Look at the photo above by Engadget. On the left is the new iPod touch with the Retina Display. On the right is the Retina Display in the iPhone 4. These are not the same Retina Displays. The one in the iPod touch sucks: when viewed at angles contrast goes out the door and colors shift so much that they look like crap. IPS is known for looking great when viewed at different angles and my guess is that the Retina Display on the iPod touch ain’t no IPS; it is some cheap TN-based 3.5-inch LCD sporting a 960×640 pixel format. I wouldn’t touch it. Especially if it means I need to part ways with US$229. There might be no peer to the iPod touch but the display simply isn’t what Apple wants you to believe it is; the “Retina Display” on the iPod touch is a fake version of the real thing.
Motorola DEFY is scratch and water resistant as well as dust proof, protecting you from life’s little challenges such as a sudden rain shower to a drop in the sand.
I like rugged phones. I used the Casio CanU 502 waterproof phone while I was in Korea, during the monsoon season. I didn’t worry one bit whether it was drenched in rain, dropped on concrete or had kalbi sauce splattered all over it.
If you want an Android smartphone and a bit of ruggedness I think the Motorola Defy has got your number. I don’t see any MIL-SPEC numbers so I don’t think the Defy is going to be as tough as the Casio or a tank from Sonim, but Corning’s Gorilla Glass provides impact and scratch resistance for the display.
The specs:
Unfortunately Motoblur is included.
Wired: The Four Thirds system is for DSLRs. The Micro Four Thirds system is for mirrorless cameras such as the Olympus PEN series. Miquel Angel Garcia, head of Olympus Europe, shared with Quesabesde during the Photokina show that Olympus will no longer make new Four Thirds lenses and instead focus on lenses for the mirrorless Micro Four Thirds system.
Garcia:
But it is very important to have broken the DSLR market status quo. There are two brands that for years have been allocated 80% of the global market. And this will change.
I personally like Canon and have bought many Canon cameras over the years: compact digital cameras, SLR, DSLR. I still use some of them. But my most recent purchase was a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera, so I get Garcia.
Interestingly, Garcia seems to be holding the recently showcased compact digital camera with an integrated Zuiko lens. Engadget seems to think that an integrated Zuiko lens means that it cannot be based on the Micro Four Thirds system. But I think otherwise: it will be Olympus’ high-end compact digital camera that will make use of the Micro Four Thirds system; it’s just that the lens won’t be interchangeable. Think of it as the Canon S95 killer.
Samsung’s NX100 is a more compact NX10. Samsung has managed to pack an APS-C CMOS image sensor into a very svelte body. I’m not sure how it compares to Sony’s NEX-5 but my guess is the two will be hotly compared. Probably just as small, if not smaller, than the Micro Four Thirds cameras from Olympus and Panasonic, the NX100 and Sony’s NEX-5 pack larger image sensors. I’m thinking APS-C in tiny packages is the future. Micro Four Thirds cameras will need to get even smaller. Here’s a very brief comparison of the NX100 to the NEX-5:
The NEX-5 sports a 14.2MP Exmor APS HD CMOS image sensor. The NX100 is a 14.6MP shooter, a bit more pixels than the NEX-5, but limits video recording to 720p, in H.264. The NEX-5 is 1080/60i capable in AVCHD. The NX100 has an ISO range of 100 to 3200 that can boosted to 6400. The NEX-5 has a range of 200 to 12800.
The NX100 has an optional GPS10 module that geo-tags. A unique feature of the NX100 is the new i-Function lens system that lets you scroll through and change manual settings such as shutter speed, aperture, exposure, white balance, and ISO. The folks at Samsung took what Canon did with its S90/S95 and supercharged it. Typically, Samsung works with Schneider for its lenses, not so here it seems. The NX100 uses SD/SDHC cards. The similarity of the naming conventions is interesting: NX vs. NEX.
