Hasta La Gadget!

Well, this one’s a bit out of the blue, but a member of the Xitek.com forums has produced this image of a hereto unheard of Micro Four Thirds Panasonic Lumix GF1 that’s purported to come from an internal Panasonic PDF. A second image (after the break, and full size at the link below), also reveals a few more interesting details, like a port below the hotshoe that would presumably be used for a detachable EVF, and a built-in pop-up flash. Otherwise, about all that’s clear is that the camera itself appears to be slightly smaller than the Olympus E-P1, and that it’s prompted an endless stream of speculation on the photography forums.

[Via Digital Photography Review]

Continue reading Rumored Micro Four Thirds Panasonic GF1 gets pictured

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Rumored Micro Four Thirds Panasonic GF1 gets pictured originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Aug 2009 13:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Eldar Murtazin over at mobile-review has chimed in on those alleged Nokia N97 Mini shots that leaked last week — and as anyone who follows the mobile industry knows, when the ridiculously well-connected Eldar speaks, folks tend to listen. The dude says that the N97 Mini is very much real, as is the name, which — get this — he claims was leaked by Nokia itself in an effort to stave off an unnamed competitor who’d also been planning to release a smaller version of one of its handsets with a “Mini” label slapped on the name. At any rate, the N97 Mini apparently isn’t pulling any punches — it’s said to be exactly what you see, little more than a smaller N97 with a reconfigured keyboard and no camera lens cover. That sounds like a tough sell at first, especially when you throw in Eldar’s claim that it’ll step down to 8 and 16GB versions from the N97’s 32GB, but the good news is that Espoo’s seemingly looking to get this on the market for about €100 less ($144) than the N97. As for an official announcement, Eldar says that Nokia’s planning to unveil it at Nokia World next month; the original model was revealed at last year’s show, and frankly, we’re hoping for a little bit more innovation than this by the time they’re done unveiling the new lineup. Rover, perhaps?

[Via Unwired View]

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Nokia N97 Mini is seriously just a smaller, cheaper N97, it seems originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Aug 2009 14:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Whoa, Nelly! No sooner than we hear that Sony is informing Japanese retailers that the 80GB PS3 model won’t be shipping any longer after August 8th, along comes this to stoke the raging rumor fires once more. In a one-two punch that just can’t be coincidental, Sony has also hacked $50 off of its 160GB PlayStation 3 bundle from Amazon. But really, it’s the report from RTLinfo that has us most excited. According to it, the Sony elite are informing European retailers of an impending €100 price slashing on the 80GB console, which will dovetail nicely into the sudden and not-at-all unexpected debut of the PS3 Slim at the gamescom expo in Cologne, Germany. Reportedly, the willowy unit — which shouldn’t differ much in terms of specifications and features — will be properly introduced to the world during Sony’s pre-event press conference on August 18th. Obviously we’ve no way to confirm or deny just yet, but given everything else that has transpired over the past few months, we’d say an official reveal is definitely due. What say you, rumormongers?

Read – Sony PS3 Slim to be revealed at gamescom [Thanks, Dominic]
Read – 160GB PS3 price cut [Via GamesIndustry]

Filed under: Gaming

Sony’s PlayStation 3 Slim to debut August 18th at Cologne gamescom? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Aug 2009 06:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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To dispel any disbelief in Apple’s rumored tablet, an analyst claims to have seen a prototype of the gadget in person.

The analyst, who remains anonymous in the story, told financial publication Barron’s that Apple’s tablet could be introduced in September for a November release. The source shared no details on the specifications of the device. Other publications’ sources have described Apple’s rumored tablet as a 10-inch version of the iPod Touch with multimedia specialties.

“One veteran analyst who has seen first-hand a prototype slate-style computer from Apple says the device could be announced in September for release in November,” the story reads. “Whatever the exact dates, the computer industry is so anxious to see what Apple introduces that it has held off on competing designs until Apple CEO Steve Jobs gives the device his final blessing.”

We’re skeptical about the validity of this claim. First, we question if remaining anonymous would benefit this source, because we imagine Apple doesn’t show its secret products to many analysts; thus it’d be easy to narrow down the possibilities. Second, if the analyst is going to blabber anonymously anyway, why not share additional details of the product? The only reason such a source would come forward would be with the permission of Apple to perpetuate the hype surrounding the product — which seems unnecessary considering the flood of previous reports on this rumored device (see below).

In any case, with all the rumor reports added together, an Apple tablet seems inevitable in the near future. And Wired.com has also heard that in the next year, a large number of tech companies — including Dell, Intel, HTC and Nokia — plan to compete with their own tablet PCs, too.

See Also:

• Financial Times Confirms Apple Tablet for September
• Rumor: $800 Apple Tablet Coming in October
• How an Apple Tablet Could Pit iTunes Against Amazon.com
• Analyst Predicts Apple Will Unleash Touchscreen Tablet Next Year …
• Rumor: 10-Inch Apple Tablet Landing in Early 2010
• Large-Screen Kindle Won't Mean Squat if Apple Tablet Arrives …
• Apple COO Reveals Plans for Touch Tablet — Kinda

A mocked-up illustration of an Apple tablet: Photo Giddy/Flickr

Looks like our one of our dreams just might come to fruition after all, if this newest rumor coming from the vicinity of Nikon is to be believed, anyway. Now, there aren’t a lot of details to go round here, but Nikon Rumors is reporting that Chasseur d’Image — a print magazine in France with a history of publishing rumors that turn into reality — has published a report that Nikon will soon announce the VP650. What is this VP650, you ask? Well, it’s a hybrid compact digital camera with an LED projector (which may or may not be manufactured by Taiwanese company Foxlink) that can project 8 x 12 images in “good quality” in the dark. Chasseur d’Image reports that the VP650 will ship in September. Like we said — not a whole lot of detail, but we’ll keep our eyes peeled to see if this thing ever appears. We’ll say this though — such a product would probably make the tiny projector a lot more attractive.

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Rumor mill: Nikon VP650 camera / projector combo soon to be revealed originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 03 Aug 2009 00:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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