Sony Takes Mobile Cameras To New Level

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Sony Ericsson recently announced a total of five new handsets to the market, spanning the range from budget throwaways to feature-packed behemoths.

We’ll choose one of the latter for this particular report since it offers what we believe is the highest resolution camera on a mobile phone in Europe to date.

The C905 sports no less than 8.1 megapixels, which is set to be the new standard for existing 5MP models to follow. Whether or not we’re getting into ’silly’ territory now is for the consumer to decide. Personally we think that if you’re a good enough photographer to need more than 5MP you’ll also know that you’ll need a proper camera to get the best out of the pictures.

Wednesday, June 18th, 2008

Fujifilm’s ‘Ultimate’ Compact Snapper

Fujifilm has launched a bag full of digital cameras this week, including the new FinePix F100fd, a 12MP compact.

The F100fd not only pushes the up the pixel count but features a Fujinon 5x wide angle optical zoom, wide dynamic range, dual image stabilisation, face detection 3.0 technology with automatic red-eye removal and ISO settings of up to ISO 12800.

fujifilm finepix.jpg The face detection technology promises speedy face focusing, detecting up to 10 faces in a scene in .035 seconds, and automatically correcting focus, exposure, and white balance.

David Troy, senior product manager, Consumer Digital Cameras, Electronic Imaging Division, Fujifilm says: “The features packed in to this camera like ISO ranges and wide dynamic ranges are unprecedented for a compact consumer model – they first appeared in our Professional line. Combine these advances with our new Face Detection 3.0’s faster, 360 degree detection ranges and Dual Image Stabilisation and you have the ultimate consumer digital photography experience.”

The camera will hit the US first in March with a price tag of around £160. Jump now for the full feature set.-Martin Lynch

FinePix F100fd key features:

* 12 megapixel Super CCD HR VIII and RP (Real Photo) Processor III: Ultra high resolution for razor-sharp results and unrivalled dynamic range
* 5x Fujinon zoom lens: Powerful and versatile shooting options
* Face Detection Technology 3.0 with intelligent red-eye removal: Even more capable, even faster than before
* Dual Image Stabilisation: Combine mechanical image stabilisation with the effects produced with higher ISO (up to an amazing ISO 12,800)
* Continuous Shooting: Top/Final 3 at 1.7 frames per second at full resolution and Top/Final 12 at 5 frames per second at 3 Megapixels
* Full manual photographic control: Gives users total control with full manual adjustment of numerous camera functions including resolution, ISO, aperture, shutter speed, etc, a desirable feature for the photo enthusiasts/advanced photographers
* High speed playback: No waiting for high-resolution images to load during play back. The FinePix F100fd can display images at full resolution at 10 frames per second
* Portrait Enhancer Mode: Mimicking a professional photo studio setting, by using Face Detection and preset camera settings, Portrait Enhancer minimises fine lines and small skin blemishes for smooth, natural looking portraits
* Dual Shot Mode: In this selectable mode, the FinePix F100fd quickly shoots two images in rapid succession – one with the flash and one without – and saves both. This convenient function lets users perform a comparison at their convenience and select the most pleasing image
* Special scene modes: The FinePix F100fd has 16 pre-programmed scenes, including a special underwater scene mode for use with a special underwater casing and a Blog mode that automatically reduces the size of copied images for easy posting to a Blog, Web page or email attachment
* Micro Thumbnail: A playback feature that allows for viewing an index-style print on the LCD. The FinePix F100fdwill show up to 100 images in micro form, then the control buttons are used to select specific images. An innovative wheel navigation dial makes it easy to quickly find a single image by being able to jump to particular segments of images in the time sequence
* IrSimpleâ„¢: Infrared communication via IrSimpleâ„¢ technology for fast, easy wireless image transfer to a compatible device
* xD/SD/SD-HC compatible slot: The FinePix F100fdfeatures a xD/SD compatible slot which accepts not only Fujifilm’s traditional xD-Picture cards but also Secure Digital (SD) and SD-High Capacity/SD-HC cards too

Friday, January 25th, 2008

Panasonic’s HD Digital Snapper

panasonic lumix fx100.jpg Panasonic has launched a new, compact digital snapper with a whopping 12.2 megapixels and the unusual ability to record high-definition video.

