Cameras, Printers & Scanners - Page 4

GoPro has announced the latest member in their action camera family, with the introduction of the new Hero5 Black.

The new Hero5 Black is the most powerful and easy-to-use GoPro ever, according to the company, with the Hero5 Black capable of shooting 4K at 30FPS and 12MP still images. Both of which can be shot in either RAW or WDR (wide dynamic range), as well as capture distortion-free wide-angle photos with a new linear-view setting.

GoPro also adds that the audio recording on the Hero5 Black is improved, courtesy of a new triple microphone array. There's now an integrated 2-inch LCD touchscreen on the back with improved controls, voice control, and support for seven languages. We also have a built-in GPS for geotagging, electronic image stabilization, and it's waterproof to around 33 feet (10m) without the need of a separate waterproof case.

GoPro has an instant threat in Garmin, with Garmin announcing its new Virb Ultra 30 action camera, which features everything the GoPro does, and more.

Garmin's new Yirb Ultra 30 shoots 4K video at 30FPS, has a built-in LCD touchscreen, and incredible 3-axis stabilization. The list doesn't end, with the Yirb Ultra 30 capable of livestreaming to YouTube, as well as voice commands where you can start recording by saying "Okay Garmin, start recording". There's GPS capabilities, as well as other sensors that will display how fast, far, and high your movements are - right into the video if you want.

Wired has a review on Garmin's new Virb Ultra 30, saying that "Video quality is on par with GoPro's top-of-the-line Hero4 Black. Dynamic range is good, colors are pretty accurate, and the image is sharp, maybe even a hair sharper than GoPro's. It has nearly all the same options for framerates, resolutions, and shooting modes as GoPro, too. It even has an "Expansive Mode" which is analogous to GoPro's SuperView. Basically, it takes a 4:3 image and then squishes it into 16:9 so you see more at the top and bottom of your frame. It's the mode you want to use whenever the action is close to the camera (surfing, mountain biking, snowboarding, gratuitous selfies)".

GoPro might have the action camera market right now, but we all know how quickly things can change with a capable competitor with a product that's cheaper, and possibly just as capable.

Chinese giant Xiaomi has announced that it's upcoming Yi 4K action camera will cost just $249.99 while its competitor in the GoPro HERO4 Black Edition costs $499.99 - double the asking price from Xiaomi and its Yi 4K action camera. Xiaomi provides an LCD screen on its Yi 4K action camera, something the HERO4 Black Edition lacks, but is included on the Silver Edition.

Xiaomi's new Yi 4K action camera has a 1300mAh battery that's good for 2 hours of 4K 30FPS recording, which is pretty damn good considering the HERO4 Black Edition isn't capable of recording more than an hour at the same 4K30 standard. Xiaomi is offering a bundle package with a selfie stick and Bluetooth remote, which will cost $30 more at $279 total.

We all know 360-degree and VR cameras are the new thing, but HumanEyes Technologies has just unveiled a flashy new camera known as Vuze.

Vuze rocks 8 x 1080p camera, two on each side with a 120-degree horizontal/180-degree vertical field of view. When it all works together, Vuze captures 360-degree video at 4K 30FPS. Better yet, you can control Vuze through the Android and iOS applications for Vuze.

The company will be providing post production software that will be capable of near real-time processing that will allow Vuze owners to process a 60-second clip in less than a minute. HumanEyes also has some footage on their YouTube page, but the video stitching isn't perfect, something the company says it's working on right now. What about price? How does $799 sound? For $799, you'll get the Vuze, a VR headset, mini tripod, and Vuze Studios. Vuze Studios is the company's VR production and editing software.

Facebook is reportedly working on its own standalone camera app, alongside its own live video app platform. The company is hoping people will create, and share more content, reports The Wall Street Journal.

Their sources also say that the app will have two standout features: still photos, and the ability to broadcast live video, quickly. Thanks to video/picture sharing services like Snapchat, Facebook is wanting to jump into the same pool, and it makes complete sense.

Facebook already has plenty of apps and services for sharing photos and videos, acquiring the likes of Instagram. Facebook is reportedly seeing original content, like status updates and other personal sharing, is on the decline - so this new injection of competition against Snapchat could work. The social network says that the amount of sharing done in your News Feed is at "similar to levels in prior years".

