Unboxing the Lytro Camera

Unboxing the Lytro Camera

Time to unbox the Lytro Camera!

Unboxing the Lytro Camera

The Lytro Camera made waves last year worldwide when they showcased the after-shot focusing feature of their optics. It grabbed the attention of all the tech and photography blogs and it even caused a series of debates between traditional and liberal photographers. Personally I was blown away by the concept and I wasn’t expecting it to actually become commercially available. You know like those products showcased in CES that never see the light of day beyond the exhibition hall. However it looks like the makers of Lytro were serious in their endeavor and launched it in the US two months ago! The awesome news is that one of our good friends, Direk Paolo Dy, was able to get one during his visit to the US and he brought it back here to the Philippines. He was gracious enough to lend the unit to us so that we can feature it here on Unbox!

What makes Lytro special? Like what we said you can “refocus” the image even after taking the shot. Here’s a picture that we took at the office earlier this afternoon:

Try clicking on different parts of the photo to “refocus”. Suggest you click on the Humpty Dumpty on the foreground and then click the one at the back. Amazing right?!

Here’s a quick teaser video we prepared showing the Lytro in different angles:

Read on for the unboxing!

Packaging and Hardware

The box looks awfully familiar

From the packaging alone you can already see the influence Apple has had on this company. The Lytro box looks like a giant iPhone 4/4S box, complete with the giant product shot at the front and the specs at the back. Opening it is also a very similar experience. Lift the top of the box and it will reveal the camera nestled on a hard black plastic plate.

Why hello there sezzy...

The unit loaned to us by Direk Pao was color red with a gray rubber section near the viewfinder and a black frame for the lens. It looked absolutely stunning but once the novelty wore off I found myself “weirded” out by it because this definitely wasn’t your usual camera. Actually if I didn’t know better I probably would have mistaken it for a telescope or microscope!

Controls on the gray rubber section

All the controls and “buttons” are on the gray rubber section. You’ll find the micro-USB port for charging and media transfer, the power button, shoot button, and it’s also touch sensitive because you can use the top part to zoom in and out of shots by sliding your finger to the right or left.

The Lytro isn’t too big but it’s not small either. Here’s a photo of it side-by-side the Nokia Lumia 710.

It's not that small.
Shot from another angle

The viewfinder is also another area where you’ll find Apple’s influence. To view photos you’ve taken you need to swipe left on the screen (touch screen yay). Swiping upwards brings up a bunch of options like delete and settings. Again to zoom you have to just slide your finger at the top part of the gray rubber section.

Lytro Viewfinder

By the way there’s not SD card slot here. The photos are stored inside the Lytro camera. The model we had could take up to 16GB worth of pictures.

What else is in the box? You’ll find the following: manual, wrist strap, magnetic lens cover, and a cloth to wipe the lens and viewfinder clean.

Full Review Coming Soon!

We have the Lytro for a few days and we definitely intend to make the most of the time we have with it! Expect the full review early next week or maybe even by this weekend.

With regards to availability and pricing, the Lytro is currently not being sold here in the Philippines. Hopefully someone will pick it up though. For the price we’re looking at around Php24,000-Php25,000 for the 16GB model.

i-Lytro mo!

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