Lytro Focus-Free Camera: A Hands-On Experience [VIDEOS]

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We had so much fun at the launch of the Lytro, the groundbreaking light-field camera that takes pictures instantly and lets you focus anywhere within the frame, we wanted more hands-on time with the device. Even the media won't be getting review units until 2012, so we did the next best thing: inviting Lytro founder Ren Ng to Mashable's San Francisco offices for a personal demonstration.

Check out the videos above for the result. Some key takeaways:

The zoom button is almost impossible to find, but very natural to use once you know where it is.

The touch-sensitive LCD is tiny! It's very responsive, but hardly the world's best screen for viewing your photos.

Pointing and shooting feels amazing when there's absolutely no delay.

There is a slot on the side that lets you add a carrying strap, which allays one of our concerns.

Lytro pictures get much more dramatic when you're lining up something very close and very far away. You'll have fun playing around with that.

Take a look at our photo galleries below for more, and let us know in the comments if this makes you want to put down $399 for the camera more or less.

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