Camera

Hasselblad H4D-40 available now

By Paul Ridden

14:24 February 8, 2010 PST

Following last September's announcement of new 50 megapixel and 60 megapixel H4D medium format cameras, Hasselblad has now announced the immediate availability of the H4D-40 DSLR camera system. The 40 of course signifies the number of megapixels, but the camera also benefits from up to four minute exposure times, faster capture rates and higher ISO ratings as well as an improved auto focus mechanism. Read More

Panasonic toughens up ruggedized LUMIX DMC-TS2

By Paul Ridden

14:57 February 4, 2010 PST

Panasonic has announced significant improvements in the toughness department with its new 14.1-megapixel LUMIX DMC-TS2. It's now waterproof to even greater depths, can survive being dropped from a height of six feet and winter sports enthusiasts will no doubt be pleased to hear that it can also withstand some seriously chilly temperatures. Read More

Panasonic reveals DMC-ZR3 super slim versatile compact

By Paul Ridden

18:26 February 2, 2010 PST

Panasonic has revealed a new addition to its LUMIX family of cameras, the DMC-ZR3 slim compact digital. The successor to the ZR1, optical zoom has been boosted to eight times, the addition of AVCHD Lite video should extend recording time, the pixel count now stands at 14 megapixels and it supports the new SDXC card format. Read More

The board game V2.0

By Ben Coxworth

13:58 January 28, 2010 PST

Board games aren’t necessarily bound to become obsolete - at least, not if researchers at Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada have anything to say about it. They will change, however. Queen’s Human Media Lab (HML) recently unveiled a prototype board game that uses traditional flat cardboard tiles (i.e: cards), but the images on those tiles are projected onto them by an overlooking digital projector. The images stay on the tiles as they’re moved around by the players, courtesy of an overlooking camera that tracks their movements. This means that the tiles could display moving video, that their display could change entirely depending on what’s happening in the game, or that it could be customized by the players. Monopoly night may never be the same. Read More

World's oldest and most expensive camera to go under the hammer

By Darren Quick

21:11 January 27, 2010 PST

A Giroux “Daguerreotype” – the world’s first commercially-produced camera – is expected to set a world record price when it goes up for auction this May at WestLicht Auctions in Vienna. The previously undocumented camera has been in private ownership in northern Germany for generations and is in remarkable condition given it is 170 years old. Read More

HoverCam: the scanner that works like a camera

By Jeff Salton

20:32 January 26, 2010 PST

The USB-powered HoverCam all-in-one scanner is designed to put the flatbed scanner to sleep – permanently. It takes a snapshot of the document placed beneath its lens in a split second, much like a camera, as opposed to the more drawn-out method of traditional scanners – and takes up much less desktop space than a flatbed. The manufacturer, California-based Pathway Innovations and Technologies, says the HoverCam’s capabilities make scanning, faxing, emailing, archiving and organizing files a quicker, neater and more enjoyable experience. Read More

DiCAPac has a dry idea for your electronics

By Jude Garvey

13:37 January 20, 2010 PST

Waterproof cases for cameras are not a particularly new idea but a new range of waterproof bags from Korean company Dicapac, may make you look twice. The covers are suitable for most portable electronic equipment, including your digital camera, camcorder, cell phone and MP3 player. They are transparent, flexible and some covers are waterproof up to 33ft (10 meters). Many also contain a UV coated optical lens – made from the same plastic material as aircraft windows – making them durable, scratch resistant and super clear. The good news? Unlike some other waterproof cases, they are surprisingly affordable. So you can stop worrying about water damage from splashing, rain or snow and focus on taking the perfect photograph. Read More

Capture sliding dolly shots with the UKP175 GlideTrack SD

By Loz Blain

21:15 January 17, 2010 PST

Prosumer-level video equipment is getting cheap enough that serious image quality is well and truly within the reach of the hobbyist. And thus, you've got a whole new market of amateur videographers trying to work out how to get pro effects like sliding dolly shots into their work. Devices like the UKP175 GlideTrack SD strike an excellent balance between smoothness, quietness, portability and low cost - and the results look amazing, as you'll see in the demo video after the jump. Read More

Vuzix display Wrap 920AR augmented reality glasses

By Mick Webb

18:59 January 12, 2010 PST

Forget looking at the world through rose colored glasses – try these on for size. Video eyewear manufacturer Vuzix has unveiled its Wrap 920AR glasses prototype that features cameras mounted to the lenses that project real world images onto LCD’s inside the glasses, seamlessly mixing real-world and computer generated imagery.

