Hyetis Crossbow smartwatch features a 41MP camera with Carl Zeiss optics

 

If you can't stand waiting for a smartwatch from the likes of Samsung or Apple, a new Swiss-made watch has you covered, especially if you're a photo nerd. Hyetis has announced its Crossbow smartwatch on Tuesday, packing a 41-megapixel camera facing at 12-o'clock, complete with Carl Zeiss optics.
Hyetis has designed the Crossbow smartwatch to connect with Android, iOS, and Windows Phone 8. The smartwatch features a touchscreen, where you can navigate through notifications on its face. You can also manage Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and NFC links. Hyetis is still being unclear about a few technical details, but maybe those will surface before its launch. An altimeter, microphone, thermometer and biometric sensors in the band - which can measure your physical condition - are all included,  

Having a camera on a watch is certainly an interesting idea, in a world where smartphone cameras (and maybe soon Google Glass) have replaced point-and-shoot cameras for many casual photographers. We're curious to see what taking a photo with your wrist will feel like. 
It's certainly worth noting this won't be a product for everyone. Hyetis plans to make the Crossbow available for pre-order soon, with a starting price of $1,200. If you can manage that kind of cash you might want to act fast - only 500 units will be available in the first batch. In the meantime, most of us will stick with the Pebble.

Source: Pocket-lint

Sony NEX-5T hands-on

Sony NEX-5T hands-on review

Actually there isn't a huge change compared to the previous NEX-5R - the 5T's only differentiating factor is the addition of NFC (near field communication) technology to simplify wireless sharing with compatible devices.

The design is familiar: it's identical to the 5R, which gives a decent build and compact scale. There's a range of physical controls for those who want to get a little more creative without having to dive into the menus through the touchscreen system all the time - an issue that plagued the earliest NEX models. With that in mind there's the Fn button on the top along with the thumb dial, which is all part of what helps sit this model above the NEX-3N.

The 5T we saw was a pre-production sample complete with almost suspicious painted-out model name across the top shoulder. The only real change compared to the 5R is the addition of the NFC logo on the 5T's handgrip. Sometimes it's the little things.


In the hands the Sony NEX-5T oozes great quality - and, as before, we're impressed with the slim build. The display on the rear tilts vertically all the way through 180-degrees for those inevitable selfies, which is achieved without adding bulk to this dainty camera.
If we've one criticism, it's that there's not much finger space between the end of the grip and the barrel of the attached lens, but it's something you can quickly overcome. Unless you've got really chunky fingers.

Our review of the NEX-5R was sprinkled with positives. We liked the image quality - something that the NEX series' use of an APS-C size sensor has been praised for since launch. The 5T ought to deliver the very same goods.
But it's not just the resulting quality, it's the familiar controls too. We also like the thumbwheel control on top, which may even mean those moving away from a DSLR system will feel a little more at home.

source: pocket-lint

Sony A3000 - entry-level DSLR

Sony A3000 - entry-level DSLR

Sony has announced the Sony A3000, a new entry-level model of compact system camera. That's right - the Alpha name is venturing into CSC territory.

The Sony A3000 forges a new category of camera for Sony. It uses the E-mount lens system from the NEX line in a body that's more like the design of a traditional DSLR.

With a launch price of £370, the Sony A3000 is more budget than the likes of the NEX-3, so it certainly has budget appeal.

The body of the Sony A3000 is designed to be easy to handle, with a pronounced grip and integrated electronic viewfinder, rather like Panasonic's Lumix G and GH models. The viewfinder offers a 100 per cent field of view, so what you see in preview is what you get in the final image.

With a 20.1-megapixel APS-C sensor positioned behind that E-mount lens - offering ISO 100-16,000 sensitivity - Sony promises that it will deliver plenty of quality. It's a different sensor to the NEX models - but the performance remains to be seen.

With conventional styling, the Sony A3000 also offers equally conventional DSLR-like controls: a top-mounted control dial for switching through shooting modes, and all the features you'd expect from an entry-level system camera. That means you'll get things like artistic effects and 1080p HD video capture in addition to full auto and manual controls.

On the rear there's a 3-inch LCD, but unlike many other Sony cameras, this is fixed flat to the body. It's also relatively low resolution at a mere 230k-dots - an indicator of where Sony has made cuts to hit the affordable price point.

Sony says the A3000 is designed to appeal to those who want to take better pictures and and step-up to a more sophisticated camera, emphasising that it will be a better performer than a compact camera or smartphone.

The Sony A3000 will cost around £370 and be available from September 2013.

source: pocket-lint

Panasonic Superzoom Camera - Lumix DMC-FZ62 review

The FZ62 is the successor to the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ48, which was one of our favourite ultra-zoom cameras of 2011. We were particularly impressed that Panasonic had moved from 14 megapixels in the earlier FZ45 to 12 megapixels in the FZ48, as this delivered a significant drop in noise levels.This wisdom has sadly escaped Panasonic this time around. While the pricier Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ200 sticks with a 12-megapixel sensor, the FZ62's resolution has been hiked up to 16 megapixels. This doesn't bode well for noise levels, although the move from a CCD to what Panasonic calls a High Sensitivity MOS sensor might redress the balance – more on this below.

Continuous performance is up from 3.7fps on the FZ48 to 10fps, but this isn't entirely good news either. Whereas the older model could capture seven shots in a burst, the FZ62 only managed three. An alternative 5fps mode is more useful, not least because the camera can refocus between each shot. This mode only lasted for three frames at 5fps but then continued at 1.7fps rather than stopping. It's not exactly a blistering turn of speed but we appreciate that live view was available while shooting. Elsewhere, performance was excellent, with just one second to switch on and shoot, and 0.7 seconds between shots.

