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Samsung unveils 7-megapixel camera phone

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd unveiled the world's first mobile phone with a powerful 7-megapixel camera on Wednesday, providing a potential competitive threat to manufacturers of digital cameras.

Samsung has been stepping up development of increasingly sophisticated phones for high-end users looking to access games, music and movies on their handsets. It launched the world's first 5-megapixel phone in October.

But while top digital camera makers such as Japan's Canon Inc and Sony Corp are likely to see the model as a new threat, its popularity may depend on how much of an improvement the camera can deliver over existing units.

There is a growing consensus among consumers that 3 or 4 megapixels, the measure of how many million picture elements are captured in a digital snapshot, are enough for a decent shot.

Some of the best-selling digital cameras feature 4 or 5 megapixels.

The new phone, which also has an MP3 player and business card reader, would go on sale as early as the first half, though a price had yet to be set, Samsung said in a statement. Samsung aims to sell 100 million mobile phones this year, up 16 percent from 86 million sold last year. The SCH-V770 phone will make its international debut at CeBIT, the world's biggest tech and telecoms trade show, in Hanover, Germany.

Shares in Samsung, Asia's most valuable technology company with a market value of $81 billion, ended down 0.4 percent at 500,000 won, versus a 0.85 percent rise in the broader market. reuters

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