Author: Jack Loftus

Is Samsung’s flagship point-and shoot, the new TL500, truly worthy of the Bestmodo moniker we slapped on its butt yesterday afternoon? Well, let’s put it this way: Maybe the Canon S90 does have something to worry about after all.

You see, the first hands-on impressions are starting to trickle in on this camera, and they, are, in a word, promising. Promising with a standard definition video caveat, says the folks at Digital Camera Info, but we’ll get to that in a moment.

First, this point-and-shoot is decidedly beefy—a worthy camera bag addition for those who don’t want an SLR, but do want a solid feature set and precise manual setting controls. In the case of the TL500, the manual mode benefits from the camera’s dual controls on both the front and rear of the body. The lens, too, while not removable, gets high marks from DCI, mainly because what you’re getting is an f/1.8 on a shooter—that’s pretty rare, but pretty good if you’re the kind of casual photographer who likes low light images and depth of field control.

As for the caveat, it’s this: The TL500 is limited to standard def video. Cheaper cameras have HD, but the $450 TL500 does not. Now, the S90 is in a similar boat, but this really seems like a missed opportunity, especially for a high end “flagship” styled point-and-shoot like the TL500. Time will tell if the omission has a negative impact, as this camera does not go on sale until the spring. [Digital Camera Info]

A gaggle of MIT inventors are presently working to create a swarm of micro LED-equipped heli-robots that would hover autonomously in the sky and create massive works of floating 3D artwork. The coming apocalypse, it just got prettier!

The program, called Flyfire, would sync up hundreds (and thousands?) of tiny helicopter robots to create, say, that mysterious Mona Lisa smile in the dark night air. Like in this concept video:

Then, the little guys would descend on our villages like medieval locusts and consume us for the organic, energy food that we are.

Luckily for humanity, MIT could only manage to get a few Flyfire robots aloft at any one time. Only in simulations are they able to produce works of art, like the Mona Lisa, that would require thousands of these little buggers. Eventually, they hope to scale up. Can’t wait! [MIT, MIT Press Release]

Meet the Casio Exilim EX-S7 and EX-Z35, a pair of low-price point-and-shoots debuting at PMA 2010 this weekend. They aren’t going to blow the doors off anything, but that’s the point. These are entry-level shooters with a pleasantly entry-level price.

The pair feature 12.1MP sensors, coupled with some web uploading software and a 3x zoom. The EX-S7 features 720p video recording and a larger 2.7-inch LCD.

The tinier Z35 (above) has VGA video, a smaller 2.5-inch screen, and a naming convention that had me thinking Infiniti. The aforementioned low prices are $140 and $110, respectively. [DPReview]

There’s a camera show going down in Anaheim right now, and with it has come a whole mess of budget cameras. GE put a few more on the growing pile today, including additions to its entry-level Power Series point-and-shoots.

The blue example above is the waterproof G5WP, set to ship later this year for $180. Inside the dry casing are 12.2MP; an array of colors so long as you want red, blue or gray; and 4x internal zoom.

The X5 model boosts the zoom up to 15x and maxes out at ISO 3200 (cost: $150). Both cameras should arrive about the same in Q2 2010.

The Power Series received two additions today: The E1486TW and E1480W, checking in at $180 and $150, respectively. The two cameras include HD video, optical image stabilization, and 8x optical zoom. [PR Newswire]

Flash on the iPad/iPhone will never happen, right, and the reasons have run the gamut from “Apple vendetta” to “Flash is an energy and resource hog.” Is the real, mind-numbingly simple explanation all about touch, mouse cursors and hovering? Possibly!

That’s what a real, live Adobe Flash developer is saying this weekend, and I have to admit his simple “hover/mouseover” argument makes a lot of sense.

You see, says Morgan Adams, with current flash sites and flash games and whatnot, the software requires a mouse pointer to function properly, as well as the ability to distinguish between hovering and actual clicking. You see this in Hulu video player controls and with those annoying Cialis banner ads that swell in size when you accidentally hover over them with your cursor.

As Adams explains, the dynamic is pervasive, adopted across the Internet as a “fundamental” component of interactive design. But…BUT! In a touch screen world most people won’t care or even understand how to interact with flash banners that were designed with cursors and hovering in mind. In a perfect world devoid of snipes and verbal sparring, Apple and Adobe could work together to make existing flash sites and banners appear on an iPad. Completely possible! But it would suck.

