Pelican Imaging shows its array camera serving as a 3D printing tool (video)

Pelican Imaging demos its array camera as a handy 3D printing tool video

While Pelican Imaging’s 16-lens array camera will only reach mobile devices in 2014, the company doesn’t want to wait to show what its technology can do in practice. It just posted a clip suggesting that the camera’s whole-scene focusing and depth mapping could come in handy at a wedding. A guest could not only capture pristine snapshots of the occasion, but create 3D-printed figurines of the bride and groom while they’re still at the reception. Is this a niche case? You bet — but it reminds us that Pelican’s array could make an impact well beyond our photo albums. Catch the full video after the break.

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Source: Pelican Imaging

Slickdeals’ best in tech for June 17th: Sony PlayStation Vita and 50-inch Sharp AQUOS HDTV

Looking to save some coin on your tech purchases? Of course you are! In this roundup, we’ll run down a list of the freshest frugal buys, hand-picked with the help of the folks at Slickdeals. You’ll want to act fast, though, as many of these offerings won’t stick around long.

Slickdeals' best in tech for June 17th: Sony PlayStation Vita and 50-inch Sharp AQUOS HDTV

If you’re considering committing funds to a PlayStation Vita for use in tandem with the upcoming PS4, today may be time to do so. The WiFi model hits our roundup alongside a 50-inch Sharp AQUOS HDTV for displaying that console — amongst other things, of course. Jump down past the break for the details on these two deals and a few more tempting options.

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Source: Slickdeals

TechCrunch: Instagram getting Vine-like video at Facebook’s June 20th event

TechCrunch Instagram Vinelike video service at Facebooks June 20th event

TechCrunch is reporting that Facebook is adding video capability to Instagram, which will be announced at the former’s press event on June 20th. According to The Desk, the videos would last between five and 10 seconds, but there’s no word on if the photo-sharing app’s litany of filters would feature in the new service. Presumably the move has come in response to Vine’s popularity as Facebook and Twitter square off against each other — a fight which would make Blu-Ray vs. HD-DVD look like playground squabbling by comparison.

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Source: TechCrunch

Meet the Crazy Army of Space-Cameras Curiosity Brought to Mars

Mars rover Curiosity has doubtlessly been doing a whole lot of important science up there on the red planet, but it’s also been sending back a ton of pictures to keep us simpler, non-scientist folks amused by all the pretty colors red. But what kind of cameras does that thing have anyways? JPL explains.

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Yes, Of Course There Is Kinect Porn [NSFW]

Yes, Of Course There Is Kinect Porn [NSFW]

With the announcement that the Xbox One requires Kinect, there’s been plenty of outcry that its ever-present robot eyes are creepy. Especially if you want your Xbox in the bedroom. Artist Alejandro Gomez-Arias probably wouldn’t mind, though. Hell, he’d probably be into it; he’s already starred in his own Kinect porn.

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Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 APS-C zoom lens priced at a surprisingly reasonable $800

When we came across the Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM a couple of months ago, the first thing that popped into our heads was: how much? After all, it’s the first-ever zoom lens with a constant sub f/2.0 aperture, and even those with a higher f/2.8 go for thousands of dollars. Well, luckily for camera enthusiasts everywhere, the Sigma 18-35mm f/1.8 DC HSM has a street price of $799 — less than half what we expected. Better yet, it’ll be available in “early July” in Sigma and Canon mounts, which means it’ll arrive just in time for some of you to shoot creamy bokeh shots of sunflowers in bloom. Nikon, Sony and Pentax mounts will come later in the year.

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Fujifilm and Panasonic’s organic CMOS image sensor boosts dynamic range and sensitivity

Fujifilm and Panasonic's organic CMOS image sensor boosts dynamic range and sensitivity

We’ve all been enjoying the benefits of AMOLED displays for several years now — high contrast ratios, wide viewing angles and vivid colors — so it was only a matter of time until organic films ended up in image sensors. Fujifilm and Panasonic have been working on organic CMOS image sensors and just showed the results of their collaboration at the 2013 Symposium on VLSI Technology in Kyoto. By replacing the traditional silicon photodiode with an organic photoelectric conversion layer, researchers have created image sensors with a dynamic range of 88dB (the industry’s highest), a 1.2-fold increase in sensitivity (compared to traditional designs) and a 60-degree range of incident light (vs. 30-40 degrees, typically). What does this mean in practice? Less clipping in bright scenes, better low-light performance and richer colors and textures. The companies plan to promote these new organic CMOS image sensors for use in a wide range of imaging applications, including next generation cameras and phones. We can’t wait!

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Source: Fujifilm

Sony RX100 sequel leaks in Japanese manual images, adds tilting screen, hot shoe and WiFi

Sony RX100R leaks in Japanese manual images, adds tilting screen, hot shoe and WiFi

We were more than a little smitten with Sony’s original RX100, a high-end Cybershot point-and-shoot housing a notable 1-inch 20.2-megapxiel CMOS sensor alongside a f/1.8 Carl Zeiss lens. It looks like there were enough customers that thought the same, because SonyAlphaRumors has gleaned several images from the manual for a sequel device. The site has more to share, but it’s checking its translations first. In the meantime, these initial images already point to some notable hardware additions. Alongside a screen that can tilt up and down (plus a light sensor to adjust brightness automatically), the mark two RX100 will apparently catch up with Sony’s NEX series, adding built-in WiFi too. There’s also the addition of a hot shoe for mics and other peripherals, but fear not: there’s still the built-in flash to the left of it. Naming, pricing and availability are still unknowns, but according to the site’s mole, the camera will get formally announced later this month on June 27.

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Source: Sony Alpha Rumors

iOS 7 Finally Lets You Zoom While Recording Video on Your iPhone

Here’s an under-reported feature of iOS 7: you can finally zoom in while video recording now. It seems like it could get a little choppy, as you have to pinch to zoom while already recording video but from the looks of the video above shot by 9to5Mac, the results are pretty seamless.

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Lomography intros Konstruktor: craft your own film SLR for $35 (video)

Lomography Konstruktor craft your own film SLR for $35 video

It’s easy to build your own camera if you’re determined to capture images on the cheap; it’s another matter if you want something just slightly more refined. If that’s the case, Lomography has you covered with its new Konstruktor kit. The pack gives DIY types everything they need to build their own 35mm film SLR, including a removable 50mm f/10 lens and customizable panels. There’s no control over aperture or shutter speed, but Lomography’s retro-inclined crowd will like the quick toggle for long exposure shots. They’ll also like the $35 price — it’s possible to buy 100 Konstructors before matching the cost of just one EOS 5D Mark III. Should that kind of math be too much to resist, you’ll be glad to hear that the camera is already on sale at Lomography’s shop.

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Source: Lomography