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Sony Stitch merges footage from two 4K F65 cameras to create zoomable panoramic with HD output (video)
Well, that's a mouthful of a headline. Going a bit more in-depth, a new professional solution from Sony allows broadcasters to capture side-by-side 4K video at, say, a sporting event, then use a standard camera zoom device to select small portions of each feed for 720p or 1080i output. On the receiving end, you'll see a live image that looks indistinguishable from something you'd capture with a moving camera, with a few extra benefits to boot. Sony demonstrated the system using feeds from an F65 4K camera earlier this year at NAB, but was only able to present a simulation at that point, with pre-recorded output cropped from larger-format footage. Now, as we saw today at IBC in Amsterdam, the technique works in realtime, so an adjustable smaller portion of the video is pumped out seamlessly and instantaneously. The 4K video can also be recorded at full resolution simultaneously, letting you change the framing long after an event takes place. Sony only had the demo configured to pull live video from the left portion of the feed, but eventually the entire capture will be enabled, giving producers access to an entire football field, as you'll see in the hands-on video after the break. We wouldn't expect this solution to replace human camera operators anytime soon, but it's certainly a viable method for adding angles and placing a bit more control in the hands of production teams, even after the fact.
Drift Innovation unveils compact Drift HD, still up for your extreme antics (video)
Fan of recording extreme death-defying stunts, yet find your current helmet cam just too darn unwieldy? Drift's creatively named Drift HD might fit the bill, as the firm's managed to cram the 170-degree field of view rotatable lens / LCD combo from the HD170, into a 25 percent smaller package. The nine megapixel 1080p shooter also features a bevy of redesigned mounts, a replaceable lens and support for 32GB microSD cards, allowing it to keep chuggin' where lesser cameras would have otherwise called it quits. Connectivity junkies will also swoon at the inclusion of micro-HDMI and a 2.5mm microphone input. We weren't exactly smitten with the HD170, but this $369 makeover might be enough to change our minds. If you're dying to find out for yourself, the Drift HD will be available August 31st, but do us a favor and keep your eyes on the snow -- we wouldn't want you to end up like this guy.
Panasonic's new suite of colorful camcorders hits stores this July, gets priced right now
When Panasonic introduced us to its Skittles-like array of candy-coated camcorders, they gave us a taste of the little things, but left us hanging on price and availability. Well, if you've been slobbering over the specs since February, you can sate your appetite soon, because the HM-TA20, HM-TA2, HX-WA10, HX-DC10, and HX-DC1 will hit stores starting in early July. The Flip-style, 1080p HM-TA20 rings in at $200, while its less rugged little brother, the HM-TA2, will run you $170. The upright and rugged HX-WA10 will do 1080p video and 16-megapixel stills for $350, and you'll drop $280 on the HX-DC10 for the same functionality without the weather-proofing. For the same look at an even lower price, you can shoot 14-megapixel stills on the HX-DC1 for $200. Hungry for more? Full PR awaits you after the break.
iPad 2 mirroring: Capturing video in higher definition
Co-blogger Steve Sande and I have been collaborating on our attempts to find a solid solution that allows iPad 2 owners to use the screen mirroring feature in tandem with a computer video capture tool; this would simplify screencasting, training, recording and scores of other things. Steve was looking for a way to integrate his iPad's screen into his TUAW TV Live shows. I need to create videos for demonstrations, reviews and tutorials. While this would be relatively straightforward if Apple's mirroring support included the older Composite AV and Component AV adapters for the iPad, sadly it does not. Only the HDMI-sporting Digital AV adapter and the VGA adapter are permitted to work with the mirroring option, which helps close the analog hole for purchased/rented digital video, but it doesn't make the job of DIY iPad recording any easier. Steve recently blogged about our first solution, a quick and dirty approach that offered a "barely enough" 480p standard-definition video feed. As Steve pointed out, this basic setup is not a high resolution answer to our video capture needs. Text is barely readable, screens fuzzy -- not ideal for either product demonstrations or how-to-videos. We were determined to nudge quality up. To do that, I turned to Elgato, who graciously provided an EyeTV HD unit (normally retails for $199), which allows Macintoshes to capture HD video from component sources. (Our original solution was built around composite video.) Sewell Direct, manufacturers of the $40 PC to TV converter Steve bought, provided a SW-4280 unit (retails for $79.95) that offers plug-and-play VGA-to-Component conversion at 720p (60fps) and 720i (30fps) as well as 480p.
