22.20
Senin, 31 Oktober 2011
Acer outs AZ3, AZ5, Veriton Z Series all-in-ones, starting at $650
iPhone jailbreak: Siri hack could cancel your upgrade
New iPhone jailbreak workarounds are released as often as iOS updates, but Friday’s news that an untethered jailbreak for the iPhone 4S had been achieved is unquestionably the most devastating blow to Scott Forstall’s mobile division since the humiliating jailbreakme.com arrived on the scene for iOS 4 devices last August.
In fact, in light of a coder getting Siri on an iPhone 4 connecting to Apple’s servers, it could be even worse. For the first time, your average user may have a real, compelling reason to jailbreak their iPhone 4 – and not buy another for years.
Over the weekend, Apple suffered two major setbacks. On Friday, the first video evidence of an untethered iPhone jailbreak for iOS 5 emerged. Jailbreaking allows you to run apps that have not been approved by Apple, and untethered jailbreaks are more suitable for public release, as they don’t require your iPhone to be plugged into a computer on restart every time.
That was shortly followed by another major breakthrough: a developer had not only managed to get the iPhone 4S exclusive Siri voice assistant running on an older iPhone 4 and iPod touch, they had got it to connect to Apple’s servers (the whole point of Siri, and the previous stumbling block for hackers) and return voice queries as normal. As you can see in the video below, it works flawlessly:
Until now, it’s been generally assumed that the reason Siri wasn’t rolled out to older devices such as the iPhone 4 was the need for the dual-core A5 processor. As this video demonstrates, with jailbroken devices that’s far from the case. “The Siri software needs to cache data, needs to access a big dataset at wide bandwidth and needs a big processor to crunch all of the numbers,” Norman Winarsky, an academic who helped assemble the Siri team told 9to5Mac this month.
Clearly, the iPhone 4′s A4 processor is big enough. It’s all about the upsell though, and Apple needs to provide enough reasons for customers to upgrade (some would argue understandably, given it’s the world’s second largest business and owes its shareholders a responsibility): in the case of the iPhone 4S, Siri is unquestionably it.
That’s why however, a new iPhone jailbreak could be devastating for Apple. With each successive release of iOS, Apple’s removed a reason to jailbreak, be it multi-tasking, Wi-Fi hotspot sharing or unobtrusive notifications – but Siri could have people queuing up outside the virtual doors of Cydia once again.
The company is gearing up for its biggest quarter ever: pundits are predicting it could make as much as $40bn (£25bn) between now and January. A large part of that potential market will be current iPhone owners upgrading and hoping for a shiny new iPhone 4S under the tree – indeed, market analyst Horace Dediu estimates that there are as many as 70million iPhone 4 owners out there. If a simple way to jailbreak your iPhone hits before then, combined with an easy to use Siri hack, that could take every single iPhone 4 owner off the market.
An iPhone jailbreak would cease to be a niche need for power users, and instead bring a headline feature of the iPhone 4S back a generation (and it’s by no means clear that Siri won’t run on an iPhone 3GS either). At at least £500 per iPhone 4S, that could translate to a £35 billion pound problem for Apple.
Now to be clear, jailbreaking devices is far from a bad thing. Microsoft has worked closely withe Windows Phone jail breakers to provide software for hobbyists to run homebrew apps. In the case of the iPhone, a US court even ruled it legal. End user license agreements (EULAs) stating otherwise are about as valid as an IOU from the Greek government. Why shouldn’t you be allowed to install what you like on what you paid for?
Though a public iPhone jailbreak for iOS 5 is surely inevitable, it’s also by no means clear that this Siri hack will be made public: the hacker in question says it’s a messy 20 step process right now, and he “could not be a part of” releasing it on Cydia. But as the likes of the iPhone Dev Team and Comex have proved time and time again, what you can never do is assume Apple’s security measures will prevail.
While the iPhone jailbreak scene has been an unspoken source of inspiration for Cupertino for years, this time round, it might just come back to bite its bottom line.
What do you think? Would you hack your iPhone 4 to run Siri and eschew the iPhone 4S? Pipe up with your thoughts in the comments below.
Image credit: 9to5Mac
In fact, in light of a coder getting Siri on an iPhone 4 connecting to Apple’s servers, it could be even worse. For the first time, your average user may have a real, compelling reason to jailbreak their iPhone 4 – and not buy another for years.
