Granted, Toshiba Imaging's IK-HD1 3CCD HDTV Camera may not matter much to the consumer as-is, but we're all about the progress. Ready to make its grand, er, wee entrance at NAB Show later this month, the aforementioned unit touts the planet's "smallest" HD camera head (1.6-inches; 2.3-ounces), which should give program producers in tight spots one less reason to not capture content in high-def. In that vein, Tosh even notes that its ability to capture at 1,920 x 1,080 at 30fps makes it "highly suitable for reality TV (you getting this, producers?), specialty broadcast, sports, news and commercials." We know, this totally opens the door for an HD version of Punk'd, but hey, you can't win 'em all.

[Via Engadget Spanish]

If Panasonic's Lumix DMC-FX500 skipped out on PMA in order to get fitted with a touchscreen LCD monitor and HD recording capabilities, we'd say it was certainly a smart move. This well-spec'd shooter sports a pocket-friendly design, a 10.1-megapixel sensor, a 25-millimeter ultra-wide-angle lens, 3-inch touchscreen, 5x optical zoom and a swank movie mode capable of logging clips at 1,280 x 720 at 30fps. For those worried about said feature chewing through their SD / SDHC card (or the 50MB of built-in memory), WVGA (848 x 480) and VGA (640 x 480) video modes are available as well. You'll also find such niceties as optical image stabilization, red-eye correction, face detection and Auto Focus tracking for good measure. Drooling yet? Chew on the choice of black or silver and get your $399.95 ready to drop come May.

[Via PCMag]

So we know a lot of you have been on the edge of your seat concerning the RED ONE modular, high-end, HD HD-clobbering camcorder system. The camera -- announced at NAB way back in the wild, sun-soaked days of 2006 -- rocks 11.4-megapixel, 60fps video, and is designed as a multi-part system, featuring a base unit that can be modded with a variety of add-ons -- allowing for all kinds of crazy configurations (just what the low-budget auteur is after). Now, according to the Reduser forums (and more specifically, Jim Jannard, Oakley founder and Red Digital Cinema company head), the RED ONE shipments will begin on August 31st, with a second batch to follow on September 7th. Sure, the $17,500 base system price-tag may seem prohibitive to some, but as we all know, fear is the mind-killer, and if you're really serious about that film you're making, you're going to need something like this. Time to break open the piggy-bank.

[Thanks, Blayne G]

If you're here for surprises, you're not apt to leave satisfied, but if you're interested in a few extra deets on Sony's latest duo of megazoom digicams, this is the spot. Set to replace the DSC-H2 and DSC-H5 just about one year after their respective releases, Sony once again did a horrendous job keeping the DSC-H7 and DSC-H9 on the low, but we're not complaining or anything. Anyways, future H7 / H9 owners can look forward to a Carl Zeiss 15x optical zoom lens, 8.1-megapixel sensor, face detection technology, HDTV output, the ability to shoot up to 1/4000 of a second, Bionz processing engine (seen in the Alpha lineup), Super Steady Shot optical image stabilization, up to ISO 3200, and red-eye reduction. The H9 steps it up ever so slightly by adding a three-inch flip-up LCD (compared to the H7's 2.5-inch rendition) and Sony's own NightShot technology, which purportedly allows photographers to snap legible shots even in dark alleys. Notably, neither camera sports any kind of movie mode whatsoever, and those hoping to shoot in RAW will also be sorely disappointed, but if you're fine with those two oversights and the massive zoom tickles your stalking instincts, both cameras will be landing in April for $400 (DSC-H7) / $480 (DSC-H9).