Fujifilm FinePix X100 Microsite, DPReview: The FinePix X100 from Fujifilm packs a 12-megapixel APS-C image sensor into a rangefinder-looking compact body. The 23mm Fujinon aspherical lens is fast at f/2 and the 2.8-inch LCD sports a remarkably dense 800×600 pixels. That’s 357 PPI, besting even the iPhone 4′s Retina Display (only 326 PPI). Burst mode gets you 5fps.
Fujifilm states that the image sensor is 10x that of conventional compact digital cameras with an ISO range of 200 to 6400. I’m guessing low-light photographs will turn out quite well, but we’ll have to see for actual results.
I do have one concern and that’s video. The X100 will do 720p video. The Olympus E-P1, E-P2, and E-PL1 all do 720/30p, but these guys have been around a bit already. Panasonic’s GF1 does 720/30p too. All the Micro Four Thirds rangefinder-like cameras are limited to 720/30p. The NEX-5 and NEX-3 from Sony are probably the closest to the FinePix X100 as both pack an APS-C-sized image sensor. The NEX-3 is limited to 720/30p, but I would have thought 1080/60i would have been a must-have feature considering the 1080/60i video capture capability of the NEX-5.
The hybrid viewfinder is unique. It combines an optical viewfinder and an electronic viewfinder. A prism is integrated for the image on the LCD and allows for both the shooting frame and data to be displayed. Shoot old-school or shoot with the LCD: you can instantly switch between the two viewfinders.
The best part about the FinePix X100 is that all this technology is crafted into a beautiful magnesium alloy rangefinder-like body. Even the dials are made of metal. Just lovely.
Engadget: I’m not fond of 3D (read Dvorak: 3D Bad For Your Eyes), but if you’re a fan, LG has announced the XNOTE A510, a 15.6-inch 3D notebook PC. The 15.6-inch LCD sports a 1920×1080 pixel format powered by NVIDIA’s GeForce GT 425M with 1GB. Polarized 3D glasses are included and if you already wear glasses there’s even a pair of clip-on 3D lenses. TriDef 2D-to-3D conversion software is included. Other specs include: HDMI 1.4 port, Blu-ray drive, fingerprint reader. The A510 will be available in October.
New Meadowlands Stadium: Home to both the New York Giants and the New York Jets, the New Meadowlands Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, packs 2200 HD video displays located throughout and powered by Cisco’s StadiumVision digital video and content distribution system. Verizon teamed up with Cisco to provide 34 channels of customized HD content.
Here’s the skinny on RIM’s PlayBook:
Engadget: The folks at RIM is touting the PlayBook’s multimedia and gaming functions. I’m not sure if that’s the right direction for RIM. The name is all wrong. BlackBerry and gaming or even multimedia don’t fit very well. Think of the target audience. Who is it? Most BlackBerry toting folks are not into gaming. I would seriously doubt enterprise customers will be interested in a packaged deal including the PlayBook. I do understand the threat RIM is experiencing from Apple’s continued growth with its iPad but I think RIM should have stuck with its core competency and its main customers with the direction of its tablet.
There is one ‘business’ feature that’s unique: the PlayBook has the ability to display what’s on your BlackBerry on the larger 7-inch LCD via Bluetooth. Availability is slated for early 2011. And so is the next-gen iPad. Early 2011 will be very interesting. Unfortunately, the PlayBook seems to be WiFi only at the moment but 3G and 4G models are coming in the future according to RIM.
DigiTimes: Pegatron Technology is expected to commence volume manufacturing of the rumored CDMA iPhone 4 in November. From November to December, Pegatron should produce 3-4 million units and then up to 10 million by mid-2011.
LaCie: The LaCie 324i is a 24-inch IPS LCD monitor sporting a 10-bit P-IPS TFT LCD panel with a pixel format of 1920×1200. In addition the 324i has an anti-glare coating that should greatly improve the viewing experience. Three USB 2.0 ports are onboard with an integrated cable manager, which you’ll need for all those cables.
The LaCie 324i follows tradition and requires a heft upfront investment of US$1249.99. If your budget allows there are hood and blue eye colorimeter options. The IPS LCD Monitor Database has been updated with the LaCie 324i.
DisplayBlog is written and produced by Jin Kim. Subscribe via RSS.