Panasonic Lumix phone: Specs revealed

Panasonic is all set to expand its Lumix digital camera brand to cell phones. The company will unveil its first “Lumix Phone” at Ceatec electronics show in Japan, to be held next week.

The Lumix phone features a camera with 13-megapixel CMOS image sensor and a 3.3-inch screen with WVGA resolution. Moreover, the phone comes with a digital zoom.

It is noteworthy that these specifications are similar to a Panasonic compact digital camera, making this camera phone – at least on paper – a worthy competitor to digital cameras.

Surely, the specifications make the Lumix phone different and ahead of most other handsets. The Lumix phone features a mobile version of Panasonic’s VenusEngine image processing chip for HD images. In addition, the phone offers picture sharing over Wi-Fi and DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) networks. The phone weighs 146g and measures 11.6 cm 5.2cm x 1.8cm and supports a microSDHC slot.

We can see a trend emerging where several consumer electronic companies have used the name of their camera or TV brand on their high end mobilephones. Panasonic has given the name Viera to some of its phones – Viera is the brand name of its flat-panel TVs – which feature advanced TV functions. Sony and Sharp have done the same with their Bravia and Aquos brands.

The Panasonic Lumix Phone will be initially lanched in Japan, and later make it to the European and US markets. Full specifications and the price of the phone will be revealed during its CEATEC launch.