Papal productions going HD for better views of the Holy See
The Vatican has recently unveiled a new six million dollar HD mobile unit, hinting that if seeing is believing, they'd prefer representation in 1080p. To help blunt the cost on the nation's coffers, the Knights of Columbus pledged one million Euros to the initiative ($1.36 million dollars) while Sony also cut the walled-enclave a matching discount -- possibly as a further mea culpa for the Manchester gunfight scene. The new equipment is slated to be fully operational just in time for Pope's Christmas broadcasts and from then on would be rolled out during special Vatican events. Thinking ahead to the future, the system is also designed to be easily 3D upgradable, which head of Sony Italia Gildas Pelliet was sure to mention "can be done in a very discreet, subtle way" while still engaging future audiences with the Pope's message. Combined with his texting habits, a recent YouTube channel, and the Pope2You online portal, Pope Benedict XIV has done quite a lot in his five-year tenure to help one of the oldest institutions get up to speed with today's technology -- let alone for an 83-year-old man.
ASUS WiCast EW2000 1080p streaming solution reviewed: 'lots of wires for wireless'
It's a modern day dilemma, really -- you'd love to hang that flat panel on your wall, but the wireless technologies available to mere mortals in the year 2010 just aren't up to snuff. Wireless power is a pipe dream, and even wireless HDMI has its drawbacks. Case in point: ASUS' new WiCast media streaming solution. Introduced last month in conjunction with Amimon, this high(er)-end streamer is theoretically capable of transmitting 1080p material over the air, with 3Gbps at its disposal. Trouble is, critics at AnandTech found that there were gobs of wires to connect before anything started to stream "wirelessly," and moreover, they noticed significant artifacting in Iron Man 2 even with just five feet separating the receiver and transmitter. The good news is that the WiCast isn't platform / machine-specific, but that luxury comes with a price -- you'll have to connect three cables (two USB and an HDMI) to your laptop and a receiver box to your HDTV. In the end, there seems to be just one real winner: Monoprice.
ASUS teams with Amimon on WiCast EW2000 1080p streamer
Keepin' it varied, are we ASUS? Just a few months after we peeked a pair of WirelessHD-equipped laptops at ASUS' Computex booth, in flies this -- news that the company has aligned with Amimon and joined the WHDI Consortium to boot. It's hard to say if the introduction of the WiCast EW2000 is in direct response to HP's Wireless TV Connect, but it sure looks mighty similar in practice. The two-piece set connects to a PC via USB (it's USB powered, too) and to an HDTV via HDMI. Once you're setup, you can stream 1080p video (including Blu-ray and DRM'd material) straight to your tele with under a millisecond of lag, and better still, you could connect it to an HDMI-equipped set-top box or game console for cordless machine-to-device magic. Mum's the word on price, but there's a delightful promo video ready to get you amped up about it just past the break. Update: ASUS pinged us to say that it'll ship on September 15th for $199.99. Start saving!
