November 12th, 2009

New DVDs store digital photos for centuries

Posted by Janice Chen @ 6:06 am

Categories: Announcements, Camera accessories

Tags: Digital Photograph, Disc, Photograph, Cranberry DVD Vault Option, DVD, Consumer Electronics, Personal Technology, Home Entertainment, Janice Chen

Though many people still back their irreplaceable digital photos to CDs or DVDs, they’re really not a long-term solution. The dyes and reflective layers of conventional recordable CDs and DVDs can deteriorate in two to five years depending on environmental factors. A new long-lasting DVD technology aims to dramatically increase that lifespan by using physical etchings on a rock-like substance to record data.

Makers of the Cranberry DiamonDisc (who exclusively license the technology from Millenniata for the consumer market) claim a shelf-life of 1,000 years, and while the claim obviously can’t be proven, testing based on ECMA International standards indicates the discs will indeed last as long as there are drives that can read them (i.e., most standard DVD drives).

A single 4.7GB DVD (which holds about 2,000 photos) will set you back $34, and unless you want to cough up $4,995 for your own Cranberry Disc Writer (which comes with 150 blank discs), you’ll have to upload or mail your files to Cranberry to have them burned onto a DVD and mailed back to you. A Cranberry DVD Vault option provides a duplicate disc that is kept in a secure storage vault by Cranberry (and costs $89 annually for up to 25 DVDs).

November 5th, 2009

Olympus announces new E-P2 compact interchangeable lens camera

Posted by Janice Chen @ 12:56 pm

Categories: Announcements, Digital Photography, Digital SLR

Tags: Olympus Corp., Camera, Janice Chen

Just five months after Olympus announced its first Micro Four-Thirds compact interchangeable lens camera, comes today’s announcement of an updated version, the Olympus Pen E-P2 Micro Four Thirds camera. It’s not a huge step up from the E-P1, but it does add some useful features, including a new accessory port that accepts the bundled Electronic View Finder (EVF) (and optional external microphone adapter), full manual shutter and aperture control when shooting video, and continuous autofocus tracking.

Other new features include two additional art filters: Diorama, which simulates a tilt-shift lens’ miniature faking abilities, and Cross Process, which simulates the bright colors and contrast of cross processing film with the wrong chemicals. The two new filters (as well as the original Pop Art, Soft Focus, Pale & Light Color, Light Tone, Grainy Film and Pin Hole filters included in the E-P1) can be applied to both still images and HD videos.

Read the rest of this entry »

October 15th, 2009

Zoom Q3 Handy Video Recorder brings high-quality audio to pocket camcorder

Posted by Janice Chen @ 10:18 am

Categories: Announcements, Digital Camcorders, Gadgets

Tags: Audio, Camcorder, LCD, Zoom Q3, Janice Chen

One of the drawbacks of those ubiquitous pocket camcorders — like the Flip Mino HD — is the lackluster audio that gets captured by tiny built-in microphones.  The new Zoom Q3 Handy Video Recorder aims to change all that, by bringing high-quality HD audio recording to a pocket-friendly camcorder.  In fact, Zoom’s parent company, Samson Technologies, is a pioneering audio technology company that makes professional recording equipment.

The Zoom Q3 includes two directional stereo condenser microphones that can capture 24-bit/48kHz audio. Since sites like YouTube allow files with CD-quality (i.e., 44.1kHz) audio, you’ll still see a benefit even if all you do is upload videos to the Web.

Unfortunately, though, only the audio is HD quality, since the camcorder itself only records at 640×480, 30fps. The large 2.4-inch, 320×240 LCD is a nice touch, as is its ability to accept up to 32GB SDHC cards for up to 16 hours of video (a 2GB SD card comes bundled for 1 hour of video). The 2-inch LCD and 8GB maximums of the Flip Video camcorders, for example, don’t measure up.  Still, at a retail price of $249, I’d like to see 720p video recording.

[Via Engadget]

October 14th, 2009

Flip Video updates the popular Flip MinoHD camcorder

Posted by Janice Chen @ 6:25 am

Categories: Announcements, Digital Camcorders, Digital Photography, Gadgets

Tags: Camcorder, Video, Flip Video Store, Corporate Communications, Marketing, Janice Chen

Flip Video (which was acquired by Cisco in March) has announced the newest member of its pocketable camcorder line, an updated version of the Flip MinoHD. This second generation of the popular MinoHD doubles the memory (and recording time) of the previous version, and sports a bigger higher-resolution LCD, an HDMI output, and uses the latest version of the Flip Video Engine. Additionally, a new version of the pre-loaded FlipShare software now allows direct video uploads to Facebook.

