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Lytro Announces Shutdown Following Acquisition Rumors

'Starting today we will not be taking on new productions or providing professional services as we prepare to wind down the company,' the Lytro team wrote in a Tuesday blog post.

 & Angela Moscaritolo Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

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Lytro, the photography startup best known for its "shoot first, focus later" camera, has announced it is shutting down.

"Starting today we will not be taking on new productions or providing professional services as we prepare to wind down the company," the Lytro team wrote in a Tuesday blog post. "We're excited to see what new opportunities the future brings for the Lytro team as we go our separate ways."

The news comes after TechCrunch last week, citing "multiple" unnamed sources, reported that Google is gearing up to acquire Lytro for "about $40 million." As for whether that acquisition actually comes to pass remains to be seen.

The Lytro Light Field Camera, designed to capture images that you can focus after they've been shot, hit the scene in 2012 and earned a "fair" rating in PCMag's review that year.

"The camera lives up to this promise, but the photos it captures are of generally poor quality and the Lytro has the worst ergonomic design of any camera I've ever used," PCMag's Jim Fisher wrote in the review, calling the device "little more than an overpriced toy."

The company's follow-up Illum camera also underwhelmed. "If you're really in love with the idea of light field photography, the Illum is certainly a better camera than its predecessor, but I'm of the opinion that the technology isn't yet ready for prime time," Fisher wrote in 2014.

After its Light Field imaging technology failed to catch on with photographers, Lytro in 2015 shifted its focus to virtual reality with Immerge, a camera rig targeted at big-time production studios with deep pockets. The following year, the company introduced Cinema, another professional light field camera that promised to allow for hefty video edits after filming.

"At Lytro, we believe that Light Field will continue to shape the course of Virtual and Augmented Reality, and we're incredibly proud of the role we've been able to play in pushing the boundaries of what's possible," the team wrote in their blog post today. "We would like to thank the various communities that have supported us and hope that our paths will cross in the future."

About Our Expert

Angela Moscaritolo

Angela Moscaritolo

Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

My Experience

I'm PCMag's managing editor for consumer electronics, overseeing an experienced team of analysts covering smart home, home entertainment, wearables, fitness and health tech, and various other product categories. I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. I previously served as an analyst focused on smart home and wearable devices, and before that I was a reporter covering consumer tech news. I'm also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade. 

Prior to joining PCMag, I was a reporter for SC Magazine, focusing on hackers and computer security. I earned a BS in journalism from West Virginia University, and started my career writing for newspapers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Technology I Use

My little Florida beach bungalow is brimming with smart home tech. I have a smart speaker or display in every room, allowing me to control other connected devices by voice. The Nest Hub on my bedside table lets me set wake-up alarms, control my smart light bulbs, and set the temperature on my smart thermostat. I use the Amazon Echo Show 8 on my kitchen counter to browse recipes, reorder protein powder, check the weather, and watch the news while I do dishes. 

Because I suffer from allergies, air purifiers are essential. My favorite model is the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07, which doubles as a fan and continuously sends indoor pollution data to its companion mobile app. 

My pitbull Bradley sheds, so a good robot vacuum is a must. I currently use a premium Ecovacs Deebot that can both vacuum and mop, empty its own dustbin, and wash its own mop cloth. 

For fitness, I like to mix up my routine with cycling, indoor rowing, running, and strength training in addition to yoga. I take classes on the Tonal 2 smart strength training machine, I row indoors on an Aviron machine, and track my beach runs with an Apple Watch while listening to music on my Apple AirPods Pro. On the weekends, I love riding e-bikes like the rugged, beach-friendly Aventon Aventure for fun and fitness.

My job involves a lot of virtual meetings, so a quality webcam, microphone, and ring light are important. I use the Jabra PanaCast 20 webcam, the Elgato Wave: 3 microphone, and a Yesker tripod ring light. 

As for my preferred phone platform, I'm an iPhone person, but I've also extensively used Android for product testing.

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