Say all invisible flash content appeared on the iPad or iPhone tomorrow. You would see, with your eyes, that happy Cialis couple sitting in a bathtub as clear as day. But beyond that none of the functionality would work in a touchscreen world. Users could look but not touch, but thanks to the hover/mouseover issues that occur when a pointer/hover-based interface clashes with a touch-based one, it’d all be completely pointless. Hrm.

“Users would hate that broken promise much more than they hate gaps in pages, missing banner ads, and the need to download a game once from the App Store instead of re-downloading it every time they visit a Flash game page,” Adams wrote as part of a detailed response over at AppleInsider. He went on to detail several “solutions” that Apple and Adobe (and the Internet) could implement to make flash play well with touch, but they are all “terrible” he says, including the option that sees every flash developer on every web site around the world rewriting existing flash content so that it’s compatible with future touch-enabled mobile devices. Not fun, and certainly not profitable.

“So it’s not just that Apple has refused to support Flash. It cannot, logically, be done. A finger is not a mouse, and Flash sites are designed to require a mouse pointer (and keyboard) in fundamental ways. Someday that may change, and every Flash site could be redesigned with touch-friendly Flash. But that doesn’t make Flash sites work now,” Morgan said.

We’ll see! It’s an interesting development, if nothing else, but if you’re Apple and this is true, why not just come out and say it? [Apple Insider Forums via RoughlyDrafted]

If you’re MythBusters’ (and Giz Explains’) Adam Savage, you don’t store your tools in just any toolbox. No, sir. You store them in a Savage Toolbox. Duh. [Braincraft]

Today Sony made a play at the micro four thirds format, promising giant DSLR quality in a little camera. The camera in question arrives as part of a slew of just announced concept cameras in the Alpha line:

– Concept model of an ultra-compact interchangeable lens digital camera system that packs the quality of a DSLR camera in an extraordinarily small body, along with interchangeable lenses (this would be the micro four thirds play mentioned in the lead – j.l.)
– Mid-range concept camera for advanced users (a successor to the α700) as well as concept mainstream models
– Prototype of a Super Telephoto Lens (500mm F4 G) with class-leading optical performance
– Prototype of a Distagon T 24mm F2 ZA SSM, new Carl Zeiss wide angle lens for superior shots of landscapes and sweeping vistas

More to come, including renders and screenshots, as Sony’s press site starts to cooperate again. Just note these are concept cameras before you doing any jumping up and down or anything. But, so was Samsung’s own proprietary micro four thirds competitor, which is now very real. [Sony]

At the end of many sport games, the commentators inevitably give shouts outs to the camera crew, who wave back with toothy smiles. It’s a touching, simple “thank you” for covering the game. Sadly, these poor saps are all doomed.

Now, I don’t know when the end will come for these unfortunate souls, but I do know what the beginning of the end is called: APIDIS. That’s Autonomous Production of Images based on Distributed and Intelligent Sensing to people who enjoy spelling things out, and what it boils down to is a system that combines video streams from several cameras into a kind of “smart” coverage that has little room or tolerance for the inevitable mistakes of carbon-based meat sacks.

Unlike single-minded humans, APIDIS tracks the ball and players simultaneously, using a network of connected cameras. With this network, the system calculates which angle captures the most detail, and displays it to the viewer accordingly.

Even crazier (and the reason why it will truly take off), is a feature that allows coverage to be customized to a user’s viewing preferences. Perhaps you’re Chelsea captain John Terry’s wife, for example, and you want to keep an eye on him for the entire Premiership match against Everton, just in case he tries to have an affair with one of the other player’s girlfriends. You can totally do that! Someone already has!

Well, not with John Terry. The match that APIDIS was given custom instructions to cover was a basketball game, so chosen because of that sport’s faster pace. It worked, and ESPN is reportedly looking into APIDIS with more than just a passing interest. [New Scientist]

I doubt Sigma’s DP2s (stress “s”) update will clean up Wilson’s DP2 review in any real way, but the improved autofocus algorithm could help reduce the camera’s complexity a tad. Thing’s still going to be expensive though.

