Comment by chaostheory | Hacker News Reader

Comment by chaostheory | Hacker News Reader

Constructive feedback about the video and website (if the founders are reading)... I'm probably not the target demographic since I don't know much about cameras, but the video did not quickly explain to me why this camera was so special aside from me seeing multiple lenses; I would have just turned it off after the 15 second mark (even if I saw this on Product Hunt) if this wasn't posted on HN. It felt like the video didn't really convey anything and I couldn't help but feel that it was a waste of my time watching it to the end. Of course it could just be me.

If only this was front and center on their webpage (it took me a really long time to find this):

"With 16 individual cameras, 10 of them firing simultaneously, the L16 captures the detail of your shot at multiple fixed focal lengths. Then the images are computationally fused to create an incredible high-quality final image with up to 52 megapixel resolution."

So you can fit a camera with the power of a DSLR in your pocket now, while having the same ease of use as a smart phone?

As a quick fix: drop the video and fix your site so that you can explain why your camera is so special at the top of the page. Use the image gallery as quick proof right after the explanation.

It's not just you. The video, while beautiful, is completely superfluous and distracting from the target market. In the video, nice people use a cool smartphone to take pictures. One edits them on their computer. People are enjoying what they are doing. I had to guess, based on the fact that the camera appears to have multiple (independent?) lenses, that some kind of computational method was combining the image data, and then returning to the site revealed that this is basically the case.

Many questions remain unanswered. Will I be able to fully edit the photos on my phone, or do I need to get a Mac and some custom software to really take advantage of this system? Will the software on the device be open? I'd like insurance against the unfortunate case that you make a nice device but then go out of business. Will the battery be replaceable? A non-replaceable battery in a $1600 handheld device is a really nasty design decision.

In short, really nice, and I would love to drop $200 right now to reserve one, but I'm afraid that I won't be able to undo the reservation if it turns out that the feature set of the phone doesn't match up with my practical needs. Marketing: you are losing sales right now. Go back to the beginning and explain to us why this is a good device.

In addition, neither the video nor the FAQs clearly explain the basic technical details that users look for in a device

The other video, at the bottom of /camera is much better: https://vimeo.com/141273968

Wow, that is an order of magnitude more interesting.

This video is much, much more engaging, explanatory and human.

This should come first.

And will I be able to replace the battery? ;)

I had the same reaction. My assumption was that this camera allows for variable depth of field in post production, but virtually nothing about the video says this. They showed someone tweaking a photo but the shot was too short and subtle to notice.

Personally I'm completely turned off by the cellphone form factor, its possibly the worst possible way to hold something steady to take a photograph.

Or to be blunt: It's about 1:30 long, with 1:29 of that people taking photos. There's about a second of a guy tweaking parameters on a computer to change the aperture, etc, in post processing.

Also agree. needs more "meat". maybe add 30 seconds in the middle actually explaining the USP of this thing.

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