Samsung introduces CL65 wireless GPS camera

Samsung unveils the new CL65 digital camera that features built-in geo-tagging, Bluetooth 2.0, DLNA compatibility, and Wi-Fi connectivity. The geo-tagging capability allows you to keep track of where you have traveled, while DLNA compatibility and Wi-Fi connectivity enable you to send and share pictures almost as quickly as you take them. The camera comes with a 12 megapixel CCD and a 35mm Schneider-Kreuznach lens, offering an internal 5x optical zoom. The CL65 will be available in September for $399.99...

Capture and Share Precious Moments On-the-Go with Built-In Wireless Connectivity Samsung Electronics America, Inc., today unveiled the CL65, featuring built-in geo-tagging, Bluetooth 2.0, DLNA compatibility, and Wi-Fi* connectivity. With the new CL65, users can make a true visual connection with their family and friends by quickly and easily sharing photo memories and moments while on-the-move. Packed full of innovation and encased in a sleek compact frame, the CL65 offers the unprecedented combination of geo-tagging, Bluetooth 2.0, Wi-Fi, and DLNA compatibility. The geo-tagging capability allows users to keep track of where they've traveled, while DLNA compatibility and Wi-Fi connectivity enable users to send and share pictures almost as quickly as they take them. The CL65 is a great way to keep your network of friends and family in the know. Thanks to the built-in geo-tagging capability, the CL65 displays the city on the camera's LCD screen, providing users with a display of the location where they're taking a photo, as well as a reference for when they are reviewing and managing images. With the embedded PC software package ‘intelli-studio', users can also easily view, edit and manage their pictures right on the camera before uploading them to popular photo-sharing sites, such as PicasaTM. Using Bluetooth 2.0 technology, users can wirelessly beam their favorite images to other compatible devices. Using a Wi-Fi connection, users can now email photos directly from their camera and upload them to popular social networking sites. The CL65 also offers DLNA connectivity, allowing users to wirelessly connect to other DLNA compatible devices within their networked home, such as an HDTV, to view and share their images. The CL65 sports a 3.5″ wide touch-screen LCD. With a resolution of 1,152K, almost four times more than traditional cameras, the CL65's advanced display provides users with an enhanced viewing experience. The CL65 also incorporates Samsung's Smart Gesture User Interface. With a simple tilt, users can now easily access key features such as Smart Auto, movie, and program mode. The CL65 comes with a 12.2 megapixel CCD and a high-quality, 35mm Schneider- KREUZNACH lens. Offering a powerful internal 5x optical zoom, the CL65's lens produces clean and clear images with balanced resolution from the center of images to the edges. Alongside professional‑grade photos, the CL65 records 720p HD video at 30 frames-per-second in H.264 format, giving twice as much recording capacity as MPEG4 format, and four times more than MJPEG format, all in the palm of your hand. HDMI connectivity means that your HD videos can be enjoyed on any HDTV or HD Monitor. Additionally, the camera's touch-screen user interface provides users with Samsung's innovative and intuitive One Touch Auto Focus system. This puts complete command of the camera's focusing system right in the hands of the photographer, allowing the user to pinpoint the exact area to lock focus on by simply touching the location on the LCD screen. Users can also automatically trigger the camera to then take the image by continuing to hold the location with their fingertip. “The CL65 is all about spreading the joy everywhere from anywhere,” said Sang Jin Park, CEO, Samsung Digital Imaging Co. Ltd. “Never before has a manufacturer provided such a range of technologies in a compact digital camera, giving consumers unprecedented flexibility when it comes to how, when, and where they share their digital images. Geo-tagging keeps track of where the photographer has been, allowing them to quickly and easily share content with their network, while Bluetooth 2.0 and Wi-Fi capabilities allow for the simplest of uploads without needing a computer. This new powerhouse point-and-shoot camera will raise the bar for innovation and set a new standard by which all other manufacturers will be measured.” CL65 SPECIFICATIONS Wireless Connectivity Geo-Tagging The CL65 utilizes GPS technology to automatically geo-tag digital images, recording the latitude and longitude of where in the world each photo is taken. The location data is automatically embedded into each image's EXIF file. Photo-sharing websites such as PicasaTM provide options for sharing one's images on a map of the world and can utilize the information stored in the image's EXIF file to pinpoint where the photo was taken. The CL65 will display the name of the city on the camera's LCD screen, providing users with a display of the location where they're taking a photo, as well as a handy reference for when they are reviewing images on the camera's LCD screen. Bluetooth 2.0 Bluetooth 2.0 connectivity is also included, allowing users to share and transfer photos wirelessly and seamlessly. Using Bluetooth 2.0 connectivity, you can beam your favorite digital images from the CL65 directly to compatible devices, such as mobile phones. When using Bluetooth 2.0, the CL65 will automatically resize the digital image to best fit the resolution of the host screen it will be displayed on. Wi-Fi and DLNA The CL65 is DLNA compliant (Digital Living Network Alliance), allowing the camera to wirelessly connect to other DLNA compliant devices, such as HDTVs. This gives the CL65 user the ability to move content from their camera to other consumer electronics devices throughout their home. To maximize speed and efficiency, all images transferred through Wi-Fi will be reduced to a resolution of two mega-pixels. The CL65 makes it easy for users to upload or share their digital images with others right from their digital camera. Through Wi-Fi, users can send a digital image to any email address stored in your camera's address book or by using the camera's touch-screen QWERTY keypad. The CL65's Wi-Fi connection also allows users to upload their images directly to popular websites such as Facebook®, PicasaTM and YouTube®. Additional information: Check-out the current Samsung cameras at Shopping.com

Get clean with the Palm Pre Soap

One soap maker has taken their love affair with the new Palm Pre a little too far with the launch of a Bourbon and Coke scented soap in the shape of the new smartphone.

