Freestyle Audio's waterproof Soundwave DAP gets reviewed
Posts with tag waterproof
Ask Engadget: What are the best waterproof headphones?
by Darren Murph, posted Oct 2nd 2008 at 9:30PM 
It's true -- hunting down a waterproof MP3 player is a cinch, but finding a decent pair of waterproof headphones to accompany said player can prove challenging. Have a look at Melinda's question, and after you're done providing your best advice, send over an inquiry of your own to ask at engadget dawt com."I am an almost-daily lap swimmer, but lately I have been suffering from "lap boredom." I've been looking into the latest ways to take my MP3 player into the pool with me, and I need a set of waterproof headphones in order to do so. I've found waterproof earphones like H2O Audio and Aquatunes priced between $30 and $100, but I've also read many negative reviews. Before I spend this much money on waterproof 'phones, I want to know what I am getting. What brand / model do you recommend?"
Climb on out of the kiddie pool and toss in your advice, swimmers. What 'buds do you use to listen to music while submerged?
Sanyo confesses its love for water with Xacti E2 pocket camcorder
The predictably named successor to the Xacti E1 has finally arrived, and it's just as waterproof as the original. The Xacti E2 records MPEG-4 AVC / H.264 video at 640 x 480, snaps stills at 8-megapixels, captures content onto SD / SDHC cards and features a 2.5-inch flip-out LCD for easy viewing of what footage you're snagging. There's also a 5x optical zoom and Face Chaser technology, the latter of which uses a "proprietary Sanyo algorithm to compensate for distracting up-and-down or side-to-side camera movement, keeping your subject steady and easy to follow." The 9.1-ounce device (in brilliant blue or pearlescent white) is available now in the US for a penny shy of $400.[Via Macworld]
Ion-mask military waterproofing technology coming to civilian garb
Gore-Tex is fine and dandy, but the real argonauts out there know it still buckles under the most extreme conditions. Now, however, adventurists that happen upon a ridiculous amount of water could soon ford rivers (à la Oregon Trail, of course) without worrying about soggy socks. The technology, dubbed ion-mask, was originally crafted to "ensure soldiers' clothing remained impermeable to chemical weapons," but now shoe maker Hi-Tec has inked a deal that will being the solution to a smattering of its kicks. Reportedly, ion-mask can outperform "commercial waterproof fabrics such as Gore-Tex by more than a factor of 100," and in testing, it maintained its breathability / waterproof abilities even after 100,000 flexes. No word on when full suits will be doused in this stuff, but hopefully you'll be able to wear the same outfit to the office and the jungle here shortly.
Olympus' new trio touts 10 megapixel Stylus 1050 SW with motion sensitive Tap Control
When pumping out unimpressive point-and-shoot cameras, one sure-fire way to grab some attention is to innovate around the UI. That seems to be Olympus' approach with its new semi-rugged, Stylus 1050 SW ($300) pictured above. Able to withstand drops from 5-feet (1.5-meters), temps as low as 14 degrees F (-10 C), and submersion to 10-feet (3-meters), the new 10.1-megapixel shooter with 3x zoom and 2.7-inch display also packs an accelerometer for Olympus' new motion-driven "Tap Control" -- tap twice on the back, top or sides with your bulky, gloved hand to switch the camera into different modes. Pretty smart, actually... let's hope it takes quality images too. Of less interest is the skinny new 16.5-mm Stylus 1040 ($200) offering all of the 1050's guts without the Tap Control and weatherproofing. Last up is the Olympus SP-565 UZ ($400). It bungs the 10 megapixel sensor and 20x zoom from Olympus' SP-570 UZ into the 8 megapixel, 18x SP-560 UZ introduced this time last year. All three cams due in October. See the 1040 and SP-565 UZ after the break.
Update: Speaking of unimpressive, Olympus also outed its 8 megapixel FE-20 (£120 / $221) with 2.5-inch LCD and 3x zoom. We managed to escape our ennui just long enough to post a picture after the break.
Read -- Stylus 1050SW
Read -- The rest
Update: Speaking of unimpressive, Olympus also outed its 8 megapixel FE-20 (£120 / $221) with 2.5-inch LCD and 3x zoom. We managed to escape our ennui just long enough to post a picture after the break.
Read -- Stylus 1050SW
Read -- The rest
Pentax Optio W60 waterproof camera gets reviewed
When it comes to choosing a waterproof digital camera, there's obviously one feature that matters above all others and, according to Trusted Reviews, Pentax's Optio W60 passes that test without any difficulty. What's more, it's also apparently reasonably rugged, and it takes some decent pictures for good measure. While you can expect the usual noise problems at the highest ISO settings (including a nearly useless ISO 6400), the W60 looks to actually perform decent enough up to ISO 800, which is more than you can say for some cameras. On the downside, the site found that the camera suffered from some "particularly bad barrel distortion" at wide angle settings, and it proved to be a bit more sluggish than the norm, which appears to be at least partly due to the camera's autofocus system. Still, if resistance to the elements is your top priority, it looks like this one will get the job done.
Liquid Image's underwater digital camera mask now available... in Japan
[Via AkihabaraNews]
Pantel readies trio of weatherproof Mirror TVs
xTablet T8700 left alone in a pool with stranger, does indeed work under water
Garmin introduces waterproof nuvi 500 / 550 for the argonauts
[Via GPSTracklog, thanks Rich]
Speedo Aquabeat MP3 player sinks, floats, and is terrible at the butterfly stroke
Sanyo's 52-inch 1080p CE52SR1 LCD sheds water
ioSafe 3.5: industry's first internal HDD with disaster protection
For small and medium sized businesses, data redundancy is more than a novel concept, it's unquestionably critical. Unfortunately, tight budgets don't always allow for pricey off-site storage or fire / waterproof server rooms, which is where ioSafe comes in. Said outfit has just announced the ioSafe 3.5 series, which is hailed as the "industry's first internal hard drive with disaster protection." Put simply, the company has stuffed a 2.5-inch HDD into a 3.5-inch chassis, and it used the extra room to insert matter that protects platters from fire (up to 1,400 degrees Fahrenheit) and flood (full immersion in fresh or salt water). The family will include the Pilot line ($329 to $449) -- which arrives in 80/160/250/320GB sizes with an 8MB buffer, SATA I interface and 5400RPM rotational speed -- and the Squadron line ($359 to $459), which includes 7200RPM 80/160/200GB versions with a SATA II interface. Both lots have already started to ship.[Via TGDaily]
Panasonic rolls out waterproof, 1Seg-equipped Viera portable TVs
We don't see as many waterproof TVs as we do waterproof cameras and other gadgets, but Panasonic's just tossed a few more options into the fray, which is says are ideal for use in the kitchen or bathtub. Available in pink, white or black, its new SV-ME75 and SV-ME70 models each boast 5-inch, 480 x 272 displays and 1Seg mobile TV tuners, and are apparently identical in every respect except for some added video recording features on the SV-ME75 (which comes in the form of an SD card slot). Look for each of 'em to hit Japan on June 20th, with the SV-ME70 setting you back ¥38,000 (or about $362) and the SV-ME75 running ¥45,000 (or $429).
[Via New Launches]
[Via New Launches]
Pentax kicks out the waterproof Optio W60
