Electronics

Sony previews upcoming action cam

Sony previews upcoming action cam
Sony's yet-to-be-named action cam
Sony's yet-to-be-named action cam
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Sony's yet-to-be-named action cam
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Sony's yet-to-be-named action cam
Sony says the camera will include SteadyShot image stabilization and a Carl Zeiss lens
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Sony says the camera will include SteadyShot image stabilization and a Carl Zeiss lens
A sneak peek at some of the camera's buttons
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A sneak peek at some of the camera's buttons
Sony has not released dimensions, but the camera clearly uses a long, thin form
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Sony has not released dimensions, but the camera clearly uses a long, thin form
Sony says that ruggedized, waterproof housings will be available for the camera
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Sony says that ruggedized, waterproof housings will be available for the camera
Like any good action cam, the Sony camera will have a number of mounting options
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Like any good action cam, the Sony camera will have a number of mounting options
Sony says the camera will include SteadyShot image stabilization and a Carl Zeiss lens
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Sony says the camera will include SteadyShot image stabilization and a Carl Zeiss lens
Sony's yet-to-be-named action cam
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Sony's yet-to-be-named action cam
View gallery - 8 images

Dedicated action cam companies like GoPro, Contour and Drift are about to get some big competition from major electronics manufacturers. We've already seen JVC's take on the action cam, and Sony has now teased its own upcoming model.

Action sports blogs, video websites and outdoor forums are now flooded with short POV clips filmed on the latest action cam hardware. And manufacturers are all too happy to provide the tools. We've seen so many new action cam models and updates in recent years, we've all but lost track – we're talking Liquid Image, CamOne, ION, and on and on.

Now it looks like some of the big boys want to play ball. And who better to take the plate than Sony, an electronics giant that helped pioneer the personal camcorder market back in the 1980s.

It's too early for specs (or even a model name), but Sony promises the camera will be "tiny and lightweight" via a sneak preview on its official blog that ran late last month. The camera uses a long, rectangular form that's similar to the Drift Innovation. It will include features like Sony SteadyShot image stabilization, a Carl Zeiss Tessar ultra-wide-angle lens and an Exmor R CMOS image sensor. The camera is described as HD, and there'd be no point in entering the market with anything less than 1080p.

Sony says the camera will include SteadyShot image stabilization and a Carl Zeiss lens
Sony says the camera will include SteadyShot image stabilization and a Carl Zeiss lens

Sony shows its camera mounted to a helmet and a pair of goggles in its blog post. It will undoubtedly offer other mounting hardware options when it begins selling the camera. It also mentions separate waterproof and ruggedized housings for the "most extreme environments."

Sony doesn't give any hint as to its development time frame, stating simply that it will post updates on its blog. Now that the cat's out of the bag, we expect some iteration of the action cam to show up at the Consumer Electronics Show next January.

Source: Sony

View gallery - 8 images
2 comments
2 comments
Jonathan Golfo
oh finally they make one to give the others a run for their money.
Michele Free
Technology that is used to make sharing easy and fun is just awesome! This way, everyone gets to document what they're doing, and the rest of us benefit by actually being with them on the slopes or wherever they use the cameras. So exciting!