Ok we admit it, we completely fell in love with all things Oriental after we read Memoirs of a Geisha, and wished we were as graceful and talented as Sayuri – don’t deny it you did too.

Not only could the girl sing and dance but she could also speak to guys without making a fool of herself – and she bagged herself a nice rich husband to top it off. So what did we do? We tried to follow her lead; Sushi for breakfast, dance lessons, heck we even planted Japanese Cherry blossom trees but despite searching we couldn’t find any gadgets to tie in to our theme.

Then we found the new digital camera from Samsung.

The NV3 OPL is a special edition camera that is coated in a lacquered oriental plant design which evokes artistic techniques from Eastern Asia.

However, like a Geisha it doesn’t just rely on its looks to get it through; it also comes with a range of good features such as 7.2 mega-pixels, 3 x optical zoom and advanced shake reduction technology. And like its Geisha counterpart it is also seems it’s musically blessed - it doubles as an MP3 player, portable media player and digital camcorder

Yes we know we need a lot more than this to get Sayuri’s Geisha qualities but hey at least it will help us with our memoirs.

February 8, 2007 in Cameras | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

As you'd expect, summers brings us a glut of new digital cameras, as people’s thoughts turn to hot days and sunshine (in other words, their holiday abroad).

Joining the likes of Acer and Kodak, is Casio and its slim Exilim Zoom EX-Z70, aimed at beginners and those that just want point and shoot capabilities. 

Higher megapixels in compact digital zooms are becoming the norm, and this Exilim is no exception, boasting 7.2. Casio also claims this has a long battery life, taking around 200 images on a single charge.

It looks a pretty standard camera, comes in two colours – black and silver, costs £230 and will be available from early July. 

June 23, 2006 in Cameras | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Acer has brought out its latest digital camera, the 8megapixel CP-8660.

Better known for its laptops and monitors, this is Acer's flagship camera, despite its non-descript name.

The lightweight, compact camera has a 6X optical zoom (and an 8.5X digital zoom, but forget this - digital zooms never produce great photos), and 25MB of internal memory, enough for a handful of shots only, but a good backup if the SD card is full.

The CP-8660 is Acer's first camera to come with anti-shake technology, although this feature is increasingly common now. It helps get sharp pictures in low light.

It takes video at 30 frames per second, plus you can voice tag your images - always useful for remembering what you got up to after a heavy night out.

June 22, 2006 in Cameras | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Kodak claims its new Easyshare P712 superzoom digital camera can capture pictures faster than the blink of an eye.

According to the company, its 7.1megapixel camera has a ‘click to capture’ rate of 0.07 seconds.

Shutter lag – the time it takes between depressing the shutter and the photo actually being taken – can be a problem with compact digital cameras (and camera phones).

Kodak says the P712’s speed eliminates this, so that you can take the picture you saw through the viewfinder, rather than what was happening a split second later.

The £350 camera also boasts a 12x zoom (36mm-432mm in old money), pushing it into the superzoom class, and has an image stabiliser to steady shots taken in low light or at high magnification.

As part of the Easyshare range, photos can be emailed from the camera using the Share button or loaded up to Kodak’s Easyshare online gallery. Also unusual for such cameras is its support for the Raw picture format, which is typically the choice of professional and serious amateur photographers.

We are a bit worried by one claim though. This camera, says the PR blurb, helps photographers capture images of “children on the playground”. That sort of behaviour is likely to get you arrested.

June 21, 2006 in Cameras | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

If you are looking for a new camera, why not check out the new Pentax Optio T10, a fun and easy to use digicam with the added gimmick (sorry extra) of touch screen controls.

Check out a full review of it here and see what you think.

June 19, 2006 in Cameras | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Sony has brought out its first Alpha digital SLR, the a100, and sister site Computeractive has taken an early look at the camera.

While perhaps not ready to dethrone Nikon, Canon and Olympus, which dominate the entry level dSLR market - Sony's a100 is an impressive debut that comes with some neat touches.

It's 10megapixels for a start, but also has an eye sensor that automatically switches on the viewfinder and focuses when you raise your eye to it.

Plus it comes with in-camera (rather than in-lens) anti-shake technology, which is not that common in the dSLR market, and an anti-dust setting. This will shake free any dust that lands on your sensor when changes lenses - Olympus has this in its dSLRs, but its still a rare feature.

You can read the full review of the Sony Alpha 100 on Computeractive’s web site.

June 15, 2006 in Cameras | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

We love the sound of this gadget – a photo frame that you can send pictures to from your mobile phone via Bluetooth.

The Parrot Photo Viewer has a high-resolution TFT LCD colour screen which means you can beam your photos direct from your mobile to your mantlepiece.

We have to see it to believe it, but it sounds like great fun, as long as the photos you take  are of a high enough quality. It can store 100 pictures which can then be displayed either as single images or as a slideshow.

We hope to get one in to take a look really soon, so when we do we'll get back to you with the results! It would certainly be a talking point anyway, although for £156 it is pretty pricey.

June 1, 2006 in Cameras | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Now you can have style and substance as Fujifilm have just released the Finepix Z3 Zoom, a digital camera small enough to take on a night out but that also takes great photos too.

Apparently, research has shown that the majority of pictures taken by women are 'people pictures' taken in low light at close proximity (think of those dancefloor shots at 2am). This new camera from Fujifilm vows to overcome this, capturing crisp shots even in the most challenging conditions.

It certainly looks good, and is available in three colours (silver, metallic blue and light pink), with 5.1megapixel CCD sensor and 2.5in LCD screen.

We'll get back to you with some results when we've taken it for a test drive.

May 30, 2006 in Cameras | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (1)

Mustek's new DV5300SE could be just what you are looking for if you can't decide between a still camera or a video camera, as now you can have both all in one!

With quite a stylish design, this multifunction device comes with mpeg4 technology for high quality video recording and a 3megapixel sensor. You also get a 1.5in swing display, which means you can easily choose and switch which view you want.

But that's not all, as there is an integrated mp3 player, and it can also be used a a voice recorder, USB stick and a card reader. Is there anything this device cannot do?

At £79, it is a snip, we wonder what picture quality is like?

May 24, 2006 in Cameras | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

Kodak have announced the launch of the 6megapixel Easyshare V610, which they claim has the smallest optical zoom on any digital camera.

It also comes with Bluetooth so you can share photos with people up to 30ft away, which we really like the sound of.

Meanwhile, Casio have also just announced the new EX-Z1000 10.1megapixel digital camera. This new model is due to be released in mid-May as part of its Exilim range.

April 26, 2006 in Cameras | Permalink | Comments (0)