Most people have probably not heard of the name Hasselblad, and for those who do know the company, it has been a while since they've been in the headlines. Hasselblad is an iconic company, making cameras since 1941 and have been involved in some of the most iconic photos of all time.

The Beatles' Abbey Road cover, the black and white portrait of Steve Jobs, and the first photos taken on the moon from the 1969 moon landing were all shot on Hasselblad cameras. Well, the company is back with the new H6D camera, available in two forms. The first is a huge 50-megapixel offering, while the second is an insane 100-megapixel camera.

Both of them rock a new autofocus system that is capable of locking onto specific points, such as a subject's eye, so that the photographer can track it and adjust composition. The H6D also rocks features that we have on smartphones and compact cameras, like a touchscreen and 4K video recording. As for price, the 50-megapixel version costs $27,000 while the 100-megapixel camera rocks a huge $33,00 price - and for these prices, you won't get a lens - they're extra.

Described by Gizmodo as measuring in at "one two-thousandth the thickness of a human hair," we have recently learned that some Australian scientists have just created the world's thinnest camera lens.

Lead by Dr Yuerui (Larry) Lu from The Australian National University, this research project was made possible thanks to the utilization of molybdenum disulphide crystal. The exact measurement for this invention sits at 6.3 nanometers, with new lens being explained by Dr. Lu to be "the perfect candidate for future flexible displays," further commenting that it can withstand "high temperatures, is a lubricant, a good semiconductor and can emit photons too."

Seemingly being created as a 'wonder lens', don't expect this to be hitting the retail shelves anytime soon, but it's a groundbreaking study nonetheless.

Panasonic's GH4 camera is the camera of choice for many YouTubers and video enthusiasts, as it's capable of shooting 4K video at 30FPS, with a consumer-orientated price point. Well, Panasonic's next-gen GH series camera is set to knock off some socks, and some.

According to Japanese publication Nikkan, Panasonic's new GH5/GH6 camera will shoot 6K video at 30FPS. This means that each frame of the 6K video is shot in 16 megapixels, meaning you can grab 16-megapixel still photos from the 6K video - an awesome feature.

Panasonic also teased their new 8K-capable consumer level camera in May 2015, where ephotozine reported: "Panasonic announced plans for future 4K and 8K video and photo features, including 4K at 60fps and 120fps, as well as the ability to take 33 megapixel still images from 8K video footage. They say they are planning to have this technology ready for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic games. No further information was given at the time".

MWC 2016 - Alongside the announcement of the G5 smartphone and LG 360 VR, LG has unveiled its new LG 360 CAM. From the product name, you've probably guessed it's a 360-degree camera, and you'd be right.

The LG 360 CAM features two 200-degree cameras, both rocking 13-megapixel sensors, capable of capturing 360-degree videos and photos. LG 360 CAM features a 1200mAh battery, and 4GB of internal storage. LG 360 CAM will shoot 2K videos with 5.1-channel surround sound, thanks to the three microphones on the LG 360 CAM.

LG 360 CAM is also capable of shooting 360-degree content for Google Street Video, and YouTube360 content.

Sony is teasing its next-gen image sensor, Exmor IMX318, which will be powering the next wave of smartphones. The sensor is packing an insane 22.5 megapixels, which means we'll be shooting 4K video without a problem, with an image quality we've never seen before.

With smartphones getting thinner and thinner, and consumers (including myself) not liking protruding cameras out of the back of the smartphones - including the huge sellers like the iPhone and Galaxy range from Samsung, the new Sony Exmor IMX318 should change this. Sony hasn't compromised image quality to get its Exmor IMX318 thinner, as it's a type 1/2.6 stacked CMOS sensor with 22.5 megapixels of shooting power - providing better IQ in a smaller, more compact size, with increased performance.

Sony says its new sensor is the industry's first to feature a built-in high-speed hybrid autofocus, which is as fast as 0.03 seconds, with built-in 3-axis electronic image stabilization technology for video. The company expects to begin shipping its new Exmor IMX318 in May, which should be perfect timing for the Galaxy Note 6 and the upcoming iPhone 7.

Some of you will remember the ThingMaker, a 60s Mattel product that saw you pouring liquid plastic into metal molds to create crude toys. In a clever move, Mattel is bringing the ThingMaker back as a 3D printing device.

