The Casio Tryx is something of an odd product. It’s a point-and-shoot, and maybe a bit of a Flip alternative. No worries there. But it’s got this trick, you see, where the body with the LCD hinges and swings and swivels out from inside a metal frame so you can… something. Prop it up on tables, use it like a handle, do those… other extreme things. And, it’s got all of two buttons, the rest being done through a touch interface. So, it’s an interesting product, to say the least. And, now you can read what popular tech blog Engadget thought of it. Yup, they’ve posted their own hands-on thoughts about Casio’s most original little camera. What’d they think? Why, hit the link below to find out.
› posts tagged ‘casio’
Canon’s New Talk-of-the-Town: The PowerShot SD4000 IS
So, this is yesterday news, we just got buried putting up even more awesome stuff for you to buy on our website and didn’t get the post done, so, here it is today.
This is Canon’s new ELPH: the PowerShot SD4000 IS over here in the States. It’s getting a fair amount of buzz. Why, you ask? Well, let’s start with the 10 megapixel CMOS sensor with DIGIC IV processor. Not too shabby, big C. Then, add 3.8x optical zoom with IS, covering an equivalent range of 28-105mm. Which is getting pretty common these days, so to add some buzz factor back let’s make that lens f2-5.6. Yup, f2 at the wide end, now we’re talking. The other f2 point-and-shoot in Canon’s stable certainly didn’t hurt anyone’s feelings. Might as well add ISO up to 3200 to that, just in case.
So, that’s the basics, now what? A continuous shooting rate ranging between 3.7 fps and 8.4 fps depending on the situation seems like a good plan. Now, video. 720p with HDMI is nice, but it’s starting to be expected. How to stand out some? How about a Super Slow Motion Mode that records at around 240fps and then plays them back at 30fps? That’s the sorta thing you had to look here for before.
So, you know, other than that, it’s just another point-and-shoot. Albeit one with some insanely minimal rear controls and a huge 3″ wide-aspect LCD. And aperture- and shutter-priority modes. Other than those.
Coming… soon?
Apple Updates MacBook Pro Range (Mostly)
Well, in case you live under a rock, or otherwise hate the internet (which’d be somewhat ironic given that this is on the internet, but…), Apple finally announced some long-awaited upgrades to the MacBookPro range today.
Mostly.
I say mostly because the little brother, the 13″, saw only a meager handful of upgrades, mostly a new battery now promising up to 10 hours of battery life (versus the claimed 7 on the model I bought). It’s also been bumped to the NVIDIA GeForce 320M.
The bigger bros have new processor options, with Core i5 or Core i7 processors available for both models. The big boys also upgrade to NVIDIA GT 330M GPUs and will auto-switch between them and the integrated GPU as needed to performance and to save battery life, no longer do you need to pick one and reboot. Batteries are also beefed up on these, but don’t hit the magical 10 hours number of their little bro.
Oh, and there’s a new 1680×1050 screen resolution upgrade available on the 15″ model.
The rest of it’s mostly what it was last year. Aluminum unibodies, huge glass trackpads with 4-finger multi-gesture, LED illuminated keyboards, general all-around spiffiness. No, seriously, I’m enjoying my unibody. Never figured I’d be a Mac guy, but it’s a mighty fine laptop.
Of course, if you’re a Windows user, Bootcamp makes running Windows a mostly painless experience these days (though ym audio drivers do have the occasional problem). You won’t see those epic battery life numbers, from personal experience. Windows 7 just seems a bit more power hungry than Snow Leopard (I can only get about 2 hours in Windows on last year’s 13″ MBP, versus 5-6 on average in OSX).
Aaaaaanyway, those new Macs are available now. So, go over to Apple’s site, spec yours out, relishing the new options and such, and then get with us about what you want and watch us work that Roberts magic for you.
Nick and Derek Photo Walk Again
Ah, the weather’s getting warm, evenings looking a bit stabler, and there’s an itching in our shutter fingers to fire these cameras back up. Which can only mean it’s time to boot the infamous Nick and Derek’s Photo Walkabout’s back up.
So, for those of you who missed them last year, here’s the skinny:
Roughly one day a week Nick and I pick somewhere public to show up with cameras. We ask and encourage any and all of you who can make it to show up there as well. We then spend an hour or two, puttering around, taking pictures, giving advice, talking equipment, trading stories, telling off-color jokes– you know, photographer stuff. We believe in a chill, personable atmosphere, so everyone of any skill level or camera type is welcome, ’cause it’s all about getting out there, scoping a new area out and seeing what you can get from it. You know, experience, practice, and maybe a little fun.
We generally keep these events free, unless you have to buy parking. But, we don’t charge any money. If people want models, Nick and I have a few connections and we’ll gladly run a pool to give them something to come out and make our photos that much more interesting. The last model we had out was wonderful, despite the shiver-inducing sub-40 weather. Brr.
So! The first Walkabout of oh-ten is going to be next Monday evening, let’s call it 6:30 so Nick and I can grab a bite to eat, up in Carmel at Coxhall Park. That’s a good week’s notice, so it should give you time to plan. It also gives us time to arrange a model, so if people want in on that let us know in the comments, on Facebook, or at dmartin@robertsimaging.com today or tomorrow and I can get ahold of some people.
Also, if you get there and we’re not thre yet, don’t scurry off. While of course supernaturally handsome, witty, and charming as any Roberts employees, we’re still subject to the same awful Indy traffic and occasionally run a little late. We try, but, well, that’s how it goes.
