Five new digital cameras from Samsung

by Scott Carmichael on

As we pointed out in our TL225 DualView review last week, Samsung makes some pretty innovative digital cameras. Last night,, the company unveiled five new shooters for their Q1 2010 lineup. The new products include the HZ30W and HZ35W superzoom compacts, the effect-rich TL110 and TL105 cameras and a new budget camera – the SL630.

For travelers, the new HZ35W will be a real treat, offering HD video recording, integrated GPS with location data and get this – a 15x optical zoom, all in a package just 28mm deep.

TL105

The TL105 is a 12.2 megapixel camera with a 4x optical zoom. It features face recognition, blink detection and “smile shot” which ensures you only take photos of happy looking people. The TL105 shoots video in 720p HD with an optional HDMI cable. Available in February.

TL110

The new TL110 features a 5x optical zoom and a 14.2 megapixel sensor, in a compact form factor. It has the same scene and face detection features as the TL105, along with its HD video mode. Available in February.

HZ30W

The new HZ30W packs a 3″ LCD and a 15x optical zoom in its interior. It shoots in 12.2 megapixels and can record video in 720p. Available in March.

HZ35W

The new HZ35W offers the same 15x zoom lens found on the HZ30W, but adds a 3″ AMOLED screen and a GPS receiver. The receiver tags your photos with the location it was made, plus the camera can display your location on a visual map. Available in March.

SL630

The final newbie in the Q1 2010 Samsung lineup is the budget friendly SL630. Despite its low budget classification, it packs a 12.2 megapixel sensor and 5x optical zoom in its silver, black or red exterior. It does not feature HD video, but does do optical image stabilization and a variety of effects. Available in March.

Gadling gift guide – photography gadgets

by Scott Carmichael on

An essential part of any trip is photography, and an essential part of photography is good photo gadgets. In this fourth and final Gadling gift guide, we’ll recommend a couple of great photo gadgets that will make even the most amateur photographer happy.

Be sure to check out our previous gift guides:

Gift guide for the lightweight traveler
Gift guide for famlily travel and kids
Gift guide for the business traveler
The top ten travel products of 2009

Hyperdrive Colorspace UDMA photo backup unit

The Colorspace UDMA is one of the fastest photo storage devices on the market. Available with up to 500GB of space, the Colorspace UDMA supports most RAW photo formats and accepts SD and CF memory cards. It’ll do up to 250GB off a single battery charge, and can even be programmed with user scripts to automate certain features.

Price: From $249
Product page: HyperDrive Colorspace UDMA

Joby Gorillapod

The Joby Gorillapod is the perfect travel photography gadget. It is small, lightweight, and lets you take photos using it as a mini tripod, or by attaching it to a solid object (like a tree). The Gorillapod comes in several versions, including one for SLR cameras and a version with interchangeable mounts.

Price: From $21.95
Product page: Joby Gorillapod

Gigapan EPIC robotic imager

If you want to take your photos beyond the dull and boring, consider investing in the $299 GigaPan EPIC imaging robot. By attaching your camera to the unit, and setting some basic options, the GigaPan starts shooting away, turning 100’s of photos into massive panoramic photos. The unit includes the free stitching software from GigaPan, and image hosting on their site.

Price: $299
Product page: Gigapan EPIC

Epson Artisan 810

Making great photos is fun – but with a good photo printer, you can take them beyond the screen and show them off the old fashioned way. The Epson Artisan 810 features a sheet-feed scanner, fax and triple-source printer tray. It’ll print on blank CD’s and comes complete with Ethernet and Wi-Fi.

Price: $199 (after temporary $100 instant rebate)
Product page: Epson Artisan 810
Eye-Fi Wireless SD memory card

Eye-Fi cards turn your camera into a Wi-Fi enabled device. Photos and videos can instantly be uploaded to your PC or a variety of online photo/video sharing sites. The card is available with Wi-Fi geotagging and hotspot access.

Price: from $49.99
Product page: Eye-Fi

Epson P-6000 multimedia photo viewer

The Epson P-6000 is the professionals choice for a photo storage device. It features a large 4″ Premia LCD display with support for 16.7 million colors. Inside the unit is an 80GB drive. Photos can be loaded off one of the memory card slots, or directly off the camera with USB host and a neat tethering option.

Support is built in for almost every RAW format on the market, and the unit even allows for several powerful photo editing procedures, right on the device. Plus, at the end of the day, you can use it to watch some movies or listen to music.

Price: $599.99 (+ $75 mail in rebate)
Product page: Epson P-6000 multimedia photo viewer

Ipevo R7 Wi-Fi enabled photo frame

The Ipevo Kaleido R7 is another great way to view the photos you make. The R7 looks fantastic, but inside is where the real power is – thanks to Wi-Fi, you can view live photo channels, or even read the latest news through RSS. The unit features touch sensitive controls and its hi-resolution screen makes photos look fantastic.

