Philippines Digital Camera

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1 gets reviewed, recommended

If all those recently unveiled sample shots from Panasonic's Lumix DMC-GH1 have left you wanting more, you're in luck. The kids at Digital Photography Review have got their hands on the thing and have been kind enough to give us an extensive review. Rocking a Four Thirds imaging sensor, HD-video mode (with stereo sound recording), a multi-aspect sensor, and a video-optimized lens, the camera is essentially the G1 with HD-video, according to the review. Not that that's a bad thing, especially when noting that it has "the best implementation of video on a 'non-compact camera' that we've seen so far." Among the camera's strong points are its resolution, size and weight, build quality, image stabilization, and shutter-speed simulation. Still the reviewer didn't look kindly upon the camera's relatively small amount of RAW headroom, fairly low powered flash, poor battery life, and a loud shutter sound for a non-SLR camera. But overall? If you need a camera that performs admirably with video, and are willing to pay the $1500 premium, the GH1 comes highly recommended.

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1 gets reviewed, recommended originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Jul 2009 14:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MIT researchers weave “flexible camera” out of fiber web

We've seen liquid camera lenses and cameras shaped like an eye, but a group of researchers from MIT's Department of Materials Science and Engineering are now taking things in yet another shape-shifting direction with a so-called "flexible camera" that uses a special fiber web instead of traditional lenses. Those fibers are each less than one millimeter in diameter, and are comprised of eight nested layers of light-detecting materials, which the researchers are able to form using an extrusion process like that used to make optical fiber for telecommunication applications. Once woven into a fabric, the researchers say the "camera" could be anything from a foldable telescope to a soldier's uniform that gives them greater situational awareness. Of course, they aren't saying when that might happen, although they have apparently already been able to use the fiber web to take "a rudimentary picture of a smiley face."

Filed under: Digital Cameras

MIT researchers weave "flexible camera" out of fiber web originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Jul 2009 13:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Engadget’s recession antidote: win a Joby Gorillapod SLR!

This whole global economic crisis, and its resulting massive loss of jobs got us thinking. We here at Engadget didn't want to stand helplessly by, announcing every new round of misery without giving anything back -- so we decided to take the opportunity to spread a little positivity. We'll be handing out a new gadget every day (except for weekends) to lucky readers until we run out of stuff or companies stop sending things. Today we've got a Joby Gorillapod SLR on offer, perfect for keeping your shiny new (or old, whatever) DSLR steady even in awkward situations. Read the rules below (no skimming -- we're omniscient and can tell when you've skimmed) and get commenting! Hooray for free stuff!

Major thanks to Joby for providing the gear!

The rules:

Leave a comment below. Any comment will do, but if you want to share your proposal for "fixing" the world economy, that'd be sweet too.
You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.)
If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you'll be fine.
Contest is open to anyone in the 50 States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don't make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad.
Winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive one (1) Joby Gorillapod SLR. Approximate retail value is $44.95.
If you are chosen, you will be notified by email. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
Entries can be submitted until Friday, July 10th, at 11:59PM ET. Good luck!
Full rules can be found here.

Filed under: Digital Cameras, Peripherals

Engadget's recession antidote: win a Joby Gorillapod SLR! originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Jul 2009 12:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Homebrewed Nikon D90 lens is a fish-eyed theft deterrent

It may look like just a bit of corkwood taped to the front of a pretty expensive shooter, but that's only because it is. If you're already willing to withstand gadget muggles sniggering at your mighty DSLR and its six inch frontal protrusion, surely adding this sort of a ghetto mod isn't going to dent your self-respect too much. Put together using the ultimate in ordinary household objects, this fish-eye lens manages to kick out some pretty useful-looking images and seems a viable alternative for those with more time than money. Check out the read link for the full instructions and a gallery of photos taken with the lens.

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Homebrewed Nikon D90 lens is a fish-eyed theft deterrent originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Jul 2009 07:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Engadget’s recession antidote: win a Joby Gorillapod Original!

This whole global economic crisis, and its resulting massive loss of jobs got us thinking. We here at Engadget didn't want to stand helplessly by, announcing every new round of misery without giving anything back -- so we decided to take the opportunity to spread a little positivity. We'll be handing out a new gadget every day (except for weekends) to lucky readers until we run out of stuff or companies stop sending things. Today we've got a Joby Gorillapod Original on offer, perfect for keeping your point-and-shoot steady even in awkward situations. Read the rules below (no skimming -- we're omniscient and can tell when you've skimmed) and get commenting! Hooray for free stuff!

Huge thanks to Joby for providing the gear!

