Hasta La Gadget!

Oh, what’s this, Canon? You want your turn in the spotlight as well? Well, we suppose a hint of an announcement is better than a non-announcement, so bring it on! The imaging company just sent us word of a presumably star-studded SoCal event on November 3rd, giving its cameras a chance to walk the red carpet in a rather surprising Hollywood role reversal. We’re not sure exactly what Canon plans to unveil that night — a new mirrorless camera, or perhaps some fancy pants camcorder, destined for Hollywood’s elite? But assuming the company isn’t crying wolf, we’ll be there with a live report from the red carpet.

Canon plans Hollywood event, ready to roll out the red carpet on November 3rd originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Sep 2011 18:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’re here in Berlin, covering IFA 2011, and Panasonic’s getting things started by showing off a concept camera, its first with a twin-lens capable of shooting 3D stills and video. Alas, the company’s press release is light on technical info, though it does reveal the system’s built on dual 4x lenses with “thin, folded” optics. Hopefully, we’ll see this thing in person while we’re in town and learn a bit more. In similar news, the company also announced the HDC-Z10000 (pictured), its first 2D / 3D camcorder with an integrated twin-lens. The camcorder records 1080p / 1080i AVCHD 3D video, has dual CMOS sensors with a combined resolution of 13.1MP and a glasses-less 3.5-inch LCD. It’s also capable of 3D macros as close as 17.8 inches — a record for twin-lens 3D camcorders, according to Panasonic. As the company’s been known to do, though, it’s holding off on revealing any details about pricing or availability, so it looks like we’ll have to save that for a rainy day. Full PR after the break.

Continue reading Panasonic shows off twin-lens 3D camera prototype, announces HDC-Z10000 3D camcorder

Panasonic shows off twin-lens 3D camera prototype, announces HDC-Z10000 3D camcorder originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 31 Aug 2011 09:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Add another model to the gadget deluge that was last night’s Sony camera announcements. The electronics giant debuted the NEX-VG20, the followup to the admittedly snazzy NEX-VG10. The new interchangeable lens camcorder does full HD video and can capture 16 megapixel stills (including RAW support). The Handycam also rocks a three-inch LCD that can be rotated 270 degrees and a mic that supports stereo and 5.1 channel surround recordings. The camcorder will hit stores in November for $2,199 with an SEL18-200 F3.5-6.3 E-mount lens and $1,599 for just the body.

Continue reading Sony debuts the Handycam NEX-VG20

Sony debuts the Handycam NEX-VG20 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Aug 2011 10:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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No matter how fast that piece of Jell-O landed on the floor, you’ll be able to review the journey in all its slow motion glory with the newly announced Phantom v1610 and v1210 cameras. Vision Research is calling the latest entries in the Phantom line the “world’s fastest one megapixel digital high-speed cameras.” The v1210 is capable of capturing 12,000 fps to 16,000 fps, with its higher end buddy the v1610 capturing between 650,000 fps and one million fps, if you sacrifice resolution. Shooting 1280 x 800 widescreen images (at regular speed), the v1210 boasts 12GB, 24GB, or 48GB of segmented memory, while the v1610 can hold 24GB, 48GB, or 96GB of segmented memory. Other features include an image-based auto-trigger, ethernet port, SMPTE & IRIG timecode, genlock, 28 micron pixel size, 12-bit depth pixel depth standard, and an HD-SDI output. No word on pricing, but if you have a budget like NFL Films, let the epic sports montages and Truffle Shuffling commence. Check out some slow motion footage captured on the Phantom HD Gold after the break.

Update: pricing starts around a cool $100,000.

Continue reading Vision Research’s Phantom v1210 and v1610 do slow motion in style (video)

Vision Research’s Phantom v1210 and v1610 do slow motion in style (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Aug 2011 22:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple’s iPhone 4 can serve as a great little camcorder when you’re in a bind, but it’s never been our go-to cam for video shoots. Not only is its small sensor not best suited for high-quality HD shooting, but the smartphone form factor can be awkward to hold, resulting in shakier than normal footage. A new app called DollyCam, which also supports iPad 2, helps soften the blow of the latter, letting you successfully stabilize videos — with a few drawbacks.

We took our iPhone 4 out to test a watermarked free version of the app in New York City, shooting a scene first with the phone’s native app, and then with DollyCam. It won’t replace a hardware solution like the Steadicam Smoothee, but it’s significantly cheaper and more convenient. The only major issues we noticed were related to softened sound capture of all things (pay close attention in the video past the break), and the fact that the app can’t process in real-time, so a minute-long video clip will need about five minutes to process. The app does crop your footage slightly, as can be expected. You’ll also need to remain in the app as it’s processing, though you can also stabilize videos later, after completing your shoot. Overall, it’s an acceptable solution, especially considering the $2.99 price tag. Jump past the break to see original and stabilized clips, and browse through the gallery below for a quick look at the interface.

[Thanks, Jon]

Continue reading DollyCam app lets you stabilize iPhone 4 videos, we go hands-on (video)

DollyCam app lets you stabilize iPhone 4 videos, we go hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 05 Aug 2011 16:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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