Samsung have announced the worlds smallest 8 megapixel CMOS camera module. It is little at 28mm (height) × 15.3mm (width) × 8.5mm (thickness), making it great for small phones with higher megapixel shooting (and the fast burn of memory storage).
It isn’t just a megapixel upgrade either. It features anti-shake, a 1-cm macro, and face tracking technology.
Before you get to excited, I would like to take you away from your hires image fantasies and remind you that the camera is only as good as its lens. It isn’t a liquid lens, like so many scientists have promised us (works similar to the human eye), and it still won’t feature optical zoom.
Expect to see these in your more expensive camera phones by the end of this year, and in most camera phones next year. It won’t kill the digital camera market (like it did the PDA market), but it will make those emergency shots (like when you see a yeti) look that little bit sweeter.
For more info, click over to Engadget.
Sony have announced their 35mm equivalent, 25 megapixel (24.81 effective megapixels) CMOS camera sensor. It doesn’t just give you a high megapixel image, it also does it at all-pixel scan time of 6.3 frames per second with 12-bit colour. Don’t expect it to be seen in a camera any time soon though, with an estimated mass production within this year (which could mean December).
For more info, click over to Gizmodo.
Want a cheap video camera and brand name doesn’t matter? Why not try a Exemode DV580HD? This little guy supports 720P, which slides on down to its 32mb inbuilt or SDHC memory card slot (16 or 32 GB coming soon). It features an 8 megapixel CCD for taking shots but unfortunately doesn’t come with any optical zoom. Michael Bay won’t be using it to film Transformers 2, but for $US220 what do you expect?
For more info, click over to the Akihabara News Site.
You can guess the purpose of the rear view camera on your car, and that is so you don’t have to turn your head to reverse (therefore making you even lazier then before) plus other safety options (like not backing over your kid). What is the purpose of it on a bike? No, not a road bike, but a simple peddle bike!
Cerevellum have created a rear view camera for your peddle bike, which displays what is going on behind you on its 3.5 inch screen. The system also features a 4 hour battery life, 32 mb of storage for workout data, and 4 USB ports for expanding the device with modules (GPS maybe?). The cost of this handle bar mounted device will be around $US200, but is still currently a concept.
If you have ever ridden a bike on the open road, you will know how dangerous it can be so this could be a logical solution. When you are travelling at higher speeds, turning your head to check around you could be dangerous, but is it enough to rely on a electronic device? What do you guys think?
For more info, click over to the Engadget Blog.
I’ve actually played with this in reality, but thought it was small but the lens was to tiny to interest me. Apparently I should have had a closer look, because if you go by what the guys at Photography Blog think, then it is pretty damn good. They gave the FujiFilm Finepix Z100FD a mighty 4.5/5 and said “the Fujifilm Finepix Z100fd is a surprisingly good point-and-shoot digital camera.”
Check out the Photography Blog for the complete review.