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Best of Breed - CES Cameras 2012

Three Cameras in Focus at CES

from All Things Digital by Lauren Goode

Smartphones are munching at many industries, including cameras. And while some camera makers are looking to compete by making their digital cameras “smarter” — which means adding more Wi-Fi capabilities and apps — others are focusing on their core capabilities: Taking pictures. Here are three cameras that stood out at the Consumer Electronics Show last week:

Canon PowerShot G1 X
The Canon PowerShot G1 X follows the PowerShot G12, which will stay in Canon’s product lineup; the G1 X adds the largest sensor to date for a Canon PowerShot model. Bodywise, it’s not as chunky as a DSLR, but it’s larger than the PowerShot G12, and still has a pretty solid composite-material body, weighing in at 19 ounces and measuring 4.98 x 2.93 x 2.12 inches.



The camera uses a 1.5-inch, 14.3 megapixel high-sensitivity CMOS sensor, which is 6.3 times larger than the G12’s sensor. A representative for Canon says it works especially well in low light.

Interchangeable lenses aren’t an option — the G1 X does have a 28mm-to-112mm (4x) optical zoom lens — and for hobbyists, this will be just fine. But for fans of the Canon 5D, 7D, and 60D, the lack of lens options could be what makes them stay true to their DSLRs.

The G1 X also captures 1080p HD video, with optical zooming and auto-focus features. It’s got a pop-up flash, and a fully rotating view screen. While some consumers might prefer not to have an extra view-screen “arm” hanging off the camera, regular video shooters might prefer this to an embedded view screen.

The Canon G1 X will cost $799, and is expected to hit the market at the end of February.

FujiFilm X-Pro 1
Fujifilm’s new flagship product will stoke the fires of your inner photo freak, but will likely leave a big, gaping hole in your wallet.

Fujifilm is touting a brand-new proprietary sensor that is supposed to set this device apart from other cameras. In fact, the new sensor is establishing the X-Pro 1 as the new flagship camera of Fujifilm. The X-Pro 1 has a 16.3 megapixel CMOS sensor, sized 23.6 mm x 15.6 mm. Fujifilm says this new sensor allows for the removal of additional low-pass filters within the camera, and still captures high-resolution images and true colors.



The X-Pro 1 supports three interchangeable lenses, captures 1080p HD video, and has a hybrid multi-iew finder that switches between electronic and optical view.

The body of the camera has a vintage look, which camera buffs will appreciate, and it’s palpably heavier than Fujifilm’s X100 camera.

With the X-Pro 1, Fujifilm is targeting an advanced photographer, and likely one that is focused on taking still images, rather than video. The price point hasn’t been set yet, but it will likely retail for more than the FinePix X100, which retails for $1,200. Fujifilm is aiming for a March 2012 launch of the X-Pro 1.

Nikon 1 Series
The belle of the CES ball this year was Nikon’s D4 camera, which won various awards throughout the week. But the D4 is geared toward professionals — and costs $6,000.

For consumers, the Nikon “1″ series cameras may be the way to go. These cameras actually hit the market last October, but were still getting attention at last week’s big show in Las Vegas.



The Nikon 1 V1, at $849, is slightly bigger than the J1, and has an electronic viewfinder and one other feature that I feel is a real bonus. Otherwise, the V1 and J1 are almost identical. The 1 series cameras are not full-fledged DLSRs, but offer some of the same advanced functionality, and support interchangeable lenses. They pack in a 10.1 megapixel, 13.2 mm x 8.8 mm high-speed AF CMOS sensor, and have a 2.7x lens focal length. Like many digital cameras on the market, they capture 1080p HD video.

There’s one dial on the back for toggling between the four functions of the camera: Still images, video, motion snapshot and smart photo selection. For some users, this makes the V1 and J1 simpler to navigate than other compact cameras; others might not like some of the limits on customization. Bounce-flash accessories, like the SB-N5 speedlight for the V1, are available for purchase, and offer a bit more illumination than built-in pop-up lights.

