January 26, 1998 Get The Picture Business users of digital cameras prefer `convenience features' over image quality By Jon Pepper igital cameras are quickly making the transition from interesting curiosities able to take pictures of only moderate quality to high-quality cameras that just happen to be digital. The aspects that make digital cameras appealing to business-instant images, high security, and convenience-are being joined by the capacity to create photographic images that are close to conventional-camera quality. The first generation of digital cameras could create photos with VGA quality: 650 by 480 pixels. But digital generations move fast, and some of today's digital cameras offer two times, even three times that resolution. Some can even render megapixel images-that is, 1 million pixels-and are available now. This sp ring, several new camera models are expected to deliver 2 megapixels, enough resolution to deliver snapshot-sized photos that provide crisp, clear quality images. All this should translate into plenty of interest and plenty of new applications for business, right? Not so fast. Although corporate interest in digital cameras continues to grow, many corporate buyers and camera vendors agree that image quality is not the only reason to make digital cameras standard equipment in corporate IS departments. "For the business user who wants to add photos to reports or other applications, the quality of a VGA camera is just fine," says Nancy Carr, a national marketing manager at Nikon Inc. in Melville, N.Y. "The business market looks beyond pure image quality." Adds Jonathan Cassel, an analyst with Dataquest, "If you want to transfer digital images over a network, yo u don't want huge, high-resolution files." Ironically, what's good enough for business customers-VGA picture quality-may not be enough for consumers. They want the convenience of digital, but with the same level of quality they can get from inexpensive point-and-shoot 35-mm cameras. Yet sales are hardly slouching. Dataquest estimates that 2.1 million of the under-$1,000 digital cameras were sold in North America last year, up from 1.1 million in 1996. By 2000, North American sales could hit 7.4 million units, Dataquest predicts. So, if image quality is not the top concern for business, what is? According to Nikon's Carr, there are several other factors. These include the ability to print directly to a computer printer, a conveniently small camera, the ability to use several lenses in a single camera, and the ability to add sound and handwriting to a photo. "All of these so-called camera features mean a lot to them," she adds. "It's the features, not the pure image quality, that make sense. For business, the digital camera is an information-gathering device." Decent, Fast Images But the No. 1 issue, Carr says, is saving time and money by eliminating the need to process film. For that reason, she contends that many businesses use digital cameras to replace not older 35-mm cameras, but older Polaroids. State Farm Insurance Co. in Bloomington, Ill., for instance, has 60,000 Polaroid cameras and makes about 65 million prints a year. Business users want decent, fast images. If the image quality is high, fine; if not, that's mostly fine, too. Convenience, not pure photo quality, was a key deciding factor for Kodak digital-camera user Sentinel Real Estate Corp. in New York, says VP Karen Kringel. Sentinel, which buys real-estate investment properties for clients, uses the cameras to photograph properties. "We have done that and used it to produce a face book-a photo directory of employees-and for other applications in our in-house creative department," says Kringel. When buyers wa nt to show a property they have already invested in, they'll go out and hire professional photographers. "But the digital camera is better when we don't want to spend the money we would if we owned it," she says. Although Sentinel wanted photos that looked good, Kringel says, digital photographs "don't have to be the highest quality." Instead, the Kodak digital camera they use is fine, since it "provides good quality and ample camera features." In fact, according to a survey conducted by Nikon, the ability to store and manipulate images-and to save time and money-is uppermost among digital-camera business needs. Although creative departments and graphic artists will always push for higher quality, most business departments will be more interested in a mix of features than in a pure film replacement, according to the Nikon survey. Ana Jen, product manager for digital cameras at Epson America Inc. in Torrance, Calif., says the ability to shorten business cycles has made digital cameras popular in i nsurance and real estate. Quality assurance is emerging as another popular area, Jen says. For example, Epson digital cameras are used to document repairs made at chemical plants. "It really provided time and money savings for them," she says. Jen also sees a split in the market. On the one hand, image quality is the supreme requirement for a few, visually oriented vertical markets-graphics, for instance-but for the rest of the business market, VGA seems to do the trick. "When the primary use is to look at something on the screen or have an electronic record, you don't need a megapixel printout," Jen says. That kind of thinking led Waste Management Systems Inc. to purchase more than 1,000 digital cameras. The Oak Brook, Ill., company, which serves commercial, industrial, and home customers across the country, charges customers extra for overfilled containers and needed quick, reliable proof. "We wanted can't-miss documentation to eliminate any problems," says a spokeswoman. For Waste Management, as for many other businesses, the instant imaging offered by digital cameras was the major attraction. Higher-quality images was a distant second. Waste Management gave Epson PhotoPC 500 cameras to drivers on its commercial routes. The drivers use the cameras to photograph any overloaded containers. The drivers then bring the cameras back to the office, where the digital images are downloaded into a custom in-house software package. The software includes the photo in a form letter to the customer, notifying them of the overage charge. The program works so well that Waste Management is adding more cameras. So does this mean that picture quality is irrelevant to businesses? Not at all, says David Veilleux, director of digital-products marketing at Olympus America Inc. in Melville. He says image quality will spur the business market as users move to higher-quality cameras. "All the wisdom in the world said you couldn't sell $900 [digital] cameras," says Veilleux. "But we sold as many over $850 last year as we did under $700." Veilleux adds that other features, such as the ability to connect directly to a printer, or to send an image to a television or VCR, makes the camera a portable presentation tool and are also relevant. Another benefit, Veilleux says: Since all business users are also consumers, they understand the traditional camera metaphor quite well. "We find that the training costs are minimized when you introduce digital camera technology that has an overall experience close to a regular film camera," he says. "It makes the payback much quicker." Ultimately, digital cameras will become a big part of the camera market. But while consumers will flock to high-quality images, business users will migrate to digital cameras for ease of use, speed, and convenience. As Dataquest's Cassel says, "The VGA standard is a good business solution right now." Back to News in Review Send Us Your Feedback Top of the Page

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