There are already plenty of telephoto lenses that you can add onto the lens port of your smartphone case, but Honolulu-based inventors Daniel Fujikake and Mac Nguyen have come up with an alternative. Their Snapzoom device is a universal adapter mount, that lets you use your existing binoculars to bring your smartphone closer to the action.
While it’s true that you could just hold the lens of your phone up to one eyepiece of the binoculars, the Snapzoom allows users to set the phone to the optimum position and then keep it there. The device can also be used with things like spotting scopes, telescopes and microscopes.
According to its inventors, Snapzoom works with any make or model of smartphone, with or without a case. Presumably that universality also applies to the brands of binoculars that it clamps onto.
Fujikake and Nguyen are currently raising production funds for their product, on Kickstarter. At the present time, a pledge of US$60 will get you one, when and if the funding goal is met. The planned retail price is $79.95. Potential buyers might also want to check out a similar device known as the Magnifi case, although it's iPhone-specific.
Examples of footage shot using the Snapzoom can be seen in the pitch video below.
Sources: Snapzoom, Kickstarter