The new Lumix DMC- FX100 arrives in July and significantly boosts the company’s current high-end offering, which tops out at 7.2 megapixels. It can take photos in 4:3 mode and there are also four 16:9 widescreen modes with image resolution up to 4000 x 2248 pixels.

Video can be recorded at up to 1280 x 720 at 15 frames per second, but don’t expect to fit much on the 27Mb of internal memory. You will need some decent SD Cards to make the most of this feature. The camera boasts a brand spanking new and “exclusive” 28mm wide-angle LEICA DC lens features, with 3.6x optical zoom, f/2.8 brightness, 1/1.72-inch large CCD and Intelligent Image Stabilisation with Mega O.I.S. and Intelligent ISO Control.

There’s also an impressive high speed burst mode that will let you shoot 8 photos per second at full resolution. The FX100 has a 2.5in LCD screen, weighs 0.33lb and will be available in silver and black.

Jump now for a peek at the black version. No prices yet. - Martin Lynch

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Monday, May 28th, 2007

Sony’s Tiny HD Camcorder

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Sony is claiming the honours of the smallest HD camcorder today with the introduction of the back-in-black cool, Handycam HDR-CX6EK.

It is quite small and Sony is saving weight – but making money off you – by making the storage medium its own Memory Stick technology, which tops out at 8GB. This is enough for an hour of 1080i video at top quality or almost three hours at the lowest quality setting. It takes photos at up to 6.1megapixels. There’s a Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T lens which is good for 10x optical zoom and the whole thing weighs in at 370g, excluding battery. Frankly, that last bit is marketing nonsense to make the weight look good. After all, we don’t know what the battery weighs and, more importantly, who’s going to use it without the damn battery?

Hell, the Sanyo Xacti HD2 weighs just 235g, with battery.

There are lots of funky features thrown in, not least of which something called Face Index, a face detection technology for highlighting your little Johnny when playing back the school play.

Due in July but no UK prices yet. The US price though is around £600.-Martin Lynch

Thursday, April 26th, 2007

Top 5 Early Bird Luxo-Gift List

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As soon as Halloween is done, it’s a sprint until Christmas. Never mind all that talk about Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving that launches the holiday shopping season. If you’re planning to buy a luxo-sport gift for that special someone this year, you’ll want to avoid that herd of sheep, and get your shopping done early.

That’s why we’ve put together this quick list for the smartest shoppers of all: The Top 5 Early Bird Luxo-Gift List, with gifts priced from $1300 down to $200 listed in descending order. Start now. Avoid those maddening crowds, the relentless pressure, and avoid that sinking feeling when you hear that clock ticking, counting down the minutes until Zero Hour.

After the jump, pick out one of the top 5 luxo-gifts you can get right now, and get it all done ahead of time.

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5. Nikon D80 Digital SLR

This is looking like the hot digital SLR for the season, with its 10.2-megapixel CCD, bigger and brighter viewfinder and excellent lenses from Nikon. It has an 11-area through-the-lens autofocus system, improved color metering, smaller size than its predecessor, and we don’t even mind that it uses SD memory cards instead of CompactFlash. You get your money’s worth for $1300.

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4. Garmin Nuvi 660 GPS

We’re big fans of Garmin’s Nuvi series of GPS navigators, and this latest model stretches that screen out to 4.3 inches, the perfect compromise between portability and readibility. Like its brandmates, it gives you hands-free mobile phone calls and then there’s that outstanding Garmin user interface, easy enough to use in traffic but powerful enough to get you where you want to go. With its integrated FM traffic receiver that will warn you about heavy traffic or construction, and an FM transmitter that sends its navigational commands through your car stereo, it’s tough to beat for $999.

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3. TiVo Series 3 HD Personal Multimedia Recorder

We’ve had one of these babies in-house for the past two months, and it’s the best digital video recorder we’ve ever seen. It’s the only THX-certified PVR and its video and audio consistently demonstrate that fact, plus it has that famed TiVo user interface that has no equal. Too bad it’s so damned expensive, at $800, but you can find one for $680.

