There are no shortages of accessories that claim to make your smartphone’s camera capabilities closer to that of a DSLR. In reality, none of them have proven to do so yet. But that isn’t stopping Miggo from using the same buzzphrase as part of the pitch for a new iPhone attachment that brings physical dials, a zoom ring and a cold shoe mount to your smartphone. It’s called Pictar and while the idea behind adding physical buttons to a smartphone camera isn’t anything new, the way in which the Pictar manages to control the setting is.
Rather than relying on Bluetooth or even the Lightning connector, both of which are technologies that can fade out with time, the Pictar relies on sound to change the camera settings of your iPhone 6 (iPhone 6 Plus users are out of luck). You read that right. Sound. By using a proprietary app, the device emits various sounds between 18,500–20,000 khz into the microphone of your iPhone when a dial is turned or button is pressed. Each of these sounds in turn changes the zoom, shutter speed and such on the software side of things.
Miggo says this method of control saves far more battery power than Bluetooth or the Lightning port. The downfall you’ll have to supply your own CR ½ AA battery, which isn’t always easy to come by. Thankfully, Miggo claims one battery will last between 4–6 months of use. The device features a two-stage shutter button, two top-mounted dials, a cold shoe mount, a tripod mount and a third dial on the grip.
One day into the Kickstarter campaign and the device has already amassed $40,000 of its $100,000 goal. If it manages to get funded, the first Pictars are expected to ship November 2016. You can still get in on the ‘Early Bird Special’ which gets you a single Pictar unit, a wrist strap, a padded pouch and access to the PictarApp for $75. Head on over to the Kickstarter page find out more information and secure your pledge.