Now that’s only an educated guesstimate, using Sigma’s existing pricing practices as a guide, because official pricing isn’t available just yet.

We only know of new features, aforementioned autofocus tweaks chief amongst them. The tweak is all about speed. As in, the camera will do it faster. Items not getting tweaked include Sigma’s traditional bare bones interface and camera body. Those remain Spartan and simple, as they were with the DP2. Inside, it’s the same 14MP FOVEON X3 CMOS image sensor as before.

There’s also a Power Save Mode that should help budding photographers take more pics on a single charge (in theory and PR speak only, for now).

A final addition is the inclusion of Sigma’s beefy RAW image processing software, “SIGMA Photo Pro4.0” (lack of JPEG+RAW was a ding against in the DP2 review). With the Mac version, Sigma promises previously PC-only features like JPEG conversion and batch white balance settings. [Sigma via DPReview]

Morning! And welcome to another edition of “Hey, it looks like the iPhone might soon have video chat and a front-facing camera.” Today’s round includes the iPhone SDK, and the fact that it mentions a number of video chat commands:

That there image is from the SDK, and all but hits you in the face with two icons that mention “accepting” and “declining” video.

Parsing the evidence further, we discover this, a more direct mention of “video chat” in the telephony UI code:

So video chat on the iPhone. Probably coming soon, at least in code form. But what of the heavy strain on AT&T’s 3G network? One would think that video chat via millions of new iPhones would tax the hell out of an already taxed system. Perhaps they’ll roll it out everywhere but New York City and San Francisco and screw those cities a little more? Maybe throw little “too bad, so sad” San Fran/NYC asterisk caveats in all the anti-Verizon Wireless ads they no doubt have saved in the can for when this hypothetical video chat iPhone launches. We’ll see. Editor’s Note: Or video is being prepped for some other carrier’s network, as noted in the comments. Could be! -j.l.

In any event, as far as a hardware refresh or longer case goes? If the video chat development pans out, it’s looking more and more likely. [9to5Mac]

We saw impressive renders of Notion Ink’s Adam last week, along with some speculation, but today we’re getting what’s probably the best look yet at this ambitious play into the tablet space.

The following specs, to be unveiled officially at MWC, are listed as “final” by the folks at Notion Ink. Take some of it with a grain of salt, as they are grossly incorrect about items like accelerometer and touchscreen (chart provided by Notion Ink):

The Technoholik video, filmed this weekend before the big reveal at MWC, follows here:

What you see in the video is essentially the final build. The camera position could move, and there was a screen cover removed because it was loose during the demo, but in the end this is the 1080p tablet Notion Ink will put up against the iPad (and the multitude of other tablets that arrive this year and beyond). Looks pretty sharp, especially in sunlight, although the trackpad location will definitely take some getting used to. [ADAM on Flickr, Technoholik]

If there’s one thing the seamstress community needs, it’s a sewing machine that turns into a lamp.

Unfortunately, the bad news is such a device still doesn’t exist (I think?), but the good news is there’s a concept floating around the Internet that purports to do illuminating tasks that are currently beyond the sewing machine industry understanding (or, in this case, desire).

The concept, called SEW, arrives by way of Baita Design. Let no seamstress live in the dark ever again. Thanks? [Baita Design via Design Blog]

What a complete, utter surprise this is: On Valentine’s Day, a holiday associated closely with gift-giving and things that are red, white and pink, we receive word that Pentax is going to sell a pink version of their K-x DSLR.

The pink version joins the current color lineup, which consists of red, white, navy blue and black. To go pink, you’ll need to pony up about $770 and import it from China (for now). [Engadget]

Wireless power? Nothing new. It’s been around for at least 100 years, although only recently has it reached the point where a completely wireless future was believed possible. Now, an update of sorts from MIT WiTricity means it’s even closer.

Previously, an MIT WiTricity team, led by physicist Marin Soljacic, powered a 60-watt light bulb from across the room using a magnetic coil. That was 2007.

