Digital Camera News and Reviews

Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 35-100mm f/2.0

DIWA Labs has tested the Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 35-100mm f/2.0 lens. This lens is a part of the high grade lens series from Olympus and it has an impressive f/2.0 across the zoom range.
The tests of the Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 35-100mm f/2.0 lens were done on the professional Olympus E-3 DSLR camera body.

DIWA Labs states that this Olympus lens is an excellent optical performer.
Read all the tests of the Olympus Zuiko Digital ED 35-100mm f/2.0 lens here.
The tests done by DIWA Labs are very technical so you need to read their test guide to understand the test results.

Panasonic HDC-TM300

Among the camcorders that Panasonic announced at CES 2009 we find the HDC-TM300. It is able to record full HD 1920×1080 and has a 32 GB built-in hard drive. The camcorder also contain technology that make it able to switch seamlessly to
a SDHC memory card when the built-in hard drive is full.

Some key features for the Panasonic HDC-TM300:
-32GB Built-In Memory and SD card slot
-Full HD 1920×1080 Recording
-Manual ring
-Electrical viewfinder
-3MOS camcorder System
-10.6 Megapixel Still Images

The Panasonic HDC-TM300 camcorder will sell for about $1299.95.

Information from Panasonic:
Full HD Camcorder with 3MOS Sensor and Manual Operation Recording On SD Card and Internal Memory

The TM300 is a twin memory model that records Full HD images either on its 32GB internal flash memory or an SD (or SDHC) Memory Card. A 32-GB SDHC Memory Card can hold around 12 hours of recorded video clips (in HE mode). The TM300 can copy recorded video images from the SD Memory Card to the internal memory, or vice versa, with easy operation.

The TM300 features the Full HD 3MOS sensor, developed by Panasonic based on its proven 3CCD technology. Panasonic’s new 3MOS system captures more vibrant, true-to-life colours, greater detail and richer gradation.

The iA function automatically activates several convenient shooting functions. These include Advanced O.I.S., which compensates for hand-shake to eliminate blurring; Face Detection, which adjusts the exposure so faces are captured perfectly; and Intelligent Contrast Control, which helps ensure proper contrast. Also included is the Intelligent Scene Selector, which determines the shooting conditions and automatically selects the scene setting that will provide optimal results. (Face/Scenery/Low light/Spot Light) And AF Tracking keeps the subject in focus even if it moves around to ensure continuously perfect image quality.

The Manual Ring is provided for users who want more creative freedom in their image production. with the new HDC-TM300 users can enjoy precise, responsive fingertip control over five key settings — zoom, focus, iris, shutter speed, and white balance.

Image sensor size has been increased from previous 1/6 inch to 1/4.1 inch. 3MOS system with 3 full-HD sensors has total pixel count of 9,150,000 pixels* (3,050,000-pixel x 3). While higher pixel count tends to make noise more noticeable when shooting under dim light conditions, HDC-TM300 solves this problem by using 3 high-sensitivity MOS sensors. It records beautiful images even under dim lighting while maintaining high pixel count, thus making it possible to shoot under minimum luminance of 1.6 lx. * Effective motion image pixels: 6,210,000

Kodak EasyShare M1093 IS

Digital Camera resource page has reviewed the budget 10 megapixel Kodak EasyShare M1093 IS digital camera that also offer image stabilization and 3x optical zoom.

Some key features for the Kodak EasyShare M1093 IS:
-10 megapixel sensor
-3x optical zoom (35 – 105 mm)
-3″ LCD screen
-Optical image stabilization
-HD movie mode

Digital Camera resource page ends up giving the Kodak EasyShare M1093 IS camera not the best review. You get quite a lot for the price that the camera costs, but there are a few shortcomings like noise reduction that make the pictures look not so good, no manual controls and poor video mode.
Read the full review of the Kodak EasyShare M1093 IS camera here.

Panasonic SDR-SW21

At CES 2009 Panasonic a wide range of new camcorders. Among them we find the Panasonic HDC-HS300 camcorder, a HD camcorder with 120GB built-in hard drive that can store up to 50 hours of video.

Some key features for the Panasonic HDC-HS300:
-Full HD 1920×1080 Recording
-120GB HDD and SD card slot
-Manual ring
-Electrical viewfinder
-10.6 Megapixel Still Images

The Panasonic HDC-HS300 camcorder will be available from 2009 for about $1,399.95.

Information from Panasonic:
120GB Full HD SD/HDD Hybrid Camcorder with 3MOS Sensor System and Manual Operation

The HDC-HS300 is a hybrid camcorder that records Full HD images either on an SD (or SDHC) Memory Card or the built-in 120GB hard disk drive. A 32-GB SDHC Memory Card can hold around 12 hours of recorded video clips (in HE mode). The HDC-HS300 camcorder can copy recorded video images from the SD Memory Card to the hard disk, or vice versa, with easy operation.

The HDC-HS300 camcorder features the Full HD 3MOS sensor, developed by Panasonic based on its proven 3CCD technology. The Panasonic 3MOS sensor system captures more vibrant, true-to-life colours, greater detail and richer gradation.

The iA function automatically activates several convenient shooting functions. These include Advanced O.I.S., which compensates for hand-shake to eliminate blurring; Face Detection, which adjusts the exposure so faces are captured perfectly; and Intelligent Contrast Control, which helps ensure proper contrast. Also included is the Intelligent Scene Selector, which determines the shooting conditions and automatically selects the scene setting that will provide optimal results.

The Manual Ring is provided for users who want more creative freedom in their image production. with the HDC-HS300 camcorder users can enjoy precise, responsive fingertip control over five key settings — zoom, focus, iris, shutter speed, and white balance.

Image sensor size has been increased from previous 1/6 inch to 1/4.1 inch. 3MOS system with 3 full-HD sensors has total pixel count of 9,150,000 pixels* (3,050,000-pixel x 3). While higher pixel count tends to make noise more noticeable when shooting under dim light conditions, HDC-HS300 solves this problem by using 3 high-sensitivity MOS sensors. It records beautiful images even under dim lighting while maintaining high pixel count, thus making it possible to shoot under minimum luminance of 1.6 lx. * Effective motion image pixels: 6,210,000