Smartphone accessories seem to get more absurd as time goes on. I'm not talking about novelty cases that look like cassette tapes... I'm referring to the ever-growing collection of lens adapters, grips and tripods that are intended to "enhance" the photography experience of your smartphone.
The latest accessory that has me scratching my head is this iPhone viewfinder...Through the magic of what looks like a loupe attached to a suction cup, you too can pretend that you're gazing through a pseudo-viewfinder as you awkwardly place your iPhone up to your face and take a shot. The fun doesn't stop there. In order to recreate the viewfinder experience you need a special app that gives you a scaled down live view within a circle that shows you where to slap on the ocular attachment.
I get it...besides making you look goofy it's supposed to help you take pictures in extremly blinding sunlight. I imagine getting a call during the process would look a little ridiculous: "Hold on, I can't hear you because there's a viewfinder in the way of the earpiece..." With the amount of money you would put into a making your iPhone perform like a real camera, you could probably buy a dozen or so. Here's a mock-up of what your phone would look like after a dozen or so accessories attached.
As you can see, you're going to need an assistant.
To be fair I don't see anything wrong with general quirkiness or what the Japanese call kawaii. I'll even admit that I've purchased a few things for my camera from Photojojo. Where else are you going to find a Houndstooth necktie camera strap? There goes whatever inkling of street cred I might have had. Having fun is a good thing and novelty is great in short doses, but where do we draw the line? I just don't see the appeal to all these camera phone accessories and chances are, I never will. Am I overreacting or is this a step in the wrong direction for photography?