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Digicam highs and lows in 2008

By Leonard Goh

With the digicam market becoming increasingly saturated, manufacturers have to come out with more enticing and innovative features to differentiate themselves from the crowd. While there were some news that really made us sit up and listen, we had our fair share of disappointments as well. Here are some news and products which lifted our spirits, or dampened our mood.

Highs

Full HD video-recording capabilities
While most shutterbugs were in awe of the Nikon's D90 720p-quality (1,280 x 720 pixels) video capture, Canon wowed the industry by announcing the EOS 5D Mark II. This full-frame dSLR trumped the competition by offering 1080p-quality (1,920 x 1,080 pixels) video recording, and top it all off, a sweet price of S$4,299 (US$3,165.15) for the camera body.


Micro Four Thirds
When Olympus and Panasonic jointly announced this new format in July, we knew a mini-revolution is going to take place in the imaging industry. This format not only offers interchangeable lens system, but it also claims to shrink the size of such cameras, too. There are also a good number of compatible lenses on the market (via the use of an adapter). Will the entry-level dSLR market face more competition with this new kid on the block?

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RED One modular camera system
When RED One said it wanted to enter the digital still camera segment, our first question was: Which lens mount would it adopt? It turns out that the US-based company has planned for its new dSLR system to be modular, meaning you can buy different components to fit onto the core (which house the sensor) as deem fit. We think this idea is great because you buy only what you need, and future upgrades can be cheaper, too, when you purchase only the needed parts instead of a new camera.


Fujifilm 3D camera
While other brands are chasing the megapixel bandwagon or dishing out gimmicky features to entice consumers, Fujifilm is heading in a slightly different direction. The Japanese company has a 3D camera in the works, and we've got a hands-on with it. Why is this innovation eye-catching? If the 3D system takes off, it can radically change the way we shoot, view and share pictures.


Higher megapixel = less noise
The typical convention we held towards resolution and digital noise is that as one factor increases, so does the other. But DxO Lab proposed the contrary, stating that more megapixels equates to less noise. If its theory stands, than chasing pixels isn't such a bad idea after all, since it should deliver better image quality.


Tags: DSLR, Camera, Nikon Corp., video, 3D
 

 

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