The rules:

Leave a comment below. Any comment will do, but if you want to share your proposal for "fixing" the world economy, that'd be sweet too.
You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.)
If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you'll be fine.
Contest is open to anyone in the 50 States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don't make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad.
Winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive one (1) Joby Gorillapod Original. Approximate retail value is $24.99.
If you are chosen, you will be notified by email. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
Entries can be submitted until Thursday, July 9th, at 11:59PM ET. Good luck!
Full rules can be found here.

Filed under: Digital Cameras, Peripherals

Engadget's recession antidote: win a Joby Gorillapod Original! originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 09 Jul 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Panasonic HDC-HS350 allows you to record over 30 hours of HD

If you liked the HDC-TM350, then we can pretty much guarantee you'll be a fan of the HS350, unveiled by Panasonic today. Essentially identical to its elder brother -- but for the hard disk bump on its right side -- the new AVCHD camcorder ups internal storage from 64GB to 240GB and retains all other salient features: 10.6 megapixel 3MOS sensor, 12x optical zoom and SDHC expansion up to 32GB per card. The increase in storage allows for over 30 hours of continuous full HD recording, meaning that your battery will give out long before you need to fiddle with your storage options. No word on the when, where and how much questions, but if we had to guess we'd say soon, everywhere and plenty.

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Panasonic HDC-HS350 allows you to record over 30 hours of HD originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Jul 2009 07:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LG’s 12 megapixel GC990 Louvre flagship with Schneider-Kreuznach optics records our puzzlement in HD

If you're the type who values specs above all else then lean in close, LG's GC990 Louvre is about as spec heavy as it gets. Taking its industrial design and UI cues from the GC900 it will replace later this year, LG's newest flagship brings yet another 12 megapixel camera to market. LG's promising "zero shutter lag" while using respectable Schneider-Kreuznach optics with auto- or touchscreen-focus, a xenon flash, claimed ISO 3200 sensitivity (from a tiny cellphone image sensor?), and the ability to record 720p video at 30 fps. It'll also geotag your snaps thanks to on-board GPS. Fine, just remember that 12 megapixel images shot at full quality will result in massive (up to 18MB) files that must then be stored and transmitted to your favorite image sharing sites -- a waste of time and treasure unless you plan to blow up and crop those well-lit images. Anywho, rounding out the specs are LG's S-Class featurephone UI running atop an auto-rotating 3.2-inch (16:9 aspect) touchscreen display, WiFi, Bluetooth, DivX and Xvid video support, a TV-out jack, and support for media sharing with DLNA standard devices. Picture of the backside camera just beyond the read link.

Filed under: Cellphones, Digital Cameras

LG's 12 megapixel GC990 Louvre flagship with Schneider-Kreuznach optics records our puzzlement in HD originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Jul 2009 06:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Creative Zii and Zii EGG touchscreen players with HD cameras served up by FCC

Guess who's back? Creative. Hard to believe, we know, but the company we've all but forgotten looks ready to make a comeback in the portable audio / video game. Creative Labs Zii and Zii EGG just made their first appearance at the FCC. Can't say that we're too enthused by the "EGG" moniker but we're definitely liking the looks of that "HD Camera" module along the backside of these "MP4 players with touchscreens" and 802.11b/g WiFi. That "developer edition" is also a good sign that Creative is looking to make this a software platform a la the ol' iPod touch only with Creative's Zii system-on-chip architecture secret sauce. In fact, these devices could very well be running Android atop Creative's ZMS-05 chipset as we saw back in February. Welcome back Creative, you've got until September or so before Apple adds a camera to its own iPod touch... best get to work.

Filed under: Digital Cameras, Portable Audio, Portable Video

Creative Zii and Zii EGG touchscreen players with HD cameras served up by FCC originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Jul 2009 01:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pentax’s K-7 DSLR now shipping via online retailers

Resoundingly positive reviews can't be a bad way to start a product cycle, and that's just what the Pentax K-7 has, and now lo and behold, it's on sale via Amazon and JR We're not seeing any bundles at this point, just a body-only listing, but we can't imagine those are far off if you want to be patient.

[Via Electronista]

Read - Amazon
Read - JR

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Pentax's K-7 DSLR now shipping via online retailers originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Jul 2009 21:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Evidence mounts for iPods with cameras

The iPod with camera is pretty much a given at this point in Apple's evolutionary approach to its audio / video players. In fact, we've already seen iLounge's confident rendering of an iPod nano with camera. Now we have the first cases with matching camera cut-outs (like that of the above) for the iPod nano in addition to an iPod touch case with similar cutouts passing through our tips box. This morning TechCrunch is claiming that a "massive number of camera modules" for iPods have been ordered per information provided by a source in Asia. Add it all up and we should see the announcement of a new iPod touch and iPod nano with photo / video recording sometime around September per Apple's usual pattern.

[Via MacRumors, thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Filed under: Digital Cameras, Handhelds, Portable Audio, Portable Video

Evidence mounts for iPods with cameras originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Jul 2009 07:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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