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2. Canon PowerShot SD900 10MP Digital Elph Camera

The form factor of the Digital Elph cameras from Canon is hard to beat, and this is the best one yet, the PowerShot SD900, with its 10 megapixels of quick-starting goodness and 3x optical zoom, you’ll see it all clearly now on a 2.5-inch LCD viewscreen. Sure, you can’t use many manual settings with this camera, but one of those digital SLRs can be awfully hard to fit in your shirt pocket, too. Best of all, you can find one of these trinkets for $383.

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1. Motorola KRZR Cellphone

We know you want the latest smartphone, but that special person in your life is probably looking to simplify her cellphone situation. The KRZR is the way to go, fitting easily in the pocket ’cause it’s a lot smaller than the mainstream-popular RAZR, and will only set you back around 200 bucks with a two-year contract.

Tuesday, October 31st, 2006

Sony’s Ultra HD 4K Projector Isn’t Quite 4K

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First covered by us way back in the Johnson administration, the Sony Silicon X-tal Reflective Display (SXRD) technology gives projectors a max resolution of 4096 x 2160, which if you do the math, is 8.8 megapixels. Their newest projector using this technology is the SRX-S110, a device more at home in professional workspaces than actual homes.

Projector enthusiasts say that “true” 4K resolution is 10-megapixels or higher, but unless your eyes can see as well as Daredevil’s ears can hear, you probably can’t tell the difference. The 4K of this isn’t enough to display the 4K of the Red One, which is 4520 x 2540, but it’s close.

The new Sony 4K SXRD video projector [Akihabara News via Crunchgear]

Thursday, October 19th, 2006

Sony’s Ultra HD 4K Projector Isn’t Quite 4K

sxrd.jpg

First covered by us way back in the Johnson administration, the Sony Silicon X-tal Reflective Display (SXRD) technology gives projectors a max resolution of 4096 x 2160, which if you do the math, is 8.8 megapixels. Their newest projector using this technology is the SRX-S110, a device more at home in professional workspaces than actual homes.

Projector enthusiasts say that “true” 4K resolution is 10-megapixels or higher, but unless your eyes can see as well as Daredevil’s ears can hear, you probably can’t tell the difference. The 4K of this isn’t enough to display the 4K of the Red One, which is 4520 x 2540, but it’s close.

The new Sony 4K SXRD video projector [Akihabara News via Crunchgear]

Thursday, October 19th, 2006

Sony’s Ultra HD 4K Projector Isn’t Quite 4K

sxrd.jpg

First covered by us way back in the Johnson administration, the Sony Silicon X-tal Reflective Display (SXRD) technology gives projectors a max resolution of 4096 x 2160, which if you do the math, is 8.8 megapixels. Their newest projector using this technology is the SRX-S110, a device more at home in professional workspaces than actual homes.

Projector enthusiasts say that “true” 4K resolution is 10-megapixels or higher, but unless your eyes can see as well as Daredevil’s ears can hear, you probably can’t tell the difference. The 4K of this isn’t enough to display the 4K of the Red One, which is 4520 x 2540, but it’s close.

The new Sony 4K SXRD video projector [Akihabara News via Crunchgear]

Thursday, October 19th, 2006

ICD-5000 Cellphone Projector/Image Recorder

Designed to project your cellphone’s screen onto a larger screen for demonstrations, the ICD-5000 is a boon for developers, marketeers, sales monkeys, and people who want to show their buddies the time they met Erik Estrada at the Chevron station. The ICD-5000 is a full 2000 “better” than the previous ICD-3000, and can even connect…

Monday, October 2nd, 2006

Fujfilm FinePix S5 Pro DSLR: See You Next Year

Fujifilm gives us a long lead time on its S5 Pro, a DSLR with a 6.17- megapixel CCD that the company has enhanced with what it calls “Super CCD double pixel technology,” giving it a claimed 12.34 effective megapixels. Is that anything like double secret probation? Let’s just call it a 6.17-megapixel camera until proven…

Monday, September 25th, 2006


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