Hi-def video podcasts for Apple TV
Earlier today, The Washington Post announced the release of hi-def video podcasts, specially formatted for the Apple TV [iTunes link]. They're encoded at 720p, and include some of their most popular writers. The Washington Post is the first news outlet to specifically target the Apple TV, and their Managing Editor of Multimedia had this to say on Tuesday:"High-definition is the future of video; we have moved beyond standard definition to provide viewers with a higher standard. We knew we needed to evolve past web video to remain a relevant, innovative news source."We agree! Afterall, isn't this the year of HD? Oh wait, that was 2005.[Via MacDailyNews]
Sony officially announces $600 BDP-S300 Blu-ray player
That sound you just heard? It was silence -- the silence of thousands of BDP-S1 Blu-ray players sitting unsold on warehouse shelves, gathering dust and wondering why they did to deserve the wrath of the dreaded Osborne Effect. Because unless retailers do some serious price shaving off of the first-gen machines, Sony's official promise today of a cheaper, smaller, and more functional box landing this summer will likely convince all but the most impatient consumers to drop the S1 right off their radar. On the plus side, those of us who haven't yet picked sides in the "format war" will be treated to a much more attractive product in the BDP-S300, from its CD friendliness and Bravia Theater Sync to bonuses like AVC-HD support for playback of conent that employs x.v.Color (Sony's version of the wide color space xvYCC technology). Keep reading to check out the remote that comes paired with the S300, then forward this post to your buddies who blew $1000 on its lonely predecessor.%Gallery-1830%
James Cameron's next flick shot in 3D HD to get you back into theaters
James Cameron seems to understand that the movie theater isn't offering much beyond what a home theater can these days, so he's trying to bring something new to the table. His new film Avatar, due in theaters in 2008, will be the first full length feature film to use a 3D high definition camera he's been working on for several years now. Our friend Mike at HD For Indies sat in on a panel with Cameron and his partner, cinematographer Vince Pace earlier this year where they discussed some of the specifics of the technology. It will be interesting to see if this new tech can get us out of our home theaters and into the movie theater to watch a love story between an alien and a hybrid human/alien set against a backdrop of racial discord. Sounds like a Blu-ray vs. HD DVD allegory.[Via digg]
JVC's new GY-HD250U and GY-HD200U HD camcorders
The faint of wallet can bail out now, we're about to engage in some multi-thousand dollar camcorder biz up in here: we've got two new 3-CCD 720 / 60p options for you, indie filmmakers, so welcome JVC's GY-HD250U and GY-HD200U. The $7,995 GY-HD200U rocks the same accessories as their previous GY-HD100U, as well as new 1/3-inch mount HD lenses; the $8,995 GY-HD250U can also record to hard drive via JVC's optional DR-HD100U Direct-to-Edit recorder for dual MiniDV tape and drive recordings. Both should ship in October, which should be more than enough time to decide what you love more: your car, or the up and coming Sundance-bound documentarian in your life.[Via Mobilewhack]
Blu-ray not merging with, thumbs nose at HD DVD. Again.
Both sides have announced, built, and even begun selling their devices -- if you don't think the next gen optical war between HD DVD and Blu-ray for the high definition living room hasn't already begun, well, you're probably not a regular here. But just in case there was any hope that these two factions would come together and truce before too late turned into too too late, well, sorry, consider those hopes dashed; according to Panasonic CEO Kazuhiro Tsuga (pictured right heading to work) regarding unifying with HD DVD, "We are not talking and we will not talk," and that "the market will decide the winner." Just like that. You hear that Toshiba? Bring it on, they say. Man, we can't wait to start reporting all the flaming-bag-on-doorstep incidents that are so going to occur between Blu-ray and HD DVD executives.
Acer's new AT3205-DTV 32-inch LCD
It's not going to do you a whole lot of good this side of Europe, but Acer's got a new LCD HDTV due, and it's got a few interesting features to set it aside for the World Cup buying season that's about to sweep the world (and some parts of America). Their 32-inch AT3205-DTV has a 1366 x 768 panel, both HDMI and DVI inputs, as well as integrated analog and DVB-T tuners. definitely not your usual HDTV, but you know how they roll over Europe way: deeper, harder, better. And really, the last thing you want to do is tempt them with a TV that's not up to snuff when it's World Cup season.
IODATA launches BRD-UM2 & BRD-AM2B Blu-ray drives
Looks like Panny's not the only company showing off their Blu-ray offerings in Japan today. IODATA's got two of their own: the internal BRD-UM2, and external USB BRD-AM2B, which will go for ¥110,250 and ¥121,800, respectively (that's $942 US and $1,041 US, also respectively). Looks like these will also burn dual-layer BD-R and BD-RE media, as well as your usual DVD±RW and CD-RW, and will even beat Panasonic's offering to market by a solid 9 days with a June 1st release date. So keep an eye out with your favorite gadget importer and keep that credit card clean.[Via Impress]
Sharp launches two DLP projectors: XV-Z3000, DT-100CJ
Sharp's got two new DLP projectors launching in Japan today, and while neither seems poised to take on Marantz's mammoth VP-11S1 from earlier this week, we can't imagine why they would want to. Their XV-Z3000 (left) features a 1,280 x 768 1,200 lumen picture with a 6,500:1 contrast ratio, and HDMI, two component, VGA, S-Video, and composite inputs; the DT-100CJ projects a 854 x 480 1,000 lumen picture, with a 2,500:1 contrast ratio, and component, VGA, composite, and S-Video inputs. Unfortunately we couldn't glean a price or launch date (even if it's only for our Japanese compatriots), but we'd imagine it wouldn't pinch the wallet quite like our aforementioned $15,300 friend.
