Leica can certainly make cameras. It has launched two new cameras, both 10.1 meagapixel. They are the D-Lux 4 and the C-Lux 3. The D-Lux 4 has a 1/1.63 CCD image sensor and a high-spee Leica DC Vario-Summicron 5.1-12.8mm f/2.0-2.8 ASPH with 35mm equivalent focal length of 24 to 70mm. Wow, that was a long phrase! What you need to know is that it will take great pictures for you, no matter how good a photographer you are. The D-Lux 4 has a bigger TFT LCD monitor than the C-Lux 3. It’s a 3 inch monitor with 460,000 pixels and ISO sensitivity range from 80-3200. It has three photo formats available: 4:3, 3:2 and 16:9.

The C-Lux 3 on the other hand has a smaller 1/2.33 CCD sensor and a one-stop slower Leica DC Vario-Elmarit 4.4-22mm f/2.8-5.9 ASPH with 35mm equivalent focal length of 25 to 125mm. The LCD is smaller. At 2.5 inch it will offer you 230,000 pixels and ISO sensitivity of 100 to 1600.

Both have 50MB internal storage space, it has SD/SDHC support and video recording mode in 640×480, 848×480 and 1280×720 format. We’re waiting for a price to be announced later in October when the Leicas will be available.

Samsung has a new camera for intermediate users. The L310W was announced at the IFA and it’s a point and shoot camera. It’s a 13.6 megapixels camera with dual image stabilization. It has a 2.7 inch LCD and a 3.6x optical zoom lens. Auto red eye fix, face detection, blink detection, smile shot, beauty shot, MPEG-4 video recording and more features are also available.

There are two very useful features for the L310W. One is the 28mm wide angle unit which lets you include more scenery in all your photos. The second one is the built-in function description and photo help guide which describe all features to help users understand how various settings work right then when they’re taking certain pictures.

Nikon has announced their newest camera, the D90 DSLR and boy would we like to get our hands on it. It’s not necessarily the 12.3 megapixels or the EXPEED image processing that we’re after but rather the movie function which is a new feature for this family of cameras.
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Sony has another Cybershot for us, the DSC-T500. This is a 10 megapixel digital camera which also knows how to record 720p videos at 30 frames per second in the MPEG4 H.264 codec. (more…)

Have you ever wanted to get a clearer picture out of your iPhone? Well, that sucks, you have to wait until Apple decides to boost up the measly 1.3MP camera the iPhone has on board.

But, if you just so happen to want an extra 6x Zoom on your iPhone then this product is definitely for you.

As you can see above, all you do is snap the $19 Brando Telescope onto the back of your iPhone and now you have an iTelescope.

Not to mention you look like a complete n00b. Want one? Here.

Sony’s new Cybershot model, the T77 is going to be launched sometime next month. It’s not the professional camera you are looking for, but it’s the perfect tool to keep around you. The T77 is said to have a 10 megapixel resolution, 4x optical zoom and a large touchscreen display on the back. The camera will be priced at 249.99GBP or roughly $500, depending where you’re going to get it.

Check out the video above. Ready to get rid of your old model to get your hands on the newest Cybershot?

Well sports fans, Polaroid is back and it’s hot! I don’t exactly know about hot but it’s surly back. Well i don’t know exactly if it’s back either…
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Following the leak last week, Fujifilm has just confirmed the launch of the new S200HD digital camera in its FinePix series. So if you are in Canada and on the lookout for a DSLR-style camera sans a hefty price tag, hold your horses till September 2008 when it will be available for $299.99. With its 10-megapixel lens and wide-angle zoom, taking high-quality photos or high-definition videos should be a breeze coupled with all the usual goodies like red-eye reduction, face detection, and dual image stabilization. It can take continuous 5mpx/3mpx pictures at 6.8 and 13.8 frames respectively, suitable for capturing any fast motion scenarios like sports or wildlife. The S2000HD also boasts of a whopping 15x optical zoom, getting things closer than ever before without loss in the quality of the pictures. It is capable of recording videos at 1280×720 pixels and stills at 1920×1080 pixels, which can be viewed directly on an HDTV using the accessory kit available separately. Worth the $300 it asks for don’t you think? Look for the Fujifilm FinePix S2000HD starting September in stores across Canada.
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The Nikon Coolpix P6000 is a camera which knows GPS and geotagging besides taking photos. And it will surely shoot some decent photos at 13.5 megapixels wouldn’t you say?

