Photography

HP just announced the new HP DreamScreen. A wireless connected screen, HP says that it will become "the 'fourth screen' in people's lives, extending the enjoyment of digital content beyond a computer, TV and mobile phone."

The HP DreamScreen allows you to stay current with Facebook friends, listen to Internet radio, share Snapfish photos and enjoy music from your home networked PCs. It has 2GB of memory, 802.11 b/g connectivity, and a card reader. Digital content can be loaded using a USB drive or flash memory cards. Photos and music can be streamed wirelessly or moved to the HP DreamScreen by simply dragging and dropping from a networked PC. Read more

PENTAX today unveiled the K-x digital SLR. This latest PENTAX camera has high-end features including Live View and HD video. And, with a one-handed shooting design and easy-to-use operation, the K-x is perfect for people stepping up from a point and shoot to their first digital SLR. Priced at just $649.95 (for body with DA L 18-55mm lens), the K-x will be available in black and white in October 2009. The K-x will also be available in limited edition red and navy colors.

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Epson just added a new mid-range photo scanner to its line-up – the Epson Perfection V600 Photo. Packed with features such as photo restoration tools and the ability to create enlargements up to 17" x 22", this flatbed scanner is priced at under $250.

The Perfection V600 scanner features 6400 x 9600 dpi resolution and can scan everything from receipts to photos and 3D objects. You can easily scan, copy, scan-to-e-mail and create PDFs using four push customizable buttons. The scanner also has ReadyScan LED technology for faster scan speeds with no warm-up time needed. This technology consumes less energy than traditional cold cathode fluorescent lamps and contains no mercury. Read more

JVC today announced the new HD Everio GZ-HM400, a video camera that features full HD, shoots 9 megapixel still images and plays back videos in slow motion as well.

The HD Everio GZ-HM400 has a 10.3-megapixel CMOS sensor that delivers nine-megapixel still images, records to an SD/SDHC card and also includes 32GB of internal memory. It offers 1080 TV lines of horizontal resolution for Full HD video. High-speed recording modes are available for slow-motion video playback: 600fps, 300fps and 120fps.

The GZ-HM400 features a KONICA MINOLTA HD LENS and a JVC-developed optical image stabilizer that uses two active prisms to correct camera shake at the lens entrance before the image even enters the lens. The two prisms work throughout the zoom range, from wide to telephoto. Read more

The Casio EXILIM EX-FC100 is not a brand new digital camera (it has been available since April), but it is a camera we think has features - and a price point - worth mentioning again.

The compact 9.1 megapixel EX-FC100 measures just 3.9" wide x 2.3" high x .9" thin and has a 5X optical zoom lens with a CMOS shift anti-shake function and a 2.7-inch Super Clear LCD. It also features a high-speed 30 shot-per-second burst rate and records video up to 1,000 frames per second in high-definition.

And with Casio's High Speed Pre-Record, the camera not only records when you hit the button, it also records instances before and after. All you do is hold the shutter half way and the FC-100 starts recording images to its temporary buffer memory. Afterward, review a slow motion sampling on the monitor and choose which instances to save to memory. Easy! The camera also has slow motion movie recording. You can actually record motion that is usually too fast for the human eye to see, and then play it back in slow motion. The frame rate can be set at 1,000 fps, 420 fps or 210 fps. Read more

Creative yesterday announced the second generation Vado HD video camera with new Vado Central for Mac OS X, which will feature video transferring and direct to iMovie importing of Vado videos.

The new Vado HDs are available in two color combinations, a 4GB white with green accents, which holds up to 60 minutes of video and an 8GB black with red accents, which holds up to 120 minutes of video. Both are available for pre-order at www.creative.com for $179.99 and $199.99 respectively.

Vado Central for Mac OSX will be available for download in early September and is compatible with all previous Vado and Vado HD models. For updates and availability visit www.support.creative.com.

Panasonic's latest LUMIX digital camera, the 12.1 megapixel DMC-GF1 Micro Four Thirds shooter, hits the market as the world's smallest and lightest digital camera with a built in flash. But don't let its small size fool you, the LUMIX GF1 is packed with features. It can record 1280 x 720 High Definition video in AVCHD Lite, as well as HD Motion JPEG in 1280 x 720 and other video recording formats such as QVGA, VGA and WVGA.

It has tons of features, modes, as well as being the first in the LUMIX G Series to be compatible with an optional Live View Finder (DMW-LVF1). Read the press release below to find out everything this camera has to offer…I was certainly impressed.

The LUMIX DMC-GF1 will be available in October 2009 with the option of two kits – both priced at $899.95. One kit option includes the newly-announced LUMIX G 20mm/F1.7 ASPH, a compact and lightweight "pancake" lens, while the other kit features the LUMIX G VARIO 14-45mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH/MEGA O.I.S. Read more

Samsung's new 12.5 megapixel HZ25W has the most powerful lens ever offered on a Samsung compact digital camera. The HZ25W's Schneider-KREUZNACH lens has a 24x optical zoom with a 26mm wide-angle focal length (35mm film equivalent focal range of 26mm-624mm). But not only that, this digital cam offers full manual control, RAW support, as well as recording 720p HD video in H.264 format.

The HZ25W features a three-inch LCD screen, dual image stabilization, aperture and shutter priority, a full manual shooting mode, as well as manual focusing. Also, shots can be made in RAW (DNG1.1), JPEGs, or both right on the camera. The HZ25W records 720p HD video using H.264 compression, with the ability to zoom in and out while recording as well. Read more

Epson has added a new compact 17-inch printer to their lineup– the Epson Stylus Pro 3880. The printer gives you gallery quality prints up to 17" x 22", thanks to its MicroPiezo AMC print head and UltraChrome K3 with Vivid Magenta ink technology.

Epson Stylus Pro 3880 features:

- UltraChrome K3 with Vivid Magenta Ink: Professional eight-color ink set with new Vivid Magenta and Vivid Light Magenta gives you more intense blues and violets for an expanded color gamut.

- AccuPhoto HD2 Image Technology: Created in collaboration with the Rochester Institute of Technology’s Munsell Color Science Laboratory, this screening technology ensures precision placement of each ink droplet for smooth, grain-free images. This technology optimizes ink usage to maximize the color gamut and provide smooth color transitions and gradations, and reduction of the metameric index makes it possible to achieve consistent color under different lighting conditions.Read more

The PanTouch Clear 8" digital photo frame is both easy and enjoyable to use. You simply download your photos from your digital camera directly into the photo frame. Just insert your memory card into the appropriate card slot and a slideshow of all the photos on the memory card will start. There is no software required.

The digital photo frame uses a touch screen frame made possible by the new PanTouch Clear ITO (Indium-Tin-Oxide) Technology. You can easily view and control the frames functions thanks to the full touch screen capabilities. To create the floating effect, the new PanTouch Clear frame features an eye-catching 800x600 high-resolution display that appears to be floating in the surrounding glass.Read more