Over the weekend, Apple suffered two major setbacks. On Friday, the first video evidence of an untethered iPhone jailbreak for iOS 5 emerged. Jailbreaking allows you to run apps that have not been approved by Apple, and untethered jailbreaks are more suitable for public release, as they don’t require your iPhone to be plugged into a computer on restart every time.
That was shortly followed by another major breakthrough: a developer had not only managed to get the iPhone 4S exclusive Siri voice assistant running on an older iPhone 4 and iPod touch, they had got it to connect to Apple’s servers (the whole point of Siri, and the previous stumbling block for hackers) and return voice queries as normal. As you can see in the video below, it works flawlessly:
Until now, it’s been generally assumed that the reason Siri wasn’t rolled out to older devices such as the iPhone 4 was the need for the dual-core A5 processor. As this video demonstrates, with jailbroken devices that’s far from the case. “The Siri software needs to cache data, needs to access a big dataset at wide bandwidth and needs a big processor to crunch all of the numbers,” Norman Winarsky, an academic who helped assemble the Siri team told 9to5Mac this month.
Clearly, the iPhone 4′s A4 processor is big enough. It’s all about the upsell though, and Apple needs to provide enough reasons for customers to upgrade (some would argue understandably, given it’s the world’s second largest business and owes its shareholders a responsibility): in the case of the iPhone 4S, Siri is unquestionably it.
That’s why however, a new iPhone jailbreak could be devastating for Apple. With each successive release of iOS, Apple’s removed a reason to jailbreak, be it multi-tasking, Wi-Fi hotspot sharing or unobtrusive notifications – but Siri could have people queuing up outside the virtual doors of Cydia once again.
The company is gearing up for its biggest quarter ever: pundits are predicting it could make as much as $40bn (£25bn) between now and January. A large part of that potential market will be current iPhone owners upgrading and hoping for a shiny new iPhone 4S under the tree – indeed, market analyst Horace Dediu estimates that there are as many as 70million iPhone 4 owners out there. If a simple way to jailbreak your iPhone hits before then, combined with an easy to use Siri hack, that could take every single iPhone 4 owner off the market.
An iPhone jailbreak would cease to be a niche need for power users, and instead bring a headline feature of the iPhone 4S back a generation (and it’s by no means clear that Siri won’t run on an iPhone 3GS either). At at least £500 per iPhone 4S, that could translate to a £35 billion pound problem for Apple.
Now to be clear, jailbreaking devices is far from a bad thing. Microsoft has worked closely withe Windows Phone jail breakers to provide software for hobbyists to run homebrew apps. In the case of the iPhone, a US court even ruled it legal. End user license agreements (EULAs) stating otherwise are about as valid as an IOU from the Greek government. Why shouldn’t you be allowed to install what you like on what you paid for?
Though a public iPhone jailbreak for iOS 5 is surely inevitable, it’s also by no means clear that this Siri hack will be made public: the hacker in question says it’s a messy 20 step process right now, and he “could not be a part of” releasing it on Cydia. But as the likes of the iPhone Dev Team and Comex have proved time and time again, what you can never do is assume Apple’s security measures will prevail.
While the iPhone jailbreak scene has been an unspoken source of inspiration for Cupertino for years, this time round, it might just come back to bite its bottom line.
What do you think? Would you hack your iPhone 4 to run Siri and eschew the iPhone 4S? Pipe up with your thoughts in the comments below.
Image credit: 9to5Mac
Acer introduces AZ5 and AZ3 all-in-one PCs
This week Acer reveals two new all-in-one computers, the AZ5 Series with a 23-inch HD monitor and the AZ3 Series with a slightly smaller HD monitor at 21-inches, both computers featuring full touchscreen capabilities. Both series have several hardware options for processors, speakers, and storage, and contain a selection of software offered exclusively with Acer devices. You’ll notice that these AIOs look rather similar to one another – that’s because they’re meant to be part of a single release. Not that you’ll want both the 23 and the 21 inch machine, but know now that you’ll get essentially the same look either way.
Both series are made to center around the idea that the touch display is the place for the organization and exploration of sets of media like images and music as well as “browsing online recipes and viewing social networking sites,” as senior business manager of consumer desktops for Acer Irene Chan puts it. The “quick, finger-tip control” seems custom fit for the upcoming large-scale release of Windows 7, an operating system that relies heavily on the idea that it’ll be used on devices with touch-sensitive displays.