Panasonic LF-MB121JD Blu-ray drive ships June 10th for $850
In what would appear to be a global release, though it's unclear from the machine translation, Panasonic just announced that they will be shipping their LF-MB121JD Blu-ray Disc drive for PCs (not to be confused with their DMP-BD10 player expected in September) in OEM, regular, and slimline slot-loading form factors, starting 10 June with support for 13 BD / DVD / CD formats. The drive delivers on both 25GB and dual-layer 50GB Blu-ray discs allowing you to write at 2x (72Mbps) speeds to both BD-R / RE formats via a suite of bundled software. It also features 8x write speeds to both DVD±R and DVD RW, 4x to DVD±R DL, 6x to DVD-RW, 5x to DVD-RAM, 24x to CD-R and 16x to CD-RW. Pretty much the same unit (and may well be) as the BenQ BW1000, but superior to both the Samsung SH-B022 (which can read but not write to DVD and CD formats) and the Pioneer BDR-101A which, oddly, the last time we looked, didn't support CDs at all. Panasonic also announced their 25GB and 50GB 2x discs which will hit the shelves starting April 28 just in time to prime the pump a bit.[Via Newlaunches]
Pioneer's PDP-5000EX is back, brings along PDP-507HX and PDP-427HX
Pioneers back again re-re-announcing their PDP-5000EX, that "tiny" full 1080p 50-incher, this time with a price tag ¥1,050,000 (just shy of $9,000 US) and that same June launch, though we are very heartened by the machine translated phrase: "worldwide beginning." They also threw out a couple of slightly less impressive but slightly more affordable displays, the ¥600,000 ($5100 US) 50-inch PDP-507HX, and ¥480,000 ($4100 US) 42-inch PDP-427HX. They feature 1,365 x 768 and 1,024 x 768 panels respectively, and dual digital tuners, dual HDMI, three composite, VGA, and Ethernet (among other, more Japanese inputs). No word when or if they'll jump the pond, or how much tariffs will bloat up that price, but we know you're waiting for the big hundie-three, ain'tcha?[Via Impress]
Dell's new W2607C 26-inch LCD HDTV
Dell's got a new 26-incher kicking around on their site, the W2607C, successor to their W2600 and W2606C. It doesn't exactly have any standout figures in terms of specs and performance (600:1 contrast ratio, 500cd/m2 brightness, 1366 x 768 panel, 89 degree viewing angles), but this thing does have an integrated ATSC tuner, and a decidedly sizable amount of inputs for its class. We're talking three composite ins, two S-Video, two component, two analog coax, DVI, and VGA in a $1,049 panel (well, $1,199 MSRP, but you know Dell).
Panasonic's 103-inch plasma shipping this year
You know that 103-inch, ain't ever going to go on sale, plasma TV Panasonic's been lugging around the trade show circuit? Well, start pinchin' those pennies son, cause Panny is putting them on sale in time for the holidays. This 7.5 x 4.2-foot (8.5-foot diagonal) plasma goes 16:9 and throws up a 1920 x 1080 resolution, 3000:1 contrast ratio and features Panasonic's 1080p HD high-speed pixel drive we've already seen in their 65-incher. The perfect, er, accessory for their DMP-BD10 Blu-ray player, no doubt. Sorry, no pricing announced -- but if you gotta ask, you can't afford it. [Via New Launches]
RCA announces HDV5000 HD DVD player
We first saw RCA's HDV5000 at CES in January, and true to their word here we are in April with the launch release in our hands. Expected MSRP still stands at $500, and the device will feature HDMI and component outs supporting 720p / 1080i (plus up-converstion of standard DVDs), S/PIDF, 5.1 channel surround out, and a network connect, as expected -- really nothing out of the ordinary here. Expect to see this ship next month, and to appear in stores in June.