Pictures will be embedded with altitude, longitude and latitude which will let you geotag pictures with a third party program. There’s also a LAN port which will let you quickly transfer photos to myPicturetown or your computer.

Here are some of Nikon’s Coolpix P6000 features:

• 4X wide angle lens
• 2.7-inch LCD
• Optical viewfinder
• Optical image stabilization
• ISO 64-6400 (Auto ISO up to 1600)
• Pop-up flash
• Nikon’s Best Shot Selector
• SD/SDHC support

The camera will cost you just $499 when it arrives, but it’s certainly worth it.

The FinePix S20000HD seems to be the successor of the tS1000FD from Fujifilm. What’s new? Well there’s a lens upgrade from 12X to 15X. High definition video recording is also available if you happen to be a home video director.

The camera seems to be made for fast action like we see in various sports. If you are a sports photographer you’ll be able to take 5 megapixels photos at 6.8 frames per second while 3 megapixlels picture can be taken at 13.5 frames per second.

The S20000HD will retail for about $293 but we don’t know when it’s actually going to be available.
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Samsung has two new digital cameras coming in September. These are the TL34HD and the L310W. Like what you see in the picture? That’s the TL34HD, a disciple of the NV24HD and it just might be the most advanced point and shoot camera from Samsung.

Here’s what it has to offer:

• 14.7 megapixels resolution
• 28mm Schneider lens
• 3.6x optical zoom
• 720p video recording at 30fps
• movie stabilizer when recording video
• successive Recording mode
• Smart Touch 2.0 user interface
• HDMI connectivity

The L310W digital camera which you can see just below, isn’t that bad either. This one has a 13.6 megapixels sensor which will definitely upgrade your photography talent. What else you ask. Here are more specs:

• 3.6x wide optical zoom lens
• intelligent 2.7 inch LCD screen
• Samsung Perfect Portrait System
• Face Detection
• Blink Detection Mode
• Smile Mode
• Beauty Shot mode
• Digital Image Stabilization
• Auto Contrast Balance
• Movie recording at SVGA resolution @ 20 fps in MPEG-4 format

Both cameras will be rolling in September. The TL34HD will sell for $329.95 while the L310W is reported to sell for £199 which is about $398. That would be simply weird. The better version should be more expensive.

No later than last week we were getting ready for Kodak’s 50 megapixel image sensor which is supposed to pack the $39,995 Hassleblad’s H3DII-50 camera. Now we hear that PhaseOne is going to surpass Kodak as they are about to offer a 60.5 megapixels camera.

PhaseOne’s P65+ digital back has a resolution of 8984 x 6732 active pixels which lead to a total resolution of 60.5 megapixels. Such a camera will be priced accordingly. You will have to get your hands on about $42,000 to get one. And the P65+ digital back is worth #39,900. Just in case you need something “smaller”, the 21 megapixels camera from PhaseOne costs only $13,000. Better buy a car you say?

The CCD sensor called “Sensor+” technology can take up to one image per second. An 8GB RGB image will be transformed into a 180MB file. Better choose wisely what you’re going to photograph!

How do you like your current camera? What is it? A 3.2 megapixels phone? A 5 megapixels 5 years old camera? A new 8 megapixels Sony Ericsson mobile phone? A whooping 12 megapixels camera? Do you need more megapixels? How about the 50 megapixels camera from Kodak?
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Microsoft recently unveiled its new series of LifeCam webcams. The Whack received the LifeCam VX-5000for review. The VX-5000 offers convenience and is portable enough not to interfere with your work. The striking thing about the VX-5000 is the bendable base, making it easy to place it on a desktop monitor or fix it to a laptop. The camera is available three different colors: blue, green and red (we received the blue one for review).

Setting up the camera was a breeze. The installation of the bundled software went smoothly and the webcam was up and running within 10 minutes of opening the package. However, it took considerably more time to open the package itself.

When logged in to the Windows Live messenger, clicking the button on top of the camera starts a Windows Live Call: it loads your contact list, and you have to select one to start a conversation with. There’s a unidirectional, noise-canceling mic on the Lifecam VX-5000. As can be expected, the webcam is optimized for Windows Live but works pretty well with others like Yahoo! IM and Skype. In low-light conditions, the video was less than desirable quality, but once you switched on the lights, the quality was pretty good.

