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Insert Coin: Prosthetic eye digital camera (video)
In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you'd like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with "Insert Coin" as the subject line. Nobody with binocular vision would consider replacing a functional natural eye with a digital camera. But Tanya Vlach's vision is monocular, after losing one of her eyes in a car accident. A matching ocular prosthesis gives the San Francisco native a normal appearance, but it's unable to provide vision -- in its current state, at least. Vlach turned to Kickstarter for donations that would allow her to install a unique, waterproof in-eye camera, theoretically capable of transmitting 720p HD video wirelessly to a mobile app, and zooming and capturing still images using a blink-activated sensor. Features also on the wish list: facial recognition, a dilating pupil that changes based on light, infrared / UV capture, and geotagging, just to name a few. The embedded camera obviously can't replace a natural eye, but it certainly brings more life to an otherwise useless cosmetic shell. Vlach needs to raise $15,000 by August 3rd in order to achieve her funding goal and commission an engineer to design the new optic. Donations of less than $5,000 will be rewarded with a variety of small-ticket items, while a pledge greater than that amount will net the donor their very own "souvenir eye camera" -- whatever that means. You can jump past the break for a video explanation from Tanya, who may very well be on her way to being the first human to use a digital pseudo-bionic eye.
Pentax releases O-GPS1 add-on for DSLRs, appeals to astronomy nuts
Pentax's Optio WG-1 GPS point-and-shoot satisfied geotaggers out of the box, but owners of its K-5, K-r and 645D DSLRs have had to make do with third-party taggers like the PhotoTrackr or Eye-Fi. The new hotshoe-mounted O-GPS1 module fixes that oversight by recording latitude, longitude, altitude, Coordinated Universal Time and shooting angle. Everyday snappers might find an extra hotshoe attachment cumbersome, but astro-photography enthusiasts could well be enticed by the device's interesting "ASTROTRACER" function. This helps you take clearer photos of celestial bodies by using the in-built sensors to calculate a star's movement and then employing the camera's shake reduction system to compensate. Sounds clever, but be advised: this module is only for Pentax DSLRs -- and only for very specific models at that. You'll get full functionality with the K-5 and K-r cameras, and geotagging (no ASTROTRACER) with the 645D. Oh, and you'll need to make sure your camera's firmware is up-to-date. Peer carefully through that lens and you'll see the O-GPS1 heading for a July landing, priced at $250. [Thanks, Iddo]
Sony reveals 3D capturing Cyber-shot cameras, includes world's first compact capable of 1080/60p video
Sony has announced the DSC-TX100V, DSC-TX10, DSC-HX7V, DSC-WX10 and DSC-WX9 16.2-megapixel Cyber-shot cameras here in Las Vegas, which are the world's first compacts to include a 3D still capture feature using just one lens and imager. This is made possible via a special shooting mode that takes two consecutive shots in different focus positions that are then combined to produce a 3D effect. All also feature so-called Dual Rec technology borrowed from the Handycam line that enables users to capture three megapixel stills while recording video. Outside of what they have in common, several of the models have a few noteworthy details. The DSC-WX10 is the only digital compact to support full 1920 x 1080/60p video capture. Speaking of firsts, the DSC-TX100V is the first Cyber-shot to to feature a 3.5-inch OLED touch screen. Less revolutionary (but still drool-worthy) is the DSC-HX7V's ability to record the location and direction of a particular photos thanks to a built-in GPS and compass, while the DSC-TX10 is ruggedized to be waterproof, dustproof, shockproof and freeze-proof. All of these models will be available this March, and cost between $220 and $380. For more details be sure to check out the full PR after the jump. %Gallery-112852%
Fujifilm adds GPS module, geotagging functionality to waterproof Finepix XP30 camera
Remember Fujifilm's Finepix XP10 from... oh, right around seven months ago? Hopefully you're not one to get overly depressed about the rush of progress, because Fujifilm has just outed an update to that very camera that's significantly improved. Following Casio's footsteps on the Exilim EX-H20G, Fuji is introducing the GPS-enabled Finepix XP30 here at CES. The overall size and shape remains similar to the aforementioned XP10, with this point-and-shoot being waterproof, shockproof and freezeproof. What may really entice the argonauts in the crowd is the embedded GPS chip; this will keep tabs of your location and embed your exact coordinates into every picture you take. Once you get back home, just dump 'em into iPhoto or Picasa in order to view photos based on location. Moreover, the GPS Tracking Data function will regularly store location data, and when you get home, you can actually create a map of your travels. Other specifications include a 14 megapixel CCD sensor, 720p movie mode, image stabilization, a 2.7-inch anti-reflective LCD, a reinforced hardened glass lens barrier, a metal, unibody chassis and a riveted front panel. The XP30 should ship next month for $239.95, while a GPS-less sibling (the Finepix XP20; pictured after the break) will ship a month later for $199.99; those looking to accessorize will find an adjustable float strap, protective silicone skin and a neoprene sports case for sale in March for an undisclosed amount.
