CES 2015 is just over a week away, and industry analysts are anxiously awaiting product launches and announcements from a number of Fortune 500 companies at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. In recent years CES has declined in company participation with industry giants like Microsoft dropping out of the race in favor of their own press events, something that Apple Inc. began long ago. Nevertheless, many companies still use the forum of CES to make important announcements.

Kodak was often a fan favorite at CES in past years, including an appearance by Lady Gaga in 2011 to launch their "Grey Label" line of products. The product line included some pretty unusual gadgets, including sunglasses that doubled as a video camera, a portable wireless printer and an updated version of the classic Polaroid camera. After much fanfare, Kodak was still close to bankruptcy by 2012.

Now after years of trying to stay afloat, Kodak has announced it will be releasing a line of Android smartphones and tablets at CES in partnership with Bullitt Group, which so far has developed phones for heavy-duty situations such as construction sites. According to the press release the new devices are "aimed at -- but not exclusively for -- consumers who want a high-end experience but aren't always as comfortable using increasingly complicated mobile devices as they would like to be. The range of smartphones and tablets will come preloaded with bespoke image capture, management and sharing features to offer a rich user experience."

Evidently the Kodak phones will focus on image capture and interaction with third party image software. This is only fitting as perhaps no other brand name in the world is more paired with photography.

CEO of Bullitt Mobile Oliver Schulte said, "Delivering simplicity without compromise, these devices will address a segment of the mobile device market that has been poorly served to date. By giving customers easy access to printing and sharing services while still offering the latest Android OS and features found on high-end smartphones, we will appeal to a large audience of users who value ease of use and stylish design as highly as they value functionality."

CES 2015 begins Jan. 6, 2015.