Join Biscotti could begin a new era of HDTV phones
About six years ago, I was at Disney’s EPCOT center and rode on Spaceship Earth so I can see the “world of the future”. In the exhibit, they showed a family gathered around a television, communicating with a video image on the other side.
I scoffed at that, and thought that EPCOT needs to update the ride, as that was a demonstration of present-day webcam technology. Now Biscotti’s TV Phone promises to be “the next generation of home video calling”.
Biscotti is so named because it is shaped like the popular dunking snack sold at Starbucks. You can place it atop your flatscreen, and it has a remote for popping up onscreen menus.
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Hercules Dualpix HD720p for Notebooks
Aww, Hercules! Hercules! Yes, the company has given us this Dualpix HD 720p webcam for notebooks. So if you are an owner of an laptop that doesn’t have an integrated webcam, this might be your thing.
According to the company site, this is the first 720p high definition (1280 x 800 pixels) webcam fro the PC, and it comes with a wide-angle autofocus lens. It can shoot at up to 30 frames per second, with a photo resolution of 5 Megapixels.
I found that it has a wide viewing angle, which means it can allow the user to be seen from head to toe. That is different from other webcams that can get a little too close to the face. It also has a terrific built-in microphone.
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Moosejaw’s catalog and X-ray App bares…some
I have been excited about augmented reality since I first saw it at CES three years ago, but I did not think of this use. Moosejaw’s new catalog has a feature that allows the user to look at the models in their underwear with a smartphone app.
I tried this out, just to see if it would work, and it does. By the way, I told my wife that I was doing this. All that is required is to download the free app from Apple’s App Store and the Android Market. The catalog is available in print form, or it can be viewed online on the MooseJaw website.
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Brinno PHV1330 Digital PeepHole Viewer
Most of us have those peepholes on our door that let us see who is there, even if it is a distorted fisheye point-of-view. Brinno’s new generation of Peephole Viewer, the PHV1330, allow the user to see who is at the door on a 3-inch LCD, sans distort.
Not only can the PHV1330 get rid of the distort, but it can also take an image of the visitor at the door, and keep the image on a Micro SD card.
Another feature of the PHV1330 that trumps typical peepholes is that it has a brightness enhancer so it can see who is at the door when it is night out.
The PHV1330 is “easy to install” and stays on the door all the time. It isn’t on constantly as turning the power only lasts for a minute, but that’s all the glimpse you will need unless you will want to take a picture (to make it last longer). Yeah, I just had to add that last parenthetical.
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Swann Freestyle HD delivers Full HD video recording on the move
You know what they say – a picture speaks a thousand words, and sometimes, only a video is able to convey what you want to say to someone else. Since we are living in the digital age, why not say it in Full HD resolution? That is exactly what the Swann Freestyle HD sets out to do, capturing all your crazy and adventurous moments in Full HD glory thanks to it coming in the form of a wearable video camera, sporting a detachable LCD viewer so that you too can have a real-time view of what is happening around you.
Not only does it immortalize those zany moments in 1080p glory, it can also shoot stills if that is your cup of tea – and we’re talking about up to 3x digital zoom while snapping JPEG images in 8-megapixel resolution. Seems to be the perfect accessory for adrenaline addicts!
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Polaroid Z340 instant digital camera
“Shake it like a Polaroid picture” has proved to be one of the more enduring lines from OutKast’s early hit, “Hey Ya!, and as we all know, the name Polaroid is synonymous with instant photographs back in the days when items like digital cameras were virtually unheard of. I guess it is only fitting for a legendary company like Polaroid to roll out the Z340 instant digital camera, bringing a modern take to an old school product, how cool is that?
The Polaroid Z340 is said to boast of a full-function 14-megapixel digital camera as well as a built-in ZINK printer, delivering a whole new twist on the instant experience. This camera enables you to customize each individual photo between the snap and share process, turning it into a portable digital photo booth, now how about that? You will be able to deliver such images from a file to print in under a minute. Something tells me that the Polaroid Z340 is going to be very, very popular at weddings in the near future assuming the price is right.
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Panasonic does the 3D gig with Lumix DMC-3D1
Stereoscopic 3D is the way to go where the future is concerned, but it will still take a fair bit of time before it catches up with the masses. After all, not everyone is lining up and rushing to purchase a 3D HDTV, and you don’t see a mad craze for all movies to be shown in 3D glory although you might say that film executives think otherwise. If you have a 3D-capable HDTV sitting at home (preferably part of the Panasonic ecosystem for obvious reasons with this post), then why don’t you take full advantage of it with the newly announced Panasonic Lumix DMC-3D1?
Yes sir, just like all other 3D cameras out there in the market, this particular model will also come with a twin-lens design so that it can shoot not only 3D images but stereoscopic 3D videos as well. Want to shoot regular stills without any eye-popping visuals? Not a problem, the Lumix DMC-3D1 does that equally well.
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Panasonic Lumix GX1 announced
We are going to go Panasonic today with a couple of digital cameras, where we will first focus on the Lumix GX1. Sounds familiar as though it was part of the GF1 family which delivered Micro Four Thirds goodness to the world, doesn’t it? Well, Panasonic’s latest foray in the form of the Lumix GX1 intends to achieve the perfect balance between size and performance – so you can read on about the specifications and make a judgment for yourself.
Just what does the Lumix GX1 bring to the table? For starters, you will not be disappointed with the megapixel count at all – no sir, especially when your eyes will be treated to a 16.01-megapixel Live MOS sensor and Venus Engine, making sure that each press of the shutter button will result in real-to-life images via excellent resolution, image rendering and color reproduction. More to come about the Lumix GX1 in the extended post.
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