By now most of you have heard of the Eye-Fi Wi-Fi SD memory card and what it’s capable of, right? Okay, good. Earlier this year, January to be exact, Lexar announced that they had teamed up with Eye-Fi to bring a Lexar branded SD card with Eye-Fi technology by year’s end. Well, the time has come — Lexar’s Shoot-n-Sync card is finally here and I’ve been testing it out for the last couple weeks. It rocks, but it does have a hangup or two. Read More
Cramming a 14.7-megapixel sensor into something the size of a deck of cards is no small feat, but that’s exactly what Samsung’s done with the TL34HD digital camera. Add to that the ability to record 720p high-definition video at 30 frames per second, a three-inch touchscreen, and an MSRP of $329.95 and you’ve got a camera that appeals to people who want to get a little more out of their point and shoot.
At $249, the Samsung SC-MX20 falls delicately between cheap flash-based camcorders and more expensive hard drive-based camcorders. It strips down some features that may not be necessary in the first place – high definition video, still photos, etc. – but adds something that most less expensive flash camcorders don’t have: an optical zoom. A big optical zoom, too, at 34x. That, coupled with long battery life, user-friendly codec support, and relatively low price make the SC-MX20 a winner.
The Kodak EasyShare Z1012 IS is a 10.1 megapixel camera with 12x optical zoom and image stabilization. It also records video at 1280×720.
The Good
This camera is really, really light. It’s surprisingly light. You could easily forget that this thing was in your pocket. It’s got a fast start up time, which means you’re less likely to miss those impromptu shots. The auto focus is fairly fast, and certainly adequate for most casual users.
It’s got your standard assortment of scene modes (fireworks, museum, beach, kids, snow, etc). In auto mode, you can select from 10, 8.9, 7.5 and 5.0 megapixels at a 4:3 aspect ratio. In PSAM modes, you can select 10 (4:3), 8.9 (3:2), 7.5 (16:9), 5.0 (4:3), 3.1 (4:3), 2.2 (3:2), 2.1 (16.9), and 1.2 (4:3) to allow you to select the best resolution and aspect ratio for the intended use. Also in PSAM modes you can control the compression of the JPEGs between Fine (little compression), Standard, and Basic (lots of compression). For example, the same shot taken with all three settings produces files 4.1, 2.8, and 2.1 megabytes in size. In auto mode, you don’t get to select the compression at all — and it looks like it uses Basic compression, because the files are surprisingly small.
Love them or hate them, convergence devices are here to stay and thankfully they’re getting better and better. Case in point, the Samsung i8 digital point-and-shoot camera. This tiny little 8.2-megapixel touting digi not only takes clean and sharp pictures, but it also plays back music and video like its predecessor the i85. Oh, and you can catch up on your latest novel too on the text viewer. It manages to do all four tasks surprisingly well and you’re really only limited to the size of your SD card.
Donning a 3x optical zoom, I was able to snap some images that were relatively sharp. You obviously won’t be getting anything close to what a DSLR can do with a faster prime lens, but for only $300 it’s not a bad deal. The AWB isn’t the best I’ve used, but it does pretty well on an all-around basis. All the kids these days love and I mean LOVE taking pictures of themselves with friends without someone else taking the photo and most of them come out blurry or someone’s face gets chopped off. The i8’s face detection does a good job of detecting your mug and up to two others and beeps when everything is in focus. My flaring nostrils never looked so good. Read More
The biggest buzz in camcorders over the last year and a half hasn’t been from any of the big manufacturers — Sony, Panasonic, JVC or Canon, et. al. Instead, it’s a little product from a little company called Flip Video. A tiny pocket camcorder that offers simplicity and style over power and performance, Flip Video cameras — the Mino, Ultra, and Original — have been hugely popular with the younger, so-called “YouTube” set. About a year or so ago, one of our Born Digital predecessors wrote a story about the Flip Ultra and found it to be “perfect for online video sharing,” noting she had captured a short video with the Ultra and uploaded it to YouTube in a matter of minutes. Soon after, Flip Video camcorders were everywhere, it seemed. (Even my mom was asking about them.)
With so much attention going to such a small product, it was only a matter of time before the big boys would want a piece of the burgeoning pocket video camera market. The first major company to weigh in with a potential Flip Video challenger was somewhat unexpected though. Instead of Sony, Panasonic, JVC etc., venerable point-and-shoot camera manufacturer Kodak announced this summer that it would introduce the Zi6 pocket video camera ($179) in early Fall. Though the Zi6 seems to be part of an overall strategy by Kodak to prove that it’s no longer a stodgy, old film-based company but an energetic, multi-media, digital imaging company, the message to Flip Video was clear. Watch your ass, buster. Big Yellow is coming after you.
The JVC Everio GZ-MS100 camcorder records DVD-quality video to SD and SDHC cards and features direct uploading to YouTube. It’s priced at around $350, which places it in between lower-end hobbyist camcorders and higher-capacity hard drive camcorders.
Much like its big brother the Fastpack 250, the Flipside 200, has been a great addition to my arsenal of travel luggage for gadgets and cameras alike. The Flipside 200, however, has primarily been my camera bag for the better part of the last three months. My Pentax K200D with battery grip and two extra lenses fit nice and snug into the compartments that are revealed by zipping open the main pouch that’s accessed through the back of the bag. Some might think this is a pain in the rear, but it protects you and your gear from being ripped off if the zippers were exposed. On the exterior of the bag at the base there’s a concealed compartment that can be unvelcroed and taken out to support the feet of a tripod. It’s pretty handy, but it’s not as deep as I would have liked it to be. The Manfrotto tripod I’ve been using wasn’t very stable at times, but it never popped out, thankfully. Read More
There’s certainly no shortage of flash-based camcorders these days and the trend, happily, has been to improve the image quality of these inexpensive-yet-pocketable devices. I had the chance to try out a relatively affordable high definition camcorder recently; the $150 566V from DXG.
Reviewing point-and-shoot cameras for you guys, no matter how complex, is like writing about light beer for a wine magazine. What can you say but that it goes down smooth and tastes great? Can you talk about the vat-grown malty flavor? Can you talk about the bottle and clever spelling of “lite?” Absolutely, but you and I both know we’re doing each other a disservice.
Me, for reviewing a point-and-shoot that aspires to be a DSLR and you for thinking about buying a point-and-shoot when you know that a nice Nikon or Canon with a good, basic lens costs about $700 on a bad day and will take great pictures without any of the lag, drag, and sag found in most point-and-shoots. That’s why I’m so bitter about the Olympus SP-570UZ. I was excited, nay, supremely interested in the camera and now I feel like I had to drink a case of Mickey’s Big Mouth. Read More
The last time I used or even owned a camcorder was back in the mid-90s. They were always too big and transferring video was only something a pro did unless you were just copying to a VHS tape. It wasn’t worth the time or the effort. My, have times changed. As with most technology, things get smaller and easier to use. Such is the case of the Samsung SC-HMX10C 720p camcorder. I’ve used it extensively over the last few months to bring all of you videos from CES, Macworld, CeBIT and any other video I’ve posted on CG.
You’ll like it if you’re looking for a high-quality webcam with decent software, autofocus, and good low-light performance.
