Compact

Fujifilm North America has announced that its FinePix X100, that was unveiled at the Photokina trade show last September, is set for release next month. Aimed at professional or enthusiast photographers, the fixed lens, large sensor digital camera sports classic non-digital camera controls and a hybrid viewfinder that allows users to switch between optical and electronic modes.  Read More

Ricoh has announced a successor to last year's CX4 compact superzoom, which brings a new high speed autofocus system, ultra-telephoto zoom capabilities and a few new scene modes to play with. Other than that, the CX5 retains the same specification 10.7x optical zoom lens, ISO sensitivity, 3-inch LCD display with a wide viewing angle and high contrast, and has exactly the same dimensions as its predecessor.  Read More

At Photokina 2010 in Cologne, Germany, Fujifilm has unveiled details about the upcoming Finepix X100, a compact camera with a retro style and impressive specs to match. The company claims this model, to be released in early 2011, will fill pro-photographers' need for a smaller back-up or substitute camera when a DSLR is inconvenient. With a 12.3 megapixel APS-C-based sensor and a fixed 23mm lens, the Finepix X100 will certainly be in the running for best pro compact on the market this spring.  Read More

With a compact form factor, the new XF105 and XF100 are Canon’s smallest professional camcorders to date. Targeted at electronic newsgathering (ENG) crews, independent filmmakers, documentary producers, event videographers and military agencies, they use the same Canon XF Codec featured in the XF305 and XF300, introduced earlier this year. This is an MPEG-2 4:2:2 codec for capturing and recording native 1920 x 1080 video at a constant bit rate of 50Mbps that offers twice the color resolution of HDV and other 4:2:0 formats. It also ensures widespread compatibility with existing industry infrastructure and non-linear editing (NLE) systems with an MXF (Material exchange Format) File Wrapper that combines video, audio and metadata in a single file.  Read More

Samsung has announced that the time has come to add a couple of new flagship cameras to its Dual View range. The new models benefit from even bigger LCD's at the front and rear, some interesting photo modes and both sport 5x optical zoom lenses, one of which has internal zoom functionality. At the same time, the company has also unveiled a feature-rich budget point-and-shoot model capable of recording high definition movies.  Read More

Panasonic is hoping to help photographers get much more from their snapping by including a 24-120mm equivalent ultra-wide angle lens on the latest addition to its LUMIX compact camera range. The 14 megapixel LUMIX DMC-FX75 also promises to bring some clarity to action shots, gives a choice of four aspect ratios and shoots in a choice of high definition and standard formats.  Read More

With so many mobile workers and executives lured in by the lightweight appeal of the MacBook, it seems crazy there isn't already a raft of compact, Mac-specific scanners on the market. Now, Canon is putting things right with the launch of the lightweight, portable imageFORMULA P-150M Scan-tini personal scanner, designed to shine with the Mac operating system.  Read More

Japanese manufacturer Green House has just released one of the most compact cameras you're ever likely to see. But you'll have to get in really close because the Mini Digi is so tiny that you might just miss it! Amazingly, it measures 2.5 x 1.8 x 1.2 inches, and weighs just under an ounce. So, for photographers who don't want to take their hefty DSLRs with them all the time, attaching a Mini Digi to your keychain could be a fun alternative.  Read More

Canon recently announced some new additions to its popular Powershot line of compact cameras. One of them boasts a respectable 12 megapixel sensor while the other three have been boosted to 14 megapixels. Optical zoom runs from 4x on the cheaper SD1300 IS and SD1400 IS models up to 14x on the SX210 IS and the SD3500 IS features a 3.5in 460,000 dot touchscreen LCD display.  Read More