Casio EX-10HG

The Casio EX-10HG is a new concept camera that was not part of any announcements at CES 2010.  A handful of EX-10HG prototypes were on display in Casio’s booth on the CES showfloor.

The EX-10HG is essentially an EX-FH100 with one important difference – it includes a hybrid GPS system built-in to the camera.  This is not just a geotagging camera.  The EX-10HG has a full-fledged GPS system, complete with map system powered by Google Maps.

What the built-in maps mean is that you can see your location on the EX-10HG’s LCD panel.  If and when it makes its way to market, the camera is expected to come pre-loaded with worldwide maps.  Additionally, the maps will feature pre-loaded images with pin drops at photographic points of interest throughout the world.

When you capture photos with the EX-10HG, the camera will also add pin drops at the location of your images.  The camera will segregate your images from the pre-loaded images by using different colored pin drops.  By clicking on the various pin drops (whether yours or the pre-loaded ones), you will be able to review the images taken at the respective locations.

Although the prototypes at CES didn’t have one, the final version of the EX-10HG should feature a touchscreen LCD in order to make navigating through the GPS system easier.

The EX-10HG will also feature an internal storage device to house the GPS maps and possibly photos.  The camera will also accept SD cards for image storage.

Part of the “hybrid” component to the camera will mean that you can treat it as a fully functional GPS device as well.  One of the phrases that was repeatedly mentioned during my preview of the camera was that it works “like Garmin,” a leader in GPS products.   The EX-10HG will serve as a digital compass and track your mileage covered, steps taken and trails hiked just like you find in other popular GPS devices.

You can scroll the maps around to find locations nearby.  While playing the with the EX-10HG for a few minutes, I was able to pinpoint my location at the Las Vegas Convention Center and scroll around through the other locales in Vegas, all of which are helpfully labeled thanks to Google Maps.

As mentioned earlier, the EX-10HG is purely a concept device at this point and there is no scheduled time frame for release at this point.  Likewise, there is no anticipated pricepoint yet; however, Casio is in the process of conducting customer surveys seeking feedback on how much consumers would be willing to pay for the extra functionality of the EX-10HG’s hybrid GPS features.  I was told that the unofficial results of those surveys suggest that most people would be willing to pay an extra $75 to $100 for it.  Taking the price of the EX-FH100, on which the concept camera is based, would put the price point in the neighborhood of $475 to $500.

Hopefully, we’ll know more about the EX-10HG at PMA 2010 next month.  Stay tuned.