Most other features remain as they were on the FZ48. The 3in screen is reasonably sharp but isn't articulated, and the low-resolution electronic viewfinder (EVF) isn't much fun to use. Higher quality EVFs are starting to appear in ultra-zoom cameras, but only in pricier models such as the FZ200 and Fujifilm X-S1.

The power switch has been moved to a lever beside the mode dial, which makes room for a dedicated button to access continuous mode settings. The buttons on the back have been tweaked, too, with a new white balance control. There are no less than four buttons dedicated to focus control: one for moving the autofocus point, an auto/macro/manual focus button, another for AF/AE lock and yet another for single or continuous autofocus. If that seems like overkill, the latter two can be reassigned, perhaps to access metering mode and AE bracketing. In short, this is an excellent camera for people who like hands-on control.

There are extensive options in the menu to customise image quality, plus control over the maximum ISO speed allowed when Auto ISO is selected. There's full manual exposure control too, but it's disappointing that the slowest shutter speed is now four seconds; on the FZ48 it was 60.

Less technical photographers will want to stick to the Intelligent Auto mode, but we found that it sometimes failed to live up to its name. Shooting in moderate-to-low light using telephoto zoom positions, the camera often chose shutter speeds as slow as 1/4 seconds before it was willing to raise the ISO speed beyond 400. The FZ62's optical stabilisation is pretty good, but it's not that good – most of these shots were blurry.

As with previous FZ-series cameras, the FZ62 excels for video. Picture and sound quality were both clear and detailed, and the zoom and focus motors worked smoothly and silently. The AVCHD format delivers clip lengths up to 30 minutes, and there's manual exposure control for videos.Photos were impressively sharp, thanks in no small part to the excellent lens and some aggressive digital sharpening, but our studio tests revealed only marginal improvements over the 12-megapixel FZ48. Handling of highlights appears to have regressed, though, with blooming around over-exposed areas of photos.

It's a welcome relief to find that noise levels at fast ISO speeds were a little lower than from the FZ48, despite the increased resolution. Noise was far from being absent, though, with a slight graininess to shadows even in brightly lit shots. Dimly lit shots had very little fine details but they looked fine when resized for online sharing. The FZ48 wasn't great in low light, and while we welcome the improvement this time around, we're curious to see how much better the 12-megapixel FZ200 performs.

The FZ62 isn't the most inspiring update, but on balance it's marginally better than the FZ48. The FZ48 is still available for around £220 as we go to press, and is an excellent choice for bargain hunters. But putting end-of-line deals to one side, he FZ62 is the best ultra-zoom currently available under £300.

source: expertreviews

Olympus PEN E-PM2 review

The E-PM2 is that the entry-level model within the PEN vary, however it still boasts some upscale options. Its metal body homes identical 16-megapixel detector that is utilized in mountain peak's top-of-the-range Olympus OMD E-M5. Continuous shooting is at 8fps – double what most CSCs at this worth manage and solely a shade behind the E-M5's 9fps performance. there is an adjunct shoe that accepts not simply external flashguns however additionally associate degree electronic finder, mike input, Bluetooth electronic device (for wireless icon transfers to robot devices) and even a combine of macro diode lamps on versatile arms. there is a little flash unit enclosed within the box, however it's no brighter than a typical integrated flash and rather spoils the camera's sleek style. we tend to suspect lots of individuals can leave it within the back of a drawer and ignore it.

Optical image stabilisation is incorporated into the detector therefore it works with any lens. This includes wide-aperture lenses, that seldom have stabilisation inbuilt. it is also value noting the wide selection of compatible small Four Thirds lenses – much more than for competitive  Sony NEX, Nikon one and Samsung NX systems.

CONTROLS

It all bodes well for keen photographers World Health Organization need a subtle camera however do not have Brobdingnagian amounts of money to pay, or maybe preferring to refill on lenses instead of purchase the foremost costly camera body. However, these sorts of users could also be less enamoured by the E-PM2's controls. It's no surprise that there is simply alittle scattering of howevertons – that is typical for entry-level CSCs – but accessing key options is slower than on rival cameras.

There's a quick-access menu with fourteen functions ordered out over 2 pages, however fewer functions on one page would be faster to navigate. we tend to doubt that several individuals feel the requirement to regulate the video resolution or toggle the video sound recording on and off on an everyday basis, and drive mode already features a dedicated labeled  button. The six customisable functions on the Sony NEX-3N's quick-access menu work higher, as will the Panasonic GF6's eleven functions that ar all visible right away and might be jumped to mistreatment the touchscreen. The E-PM2's screen is touch-sensitive however it is not utilized in either the quick-access or the most menu.

The touchscreen proves its value once moving the optical device purpose, though. It additionally goes a protracted method towards creating up for the dearth of a mode dial. Pressing the Menu button reveals the varied modes, which might be elect by touching the screen.

The main menu is Brobdingnagian, spanning twenty three pages. there is Brobdingnagian scope to customize the camera's behaviour however we tend to did not notice it simple pursuit down specific functions. it is not helped by cryptic labels like American state BKT and Rls Priority S. Pressing the information button reveals explanations, however a number of these offer no any clarity and that they are not offered in sub-menus.

SPEED AND QUALITY - CLICK pictures TO ENLARGE

Autofocus is seriously fast, and it's secured by extraordinarily responsive subject pursuit. It took 0.6 seconds between shots in program mode, however iAuto mode was somewhat slower, at 0.8 seconds. The 8fps continuous shooting lasted for nineteen frames before speed to a pair of.9fps – an outstanding result. It maintained this high 8fps speed for fourteen raw frames too. It's nice to check mountain peak pairing this quick performance with a decent-sized buffer. Continuous mode with change optical device was at a pair of.9fps.

source: expertreviews