Sure there are a ton of new digital SLRs with built-in dust reduction systems, but how can you be sure that you’ve got all the dust off? Because most of those systems use variations on the same technology – the imaging sensor or glass covering the sensor is vibrated at high speeds – there’s always a chance that static electricity might cause some dust to stay stuck. The PMA 2008 show floor opened in Las Vegas this morning and one of the cooler pro products we’ve seen so far is perfect for sensor neat freaks. Called the Firefly, this digital sensor cleaner uses ionization technology to remove the static charge of the dust so it just falls off. The device employs a Gitto "Rocket" air blower bulb to shoot a burst of anti-static air onto the sensor for a one-two punch against dust. The FireFly ($199) was actually developed by a company that specializes in ionization sources – not photography – so they’re experts on attacking static. Say goodbye to all those hours spent retouching for dust on your digital photos. For more info, check out their website at www.nrdfirefly.com. Dan Havlik is Technology Editor at PDN Magazine and Editor of DemystifyingDigital.com. For more professional photography news, visit PDNonline.com. → Read More
General Imaging, “the worldwide exclusive licensee for GE-branded digital cameras”—that debuted at this year’s PMA convention—signed a contract with Sears and Kmart to be the first retailers to carry the digital cameras, hitting stores this holiday weekend. As a bonus, the stores will get the cameras in some exclusive colors. Yay colors. Both retailers are getting the entry-level A730 (MSRP: $129.99) in black, while Sears will sell the slightly better A830 ($149.99) in white and the ultra-compact G1 ($199.99) in navy. You’ll be able to pick up an A830 in blue exclusively in Kmart stores. Here’s the thing: I had a chance to play with these back at PMA and while I was impressed with the designs (very stylish and oh so shiny), once I picked them up, they felt like toys. No weight to them at all. Normally this would be a good thing, but I—like many people—equate solidity and weight with quality. And this of course speaks nothing of their image quality; I have no idea what that’s like. → Read More
Along with the Sony Cybershot DSC-G1, Canon’s $499 PowerShot TX1 was one of the more innovative new compact models shown off at this year’s PMA convention. You’ve probably seen and read the details on this compact beauty that shoots high-def video (1,280×720) at 30fps and captures 7.1-megapixel stills through its 10X optical zoom lens that works whether you’re shooting video or stills. Of course, the file sizes are huge when shooting at full 720p resolution (roughly 512MB is needed to store 1 minute and 42 seconds of video). But, the camera does take large-capacity SDHC cards. The camera’s been announced for a little while now and you can check Canon’s site for full specs and features. There is a bunch of photos from almost every angle (sorry, the bottom was kinda boring so we didn’t shoot it). Needless to say, it was one of our favorite cameras from the show. Sturdy, compact and feature-laden, the PowerShot TX1 is hopefully only the start of seeing cameras that can shoot great video and stills in one very small package. → Read More
We’re not sure about the usefulness of the Samsung HD Photo Box for average consumers, but photo/video enthusiasts that really love to look at their shots on a high-def display will probably want one. The Box connects to your HDTV via HDMI and contains a 250GB hard drive for image storage. The front of the unit features a 4-in-1 memory-card reader, a USB connector with PictBridge support for printing directly to a photo printer without a PC and a standard USB 2.0 port for connecting your camera or another storage device. Details remain pretty scarce since the HD Photo Box, according to the Samsung rep we spoke with, just showed up at PMA with no warning. Look for it in stores, however, in the second half of 2007. → Read More
While we were with Nikon, its Senior Technical Manager Lindsay Silverman went through a few of the improvements Nikon made to the D40 to bump it up to the new D40x. → Read More
Say hello to the recently announced 7.1-megapixel Samsung L77. We said say “Hello!” It is the slimmest (fractionally thinner than the $399 Casio Exilim EX-V7R) 7X optical zoom camera currently available. It’s start up time was fast, too, with the lens being entirely internal. → Read More
Nikon Senior Technical Manager Lindsay Silverman shows off some of the finer features on the new P5000. The camera straddles the line between dSLR and consumer point-and-shoot and looks cool doing it. → Read More