The new MinoHD offers most of the features of the UltraHD (which had been Flip Video’s top-of-the-line offering until today) — such as 8GB of memory; a 2-inch, 960 x 240 LCD; 1280×720 HD video recording at 30 fps; the Flip Video Engine 3.5; and an HDMI output — in a sleeker, slimmer and customizable package (as with the original Mino camcorders, the new version can be customized with cool designs and patterns or your own design or photo if you purchase it direct from Flip Video). Like the original 4GB MinoHD, the new version uses a built-in, rechargeable Lithium Ion battery rather than the rechargeable (and removable) AA NiMH battery pack of the UltraHD (which accounts for the slimmer package).

The online Flip Video Store lists the new edition as the MinoHD, 120 minutes, while the original version is now listed as the MinoHD, 60 minutes (the former selling for $229.99 and the latter for $199.99).

October 14th, 2009

Answering your digital camera and camcorder questions

Posted by Rachel King @ 6:14 am

Categories: Announcements, Tips

Tags: Camcorder, Digital Camera, Camera, Question, Rachel King

Quite often, we receive a number of questions, either via email or TalkBack, about very specific camera and camcorder-related topics. But sometimes the answers to those questions could serve a larger audience. Thus, if you have a question and don’t mind having it published, I’d welcome you to post digital camera and camcorder-related questions in the TalkBack section of this post, or via email to me.

For example:

Dear Rachel;

Could you recommend a point-and-shoot camera that is good for sports photography and under $400?

Sincerely,
Camera Shy

Note: I cannot guarantee that I will answer every question, depending on their relevance to the site and depending on the amount of requests that I receive during a given time period.

October 1st, 2009

Fujifilm launches Real 3D W1 camera and 3D V1 viewer

Posted by Janice Chen @ 11:11 am

Categories: Announcements, Camera accessories, Digital Cameras, Digital Photography

Tags: 3D, Camera, Janice Chen

Though Fujifilm introduced its FinePix Real 3D technology and camera prototype a year ago, and announced the Fujifilm FinePix Real 3D W1 point-and-shoot and the FinePix Real 3D V1 viewer globally back in July, the camera and viewer were officially launched in the U.S. yesterday.

According to Fujifilm, its Real 3D system comprises the W1 camera, the V1 viewer, and 3D prints from Fujifilm’s SeeHere.com online photo printing and sharing site. By using dual lenses set approximately as wide apart as human eyes (and two CCD sensors), the Real 3D W1 is able to capture three-dimensional still images and videos.  Rather than requiring 3D glasses for viewing the resulting stereoscopic images, stills and movies shot from the W1 camera can be viewed directly on the camera’s specially designed 2.8-inch LCD (with “Light Direction Control” to allow the 3D viewing effect), the Real 3D V1 viewer’s 8-inch LCD screen, as well as the 3D prints from SeeHere.com that layer a plastic lenticular sheet over the print to produce the 3D effect.

You’ll pay a lot for all of this awesomeness, though: the W1 camera is priced at $599.95, the V1 viewer is $499.95, and prints cost a whopping $6.99 a pop.  But if you’re willing to cough up the dough, the products are available immediately through www.shopfujifilm.com and coming soon to Nvidia’s Gear Store.

September 9th, 2009

New iPod Nano with camera shoots video (and kills Flip?)

Posted by Janice Chen @ 11:37 am

Categories: Announcements, Digital Camcorders

Tags: Apple iPod, Apple iPod Nano, Video, Camera, Corporate Communications, Digital Music, Digital Media, Marketing, Personal Technology, Consumer Electronics

[Updated: September 9, 2009 @ 7:17 pm] Contrary to popular rumor, the new Apple iPod Touch announced today does not include a camera. But happily the newly revamped iPod Nano sports a camera that shoots not only still images, but also video (but not still images).  In his first keynote appearance in a year, Steve Jobs compared the new Nano to the Flip camcorder saying it delivers 4GB of video storage for $149, while the new Nano provides 8GB for free.  $149 for the 8GB Nano is not exactly free, but considering the new Nano includes a slew of other great upgraded features (like built-in radio), it’s still a great deal.

Though I erroneously noted that the new Nano could shoot still images when I first published this post, in a post-announcement Q&A with the New York Times, Jobs answered the question of why the new Nano can’t snap still images by saying “The sensors for doing video are fairly thin. The sensors for doing a still camera, at much higher pixel resolution — and we’d really like to have autofocus — they are just way too thick to ever fit inside the Nano.”