Casio Exilim EX-H20G (with Hybrid GPS) camera review
Three months from introduction to on sale ain't too shabby in the camera world, and that's exactly what Casio has managed to accomplish with the intriguing new Exilim EX-H20G. We first spotted this point-and-shoot at Photokina in Germany, and now we've had a solid week to put it through its paces. Naturally, the inclusion of Hybrid GPS (read: engineered to find a location indoors as well as outdoors) is the standout feature and key differentiator, but the 14.1 megapixel sensor, 10x optical zoom and 720p movie mode are all fine additions. It certainly isn't the slimmest compact on the market, nor the cheapest at $349.99, but do the unique aspects of this thing make the price easier to stand? Join us after the break for our thoughts. %Gallery-109236%
Revised PhotoTrackr Plus works with Nikon D90, D3100, D5000 and D7000
Nothing like a little competition in the morning, eh? Just days after the Foolography Unleashed Bluetooth geotagging family hit the scene, in flies GiSTEQ with a mildly tweaked PhotoTrackr Plus (RT90, compared to last year's RT10). The only major difference with this guy is its list of compatible cameras -- Nikon's D90, D3100, D5000, and D7000 are now supported. It's still a two-piece solution, which requires users to plug one end directly onto the camera, but it touts near-instant bootup, low power consumption and the incredible ability of making far-fetched dreams come true. And by "far-fetched dreams," we mean "help you remember where your photos were taken." It's available now for $179 if you're memory's fading faster than ever before.
Pro HDR adds geotagging
I've liked Pro HDR since it was first released. The HDR technique blends two or more exposures to capture better dynamic range in difficult lighting conditions. Apple provided some competition by building in HDR with the release of the iPhone 4 and iOS 4.1, but I still like the control that Pro HDR gives me both before and after the pictures are taken. One of the big drawbacks to Pro HDR is that the location metadata and other picture information was not saved in the combined image, so location and other EXIF data was not available. That meant the 'Places' feature from Apple wouldn't work. Now that's fixed. It was the biggest single complaint that users of the app had. Another advantage to PRO HDR is that it works on the iPhone 3GS and the 4th generation iPod touch, as well as the iPhone 4. It means owners of the 3GS haven't been orphaned when it comes to shooting great HDR pictures. HDR works best for stationary objects like landscapes or posed photos. If there is movement in the frame between the two images, the process will fail. HDR isn't for everyone, or for every situation, but used wisely, it can create dynamic photos that would be difficult to get without some help from the HDR process.
Foolography Unleashed Bluetooth geotagging modules land for Nikon D90 and Dx000 DSLRs
There's no shortage of fancy ways to geotag with your old beater of a shooter, but Foolography's new solutions for Nikon DSLRs might be one of the most understated. Two new "Unleashed" modules have just arrived, one for the Dx000 series (D3100, D5000, and D7000), and the other for the ultra-popular D90. The little Bluetooth modules embed GPS data from an external GPS receiver (yeah, it's BYOEGPSR) directly onto photos as you take them. They're retailing for €125 outside of the EU (about $170 US) and a bit more to consumers on the continent -- nobody ever said classy comes cheap.