The updated device works in tandem with either an iOS or Android app, wherein you design figurines, jewelry and the like, then send them wirelessly to the ThingMaker, at which point it makes a thing. The app includes basic blueprints, and new parts for existing designs can be printed. Mattel says integrating brands like Barbie and Hot Wheels into the app is part of its longer term strategy.

Safety is of course a concern, and Mattel has handled it by implementing doors that automatically lock when the printer is in use, and making the printing head retracts out of reach when it's not doing its thing, preventing kids from touching it.

Canon has just come out and announced its new flagship camera, the EOS-1DX Mark II, which is the company's answer to Nikon's new D5 camera. Canon is aiming its new snapper at professional sports photographers and photojournalists that require a fast-shooting body that's made for demanding conditions.

The new Canon 1D X Mark II features a full-frame 20.2-megapixel sensor, that can shoot up to 14FPS with autofocus and 16FPS without. It features a native ISO range of 100-51,200 with expanded sensitivity of up to 409,600, and it can capture the magical 4K 60FPS. It sports a sharper 1.62 million-dot 3.2-inch screen, a new autofocus system with 61 points (41 cross-type) and a built-in GPS. Not too bad at all, Canon.

Canon will be selling its new 1D X Mark II in April for $5999 for the body-only, with Canon selling a bundle with a 64GB CFast card and reader for $6299. There's also a new Wi-Fi adapter, something Canon will be selling separately, for $600.

CES 2016 - Nikon has released two new cameras in two different segments that have some fantastically high specs. The D5 halo DSLR and the D500 APS-C based DLSR have the highest ISO sensitivity in any consumer available sensor, not to mention a whole lot more when they release in March.

The D5 is the flagship camera for Nikon that builds wildly on the successes of the line of massive full-frame cameras with a much improved 35mm sensor that can shoot at a whopping 3,280,000 ISO. This opens up so many possibilities with low-light photography. Just don't expect print quality at that 3 million setting, but this does mean that noise should be better at higher than usual ISO settings that might be used on real shoots

The D500 uses a similar cropped APS-C sized sensor (DX format) that has slightly less megapixels though it's still just as sensitive as it's big brother. This is Nikon using the majority of the technology found in their halo product and trickling it down. On the back is a 3.2-inch touchscreen and all the manual controls you'd want.

CES 2016 - Kodak has just unveiled its new 4K action camera, with it arriving in a small cube form, rocking a 12.4-megapixel sensor, and a 235-degrere field of view.

Kodak has designed the new camera with VR filmmakers in mind, where it records in two modes - "global", which captures "an almost spherical image 360-degrees horizontally and 235-degrees vertically", reports Engadget, or "front", which shoots in the traditional wide-angle panorama in 16:9.

The global footage arrives in 1:1 aspect ratio with a maximum resolution of 2880x2880 at 30FPS, while the front mode shoots up to 4K. If you want to make spherical and VR-ready clips, you'll need two of these back-to-back.

CES 2016 - Razer unveiled its new Blade Stealth ultrabook gaming PC at CES, but alongside that announcement was their new Stargazer webcam.

Razer teamed with Intel on Stargazer, including Intel's impressive RealSense 3D technology inside of it. The Stargazer is capable of capturing 720p at 60FPS, as well as 1080p at 30FPS, with a noise-cancelling, dual-array microphone. It's powered by the Intel RealSense SR300 camera, which brings 3D to the table.

Intel's RealSense SR300 camera is capable of Windows Hello support, so you can use your face to log into Windows 10. Razer is more excited about the Dynamic Background Removal capability, where you can filter out the entire image except for the person. This might not sound like much, but for Twitch streamers, this is going to be huge - you can filter out everything around you, so you're picking up just your body, and have that overlayed on your stream or YouTube video.

CES 2016 - Nikon has just unveiled its first 360-degree action camera, with the weirdly named KeyMission 360 at the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Nikon's new KeyMission 360 camera shoots 360-degree video in 4K, with Nikon calling it the first in a new "family" of action cameras. The KeyMission 360 features a square shape, with it being bigger than the GoPro Hero Session 4, reports The Verge. It has lenses on the front and back, and is shockproof 2m (7ft) and waterproof to 30m (100ft).

The KeyMission 360 has electronic stabilization reduction, but Nikon has been shy with pricing, availability, battery life, and the field of view of each lens. We should find out more in the coming months on the KeyMission 360.

