Android, the ever popular Linux-based mobile operating system, has managed to work its way into smartphones, tablets, and embedded devices. Interestingly, the next step for Android seems to be taking over the digital camera market. Historically, digital cameras use proprietary firmware that is specific to the manufacturer’s products. Standardized (and more open) camera OSes have tried in the past and failed to catch on, but Android may just be the open operating system that cameras have been waiting for.

In an internet-connected world where smartphone cameras have become the primary camera of opportunity for many people, compact digital cameras do not hold the luster that they once did. Despite having larger sensors, better lenses, longer zooms, and more control over the resulting photos, the simplicity and instant sharing of smartphones has relegated compact cameras to second tier devices. Camera manufacturers and researchers have tried various sharing (over WiFi) features, but they have never been as convenient and easy to use as the camera apps found in the latest mobile operating systems. Hackable operating systems have also existed, most notably CHDK for Canon cameras, but a standardized and cross-manufacturer OS has yet to be adopted.

If any open source operating system can make its way into cameras, it’s Android. In fact recent rumors suggest that Samsung, which is heavily invested in alternative operating systems like Tizen and Android, is looking into the feasibility of using the Android operating system to power its future digital cameras. Should this turn into a trend that most camera manufacturers follow, Android could help to revitalize the compact digital camera market by bringing the best parts of the smartphone camera to “real” camera hardware.

Underneath what will likely be a custom interface (akin to TouchWiz on smartphones), is the Linux-based Android kernel that you can harness to play around with computational photography techniques. Following in the footsteps of the Camera 2.0 research performed by Stanford, Android could provide a malleable platform to implement HDR, panoramic image stitching, and other interesting features that can extend the functionality and possibilities of images taken in a variety of situations. Camera 2.0 was capable of turning an N900 smartphone into a rather powerful camera, but it remained very niche software. With Android, researchers and developers could focus on a single OS to provide you with some powerful imaging options.

There are a few hurdles to using Android to power digital cameras, however. The most notable obstacle is that Android is a general purpose OS that is capable of a lot of things, but that same feature that makes it a good candidate for devices like tablets will hurt it for such specific applications as dedicated cameras. Boot-up time, battery usage, and resource management will all have to be focused — and in the case of start-up time cut down considerably. The resultant OS will be based on Android but the final code will likely be rather cut down and tweaked. Assuming that it is possible to get an Android-powered camera with similar performance and battery life as those with a proprietary OS/firmware, the remaining obstacle is getting the various camera manufacturers to give up their closed-source software and adopt Android. There is likely a considerable investment in the current firmware that companies are using, so any Android adoption will likely be a slow roll out as older camera lines are phased out and new ones are released.

In the end though, adding Android makes a lot of sense for both manufacturers and consumers. Manufacturers can simply build upon the existing (Android) code, add their custom UIs (or not), and create a curated app store for camera apps and take a cut of the sales. You then get a camera with the instant sharing of a smartphone, and the expandable and hackable software of an open and standardized operating system. You get a device that can have smartphone features and better camera hardware. Android, and Linux in general, has a way of working its way into everyday devices, and your next digital camera may well be the next step for the mobile operating system.