Posts by: Lori Grunin, CNET.com

Nikon spins 360

Lori Grunin, CNET.com | Jun 13, 2007

Designer Ye Chen's hypothetical digital camera optimized for shooting 360-degree panoramas has the advantage of being small and cool-looking. The camera concept, posted on the Yanko Design site, incorporates a rotating camera lens, essentially turning the entire camera body into a tripod. It's a simple, relatively elegant design.

Ironically, though, the camera itself isn't the most interesting aspect of the story. What is? For one, the designer dubs the camera the "Nikon 360." Given all the attention it's getting on the Web, can you think of a better way to draw the attention (hopefully non-legal) of a potential client?

The other thing that intrigued me was the response of the blog sites that covered it. Gizmodo says: "If this were to actually be manufactured I highly doubt it could sell enough to stay afloat, but it could be a good schtick camera.". And Tech Digest comments: "I wonder how much of a selling point panoramic shots are outside people who hike up and down hills for fun". With all the Web sites and businesses reliant on practical tools for visualizing an environment--applications such as Hopstop and Google Streets, not to mention the huge potential for real estate and travel sites--relegating panoramic imaging tools to a niche market seems surprisingly short sighted.

Via CNET Crave

Filed under: Digital Cameras
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A different approach to GPS-enabled cameras

Lori Grunin, CNET.com | Mar 12, 2007

Photography's essential use of GPS differs from the typical GPS application in one significant way: You don't need it to tell you where you are, only where you've been. Why does this distinction matter? Because the former requires far more real-time horsepower and precision than the latter does. For digital photography, that translates into the difference between bulky, expensive power-draining solutions or small-footprint, cheap, energy-efficient ones.

At least, that's the thinking behind NXP Software's swGPS technology, and I think it has a lot of merit. With the swGPS software embedded in a camera along with a small receiver, every time you take a shot, the camera takes a "snapshot" of all the GPS satellite signals it can pick up plus a time stamp and then saves a tiny file with the info. According to the company, it consumes only 27mJ of power per shot. When you download the photos to a PC, it syncs with NXP's servers to turn that miscellaneous signal data into a location stamp for each photo. In contrast, a typical GPS solution does that synchronization while you're shooting.

The first product available using NXP's SnapSpot swGPS technology--Jobo AG's PhotoGPS, a US$149 add-on that fits into a camera's hotshoe--will ship this summer in the US. I'm just hoping that the execution works as well as the theory sounds.

Read more camera gizmos here | Latest PMA 2007 coverage