But there’s one small feature on the Nikon 1 V1 that makes a big difference, in my opinion — the external audio input. Very few point-and-shoots or DSLRs come with a microphone jack; in order to capture good, isolated sound on many cameras, you’d have to slide an accessory into the “hot shoe” at the top of the camera. With the Nikon 1 V1, you could attach a stereo mic and stop apologizing for the bad audio and ambient noise in your videos.

The Nikon 1 V1 retails for $849; the Nikon 1 J1 costs $699.

Android Fractures ?

OK, MG, I Take It Back

from TechCrunch by Jon Evans

A few weeks ago, I wrote: A couple weeks ago, MG wrote: “Android development itself remains a huge pain in the ass. I hear this again, and again, and again.” Which took me a bit aback. I’ve developed numerous Android and iOS apps (though not games, so I can’t speak to the differences there) over the last few years, and neither set of developer tools seems to me to be hugely superior: both have their strengths and their really irritating failings.

I stand by what I said, to a point: the developer tools for the two platforms are comparable. But Android’s fragmentation has become a giant millstone for Android app development, leaving it worryingly behind its iOS equivalent. It’s not the panoply of screen sizes and formats; the Android layout engine is actually quite good at minimizing that annoyance. It’s not the frequent instances of completely different visual behavior on two phones running exactly the same version of Android; again, annoying, but relatively minor. Device fragmentation is just an irritation.

OS fragmentation, though, is an utter disaster. Ice Cream Sandwich is by all accounts very nice; but what good does that do app developers, when according to Google’s own stats, 30% of all Android devices are still running an OS that is 20 months old? I sure would have liked to stop caring about Android 2.2 bugs fixed in 2.3. It would have been awfully nice to be able to use the animation libraries from Android 3.0, described in thisalmost-a-year-old blog post, to say nothing of Ice Cream Sandwich’s features; but at this rate, Android developers aiming for a mass audience will have to wait another year, if not longer, before they can actually build apps that take advantage of all the shiny new featuers.

More than two-thirds of iOS users had upgraded to iOS 5 a mere three months after its release. Anyone out there think that Ice Cream Sandwich will crack the 20% mark on Google’s platform pie chart by March? How about 10%? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Read on...

AGPS Patch for Android Handsets

Popular AGPS Patch Now Available on HTC Desire S

from xda-developers by PoorCollegeGuy

For those who are unfamiliar with AGPS Patch, XDA Senior Member crypted gives a brief explanation:

This patch was created to provide quick GPS locking across North America. But, it has been ported into a worldwide solution for multiple devices. Using a general ROM without this has resulted in 10+ minutes of GPS delay. Also, GPS lock kept being lost. By using this patch, most people experience a GPS lock within 10 seconds (2 – 20 seconds range can be expected). Typically, a device using this patch will lock onto 7 – 9 satellites. Users have reported up to 11 satellites being locked at once. Without this patch, the average satellite count is 4.

Well, now users who own a HTC Desire S join the already impressive list of supported devices who can utilize this patch. With three ways to install the device, including ClockworkMod, ADB Push and just copy/paste the files into the correct directories, users of all knowledge bases will be able to find the way that suits them best.
Additionally, scripted’s original thread contains pro tips for getting your GPS to work better and an FAQ that has virtually every possible reason why your GPS isn’t functioning from the case getting in the way of signal to a rare bug that prevents usage entirely.
While there’s a list of supported devices, scripted says:

you can use any build with any phone. You may have good luck with specific builds that do not fit your phone or carrier criteria. If you’re curious, test it and see.

So for anyone who’s interested, check out the thread linked above.

High Res Baloon Mapping with Android

What about raster geodata? -- http://mapknitter.org and http://publiclaboratory.org/tool/balloon-mapping show you how to collect, composite, and publish your own raster maps. I think some people at first wonder why, but you only have to look at some of the maps people are making to see why mapmaking is a lot more subjective than we thought:

* A map of OccupyOakland days before it was shut down (a perspective you won't see up on Google...): http://publiclaboratory.org/map/occupy-oakland-10am/2011-11-2
* A map of pollution plumes in urban waterways: http://mapknitter.org/map/search?q=newtown, http://mapknitter.org/tms/2011-08-06-brooklyn-newtowncreek/openlayers.html
* A map of illegal logging in Sumava, Czech Republic: http://mapknitter.org/map/search?q=sumava

(I should mention that if you want to get started balloon mapping quickly, you should get in on the Kickstarter to get your own balloon mapping kit: http://kck.st/x5vsyA)

Beyond that, what about multispectral raster mapping? Public Lab folks have been replicating NASA earth observation techniques by hacking cameras for infrared vegetation analysis, landfill monitoring, etc:

http://publiclaboratory.org/tool/near-infrared-camera
http://publiclaboratory.org/wiki/mapknitter-multispectral

There's a world of geodata out there which doesn't come from big corps or gov'ts, and tells a very different story.