Today, that MIT team has shown it is possible to power two devices, wirelessly, when the are placed on either side of a single 1-sq. meter coil. The effective distance from coil to device was anywhere between 1.6 to 2.7 meters. Cooler still, the researchers discovered that by using two devices the power transfer was 10% more effective than using just one. Additionally, the researchers’ models suggest that the efficiency would increase even more should they try and introduce more devices into the mix. The New Scientist article detailing the technology says this occurs because “more of the broadcasting coil’s field falls on receptive receivers.”

The end game is a wall or ceiling-mounted coil that would wirelessly power an entire room of gadgets. One remaining issue is distance: When the devices are moved outside the 1-2 meter range, the signal deteriorates rapidly, as would be expected. Fortunately for wireless power buffs, MIT is working on a specialized antenna to counter the weakening signal.

Note: Image is Intel’s similar wireless tech. [New Scientist]

Buried at the bottom of Samsung’s MWC press kit was mention of an I8520 “Halo” projector phone. Sporting Android 2.1, a 3.7-inch Super AMOLED screen, and 720p video (to name a few), the phone will be officially revealed tomorrow.

The phone will also support an eight megapixel camera, with flash; DivX/Xvid playback; Bluetooth 2.1; 802.11b/g/n WiFi; GPS; and 16GB storage.

There’s a “Specialized Projector UI” feature in there too, hinting at the projector functionality to come. The European release date period is Q3 2010, with no word on a U.S. release date at this time. [Samsung via Engadget]

Would a drive shaft work in a bicycle? Possibly, and here’s a BMX bike concept that takes the design and runs with it, sans hubs!

The hubless wheels are a cool touch, I’ll admit, but I have my doubts about whether the tiny driveshaft will replace today’s venerable chain configuration.

Whatever the case may be, you’re going to have a hard time convincing me the BMX riders of the future will be using this design to shred the pipe at the Mountain Dew extreme to the MAXX 2020 X-Games. [Falling Pixel via Design Blog]

Fresh from the Mobile World Congress, here’s the latest on Sony Ericsson‘s brand new Vivaz Pro, including white hot rear shots!

The phone is an update on the Vivaz line, adding a QWERTY slide-out keypad, 720p video recording, and a 720Mhz processor. The 3.2-inch screen has touch, and the aforementioned video-capable cam boasts 8.2 megapixels.

SE says the phone, even with the keyboard, is “ultra-thin,” with dimensions that are “almost” as thin as the original Vivaz handset. SE claims there’s only 2mm’s difference between the two.

Release date is a tentative Q2 2010. [SEMCBlog, Infosynch World]

Full release below:

Sony Ericsson Vivaz™ pro, announced today, adds a QWERTY keyboard to the touch screen offering, delivering a user experience optimised for messaging and entertainment. The full QWERTY keyboard allows consumers to communicate quickly and efficiently via email, SMS or social networking updates.

Just like flagship phone Sony Ericsson Vivaz™, announced in January, Sony Ericsson Vivaz™ pro allows consumers to produce and broadcast their best experiences in HD video. The open platform also allows users to personalise their entertainment experience by downloading great applications through PlayNow™ and the Symbian Developer Community.

“Having announced Sony Ericsson Vivaz™ in January we are now adding a sister phone that includes a QWERTY keyboard along with the touch screen for a superior messaging and entertainment experience,” said Daniel Sandblom Marketing Business Manager, Sony Ericsson. “Sony Ericsson Vivaz™ pro meets the increased consumer demand for QWERTY devices without compromising on any entertainment features.”

Sony Ericsson Vivaz™ pro features the new design philosophy ‘human curvature’, which will become a consistent feature of the Sony Ericsson portfolio going forward. Designed to mirror the shape of the human body, and at the same time delivering a precise and compelling way of interacting with the phone, Sony Ericsson Vivaz™ pro is instantly recognisable.

Sony Ericsson Vivaz™ pro
>> Full slide-out keyboard for faster typing
>> Stay in touch through email, Twitter™, Facebook™, blogging and chat
>> View everything on the 3.2″ 16:9 wide touchscreen
>> Capture the action in HD resolution – upload to YouTube via Wi-Fi™
>> PlayNow – immediate online access to applications, games and music.

Sony Ericsson Vivaz™ pro supports UMTS HSPA 900/2100 and GSM GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900, UMTS HSPA 850/1900/2100 and GSM GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900.

Sony Ericsson Vivaz™ pro will be available in selected markets from Q2 in the colours Black and White.