The Acer AZ5 is, again, a 23-inch multi-touch display having all-in-one desktop series that comes complete with two 2.5W built-in stereo speakers with Dolby Home Theater audio, 4GB DDR3 memory, and processor options that include no less than a Intel Core i3-2120 processor, topped off with a 1TB hard drive to store everything you hold dear in this digital world. For software this Acer machine offers clear.fi for media storage and management, this application automatically syncing will all of your other Acer devices with the same software, this including smartphones, notebooks, desktops, storage devices, and multimedia players.
The Acer AZ3 is the smaller of the two choices here at 21-inches with the same HD multitouch panel technology, this time backed up by some similar, but not the same, gear on the inside. There’s the same two 2.5W stereo speakers optimized by Dolby Home Theater audio, one 500GB 7200RPM SATA hard drive for plenty of storage of all your goodies, some utterly lovely AMD Radeon HD6410D Graphics to play all your media all night long, and a AMD Dual-Core A4-3400 Accelerated Processor (at 2.7GHz, 1MB total L2 cache) to run it all.
Each of the two models here has a 1.3-megapixel front-facing webcam plus microphone for video chat, two USB 3.0 ports on the side, and four USB 2.0 ports on the back. Both units have a multi-in-one digital media card reader, and both come with an adjustable back stand as well as 802.11b/g/n Wi-fi. Both also have a standard wireless keyboard and wireless mouse so you’re set to go right out of the box.
Both the AZ% and the AZ3 come with Windows Home Premium 64-bit, a one-year warranty, and the following prices: $749.99 for the AZ5 and $649.99 for the AZ3, both of these prices of course being MSRP – check your local retailer for the final true price.
Canon PowerShot SX40 HS review
TrustedReviews says
Design and Comfort
Getting serious about photography is not a cheap endeavour. Buying a basic DSLR setup isn’t so painful, with decent models like the Nikon D3100 now available for under £400. But once you start adding the cost of the additional lenses needed for anything approaching all-purpose flexibility, you can expect to spend at least double that. If this is beyond your budget, then the Canon SX40 HS could be worth a look. It’s a super zoom bridge camera that gives you a hugely flexible focal range and plenty of potential for manual control – if not quite DSLR-rivalling image quality.
The Canon SX40 HS represents a significant upgrade over its predecessor, the SX30. It offers much faster performance, full HD video recording and improved light sensitivity for improved low-light performance. The effective resolution of the SX40's sensor is lower at 12.1 megapixels (instead of 14.1), but the sensor type has changed to a 1/2.3in CMOS type instead of the CCD type used in the SX30. Fingers crossed, this should result in better image quality. We’ll find out whether it does later.
The build hasn’t changed drastically, however. The Canon SX40 is made of hard matt black plastic, and while it doesn’t feel quite as immaculately constructed as one of Canon’s metal-bodied cameras, like the 60D or G12, it is tough and creak-free.
Some care and attention has gone into making it feel great in-hand too. The front side of the right hand grip has a lightly rubberised finish, giving it greater friction than the rest of the body, which is otherwise very smooth. Although smaller than standard SLR size, this hand grip feels comfortable and gives you a good sense of mastery over the camera’s position for one-handed shooting. It also gives you confidence that you’re not going to drop it.
The flip-up flash mechanism is wholly manual. No springs here.
There’s a thumb rest on the back too that's textured with embossed dots, giving the SX40 a bit of added purchase. If you’re used to handling a compact camera rather than a DSLR, the Canon SX40 will feel pretty chunky - it’s a lot bulkier than a regular compact. In fact, the SX40 is closer in size to the Olympus E-420, a bonafide DSLR, than it is a regular ultracompact. Of course, if you’re happy to carry around your camera in a rucksack rather than a pocket, “man bag” or handbag, then this needn’t be a problem.
On its right edge is a flap covering the miniUSB and mini HDMI ports. The latter is noteworthy because it’s CEC-compatible, meaning you can control your camera using a TV remote using it – all the better to bore your nearest and dearest with.
The Canon SX40 HS represents a significant upgrade over its predecessor, the SX30. It offers much faster performance, full HD video recording and improved light sensitivity for improved low-light performance. The effective resolution of the SX40's sensor is lower at 12.1 megapixels (instead of 14.1), but the sensor type has changed to a 1/2.3in CMOS type instead of the CCD type used in the SX30. Fingers crossed, this should result in better image quality. We’ll find out whether it does later.