Casio debuts Exilim EX-H20G (with Hybrid GPS) and EX-Z16 point-and-shoots
Photokina's kicking off in earnest today with a serious bang in the point-and-shoot realm; Casio just introduced the planet's first camera with Hybrid GPS, which essentially enables it to geotag photos and videos where traditional cameras cannot. Yeah, indoors. The Exilim EX-H20G (shown above) also packs a 14.1 megapixel sensor, SD / SDHC / SDXC memory card slot, a 10x optical zoomer, an ISO range of 80 to 3200, 3-inch rear LCD, CCD-shift image stabilization, 720p movie mode and an HDMI output. Moreover, the company has throw in a world atlas with detailed maps of 140 cities around the world, and the rear screen can actually display a user's current position on said map for kicks and giggles. It'll hit shops this November for $349.99 (or €300 in Europe). If that's a bit too fanciful for you, the lower-end EX-Z16 might just fit the bill. Boasting a 2.7-inch rear LCD, VGA (640 x 480) movie mode, a 12.1 megapixel sensor, SD / SDHC card slot, a whopping 14.9MB of internal storage (um... okay?), CCD-shift image stabilization and an integrated YouTube capture mode, this dead-simple cam is designed to be about as hands-off as they come. According to the company, the only settings you have to adjust on the 2.7-inch panel are image size, flash and self timer -- everything else sets itself accordingly. 'Course, that won't sit well with the tinkerers in the group, but you can sure brighten a newbie's day by gifting 'em with one when it ships later this month at $99.99. More details are packed in after the break, should you find yourself thirsty for more. Update: We snagged a quick hands-on with the EX-H20G, and while the images below don't do it justice, the rear screen on this bad boy was something to gawk at. The map on there actually looked amazing, and while you'll have a tough time prying Google Maps Navigation away from our paws, this is definitely a lovely inclusion for those who'd prefer to simply enjoy nearby attractions on a map without pulling out a smartphone (or encountering roaming charges while navigating abroad). %Gallery-102609% %Gallery-102758%
PhotoTrackr Plus brings geotagging to Nikon DSLRs, leaves your hotshoe open
Oh sure, Nikon's got its own solution for adding native geotagging to your existing DSLR, but the GP-1 dongle definitely has its drawbacks. Aside from sucking down around 4x more power than Gisteq's new PhotoTrackr Plus, it also eliminates the ability to use a dedicated flash in the hotshoe while capturing GPS data. Moreover, it has to warm up every time you turn the camera on / off, and there's just 18 tracking channels compared to the Gisteq's 44. Regardless of the back and forth, we do appreciate the PhotoTrackr Plus' ability to plug directly into the 10-pin terminal that few amateurs even think to recognize, though we do fear that the reliance on Bluetooth could cause issues if you stray too far from the transceiver. Still, this newfangled dongle is far superior to its past iterations, both of which simply logged data as you went and then added metadata after you synced the information with your images via PC; this dongle, however, embeds the data right away into every image. Better still, there's even a price advantage to going third party -- Nikon's aging GP-1 is pushing $200 on many webstores, while the Gisteq apparatus can be procured right now for $179. Take your pic, as they say.
Garmin-Asus A10 brings pedestrian-optimized GPS to European and Asian Android lovers
You ain't nobody if you don't have an Android handset (or two) these days, and Garmin-Asus has just added the A10 to its own stable of devices. It's a pretty humble 3.2-inch HVGA communicator, but it has a healthy 1,500mAh battery, a multitouch-friendly WebKit browser, and an autofocusing 5 megapixel camera with automatic geotagging. Coming with preloaded Garmin Navigation maps and software, the A10 eliminates the need for a web connection when looking up your local topography, and similarly retains turn-by-turn voice instructions while used offline. It's not altogether clear what the pedestrian optimizations are, aside from the public transport-aware cityXplorer maps, but in-car navigation is also obviously fully supported and encouraged. We're told to expect the A10 in mid-2010 for European and Asia-Pacific markets. Full PR after the break.