The Olympus SP-550 UZ is definitely cock of the walk in the long-zoom-camera category at PMA 2007. The ultra-zoom (UZ) wide-angle (28-504mm in 35mm photography) lens carries an optical zoom up to 18X. That’s a lot of zoom for as compact as it is and beats newer long-zoom models from Fujifilm, Kodak and Panasonic by as much as 8X. With a suggested retail price of $499, you’re paying for the privilege, too. → Read More
The Samsung L74 Wide has a Tour Guide function that gives you travel information covering 4,500 regions in 30 countries, so you can plan trips while you’re on the road. It also has 450MB of internal memory. → Read More
Samsung’s NV11 features a 10.1-megapixel sensor, 5X optical zoom Schneider lens, a 2.7-inch display and face recognition. But its innovative menu interface is what really makes it a compact camera worth checking out. → Read More
WiFi. Photosharing. MP3 playback. Overkill? Maybe. → Read More
We take a gander at muveeNow, muvee’s new photo editing software. Muvee Now → Read More
There’s not too much to say about the Olympus Stylus 770 SW. Well, except for the fact that it can survive 5-foot drops, be taken down 33 feet underwater, withstand 220 pounds of pressure and still operate down to 14 degrees Fahrenheit — hence the block of ice. There’s also a new manometer built in letting you gauge your altitude or depth. It’s otherwise a normal 7.1-megapixel pocket camera with a 3X optical zoom priced at $380. → Read More
Priced at a low $249, the Fujifilm FinePix S700 heads near budget territory on pricing, but in features comes close to other newly announced long-zoom models. The 7.1-megapixel camera has a 10x optical zoom with image stabilization and one of the finest LCDs we saw on the PMA floor (it was trumped only by the 3.5-inch beauty on the Sony G1, which we’ll have full video of posted soon). → Read More
The Leica DC lens is the star of the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ8 with its 11 elements in eight groups, including 3 aspherical lenses. The 12X optical zoom lens is carried over from last year’s DMC-FZ7, but is now backed with a 7.2-megapixel sensor and a newly enhanced Venus III processor. A RAW mode has been added as well. → Read More
When an older gentlemen in a suit giggles like a schoolboy, you know something either made a fart noise or something cool happened. In this video, we witness both of those things. The Canon EOS-1D Mark III can apparently take 5 million pictures a second and sounds like a poot. PMA 07: Canon EOS-1D Mark III Snapping Off Frames Like a House Afire [The Giz] → Read More
When megapixels stopped wooing consumers to cameras, the manufacturers apparently switched to hyping another spec: ISO. The letters stand for the International Organization for Standardization and back in the film days the number that followed ISO referred to the film speed or the amount of light needed to expose the film. There’s math involved that we won’t go into here but the short of it: the higher the number, the more sensitive the film, the less light needed to capture an image. However, in the digital world this is basically out the window. On a personal note, the last film SLR camera I owned went up to ISO 1600. The Kodak EasyShare Z885 on the other hand goes up to ISO 8000. What does that mean? Truthfully I haven’t seen images from the camera yet (the one on display at PMA is a pre-production that was finicky about even turning on) but, I guess you’d be able to take a picture of something black, in a black room with nearly no light and still get a picture of something. It’s also what most, if not all, of the vendors are using to help reduce image blur. UPDATE: We neglected to mention when we originally posted this that the Z885 doesn’t even have the highest ISO we saw on a consumer camera at PMA. The Olympus FE-250 has an ISO up to 10000 when shooting at a resolution of 3 megapixels. We can only imagine what kind of noise would be in an image shot at that ISO. → Read More
Everyone seems to be downplaying the importance of megapixels lately, and while we don’t disagree they shouldn’t be wholly ignored because it’s still a reflection on image quality. Case in point, Fujifilm’s newest compact budget shooters, the A820 and A900, which offer the company’s 8- and 9-megapixel Super CCD HR image sensors, respectively. The A820 carries a price of $180, the A900, $200. → Read More
Looking for a nice travel companion to go globe-trotting with? The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ3 looks to be a top choice. The 7.2-megapixel camera features a wide-angle (28mm) Leica lens capable of smooth optical zooming up to 10X. → Read More
In all its undiluted glory, we present the Sony Press Conference feature the new Cybershots and Alphas. Enjoy! → Read More
San Francisco, CA