For some reason, the default resolution for still photos was set to 640×480 (VGA), but you can easily change this to 1.3 megapixels. Even at that resolution, it falls short of some cell phone camera images, but then again this is not your everyday high-end webcam. The software bundled with the camera allows you to add all sorts of goofy stuff to your video conversation (you know what I’m talking about — stupid fish!).

The Photo Swap feature lets you share photos with whoever you are conversing with. There’s also support for one-touch blogging - a feature I did not try because I don’t have a Windows Live Spaces account. The microphone built into the LifeCam VX-5000 works pretty decently. However, I could not find any place where this can be over-ridden with another microphone.

The Microsoft LifeCam VX-5000 is easily a nice-to-have accessory, being in the mid-range of both price and features. Priced at US $49.99, it is actually available for around $37 on Amazon and other online retailers.

It’s not that thieves are getting more stupid than some of them already were in the past. By stupid I mean not making an effort to earn a decent legal living of course. It’s just that technology advanced so much that it actually helps fight crime. A few weeks ago an Apple employee managed to login her MacBook remotely and identify robbers which lead to their arrest.

Here’s how technology beats thieves again: a Long Island couple in vacation in Florida, forgot their camera after having dinner in a local restaurant. Of course the two employees which found it decided to keep it. What they didn’t know was that the camera had an Eye-Fi card which conveniently connected to the first available wireless network and started transmitting pictures. The uploaded photos included the ones thieves had taken with each other.

Lucky for them the thieves were not reported to the police after returning the camera. I guess if you plan to steal something, then better get to work and check out what’s around! Technologically speaking of course.

It was only yesterday that I showed you how small a 5 megapixels camera from Sharp could be. That’s a camera that will be inserted into lots of mobile devices.
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Microsoft unveiled its latest accessory, the Microsoft LifeCam. The series includes three models, including the VX-5000, VX-500 and LX-2000. With a unique bendable attachment base that you can use with pretty much any surface (either on your laptop or your desktop), it comes in a convenient size so you can carry it around.

The LifeCam VX-5000 webcam has a colored ring around the front of the webcam, available in Cool Blue, Lucky Green and Fire Red. It comes with MSN Photo Swap, allowing you to share photos during a video conversation. The other two models are affordable ones: the VX-500 is your basic webcam while the LX-2000 features a full-size headset.

Pricing and availability:

No, the title is not wrong. Although it might look like a candybar cell phone, the DV300T is just a digital camera with nothing really distinguished about it. Equipped with a mediocre 3.1-megapixel camera and no optical zoom to speak of, Mustek tries to make up for its shortcomings with video recording capability in PAL/NTSC, a voice recorder, music player, and a text reader though I am not sure even that would pull any love towards it.

No word on pricing or availability but considering what it carries, must be pretty light on your wallet.

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Panasonic and T-Mobile team up to develop a new LUMIX digital camera. The new LUMIX would have a feature unique to it — wireless connectivity through the T-Mobile HotSpot service which comes in conjunction with the LUMIX for one year. This connectivity will allow users to post pictures on Google’s Picasa Web Albums directly through the digital camera. You will even be able to delete photos straight from your digital cameras.

“The new LUMIX will be the perfect digital camera for consumers who are accustomed to the benefits that wireless connections offer: speed and convenience,” said Tokikazu Matsumoto, director of Panasonic AVC Networks Company’s Digital Camera Business Unit. “Ideal for the active user who is always on-the-go, the new LUMIX with wireless network connectivity, has the ability to upload directly to Picasa Web Albums, making sharing photos with friends and family, as simple as a touch of a button and as seamless as connecting to a wireless network.”

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While the majority of students and various professionals try their hand at break-neck speed writing during lectures and meetings, those who’ve discovered Qipit merely laugh in amusement. Those who use Qipit would merely take digital pictures of white boards, notes and anything similar and know that the service would convert the files to clear and legible PDF files for them.

Made possible by digital and mobile phone camera technology, Qipit offers a service so unbelievably ingenious, it makes everyone want to try it out even once, even just for curiosity’s sake. Using Qipit is pretty simple. You have to be situated in an eligible country and would need to have a compatible mobile phone, digital camera and an account in the Qipit web site.

Simply upload the images into your account, email the images to them or even fax the images and you’ll get your converted PDF files for FREE. Yep, this service goes for free right now and we could only hope it’ll be for good.

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