002 exhibition, Samsung announced itself in full voice, presenting to the public a new lineup of Digimax digital soap trays from 2 to 4 MP.
In parallel with this, photography was integrated into mobile phones. Here, Samsung immediately got down to business, in 2004, the first in the world to present a camera phone with a resolution of 5 megapixel matrix. Soon the first phone with a 7-megapixel camera appeared.

In 2006, the first digital SLR Samsung GX-1S saw the light, which became the joint work of Samsung and Pentax. It was followed by a 10-megapixel semi-professional SLR GX-10.

Mirrorless

In 2009, Samsung pleased amateur photographers by introducing the new NX series cameras. At a reasonable price, the company offered high-quality products that came to taste to many sophisticated users.



NX uses an APS-C matrix larger than other companies. Unlike digital SLR cameras, the NX uses contrast autofocus, which is much more difficult to manage and design. The idea of ​​the creators of the new optics was to minimize the weight of moving parts to accelerate focusing, as well as to improve the system of optical stabilization. The result of hard work was a delicate balance between the quality of the image in the center and along the edges.

Samsung continues to improve in the creation of photographic equipment. The NX series made a very good impression on amateur photographers, and continues to grow with new cameras, lenses and accessories. The plans of Samsung, no less, no less - the release of the first place in the market of mirrorless cameras, and by 2015 - the title of the best brand in the market of photographic equipment. In our opinion, these ambitions are quite reasonable and realistic.