Etsy, through seller twoeggplants, is now selling the Palm Pre soap, for those who fancy cleaning themselves with replica of the new smartphone from Palm.

We can see the thought process:

You love your phone, you don't want to be separated from your phone, trouble is you can't take your phone into the shower.

According to the blurb the soap is pretty close to the actual phone in size, has the small black button at the bottom and the "screen icons" in its "flat screen".

The phone will weighs about 3 oz and rather randomly be scented with a Bourbon & Coke fragrance and made with Shea butter.

Luckily users can request the soap without fragrance.

But wait, if the Palm Pre isn't your gadget of choice, the seller is happy to make one that is, already stocking an iPhone, iPod, BlackBerry and a range of Sony PlayStation gadgets too.

Price start from around $13 including worldwide shipping.

Happy washing

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Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1

Review based on a production Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH1 with firmware v1.1

When Panasonic announced the DMC-G1 in September 2008, the industry saw its first real innovation for a long time: an electronic viewfinder interchangeable lens camera with a large (Four Thirds size) imaging sensor. Panasonic had managed to overcome a whole list of technical hurdles to produce the camera and the G1 featured an electronic viewfinder that got pretty close to a good mirror and prism, plus a contrast-detect autofocus that in terms of speed and accuracy could rival 'traditional' phase-detect systems of DSLRs.

However, the G1 was lacking one feature that had been a standard on digital compact cameras for a long time and had just found its way onto digital SLRs as well: video recording. There are no obvious technical barriers to the implementation of a video feature on mirrorless cameras such as the G1 (in fact it should be much easier than on a DSLR) and therefore it did not come as a big surprise to anyone when, only a few months after the G1 launch, in March 2009 Panasonic rectified this 'issue' with the announcement of the DMC GH1. The new model is, despite a new sensor design, essentially a G1 with an added movie mode.

However, the GH1's HD movie mode is more than just another add-on feature. In combination with the newly developed 14-140mm F4.0-5.8 kit lens that has, in terms of aperture control and focusing, been optimized for shooting video, it transforms the GH1 into a true stills/video hybrid that can record HD video while at the same time producing high quality stills images. And whilst doing all that it is still in line with Panasonic's original reasons for introducing the Micro Four Thirds system; to produce smaller cameras that act more like compact DSCs whilst offering the quality and versatility of a DSLR.

It all looks great on paper but can the GH1 keep up in real life with the marketing promises? Read our review to find out.

Compared to G1 - key differences

The list of new features on the GH1 compared to the G1 is not very long. Despite its new sensor design the GH1 is essentially a G1 with an added HD video mode. However, this arguably most important new feature is likely to make the camera appeal to a much larger group of potential buyers. The following list and table give you an overview of all differences between the two models.

• HD video mode with stereo sound recording
• New sensor which provides four different aspect ratios with the same angle of view
• New 14-140mm F4.0-5.8 stabilized kit lens with a design that has been optimized for shooting movies
• Face recognition

HP HDX X16

Another of HP’s winners, it is a full HD laptop, capable of attaining the full 1,920×1,080 resolution. Deemed as an ideal replacement for an ailing desktop, it has a crisp and bright display screen at 16 inches is truly a sight to see and coupled with the BluRay optical drive, it makes movie viewing a breeze. Loaded with a 2.26 Gz processor with Intel’s Core 2 Duo P800 processor and 4GB’s of ram it it fast, though not as fast as people would expect it to be with that processing power contained within. External devices can be easily connected with a FireWire, HDMI, and d-Sub connector for those cameras and external display devices. It does sport quite a slick finish that is quite childish to some and the ultra-glossy finish tends to be prone to finger smudges and other greasy stuff as you much away and continue to blog or finish your report that was due a few hours ago.
A true entertainment laptop with a 16 inch package, it is a smaller kin to the X18 which has the 18 inch package. Many see the two as the same laptop, only in different packages but with a slightly high price which may be due to the BlueRay drive, it still manages to pass with flying colors delivering what it claims plus some extra’s.

HP DV3-2055EA

The PC maker has long been a favorite of laptop users due to their full line of products that caters to many products that are for people from all walks of life. The specific model has a full keyboard with a 13.3 inch chassis that sports the standard layout, but they tend to rattle a bit, reminiscent of tactile keyboards. They have the always present track pad and two keys that offers a very nice option and finished with a mirror-like tone it is a nifty pad to use indeed. The tiny button is still there to allow easy turn-off of the Synaptics keypad letting you turn it off when using an external mouse.
Based on Intel’s dual core processor family, it did remain cool with the area where the power supply was located turning a bit toasty even after the battery of tests with the fan sending that familiar swoosh of air. The display being LED back lighted is quite constant with bright and vibrant images and it can still play HD movies with ease though the display screen is still quite small for a comfortable viewing. There have been some noted issues with the display drivers from HP which had the display appearing gaudy but some people who have reviewed it say tinkering with the driver seems to remedy the issue.
On the hardware site, it is a 64-bit laptop with the 2Gz Intel Core 2 Duo T6400 processor, that is maximized using a 64-bit OS can use the full complement of 4Gb’s of ram. With a 500Gb hard drive it is already large but a need for more storage space is answered by an ultra-fast eSATA port allows quick connection of external storage devices fast and painless. It also sports the nifty LightScribe optical drive that makes CD creation and labelling a joy. Overall, it is a very good product yet on the gamer’s side it may be a bit dismal but it is marketed as a multimedia laptop so it suits it well with a price to match.