Developages - Development and Technology Blog

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Is it Photokina time, or what? Joining the host of other camera manufacturers with sparkly fresh announcements this week is none other than Leica, which just announced a trio of new cams a few days back. This introduction, however, stands alone, and Leica’s making some pretty remarkably bold statements about its new S-system. The first device to take advantage is the 37-frickin’-megapixel ̀, which sits between Canon’s EOS 5D and EOS 1Ds MkIII in terms of size. The company designed the camera to provide “the quality of medium format and the handling and flexibility of 35mm,” and the outfit also has nine S-system lenses on tap. As for expectations? Leica says it’ll perform “twice as fast as Hasselblad H-series cameras,” and if that wasn’t straight-up enough, the firm’s David Bell proclaimed that “[Leica] thinks it has the best professional camera system in the world with this.”

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Digital Cameras

As the big Photokina show prepares to launch tomorrow, out pops the new Pentax K2000 first spotted over the weekend as the leaked K-m. Positioned as an entry-level DSLR for those looking to make the jump from point-and-shoot, the K2000 features dead-simple Auto Picture modes, a 10.2 megapixel CCD and 2.7-inch LCD offering 96% field of view, ISO 3200 sensitivity, and the vibrational dust removal system and Shake Reduction tech expected from a Pentax K-series shooter. All this housed in one of the smallest and lightest camera bodies in its class. The K2000 body ships only as part of a $700 kit containing a smc PENTAX DA L 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AL lens (a first from the affordable DA L series) and AF200FG flash starting in November. Optional $1,500 smc PENTAX DA 60-250mm f/4 ED[IF] SDM lens pictured after the break.

Update: Hands-on preview of the K2000 (aka, the K-m as it’s known in Europe) over at dpreview.

Continue reading Pentax’s 10.2 megapixel compact K2000 for first time reflexers

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Original post by Thomas Ricker

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Just in time for the big Photokina show in Koln, Germany, rumours are buzzing about a new Pentax DSLR that briefly appeared on the Pentax Germany site. Though details are sketchy, the K-m looks to be a lower-cost take on the K10D, with the same 10.2 megapixel Sony sensor and in-body stabilization but a lighter and smaller plastic case and slightly larger 2.7-inch LCD display. Sadly, there’s no live view, but if the rumored pricing — €500 ($725) for the single (18-55m) lens and €600 ($875) for the 2-lens kit (18-55mm and 50-200mm) — is accurate that might not be a dealbreaker. We’ll find out soon.

[Via 1001 Noisy Cameras]

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Original post by Joseph L. Flatley

Filed under: Digital Cameras, Handhelds

This is easily one of the more unorthodox hacks we′ve come across, and while we have all ideas only a few will even bother to give it a go, we couldn’t help but share. Steve from PanoCamera decided that lugging around a laptop for precisely controlled shooting was just too much effort, so rather than throwing in the proverbial towel, he simply figured out a better way. By hacking the DS to play nice with his monstrous Canon, he was able to use the handheld to begin / stop shooting and tweak all manners of settings. For those interested in having one of their own, but completely uninterested in using their innate DIY skills to make it happen, drop ole Steve an e-mail.

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Canon went a bit berserk this morning, but without a doubt the looker from the crowd is the 21-megapixel EOS 5D Mark II. Make no mistake, this bad boy is bringing all sorts of new and revamped technology to the game, and thanks to the good folks over at DPReview, you don′t have to waste your day trying to piece it all together. Linked below is a 13-page “preview″ that dishes out more details on the specs, changes, operation, design, menus and favorite date spots than you could ever fathom. Being the DSLR freak that you are, however, we know you’ve already ventured off and are onto page 2. No hard feelings, though.

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Sony’s Alpha A700 has been pleasing (or displeasing, we suppose), users for just over a year now, but those that have stuck with it in spite of a few issues can now smile brightly. Sony has just unleashed a firmware update for the DSLR which reportedly adds in an option to select auto exposure bracketing (single and continuous) with 3 shots in 2 EV steps and gives the choice to nix the High ISO NR feature. Furthermore, it supposedly improves the image quality in a high ISO setting, the auto white balance and D-Range Optimizer performance and the reliability for communication between camera body and vertical grip. Any owners out there care to give a shout on how their rig is performing post-update?

[Via DPReview]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Digital Cameras

When Canon answered the rumor calls with its official unveiling of the 15.1-megapixel EOS 50D, it failed to nail down an exact release date. Thankfully, Circuit City has informed us that “October″ really means “October 6th,” and the beastly DSLR is up for pre-order right now for $1,399.99 (body only) / $1,599.99 (kit with EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM zoom lens). Just over a fortnight to wait — surely you can twiddle your thumbs until then, yeah?