Price: $149
Product page: Ipevo Kaleido R7

Manfrotto ModoSteady

The Manfrotto ModoSteady grabbed a top spot in our lineup of best gadgets of 2009 – and rightfully so. This 3-in-1 device works as a mini tripod, shoulder grip and steady-cam mount. Best of all, it is lightweight and can fold up into a compact unit.

Price: $115
Product page: Manfrotto ModoSteady

Manfrotto Modopocket

The final product in our gift guide is another Manfrotto invention – the ModoPocket is a tiny folding tripod, designed for smaller cameras or Micro Four/Thirds cameras. The ModoPocket screws to the bottom of your camera, and allows you to angle it up or down. When you are done, you simply fold it back up.

Price: $29.99
Product page: Manfrotto ModoPocket

Help for lost cameras

by Katie Hammel on

The folks over at Jaunted posted a story yesterday about a friendly-looking family who dropped their camera at some point while on a trip to Maui. A good Samaritan found the camera and posted one of the pics on Reddit last week, along with a plea for help in locating the family so that their camera could be returned.

According to HalogenLife, in a prime example of the power of social media, the family was located and the camera is on its way to be reunited with its rightful owners.

That news in itself is pretty cool. But what I found even more interesting is that there are apparently several websites dedicated to helping people recover their lost cameras. On Ifoundyourcamera.blogspot.com photos from orphan cameras are posted each Thursday. I haven’t lost a camera recently, but I think I may become addicted to scrolling through the pics looking for familiar faces. There’s got to be someone I know on the site, right?

Jaunted has a better, smarter solution for digital camera owners though. Write your name and contact information on a card and snap a picture of it. Lock it on your memory drive and internal memory and voila – electronic dog tags for your camera! If someone should find the camera and scroll through your photos, they can easily get in touch via the info you’ve provided. You know, if they aren’t just going to keep your camera for themselves.

SkyMall Monday: Digital Nightvision Scope

by Mike Barish on

Outside of the SkyMall Monday Headquarters, I’ve seen some epically beautifully things. Soaring mountains, raging waterfalls and rolling meadows that stretched towards what seemed like an infinite horizon. Yep, the world is a beautiful place. But, sometimes that beauty is hiding. Sometimes, that beauty tries to evade you. Sometimes, you have to hunt for that beauty. You see, from time to time, the greatest natural wonder is also the most clever: human. What’s more beautiful than a young lady who perhaps you once datedl. Or who is living in a fifth floor apartment? Or whose court ordered restraining order requires you to stay 100 yards from her? Yes, that is the truest of beauties. But how does one appreciate this gorgeous scenery when the sun goes down? And how does one gaze upon its wonder from a distance approved by local law enforcement? Thankfully, SkyMall understands that beauty is not always about mountains and waterfalls that everyone can share. Sometimes it’s about a beauty that only you deserve to see. And in those complicated times, there’s no better tool for the lover of beauty than the 250′ Digital Nightvision Scope.

With its 250′ range and six hours of battery life, it’s a shame that it doesn’t come with a sandwich, because you’re going to be lurking in the bushes for a while. Now, neither distance nor darkness will stop you from appreciating the natural beauty of that girl who just doesn’t understand that only you can make her happy. Don’t think that a Digital Nightvision Scope is the way to appreciate all the beauty that the world has to offer? Why won’t you people just leave me alone? Well, at least the official SkyMall product description understands me.

Perfect for late night counter-surveillance or daytime surveillance operations…With the help of a tripod, it can be used for stationary long-term viewing as well as for video recording on peripheral equipment.

She will be mine. Oh yes, she will be mine. Sure, you could use the Digital Nightvision Scope to view those mountains and waterfalls and meadows. But that scenery won’t help you pleasure yourself (unless mountains are your thing, freak).

So, fix yourself a sandwich, grab your favorite lotion and bring the Digital Nightvision Scope with you as you perch yourself on your favorite tree branch. You finally have a room with a view.

Check out all of the previous SkyMall Monday posts HERE.

Daily deal – Refurbished Canon Powershot A560 digital camera for $59

by Scott Carmichael on

My daily deal for today is for a refurbished Canon A560 digital camera.

The A560 is a pretty highly rated Canon camera with a 7.1 megapixel sensor, 4x optical zoom and a 2.5″ LCD display. The camera runs off regular AA batteries.

The camera has been refurbished, which means it was once returned to Canon, who took it apart, and returned it to its “as new” condition. Most of the refurbished products I’ve purchased in the past were indeed just like new, though most of them don’t come in the original box.

The A560 is on sale for just $59, making it one of the cheapest ways to get your hands on a good quality camera, without breaking the bank.

Included in the box is the camera, a 16MB card, 2 AA batteries, a USB cable, a wrist strap and a CD/manual kit.

The camera is on sale at Adorama, and shipping is included in the purchase price.