So, Monday April 5th. 6:30pm. Coxhall Park, Carmel, IN. We’re open to working on different days, times, etc… as needs be to best suit the most of you, but we’ll start there.
The Voice of Raw Returns, 40% More Rambling Guaranteed
So, the last couple months were a bit rough around here, and I didn’t have time to pull Nick away from his other duties long enough for us to cut our usual Voice of Raw podcasts. But, it’s the post-Christmas lull right now and we’ve missed the sounds of of our voices as we obstensibly tell you what’s up in the camera world.
So, we’re back…TA-DA!
2009 Holiday Shopping Guide: Don’t Sweat the Megapixels
Alright, we’re back for round two of useful, practical advise for real people buying real cameras (as opposed to androids buying anything by Fisher-Price, I suppose) this season. Last time we covered Image Stabilization, and why you should love it. This time, we’re going to tackle megapixels.
Megapixels, which define the amount of resolution your pictures will have, have been the big selling point of digital cameras about as long as they’ve existed. The problem is, at this point, it’s a pretty useless number to know. Why? Because probably 90% of you out there don’t need more than6-8 megapixels, and we hit that a couple years ago.
Don’t read me wrong, more megapixels do lead to more resolution, but you have to be using the pictures in certain ways for that to matter. Now, there are a bunch of things that matter here, so this is in no way scientific, but f you want a general guideline for how many megapixels you need, here we go:
1. If you plan to mostly view your pictures on your computer, or maybe print them as 4x6s and the occasional 8×10, and don’t know what cropping is or do it rarely, you really don’t need more than 6 megapixels.Yup, 6. That means that basically every camera on the market right now has enough resolution for what you do. If you see a good deal on a lower resolution camera (like an 8 megapixel Nikon Coolpix S210 for $69.97, maybe), you should jump on it.
Bonus: On smaller cameras, lower megapixels can sometimes mean better color and less noise. Not believing the hype that more megapixels are always better can end in better pictures for you.
2. If you’re an advanced shooter, an artist, a starting pro, or really anyone else who likes the ability to have some room to crop and the ability to print 16x20s without fear, then you only really need between 8 – 12 megapixels. There are people who’ll tell you you can’t do pro work without at least 20 megapixels, they’ve obviously forgotten that five years ago the shots in Sports Illustrated, GQ, Vanity Fair, you name it were done with cameras that at the time had extremely high pixel counts, like 8. 8-12 is in theory enough to print billboards with ease, because you’re going to be viewing them from 50 feet away.
3. Finally, if you do a lot of highly demanding client work, or you like the ability to crop 3/4 of the photo off and still print at 16×20, this is where cameras with 14-24 megapixels will start being what you want. Under normal, casual circumstances most of the pixels won’t matter, but if you’re pushing things to the edge, it might be worth having the extra resolution to back you up.
I bet most of you Christmas shoppers fall into the first category. A lot of our regular customers are probably that second. Point is, don’t get hung up on megapixels, they’re probably one of the least important specs on any camera available today. I promise.
Nikon Coolpix S70: That’s a Good Lens
So, we heard the occasional murmur that Nikon’s last series of Coolpix may or may not have had sharp lenses. Well, we know for certain that’s not the case with the shared 28mm 5x zoom on their new series. We were testing the S1000pj and the S70 today and woah, those suckers have good little lenses for point-and-shoots. Really good. Don’t believe us? We shot the pic below from a magazine in the classroom, with the S70 in macro mode. Check out the detail in that crop, it got the printing ink and the irregularities in the newsprint. Very impressive show, Nikon. Very impressive.
Raw Regains Ads, Attempts to Not Be Awful
Roberts Raw, trusted font of camera information and reliable source of questionable writing, isn’t entirely the altruistic endeavor it might superficially appear to be. Brace yourself, dear readers, this might come as a shock: part of its performance is evaluated on how it helps us survive as a company. There, I said it. Roberts Raw’s ongoing existence is dependent on Roberts Imaging continuing to be a successful online retailer.
I will give you all a moment to recover from your shock.
…
We good? Anyway, to help keep Raw running as the font of information and not the marketing sham we prefer it to be, we had to make a concession and we have brought advertising back. But, we have try to keep it responsible, you will now find two (rather stylish, if I have any say in it, and I do) banner ads embedded on the mainpage of the blog. And that’s it. We’re trying to be as chill about things as we can, obnoxious ads are not our way. So, if you loves you the Roberts Raw, or even if it’s just a strong like, show us the occasional support and click an ad, or go up there at the top of the page and click “shop online” and throw us some bones.
Business Slow? Keep Busy Elsewise.
For all you working pros or semi-pros out there who’re finding the economic slump still affecting you, and therefore with more times on your hands than you would prefer, Don over at Lighting Essentials has a list of 10 things you could be doing other than twiddling your thumbs.
Obviously we at Roberts have a vested interest in keeping you in work, so there’s that. His tips seem pretty solid, and I second his sentiment about starting a blog on your server if you haven’t yey. We’ve been working on our SEO (search engine optimization, for those of you not in the hip), and it’s well worth spending the time and occasional frustration to look into right now if everything else is slow.
EP-1, Almost Forgot the Best Part
Did I forget to make a big fuss about the best spec ever on the new Olympus EP-1? Why yes, yes I did. So, allow me to illustrate the missing point with this diagram:
That’s right, that’s me showing you that Olympus has finally taken the plunge and gone to SD over their aging and (fairly) obnoxious xD format. I love Oly, everyone knows that, but man, xD was not a good time. This is a pretty huge occasion for them, and it had to be tough. If you need a hug, Olympus, I’m here for you, you did good.
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