Jobo doubles and quadruples the storage on its photoGPS geotaggers
It took a heck of a long time for Jobo to get its first photoGPS hot-shoe-occupying geotagger to market, and now that model is getting a pair of successors offering two and four times the coordinate-keeping internal storage (2,000 and 4,000 locations, respectively). The new models are appropriately named photoGPS 2 and photoGPS 4, both of which capture your current coords whenever you snap a shot and then inject those waypoints into the photos via software when you pull down the pics. That suite is also getting an update to identify POIs that were near your scenic overlooks, a feature that, honestly, doesn't seem particularly useful. The photoGPS 2 and 4 are set to ship by the end of this month and will set you back €99 ($125) or €129 ($175).
Leica V-Lux 20 compact with 12x superzoom is pure brand extortion
It's out -- the V-LUX 20 -- what was rumor is now official courtesy of a Leica press release. The 12.1 megapixel superzoom with 25-300mm Leica DC-VARIO-ELMAR 4.1-49.2mm f/3.3-4.9 ASPH lens and integrated GPS is slated to ship to the UK in May for a suggested retail price of £495 (about $757, likely a bit less when priced Stateside). The matte-black finished compact sports a 1/2.33-inch CCD sensor, 720p/60fps Motion JPEG video recording, a 460,000 pixel 3-inch LCD, 11-point AF, SD/SDHC/SDXC storage, and plenty of options to drop into manual mode when you want a bit more control of the action. Nice huh? Just remember that the V-Lux 20 is a near exact replica (same lens, sensor, LCD, and GPS) of the DMC-ZS7 which lists for just $399, is smaller, and shoots HD video in the more sophisticated AVCHD Lite format. Yeah, we know.%Gallery-91218%
JVC ships Bluetooth-packin', geotagging Everio GZ-HM550 camcorder
Ah, springtime. Ain't it beautiful? So beautiful, in fact, that you're apt to want to capture the flowers blooming and the kids playing around you, which is probably why JVC finally decided to ship the Everio GZ-HM550 that it announced back at CES. As far as handheld camcorders go, it's one of the better specced models on the market, touting a 10.6 megapixel CMOS sensor, 32GB of inbuilt storage, an SD / SDHC expansion slot, an integrated Bluetooth module (for controlling the camera's play, zoom and record functions via cellphone) and geotagging support when used with a compatible BT phone. Oh, and users can even sync up a Bluetooth headset in order to monitor the recorded sound or input voice recordings. You'll also get 1080p recording, a 16x zoom and the ability to snag 9 megapixel stills, all for the low, low price of $799.95. Go ahead -- step your YouTube game way up.
Casio's GPS-equipped EX-10HG camera gets a price, launch date
Last we saw Casio's GPS-equipped EX-10HG it was still in prototype form at CES, but the company was back with it again at PMA this week, and thankfully was a bit more talkative this time. The big news is that the camera will be available in October of this year, and will cost "around $400." That will get you a 12.1-megapixel camera that not only does geotagging of photos (with some accelerometer-based assistance when a GPS signal isn't available), but can even double as a navigation system in a pinch -- although it's still not exactly clear how fully functional that aspect of the camera will be.
Foto Brisko: leading you to the places where great photos are made
iPhone developer Bill Dudney is well-known for his classes and books on iPhone development. When he's not teaching others how to write iPhone apps, he's writing his own code for Gala Factory Software. When I met Bill at the 360iDev Conference in Denver last October, it was after a talk he had given about using Map Kit to add location information and maps to iPhone apps. Since he's an expert in the use of this iPhone toolkit, It's not surprising that his latest app is full of map and location capabilities. Foto Brisko [$2.99, iTunes Link] has an appropriate name -- it's Greek for "photo find." The idea behind Foto Brisko is brilliant, and the app is well executed. As a longtime amateur photographer, I've devoted a lot of time and effort to improving my photography by taking a lot of pictures. Sometimes it helps to know where really incredible subjects are located, so you can increase your chances of taking an amazing photo. Foto Brisko is the one piece of my photographic toolkit that was missing. Regardless of where I am, I can now pull up the app and look for geotagged Flickr photos taken near my present location by other photographers. If I like the looks of a location, Foto Brisko can give me directions on how to get to that place so I can try taking a picture of the same subject.