With the LCD’s offering the view of a 67” display from ten feet away and the cameras able to capture video at a resolution of 752x480 at 60fps, the application promises a myriad of uses from gaming to education and social networking. Read More

Next-gen video technology lets you look around - inside a movie

By Loz Blain

13:21 January 11, 2010 PST

Now that 3D is finally taking off again at the movie theatre - thanks in large part to James Cameron's evangelism in the leadup to his groundbreaking Avatar film, it's clear that immersive video technologies are big business again. And if the latest 3D stuff doesn't put you in the picture enough, how's this: Immersive Media has adapted the same 360-degree cameras used by Google's Street View cars to shoot video. That means you can actually look around as you watch the video... Which can feel absolutely bizarre, as in the case of the BASE jumping video after the jump. Extraordinary. Read More

Big screen experience from your mobile device - the Microvision SHOWWX laser pico projector

By Mick Webb

12:39 January 10, 2010 PST

The Microvision SHOWWX laser pico projector

first came to our attention in development back in 2008, with the final version making an appearance at this years CES. Around the size of a smartphone, the SHOWWX projector enables a user to connect their iPod, mobile phone or a myriad of other devices to display movies and photos as a WVGA (848x480 pixels) DVD quality “big screen” experience. Read More

Kolimat Roadscan DTW 1.0 dual lens camera - watches you as well as the road

By Mick Webb

21:37 January 8, 2010 PST

What’s more frustrating than an accident with a fellow motorist? Trying to work out who is at fault. Aiming to do away with such disagreements and improve overall driver security is the Kolimat Roadscan DTW 1.0 Camera system. Equipped with a dual lens in-car camera that records up to 12 hours of audio and video onto an SD card, the unit also takes still pictures at regular intervals and features full GPS and Wi-Fi capabilities. But with a function that disables erasing of data for events that measure above a preset “G” force, you had better hope you’re not at fault… Read More

Store, sort and share - the Kodak Slice Touchscreen digital camera (and pocket photo album)

By Mick Webb

21:10 January 8, 2010 PST

No longer just a device intended to capture images, the digital camera becomes a veritable pocket photo album with the latest offering from Kodak, the Slice Touchscreen. Featuring a 3.5” LCD touchscreen 5X optical zoom and 14MP resolution, the Slice also packs a 2GB internal memory with tagging functionality. This not only recognizes up to 20 faces allowing the user to tag photos by person, place, date or occasion, but also lets the user tag photos for easy uploading to sites like Flickr and Facebook. Read More

GoPro HERO Wide action cam goes high-def

By Ben Coxworth

22:33 December 27, 2009 PST

In the past few years, several companies have started selling tiny, rugged, inexpensive “action” video cameras designed to be mounted on wild-n-crazy vantage points such as mountain bike helmets, hang-gliders or even model rockets (yes, it’s been done). Up until recently, however, a common complaint about these cameras was that their lenses weren’t wide enough to capture all the action. That problem was squarely addressed with the autumn 2008 release of a new camera, the GoPro HERO Wide. Now, GoPro has gone one better by introducing a High-Definition version of that same model. Read More

20MP camera phones with 1080p camcorders not far away

By Jeff Salton

18:43 December 20, 2009 PST

Semiconductor company Broadcom says its new processor will provide cell phones with full HD 1080p camcorder capabilities and up to 20MP digital camera resolution with advanced features such as multiple shots per second, image stabilization, face and smile detection and panorama mode. The BCM2763 VideoCore IV will also render mobile games natively at up to 1080p and include on-board HDMI output for a console-quality gaming experience on large screen HDTVs. Read More

Hubble sees further than ever before

By Alan Brandon

15:11 December 15, 2009 PST

NASA's recently upgraded Hubble Space Telescope has made the deepest near-infrared image of the universe ever taken. Taken using a newly installed camera, the image shows deep space objects such as galaxies that formed only 600 million years after the Big Bang, making them the oldest galaxies ever seen. The image was taken with the Hubble’s new Wide Field Camera 3, which astronauts installed in May. Read More

Use your face to unlock the door

By Jeff Salton

20:13 December 14, 2009 PST

A facial recognition door entry access system that also keeps records of people coming and going could be the one accessory your high-tech home is missing. Or it could be that you run a business say, without a receptionist, and you want to keep track of employees’ movements in and out of the front door. With this device you can even keep out those pesky door-to-door salespeople. The Hanvon CVJB-G107 Face Recognition Time Attendance System and Access Door Lock from electronics wholesaler Chinavasion is a cheap solution (under US$500) and lets you program who gets in and out of your business or home. Read More

