More than EnviroStats!

Digital cameras are suffering from the same sort of “trendiness” turnover as cell phones. These don’t seem to include digital SLRs, though, because Nikon isn’t left out of the market if you include them. But here’s my question then, if the digital SLRs are not included, why are so many of these digital cameras selling with the phones having picture features these days? Sure, they’re not as good, but a lot of people don’t care for a second item to carry around for their casual fun pictures anyway, and the camera phones are getting better.

Research firm IDC, in its quarterly report, said camera makers shipped 8.4 million units, fuelled by customers desire for fashionable models with new features such as image stabilization.

Japan’s Canon Inc. remained the top selling brand, with a 23 per cent market share. Next was Sony Inc. at 18 per cent, while Eastman Kodak had a 15 per cent share, IDC said.

South Korea’s Samsung saw its U.S. market share halved to about 4 per cent, IDC said.

Digital camera shipments so far this year have been stronger than expected, reversing a trend of declining growth seen over the past four years.

In many cases cameras, which come in multiple colours, have become a kind of fashion item, much like tiny mobile phones or Apple Inc’s iPod digital music player.

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Total sales were $1.1-billion, compared with $643-million a year earlier, according to market research firm NPD.

Nintendo sold 519,000 Wiis while Microsoft Corp. sold 366,000 Xbox 360 consoles and Sony Corp. sold 121,000 of its PlayStation 3 machines.

In September, the Xbox 360 knocked the Wii from the top spot it had held all year, thanks to a boost from the release of Microsoft’s blockbuster ‘Halo 3′ game.

This stuff will eventually end up as e-waste, of course, but the time to make the change is now. [Envirostats author]

- The Globe & Mail (cameras) and The Globe & Mail (video games), Nov 16 2007