Balloon Mapping the Oil Spill Proves Responsive, Open Source

In a recent Idea Lab post from the Center for Future Civic Media, Jeff Warren wrote about using inexpensive balloons and cheap cameras to make pseudo-satellite imagery of a given area. He had been using it to help people in poor areas establish title to their land (Google Maps satellites don't map poor areas as fast as these areas actually grow).But then the Gulf oil spill happened...

Phone calls and emails started coming in from suddenly out-of-work fishermen who were frustrated with British Petroleum, and also flummoxed by the lack of imagery explaining how and where the oil slick was spreading. Warren has since made multiple trips to the Gulf Coast, primarily to the Chandeleur Islands, where these same fishermen are taking him out to map the disaster. The resulting images, after being rectified and stitched together, are humbling. You can also read his recent Idea Lab account of his work there.

THE VALUE OF CHEAP MAPPING

You might ask, "What's the point of 'cheap' mapping?" Warren's work is proving to be invaluable for three reasons besides cost:

• It's responsive. You don't have to schedule a satellite flyover; you can just do it, multiple times if needed.
• It's open source, if you want it to be. You don't need a vendor's permission to use the images as you wish.
• It's high-res. And there's the key in a fast-changing situation like the one in the Gulf: you can overlay a high-resolution balloon-mapping image on a low-res Google Map and know exactly how dramatically the situation is changing...

Sometimes the simplest solutions are the best ones. What other applications of balloon mapping can you imagine? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Standard Temperature and Pressure = 20 degrees C and 760 mm Mercury

STP = 760 mm pressure and 20 C

Weight of air per liter at STP      =     1.20 gr/l
Weight of helium per liter at STP   =     0.18 gr/l
Net lift per liter of helium at STP =     1.03 gr/l

A typical balloon should provide from 4 to 5 mm of overpressure and
reduce lift to .9935 of these figures.

For small spherical helium balloon sizes:

Dia. inches  Vol. Liters  Lift/gr    Lift/lbs

       6        1.85       1.90      0.0042 
       8        4.39       4.51      0.0099 
      10        8.58       8.81      0.0194 
      12       14.83      15.22      0.0335 
      14       23.55      24.17      0.0533 
      16       35.15      36.07      0.0795 
      18       50.04      51.36      0.1132 
      20       68.65      70.45      0.1553 
      22       91.37      93.77      0.2067 

Dia. Ft.  Vol. l     Lift gr.    Lift Lbs.

   1      14.83       15.2        0.03 
   2     118.62      121.7        0.27 
   3     400.34      410.9        0.91 
   4     948.96      973.9        2.15 
   5    1853.45     1902.2        4.19 
   6    3202.76     3287.0        7.25 
   7    5085.86     5219.7       11.51 
   8    7591.72     7791.5       17.18 
   9   10809.30    11093.7       24.46 
  10   14827.58    15217.7       33.55 
  11   19735.50    20254.8       44.65 
  12   25622.05    26296.2       57.97 
  13   32576.18    33433.3       73.71 
  14   40686.87    41757.4       92.06 
  15   50043.07    51359.8      113.23 
  16   60733.75    62331.8      137.42 
  17   72847.88    74764.7      164.83 
  18   86474.42    88749.8      195.66 
  19   101702.34   104378       230.12 
  20   118620.61   121741       268.40 
  21   137318.18   140931       310.70 
  22   157884.03   162038       357.24 
  23   180407.11   185154       408.20 
  24   204976.41   210369       463.79 

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Nikon Camera Area Networking

The Nikon D4 body is aprox $6000-$7000?