While all eyes have been on Apple’s iPad, one device that’s well and truly aimed at GenBlog is Sony’s imaginatively named ‘Bloggie’. No, that’s not a joke. Yes, it’s for real. (And to think Apple copped a heap of flack because their product sounded a bit like a feminine hygiene product!)
So what on Earth is a boggie, ah, I mean ‘Bloggie’ exactly? Well, it’s basically a video phone. Without the phone. In what is presumably an attempt to cash in on the fact every man and his dog wants to post content to the web to share with the world in the vain hope someone else cares, Sony have come up with a full HD point and shoot device. I suppose in the old days (ie last year) we might have called it a video camera. But the fact it has less buttons than your average firearm and requires no tape or disc, i guess qualifies it as a bit of a new device.
“Record at any angle” they scream. And “Colourful and funky”. What?!?! Really? Colourful AND funky?
I admit, the USB connector makes it super simply to upload your photos or video to “update your blog or post to your favourite wesbites in a few clicks”, but I’m still struggling to know why that’s so different to shooting something on my trusty video phone right now. Perhaps mine’s not HD, but then, I’m not about to shoot Avatar 2 on the damn thing – and at least i can make phone calls on mine.
OK, so this isn’t a product review and i haven’t actually used one. Maybe when i do, I’ll be a convert and my next blog will be an HD video uploaded from my colourful and funky Bloggie… but i doubt it.
But rather than just bag what is obviously quite a clever piece of technology just for the hell of it, I suppose I really wanted to make yet another point about brands and marketing. Sure, companies are all on the lookout for the NBT (Next Big Thing). And i completely understand them wanting to flex their technological muscle. But when did the basics of actually giving people what they want, or solving a problem they actually have, go out the window?
How many people do you know who have been begging for yet another device to carry around to make their lives easier? If it’s ever your job to develop and/or market a new product or service, might I very gently suggest making sure people want what you’re offering before you spend a zillion dollars developing it and TWO zillion dollars trying to convince people they should buy it.
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