eK-gadgets info

Have you noticed an increase in CMOS-based compact cameras lately? I believe Kodak was the first to use them on some entry-level cameras, followed by Casio and then Canon (both with super zooms). Today, Sony is joining in, with their new Cyber-shot DSC-HX1. I got a chance to use this super zoom camera a few weeks back, and I was very impressed with its features and performance. It’s pretty clear that Sony is going after the Canon PowerShot SX1 and Casio Exilim EX-FH20 with this one. Here are the details on the new HX1:

Cyber-shot DSC-HX1 

• 9.1 effective Megapixel Exmor CMOS sensor (1/2.4″)
• F2.8-5.2, 20X optical zoom Sony G lens, equivalent to 28 - 560
  • Sony mentioned that the “G” lens (with 6 aperture blades, plus aspherical and extra-low dispersion elements) is higher quality than the “Zeiss” lenses typically found on their compact cameras
• Optical image stabilization
• 3-inch, tilt-able LCD display with 230,000 pixels; also has an electronic viewfinder with 201k pixels
• Full manual controls
• Intelligent Scene Recognition feature automatically selects a scene mode for you
• Continuous shooting at 10 frames/second at full resolution (for up to 10 shots)
• Sweep Panorama feature lets you slowly pan the camera from side-to-side (you can use it vertically) to create a single panoramic image with a 224 degree field of view; this was very cool in person
• Handheld twilight and anti-blur modes take six photos in a row (you probably won’t even notice) and combine them into a single image that’s less likely to be blurry
• Enhanced face detection feature can remember faces, and then give them priority in future photos; camera also has smile and blink detection
• Records video at 1440 x 1080 at 30 frames/second (Sony calls this 1080p, which is a bit misleading, as true 1080p is 1920 x 1080 @ 60 fps)
  • Sound is recorded in stereo
  • Uses the AVC/H.264 codec
• Optional 1.7X teleconverter lens
• 11MB onboard memory + Memory Stick Duo slot
• HDMI output
• Uses NP-FH50 lithium-ion battery; 390 shots per charge
• Shipping in April for $500

Pentax has introduced the X70 super zoom camera today. This is their first super zoom camera, and it packs a 24X optical zoom lens. Here’s more:

Pentax X70

• 12.0 Megapixel CCD
• F2.8-5.0, 24X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 26 - 624 mm
  • This may be the same lens as on the Nikon Coolpix P90 and Kodak EasyShare Z980
• Sensor-shift image stabilization
• 2.7″ LCD display with 230,000 pixels, plus an electronic viewfinder
• Full manual controls + Auto Picture Mode (which picks a scene mode for you)
• Can shoot at 11 frames/second at 5 Megapixel resolution
• Face detection finds up to 32 faces in the scene; also features smile and blink detection
• Auto redeye reduction
• Digital Wide feature stitches 2 images together for a photo with a 20 mm angle of view
• Records movies at 1280 x 720 (15 fps); lower resolutions can shoot at 30 fps
• 33.6MB onboard memory + SD/SDHC card slot
• Uses D-LI92 lithium-ion battery; 170 shots per charge
• Ships in April for $400

Along with the new super zoom comes a new lens for Pentax’s digital SLRs. This new F4, 15 mm Pentax DA Limited lens features an aluminum finish, a built-in lens hood, and it will ship in April for $650.

Developers late Tuesday evening are downloading a widely distributed beta of Apple’s new iPhone 3.0 software, installing it on their handsets, and weighing in with some first impressions and screen shots, all of which follow.

The beta is available in a variety of distributions for the various multi-touch products Apple has released over the past two years, each of which weighs in around 250MB. The updated version of the iPhone SDK is much heftier, at around 2.5GB.

Generally speaking, developers are excited about the release and say the beta is stable enough for them to use as their primary iPhone OS for the time being, though the software is clearly ‘not something Apple would ship’ at this point.

In particular, Spotlight is said to be very responsive and functions just as you would expect having used the feature previously on a Mac. Copy & paste is also well received, but feels somewhat flaky. Developers have experienced some difficulty making selections in Safari, which may suggest a slight learning curve like that required when exploring the iPhone’s touch keyboard for the first time.

Below are a series of screenshots highlighting some of the widely publicized features of iPhone 3.0 and some that have gone unmentioned, like encrypted iPhone backups, background messaging and Camera app tweaks. Two apps that have reportedly seen no changes as of yet are Weather and Clock.

Copy and paste

Copy and paste works across all applications. We’ve detailed the process for text, web content, and photos in a series of annotated screenshots here. Below are some additional examples, including copy and paste of MMS messages. There’s also an interface in Safari for copying URLs.

Messages

One cool feature of Apple’s new MMS “Messages” app is the ability to send messages in the background, which lets you type out your second message while you’re waiting for the first to send. It’s quite helpful when sending very large media messages:

Voice Memo interface

Apple’s new Voice Memo application lets you record voice memos for yourself, which can then be trimmed and sent to friends, family, or coworkers via email of MMS.

Spotlight and Mail search

Spotlight search is accessible by flicking the iPhone’s home screen to the right (as if there was a home screen to the left). In addition to serving as a global search app, it can also act as a quick application launcher.

Mail, Notes, iPod and Calendar also have their own integrated search interface (seen in the shots below, which are flanking the new home screen). If the mail search doesn’t turn up any results from messages stored on your iPhone, it will move on to search messages still located on your mail server.

Key apps getting landscape mode

Among the apps gaining true landscape mode with a landscape keyboard are Mail, Stocks, Notes, and Messages:

Camera and Photos

A new version of Apple’s Camera app shows you the last photo you snapped in the lower left-hand corner of the application. Meanwhile, the new Photo album app allows you to copy, delete, or share multiple photos via email.

YouTube and Settings panel

A new version of the YouTube app due in iPhone 3.0 will let you log into your account and see subscriptions, playlists, and history. Below is also a photo of the iPhone’s general preference pane thrown in for good measure. There are reportedly few changes in the settings.

Parental controls & contact sharing

Below are some of the new parental controls and the dialog that allows sharing of contact cards (vCard standard) over MMS.

New screenshot interface

The version of the App Store application included with the iPhone 3.0 beta includes a slightly revised and quirky interface for viewing screenshots:

via : appleinsider

It was only yesterday that we brought to your attention the fact that there’s a new rumor in town saying that a netbook is going to arrive later this year, despite Apple’s previous assurances that such a thing won’t happen.

And today the Dow Jones Newswire kind of confirmed the rumor. According to its sources, an Apple touchscreen netbook is supposed to be launched in the second half of the year. It will have a 10-inch display from Wintek and Quanta will make it. The interested parties failed to officially comment. Are we to understand from their silence that Apple is indeed launching the new device this year?

via Dow Jones Newswire

The Nokia 5730 XpressMusic is the first music-optimized phone to offer a full QWERTY keyboard for easier messaging. The real highlight for the Nokia 5730 is the Homescreen for XpressMusic. This provides access and dynamic information on music, people, games, email and calendar.

The Homescreen features an improved contacts bar with up to 20 friends and family members and provides direct access to music, N-Gage and other applications, like Facebook, Photos, Ovi Contacts, Maps, messaging and more. With Ovi Contacts, people see which friends are online, chat and even view what music they are listening to.

With the dedicated gaming keys the Nokia 5730 XpressMusic is a true N-Gage gadget. Direct access to the N-Gage Arena community and the preloaded N-Gage games invite to connect and compete and check high scores with online friends.