Ask Engadget: Best geotagging camera or solution?
We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget question is coming to us from James, who needs more geotagging in his life for reasons that are far too personal to share. That said, we have to confess that we're curious... "I am looking for the best geotagging camera currently available. The most important feature for me is the accuracy of the GPS module, so any hard specs on satellite receiver would be really useful. Thanks for your time!" Short and sweet, precisely how we like it. We're also expanding the question to include geotagging accessories, being that it may actually be best to snag a well-respected standalone camera and then add something like the PhotoTrackr Mini -- besides, this will ensure that you can upgrade cameras whenever you darn well please without losing the geotagging abilities. Shout out your recommendations in comments below!
Geotagged tweets now alive in Stone Design's Twittelator Pro 3.3.1
Twitter has flipped the switch on some new features, including geotagging of tweets and automatic retweeting. As a happy user of Stone Design's Twittelator Pro 3.3.1 [iTunes link], I was even more giddy when I found out that my favorite Twitter app already supports both of these features. The geotagging feature lets you optionally attach a latitude and longitude to your tweets. If you receive the tweet in Twittelator, you can tap on the sender's avatar icon to see the geotag and pull up a Google map of the location near where the tweet was sent. The app lets you turn off geotagging when you send a tweet, which is useful if you're trying to shake off a stalker. It's also cool to use "nearby search" to find people who are near you and sending out tweets, and view their location on a map. The official retweet feature has been going live for the past two weeks or so, although as of yet I haven't seen or been able to send a retweet that appears with the new retweet icon. In the web-based Twitter, I do see the new icons and messages that say "Retweeted by you," but I'm not sure why I'm not seeing this in Twittelator Pro. Is anyone else using Twittelator Pro 3.3.1 who can vouch that the new retweet capability is working for them? Leave a comment.
PhotoTrackr Mini geotagging device shrinks down, adds Mac and RAW support
Looking for a geotagging solution that doesn't discriminate based on what kind of camera you have? Looking for one that can fit snugly into your Fifth Pocket? The PhotoTrackr Mini looks to be that very device, boasting a diminutive thumb drive-esque appearance and the same geotagging technology as found in the original. Put simply, the device works by syncing the time of your camera with bundled software; when you're back from a shoot (a shoot where your device also was), you just allow the application to figure out where a given shot was snapped at what time. There's also Mac and RAW file format support on this model, neither of which were compatible with the prior version. Pre-orders are being accepted now at $69, and the first shipments are expected to go out next month.
Garmin nuvifone G60 officially coming to AT&T: October 4th for $299
Can you believe it? No, seriously -- can you believe it? Nearly two full years after its surprise introduction to the world, the nüvifone G60 is finally coming to US shores. In an official press release outed today, the Garmin nüvifone G60 has been blessed with an October 4th launch date on AT&T. Oddly enough, nary a mention of "ASUS" or "Garmin-Asus" is found, but regardless of semantics, you can bet that it'll be looking for buyers this Sunday. The internal GPS chip and 3 megapixel, auto-focusing camera will enable users to geotag photos and emails and navigate using the same heralded user interface that folks rely on today with the company's standalone PNDs. You've already pounded the specifications into your head by now, but the last figures you'll need to know are these: it'll run $299 on a two-year agreement after a $100 mail-in rebate, and if you're hoping to access Premium Connected Services -- which includes traffic updates, white pages, weather, movie, local events and fuel price content -- you'll be forking out $5.99 per month after the 30-day trial expires. So, after all of this, who's in?