[Thanks, sds24]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Digital Cameras

You’ve seen it get official, you’ve seen it in the wild, and you’ve seen it sneakily unboxed — isn’t it time you saw a few reviews, too? We’ve scoured the intarwebz for the freshest looks at this here DSLR, and generally speaking, those lucky enough to secure a review unit have been overwhelmingly pleased. As a mid-range shooter, it was decidedly difficult to find any real knocks. Sure, a heap of noise was seen at 6,400 ISO (but barely any was noticed from 200 to 3,200) and the kit lens wasn’t all that, but the excellent low-light shooting and the “superb” image quality was enough to keep critics smiling. One thing that should be noted, however, is the so-so 720p movie mode. It’s not that the quality was bad, but Popular Mechanics reported that the “extended exposure to light needed to record video caused the D90’s CMOS sensor to heat up dramatically,” which limits HD captures to a maximum of five minutes. In other words, don’t ditch your pocket HD cam for this, but if you′re scouting a new DSLR and wouldn’t mind a 720p movie mode on the side, need you really look any further?

Read - Popular Mechanics (” The D90 is first and foremost a still camera. And in this regard, it excelled.”)
Read - ThinkCamera (”The D90 is a trophy of a middleweight camera.”)
Read - DCBBS Chinese (”Photography enthusiasts now have a new choice.”)
Read - CNET’s video review (”Very, very nice sub-$1,000 DSLR”)

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Been saving all those pennies for something really special? If you’re a DSLR aficionado (or just general gadget lover), you’ve probably glanced in the general direction of Sony’s monster Alpha A900 DSLR. At a price-point of $2,999, this isn’t for everyone, but if you’re in the market for a full frame shooter with a handful of enviable features — you might want to turn your eyeballs in this direction.

[Thanks, Jose]

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Original post by Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

It would have been juicier if Microsoft hadn’t announced the fall Zune lineup a day early and gone directly head-to-head with Apple’s newly refreshed iPod lineup, but the fact is that if you’re in the market for a new player the past 48 hours have delivered a slew of new options. Microsoft concentrated on the software side of the equation with Zune 3.0, but Redmond’s players themselves got a WiFi music store, some new games, and Buy From FM, while Apple added in new Genius playlists across the board and updated the iPod nano’s form factor and UI. At the high end of the capacity scale, the Zune seems to have the win on paper — both the Zune 120 and the iPod classic frustratingly top out at 120GB, but the classic’s stagnated essentially at the level of the 5.5G video iPod while the Zune 120 carries all the features of its smaller siblings. On top of all that, you have the newly-thinner iPod touch, with all of its browsing, media, gaming, and third-party application features — and the lost purity of purpose adding all features those entails. That’s a ton of choices — so c’mon, kids, what’s it going to be?

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Original post by Nilay Patel

Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

Hey, is that the fabled blue flash Zune, all priced up and sitting on a Walmart shelf in Knoxville, Tennessee a whole day before it’s scheduled to launch? Indeed it is — let’s hope those rumored LifeCams are pretty spectacular, because we done just scooped every other product Redmond has on tap for tomorrow. You’re next, Stevie.

[Thanks, Christian]

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Original post by Nilay Patel

Filed under: Laptops

You know, we’re really (really) proud of ASUS for letting the N10 strut its stuff in the wild without the crutch that is the completely oversaturated Eee brand. And look, the 10.2-inch netbook looks mighty fine, now doesn’t it? Sure, it’s not relying on hordes of siblings for moral support, but with that LED-backlit display, GeForce 9300GS and Intel N270 processor, who needs meaningless pats on the fanny? Hit the read link for a few more shots.

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Laptops

Although ASUS’s “premium” N10 netbook managed to ditch the Eee branding, it looks like the S101 is having a harder time breaking loose from the fam — the 10.2-inch netbook just showed up in the FCC database sporting the Eee PC name, even though ASUS told us it won′t be an Eee when it goes on sale. We’ll see how it’s is labeled when Uncle Sam gets done with it — we’ve got a feeling ASUS is going to take its already-confusing Eee marketing to a whole new level with this one.

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Original post by Nilay Patel

Filed under: Laptops

Ready to inhale some serious Intel technobabble? Here goes. As it stands, MIDs and UMPCs that utilize Windows operating systems are pretty much restricted to using Vista due to their incongruence with the “low-cost” requirement for still using XP. On top of that, Intel’s chipset used in these critters (you know, with those Silverthorne Atom CPUs) only supports 1GB of RAM. We don’t need to explain how underwhelming performance can be when mixing Vista with just 1GB of RAM. Now, however, a new PDF from Intel details updated System Controller Hub (SCH) specifications that include support for up to 2GB of RAM. What isn’t clear is whether current systems can be updated via a BIOS update, but we′ll be keeping an ear to the ground in hopes of hearing “yes.”

[Thanks, Itto]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Laptops

While ASUS’s new, quietly-launched Eee Download service would seem to be a welcome addition for most Eee PC users, it looks to have caused nothing but confusion in the few days it’s been live. The main problem is that all of the files on the site are in the so-called Click ‘N Run (or CNR) format, which is a quick and easy way to install Linux apps — when the Linux distro supports CNR, that is. Unfortunately for ASUS (and Eee PC users), the Eee PC’s Xandros distrubition does not. As some on the EeeUser forums point out, however, Xandros now actually owns Linspire (the company behind CNR), so it would seem to be entirely possible that CNR support could be coming in a future version of Xandros, but that still doesn’t explain ASUS putting the cart before the horse like this.

[Via Eee PC News, EeeUser]

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Original post by Donald Melanson