Canon files touchscreen DSLR patent

By Darren Quick

19:23 December 6, 2009 PST

Touchscreens have almost become standard on point and shoot digital compact cameras. The same can’t be said for more enthusiast/professional oriented DSLRs, mainly because of the different ways both types of cameras are used. Compacts are generally held out in front of the photographer who checks the framing via the camera’s LCD screen. DSLRs, on the other hand, are often still used with the photographer’s face mashed up against the rear of the camera to frame a shot using the optical viewfinder. This would wreak havoc with a touchscreen as the photographer’s nose goes about changing all those carefully nurtured manual settings. But a new patent application from Canon could solve the problem and see touchscreens appearing on DSLRs as well. Read More

Hasselblad H4D-60 high-end DSLR with True Focus function

By Jeff Salton

17:20 December 3, 2009 PST

High-end camera manufacturer Hasselblad has added to its H System of cameras with the H4D-60. The "60" refers to the unit's huge 60 megapixel medium format sensor which is combined with True Focus with APL (Absolute Position Lock), a system designed to make auto-focus substantially easier and more accurate. Aimed at professional photographers, the company says its first H4D camera marks the beginning of a new chapter in the history of medium format DSLRs. Read More

New high-res CCD cameras for far-out images

By Alan Brandon

15:19 December 1, 2009 PST

The Santa Barbara Instrument Group (SBIG) is adding two new models to its line of specialized, high-resolution CCD cameras for astrophotography and spectography. The ST-8300M and ST-8300C both feature an 8.3 megapixel CCD, thermoelectric cooling, and a USB 2.0 interface. The camera bodies accept both standard c-mount and Nikon lenses making them suitable for a variety of applications. SBIG claims the cameras’ antiblooming and microlens technology improves their sensitivity. Both cameras can also be used as autoguiders to control motorized telescope mounts. Read More

SBIG AllSky camera can track clouds, meteors, and UFOs

By Alan Brandon

22:09 November 25, 2009 PST

SBIG, also known as the Santa Barbara Instrument Group, has announced its latest horizon-to-horizon view cameras, the AllSky-340 and AllSky-340C. The AllSky cameras are designed for extended, unattended sky watching such as monitoring the weather, detecting meteors, or keeping an eye out for ETs. The cameras feature a self-contained all-weather housing, heated dome enclosure, an optional Bluetooth interface, and optional solar power. Read More

Spy vs spy – wireless camera detector lets you sleep easy or play hard (in privacy)

By Jeff Salton

23:25 November 23, 2009 PST

If you don’t trust that shifty-looking night supervisor at the motel or the suspicious-looking smoke detector in your room, or if you just value your privacy, help could be at hand. A quick scan of your room or surrounds with the Chinavision CVMV-J19 Spy Wi-Fi Signal and Camera Lens Detector should let you sleep easy or play hard – in privacy (I guarantee there are a few celebrities who wish they had one). Read More

Casio EX-G1: the world's slimmest shock-resistant digital camera

By Darren Quick

19:45 November 19, 2009 PST

Casio’s G-Shock line of shock-resistant watches have been adorning the wrists of outdoorsy types since the release of the first G-Shock branded watch in 1983. The company extended the rugged specifications of the G-Shock line to mobile phones with the release of the G’zOne durable, water-resistant mobile phone in 2000, and has now further extended the brand to compact digital cameras with the release of the EX-G1 shock-resistant, waterproof, dustproof digital camera – the first in the company’s new EXILIM G line. Read More

Preschooler’s digital camera: sophisticated features in a kid-sized package

By Jude Garvey

22:58 November 17, 2009 PST

I’d love to be a kid again. Seriously. The technology age has delivered children all manner of sophisticated toys and games, think Nintendo, Playstation and Wii ... just to name a few. Now, they even have a variety of mini digital cameras to choose from, including the Kid Tough camera and the Preschooler’s digital camera. The Preschooler’s camera is a kid-tough unit that is suitably sized for small hands, can take photographs and video, and has a fixed-focus lens - so kids simply line up their shot and press a button. Read More

iSteady Shot takes the shakes out of iPhone video

By Jeff Salton

02:53 November 11, 2009 PST

Is your iPhone movie-making prowess giving your viewers motion sickness? Are your carefully planned, in-your-face action sequences of your friends’ skateboarding accidents, or grandma’s 80th birthday party antics not making it to Funniest Home Videos because of your inability to hold your iPhone still while you capture potential money-making footage. Fear not! If what the manufacturers say is true, the iSteady Shot camera stabilizer will soon have you cashing in. For roughly US$100, you can attach you iPhone or iPod nano to device and have your very own Hollywood-style “steady-cam” – check the video below to see what a difference the iSteady Shot makes to everyday filming. Read More