The build hasn’t changed drastically, however. The Canon SX40 is made of hard matt black plastic, and while it doesn’t feel quite as immaculately constructed as one of Canon’s metal-bodied cameras, like the 60D or G12, it is tough and creak-free.
Some care and attention has gone into making it feel great in-hand too. The front side of the right hand grip has a lightly rubberised finish, giving it greater friction than the rest of the body, which is otherwise very smooth. Although smaller than standard SLR size, this hand grip feels comfortable and gives you a good sense of mastery over the camera’s position for one-handed shooting. It also gives you confidence that you’re not going to drop it.
The flip-up flash mechanism is wholly manual. No springs here.
There’s a thumb rest on the back too that's textured with embossed dots, giving the SX40 a bit of added purchase. If you’re used to handling a compact camera rather than a DSLR, the Canon SX40 will feel pretty chunky - it’s a lot bulkier than a regular compact. In fact, the SX40 is closer in size to the Olympus E-420, a bonafide DSLR, than it is a regular ultracompact. Of course, if you’re happy to carry around your camera in a rucksack rather than a pocket, “man bag” or handbag, then this needn’t be a problem.
On its right edge is a flap covering the miniUSB and mini HDMI ports. The latter is noteworthy because it’s CEC-compatible, meaning you can control your camera using a TV remote using it – all the better to bore your nearest and dearest with.
Panasonic Lumix GX1 Micro Four Thirds camera surfaces in leaked photos
Panasonic just launched a whole new series of Micro Four Thirds lenses a couple of months ago, and it looks like it might soon also have a new Micro Four Thirds camera to take advantage of them. That photo you see above recently turned up on the Mobile01 forums with a bundle of others, showing a hereto unannounced Panasonic Lumix GX1 MFT camera, which looks like it could be a true successor to the GF1 (as opposed to the GF2 and GF3 that moved in a less pro-minded direction). Rumored specs remain a bit light, but the camera apparently has a touchscreen display 'round back, which will likely see a fair bit of use unless you opt for an external EVF. It's also suggested that the camera will be launching soon -- on November 8th -- although that's obviously yet to be confirmed.
[Thanks, Amin]
[Thanks, Amin]
Win A Nikon COOLPIX S6200 Digital Camera
This month, ePHOTOzine have 5 COOLPIX S6200 cameras to give away in our photography competition, courtesy of Nikon. To be in with a chance of winning, simply submit a photo that fits the theme 'In The Dark'.
You have until midnight on the 30th November 2011 to enter up to two shots. Visit the Nikon 'In The Dark' Competition Page now to enter.
Good luck!
Don't forget about our other exclusive competitions where you could win a Dell XPS- L502x laptop and a Manfrotto Photo Travel Kit. Visit our competition section for more information.
You have until midnight on the 30th November 2011 to enter up to two shots. Visit the Nikon 'In The Dark' Competition Page now to enter.
Good luck!
Don't forget about our other exclusive competitions where you could win a Dell XPS- L502x laptop and a Manfrotto Photo Travel Kit. Visit our competition section for more information.
Skull MP3 Player II makes for good Halloween decorations
If you’re planning on holding a Halloween party in your house, why not keep to theme of things and pump scary music through the Skull MP3 Player II by Brando? For those who follow Brando’s products, the Skull MP3 Player II is the successor to the Skull MP3 Player, which featured a more futuristic look with its light-up eyes and everything.
The Skull MP3 Player II however looks more retro/vintage, and should look pretty good amongst the rest of your Halloween decorations. It features a USB port and an SD card slot, and will be able to read both MP3 and WMA audio files directly off your USB devices or SD(HC)/MMC memory card.
For those who prefer the selection from their MP3 players, not to worry as the Skull MP3 Player II will also sport a 3.5mm stereo audio connector, which will basically allow you to connect your MP3 player, smartphone, tablet, laptop or computer to it. For those interested, the Skull MP3 Player II will set you back $43 and will be available from Brando’s website.
