From an entry in Gizmodo I learned that Motorola's new Smartphone, the MPx200 using Microsoft's OS, will be able to use a camera that's inserted into the SD card slot. The 640 x 480 camera is expected to cost $120.
That's $40 more than the cost of the phone if you go through Amazon to sign up for a two-year contract from AT&T Wireless and mail in two rebates: From AT&T and Amazon.
There is just about no reason to purchase an external camera for a cellular phone -- except if your company bans camera phones -- because it defeats the purpose of having a camera that's always with you. If you always carry a cellular phone with an integrated camera, you will always have a digital camera.
Based upon the low cost of regular VGA cameras and the high price of the Motorola offering, I predict this will be a failure. The phone itself, the camera notwithstanding, has been receiving rather good reviews, although it certainly isn't perfect.
The future isn't "external"
As I've said before, the future of camera phones is with integrated, not external, cameras.
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