A few months ago, Samsung announced the creation of an Android camera: the Samsung Galaxy Camera. Today, Samsung has sent out a press release that this camera will be available in North American markets within the next few days. The Android-based camera retails for $499, comes with or without a data plan through AT&T (in the states), and can wireless connect to the Internet, so that you can share your camera photos right away.

The concept behind the Samsung Galaxy was to create a point-and-shoot camera that had all the greatness of an Android phone without any of the fuzziness that usually comes with a camera phone. The Samsung Galaxy camera looks sleek and is small enough to carry anywhere you travel. This camera also has some other things going for it that are worthy of note.

Samsung Galaxy Camera Details

The Samsung Galaxy Camera will run on Android’s Jelly Bean (4.1). This camera also comes with a 21X zoom lens, and a 16-megapixel CMOS sensor. This is not the first Android camera to hit the market, but it is the first from Samsung. Previously, Nikon took a stab at the Android camera market with the Nikon Coolpix S800c, but this camera didn’t sell all that well.

You can think of the Galaxy Camera as a Samsung smartphone with a much larger viewfinder. While this camera can’t make any calls for you, it is capable of accessing the Google Play store. Just as you would download apps from Play to your phone, the Galaxy Camera can also download apps. For example, you could, hypothetically, use Instagram while also using your Galaxy Camera. There’s no doubt that the Samsung Galaxy Camera is a novel idea, but will this camera sell?

Is The Price Justified?

The camera market is a fickle one. Generally, there’s a large gap between those who will pay more than $1000 for a camera and those who won’t pay more than $200. The Samsung Galaxy Camera comes with the rather high price of $499. For many, that price just isn’t justified for a point-and-click option that runs Android. Sure, it’s fun to have a camera that can connect to Google Play and run apps, but Samsung may want to rethink that price tag. Chances are, only avid Android fans will shell out $499 for a camera of this caliber.

If you’re thinking of buying a new camera, I’d suggest looking at other camera options first. The Samsung Galaxy Camera is the first of its kind from Samsung, but there are comparable (or better) cameras in the same price range. Is the Google Play factor enough to justify the high price tag? It’s unlikely that most consumers will think so. Still, this camera is a novel one, and it might be one that you’ll want to consider for the huge Android fan on your holiday list. Samsung officially starts shipping the Galaxy Camera on the 15th of November. Right now, AT&T is offering various data and non-data plans for those who are interested.