September 4th, 2009

Stanford's open-source camera lets the public choose camera features

Posted by Janice Chen @ 11:23 am

Categories: Announcements, Digital Cameras, Digital Photography, Software

Tags: Camera, Open-source Camera, Open Source, Janice Chen

Stanford University photo scientists have created an open-source camera cobbled together from a Nokia N95 cell phone’s imaging chip, off-the-shelf Canon lenses, and other parts. Aptly dubbed the Frankencamera by its creators, the camera opens up a world of opportunity for would-be camera designers.

While it’s relatively easy to understand what open source has done for software — think Linux and Firefox — it’s harder to grasp the ramifications an open-source camera could have on the camera industry.  Until now, we’ve been at the mercy of the competitive cycles of camera manufacturers when it comes to what features we can get and when. But is it just me that wants to shout “I want this new feature, not that, and for god sakes don’t make me pay for low-light noise and the extra megapixels it rode in on!”

Of course we can’t all be camera programmers and designers, open source or no open source. But the Frankencamera and its ilk open up new possibilities for those who would be — and just might shake up the market now dominated by the Canons and Nikons of the world.

Stanford graduate student Andrew Adams, who helped design the Frankencamera, suggests the technology could give rise to iPhone-esque app stores where consumers could pick and choose applications to download to their open-source cameras. This may sound far-fetched now, but the project has been supported by big names like Nokia, Adobe Systems, Kodak, and Hewlett-Packard, and Stanford computer science professor Marc Levoy is shooting to have an outside manufacturer produce open-source cameras in quantity for less than $1,000 each (and the operating software made public) within a year.

September 2nd, 2009

Is the new Canon EOS 7D a Nikon D300s killer?

Posted by Janice Chen @ 6:15 am

Categories: Announcements, Digital Photography, Digital SLR

Tags: Nikon Corp., Pixel, CMOS, ISO, Canon Inc., Nikon D300s, Memory, Iso standards, Corporate Communications, Process Improvement

With no real direct competitors, the Nikon D300 has dominated the mid-range digital SLR market for years, and its recently released successor, the Nikon D300s, looked poised to inherit its older sibling’s crown. That is, until the Canon EOS 7D was announced yesterday. Priced at $1,699 ($100 less than the D300s), the 7D will give the D300s a run for its money when it’s released later this month.

Rather than come out with a less expensive full-frame dSLR as Sony did with its Alpha DSLR-A850 a few days ago (say, a 5D Mark II junior), Canon decided to go for a high-end APS-C camera (a full $300 less than the A850), which slips neatly into the EOS line between the 5D Mark II and the 50D — and is pitted directly against the D300s. So what do you get by spending $100 less?  For starters, the 7D sports an 18-megapixel CMOS sensor (vs. the D300s’ 12.3-megapixel sensor) and it records 1,920×1,080 HD video at a full 30 fps, compared to the D300s’ 720p video at only 24 fps.

For a further specs comparison between the 7D and the D300s (plus the Pentax K-7, a lower-priced APS-C camera that also shoots HD video): Read the rest of this entry »

August 28th, 2009

Sony's new Alpha DSLR-A850: First full-frame dSLR under $2,000

Posted by Janice Chen @ 1:44 pm

Categories: Announcements, Digital SLR

Tags: Sony Corp., DSLR, Pixel, CMOS, Memory, Semiconductors, Hardware, Components, Janice Chen

About a year after Sony introduced its first full-frame digital SLR, the Alpha DSLR-A900,  the electronics giant is making news by unveiling the least expensive full-frame dSLR to date: The recently announced Sony Alpha DSLR-A850 is the first 35mm full-frame dSLR to break the $2,000 mark, and will be priced at $1,999.99 when it ships in September.

Though Sony originally pitched the A900 as a camera for “serious photo enthusiasts” rather than professionals, it seems to have changed its tune now that it’s coming out with a camera that’s actually priced within reach of consumers. Deep-pocketed, extremely motivated consumers, perhaps, but I had a hard time believing that non-professionals would be willing to plunk down $3,000 (the A900’s original body-only price). Now that its lineup includes two full-frame dSLRs (both 24.6 megapixels), Sony is talking about how it “offers models in each step from high-end professional down to the amateur enthusiast.”

The only problem is that after comparing the specs, any true professional would be hard pressed to justify the extra $700 a A900 costs (especially considering you can get a Canon EOS 5D Mark II for the same $2,700 and get Live View and HD video recording to boot).

The A850, though, is the now the least expensive way to get a full 35mm-size sensor along with the high resolution and image quality (particularly in low light) that it affords.

For a early hands-on take of the A850, check out Imaging Resource’s full review.

For a quick specs comparison between the A850, its predecessor the A900, and the Canon EOS 5D Mark II: Read the rest of this entry »