What is the functions of a viewfinder?

[jasper2745]

What are the drawbacks of a camera without a viewfinder?

 

[R_1]

aiming. will you cut off Johns head in the picture, can you see little Cindy at the bottom? if you just want a picture of "over there somewhere" a viewfinder is not really needed, but if you want to take an in focus picture of a person or thing a viewfinder is needed.

 

[USAFRet]

And the benefits might be...
Longer battery life
Simplicity
Marketing to people who think it is "cool".

 

[herrwizo]

Viewfinder also makes it easier to shoot in bright sunlight, when LCD might be too hard to see.

 

[13thmonkey]

zero lag, what happens in the viewfinder happens 'live' the live view can be delayed by 10ths of a second or so, probably better now than on my 6 yr old canon.