This could honestly be done as another of my Niftiness Built In posts, but we’ll let it slide by itself. Yesterday’s rumor of a new Olympus digital camera seems stronger today, what with DPReview’s hands-on preview and Wired running with it. And, while I could spend an hour talking about the differences between it and the pro model its against and what that says about consumer design, I would instead like to talk about the coolest feature I can’t believe I forgot to mention: virtual horizons.

This one owes its existence to Nikon digital SLR cameras, and premiered on the D3 (it’s on the D700, too, as pictured.) The idea is simple, the camera already has rotation sensors, why not use them to say when you’re holding it straight? It’s a boon to landscape and architectural shooters, and from what I hear loved by wide-angle shooters everywhere. And the Olympus E-30 will have an implementation of it, which it sounds like won’t just show you level, but can automatically correct for level.

And it shows this in the viewfinder, too. Consider me jealous.