360-degree video continues to grow, with Panorics announcing that it has launched its fully immersive 360-degree video camera system, PTRig. PTRig houses three GoPro cameras, shooting insane 5700x2850 videos in 360x180 degrees.

Panorics' PTRig can shoot its spherical video using three GoPro Hero3 or Hero4 cameras, and thanks to their small size and weight, the ability to change out camera settings without removing the GoPro cameras is a great thing to see. Some of the first PTRig's have been met with positive reviews, with Chief Video Producer for Planet360, Alex Ugryumov using his PTRig "in the air, on a boat, on a car", with Ugryumov saying that "compared to other holders I used, it performs much better: less parallax, better and easier stitching, convenient to charge the cameras".

Panorics' CEO, Alex Boch, explains: "With over $1 billion invested in VR already and more than 30 million virtual reality headsets on the market by 2020, availability of immersive video content is going to be key to the whole industry exponential growth. VR is expanding rapidly and there won't be any industry not affected by its growth. We are very excited to be a part of a new VR era and Panorics works hard on developing innovative 360 video products".

Light has just unveiled their latest L16 camera, which features an impressive 16 camera sensors on the front, each capturing 13-megapixel images. When a photo is taken on the Light L16, it comes out as a huge 52-megapixel image.

The L16's 16 separate camera sensors are divided into three groups, which each having a lens of a different focal length. There are five cameras with 35mm effective focal length lenses, five with 70mm modules, and six with 150mm modules. Light then uses some impressive software and stitching tools, which allows the L16 to zoom through an effective range of 35mm to 150mm without any moving parts or adjustable lenses.

It's an impressive feat, considering the camera sensor on each of the 16 cameras being 13 megapixels. With the L16 being a little thicker than a smartphone, and the stitching of photos to make a huge 52-megapixel photo being a huge tick on its side of awesomeness. Another great feature with the Light L16 is that the focus of the photos can be adjusted after the shot has been taken, making it similar to the Lytro camera. But, the L16 is capable of shooting 4K video which is something the Lytro can't do.

Canon has just hit a huge milestone, with its new 250-megapixel APS-H CMOS sensor that has set a new world record for resolution in its size. The new sensor is capable of shooting images at a mindblowing 19,580 x 12,600.

The 250-megapixel sensor is so powerful, that Canon says it can distinguish lettering on the side of a plane from 18km (11 miles) away. The new APS-H sensor is bigger than APS-C, but smaller than full frame, and is "primarily used on Canon's legacy EOS-1D line of DSLRs", reports The Verge.

Canon's new super-powered sensor has a quick signal readout speed of 1.25 billion pixels per second, with the Japanese giant saying that it has good noise performance even with the immense pixel count. Not only can the 250-megapixel camera shoot those insane 19,580 x 12,600 images, but it can also shoot video that is around 30x sharper than 4K, albeit at 5FPS. Canon says that the technology can be used in "specialized surveillance and crime prevention tools, ultra-high-resolution measuring instruments and other industrial equipment, and the field of visual expression".

Some of you may have seen this robot from IDF on our front page, a robot which not only looks like it's smart, but which can image the world around it in real-time in 3D. This ability comes from the RealSense camera, whose output is on the screen in the background. Intel's RealSense Technology offers 3D scanning and imaging with a wide variety of uses.

The technology is already present in many high-end products from manufacturers ranging from Creative to Dell. It uses a 2D camera and an infrared camera and wide range infrared emitter. It uses a specially designed Intel chip to capture and process the 2D image and infrared data about the image to provide depth to images. There are two main versions, the first is a front facing camera used in video conferencing which can omit anything past a certain depth, and the second is a "world-facing" camera which is capable of things such as producing 3D images. You can even have your picture taken and then printed in 3D, but there is even more the camera can do such as real-time tracking of objects and even things as small as fingers. It allows for effective tracking, even enough for proper gaming as was demonstrated.

Here an Intel employee uses a hacked nerf gun and puts himself in the gameplay with RealSense technology. He is able to move through the game and shoot using this custom rigged apparatus. There are many possibilities that 3D depth sensors can give to a game, just look at the X Box Kinect, but pairing one with a high-quality camera can produce many more possibilities. RealSense is not only excellent for putting yourself in the game, but it is also capable of adding objects into the game.