Sony Ericsson is also unveiling the Hi-Fi Stereo Headset MH710. Enjoy best-in-class clear audio while on the move and handle music and calls with just one touch.

Sony Ericsson Vivaz™ pro

Camera
5.1 megapixel camera
4x digital zoom
Auto focus (photos)
Continuous auto focus (video)
Face detection (photos)
Geo tagging
Image stabiliser
Photo light
Send to web
Smile detection
Touch capture
Video light
Video recording (720p HD recording)

Music
Album art
Bluetooth™ stereo (A2DP)
Media player
Music player
Music tones (MP3/AAC)
PlayNow™
TrackID™

Web
Bookmarks
Google™ search (from standby)
Web feeds
WebKit web browser

Voice
Speakerphone
Vibrating alert
Video calling (main camera)

Messaging
Conversations
Email
Handwriting recognition
Instant messaging
Microsoft® Exchange ActiveSync®
Picture messaging (MMS)
Predictive text input
Sound recorder
Text messaging (SMS)

Design
Auto rotate
Full slide-out keyboard
Picture wallpaper
Symbian OS™
Touchscreen

Entertainment
3D games
Facebook™ application
FM radio
Java
Twitter™ application
Video streaming
Video viewing
YouTube™

Organiser
Alarm clock
Calculator
Calendar
Document readers
Flight mode
Notes
Phone book

Location-based services
A-GPS
Google Maps™
Wisepilot™ turn-by-turn navigation

Connectivity
3.5 mm audio jack
Bluetooth™ technology
DLNA Certified™ (photos and audio)
Micro USB connector
Modem
PictBridge printing
Synchronisation
TV out (VGA resolution)
USB mass storage
USB support
Wi-Fi™

Preloaded applications
Facebook™ – social networking
Google Maps™ – navigation
QuickOffice – Microsoft® Office viewer (trial version)
PDF Viewer (trial version)
Road Sync – synchronisation
SMS Preview – messaging app
Twitter – social networking
YouTube™ – video sharing
Wisepilot™ – navigation
World Mate – clock and weather app
Quadrapop
Rally Master Pro

Screen
>> 16:9 nHD touchscreen (TFT)
>> 16,777,216 colour
>> 3.2 inches
>> 360 x 640 pixels
>> Scratch-resistant

Accessories
In-Box:
>> Sony Ericsson Vivaz™ pro
>> Battery
>> stereo portable handsfree
>> 8 GB microSD™ card
>> micro USB cable for charging and file transfer

Optional:
>> Hi-Fi Wireless Headset with FM Radio MW600
>> Hi-Fi Stereo Headset MH710

Facts 1)2)
Size: 109 x 52 x 15 mm
Weight: 117 grams

Phone memory: Up to 75 MB
Memory card support: SanDisk microSD™, up to 16 GB

Memory card included: 8 GB microSD™ card

Operating system: Symbian™ S60 5th edition
Processor: 720 MHz

Talk time GSM/GPRS: Up to 12 hrs 30 min
Standby time GSM/GPRS: Up to 430 hrs

Talk time UMTS: Up to 5 hrs 10 min
Standby time UMTS: Up to 440 hrs

Video call time: Up to 2 hrs 30 min

Availability and versions
Networks
UMTS HSPA 900/2100
GSM GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900

UMTS HSPA 850/1900/2100
GSM GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
Available in selected markets from Q2 2010

Colour
>> Black
>> White

Hmm. Maybe we should let the robot overlords take over a few things. Like solving our Rubik’s Cubes using nothing but Lego. I’m cool with this, especially if they do it as fast as this robot, and with trance music.

The robo solver is run by Lego Mindstorm, just like the ARM-powered one we saw earlier this month, although this one makes that geezer look, well, like a geezer.

But what the heck is up with Rubik’s Cube robots solving puzzles to catchy trance music? Both of the ones we’ve seen this month sounded straight out of some kind of MIT robot club/rave mashup. [Youtube – Thanks, Steve]

There was love in the air at the atomic level over at the University of Birmingham’s Nanoscale Physics Research Laboratory this week, where Palladium atoms placed on a carbon base spontaneously formed into an eight nanometer heart. [Physorg]