Siri hacked to work on iPhone 4 and iPod touch 4G
When Apple unveiled the iPhone 4S on October 4, Siri was seen as the new iDevice's biggest selling point and a major carrot to encourage iPhone 4 owners to upgrade. Although Siri originally appeared in the App Store in early 2010 before being acquired by Apple, the assumption was that the new version integrated into iOS 5 relied on the faster processor found in the iPhone 4S for Siri to work her voice recognition magic. Developer Steven Troughton-Smith and Grant Paul have proven that is not the case by not only getting Siri working on an iPhone 4, but also an iPod touch 4G.
Having previously succeeded in porting the Siri interface and some iPhone 4S code onto a jailbroken iPhone 4, Troughton-Smith and Paul have now managed to get the Siri port to communicate with Apple's servers to provide full Siri voice command functionality. The pair accomplished their feat by using software authentication tokens from a jailbroken iPhone 4S to trick Apple's servers into thinking an iPhone 4 and an iPod touch 4G were actually an iPhone 4S.
The only feature Troughton-Smith and Paul were unable to implement was the "raise to speak" feature that sees Siri activated when the phone is raised to your ear. This is apparently due to the fact that the feature relies on the new gyroscope found in the 4S.
In an interview with 9to5mac, Troughton-Smith says he has no plans to make Siri available for non-supported devices through the release of a specific jailbreak tool on Cydia or other jailbreak stores. While he admits others will likely do so, he is cautious of opening himself up to legal action by modifying and distributing files taken from an iPhone 4S. It won't stop him continuing his work, however, as he now plans to see whether he can make Siri run on an iPhone 3GS.
Whether this prompts Apple to make Siri available for devices other than the iPhone 4S remains to be seen. It can't make the argument that Siri requires the faster processor found in the 4S and Troughton-Smith and Paul aren't the only ones working on a way to get Siri onto unsupported devices.
In Apple's defense, Siri on the iPhone 4S is a beta release - sure, one that garnered a lot of attention and presumably played a part in the iPhone 4S being the company's most successful iPhone launch yet - but a beta release nonetheless. This means there's still a chance that Apple will bring some Siri love to owners of other devices once Siri has proven itself on the 4S. We'll just have to wait and see and hold our cynicism in check until then.
Having previously succeeded in porting the Siri interface and some iPhone 4S code onto a jailbroken iPhone 4, Troughton-Smith and Paul have now managed to get the Siri port to communicate with Apple's servers to provide full Siri voice command functionality. The pair accomplished their feat by using software authentication tokens from a jailbroken iPhone 4S to trick Apple's servers into thinking an iPhone 4 and an iPod touch 4G were actually an iPhone 4S.
The only feature Troughton-Smith and Paul were unable to implement was the "raise to speak" feature that sees Siri activated when the phone is raised to your ear. This is apparently due to the fact that the feature relies on the new gyroscope found in the 4S.
In an interview with 9to5mac, Troughton-Smith says he has no plans to make Siri available for non-supported devices through the release of a specific jailbreak tool on Cydia or other jailbreak stores. While he admits others will likely do so, he is cautious of opening himself up to legal action by modifying and distributing files taken from an iPhone 4S. It won't stop him continuing his work, however, as he now plans to see whether he can make Siri run on an iPhone 3GS.
Whether this prompts Apple to make Siri available for devices other than the iPhone 4S remains to be seen. It can't make the argument that Siri requires the faster processor found in the 4S and Troughton-Smith and Paul aren't the only ones working on a way to get Siri onto unsupported devices.
In Apple's defense, Siri on the iPhone 4S is a beta release - sure, one that garnered a lot of attention and presumably played a part in the iPhone 4S being the company's most successful iPhone launch yet - but a beta release nonetheless. This means there's still a chance that Apple will bring some Siri love to owners of other devices once Siri has proven itself on the 4S. We'll just have to wait and see and hold our cynicism in check until then.
Jumat, 28 Oktober 2011
Sony and Ericsson get a divorce
It lasted ten years but now it's over: Sony and Ericsson are breaking up their Sony will keep the mobile operations, paying Ericsson $1.5 billion in cash for its share. The move means Sony will get some of Ericsson's handset patents, which could result in some interesting new products and online content, according to ZDnet. Sony will now have the means to merge smartphone technology into some of its wider range products, including computers and TVs.
Once the deal closes in January 2012, Ericsson will focus on selling wireless equipment for businesses, taking a step back from consumer goods.
Sony Ericsson initially joined forces to take advantage of Sony's experience with consumer electronics and Ericsson's skills in radio technologies. Now the shift in the mobile market towards smartphones means the synergies for the company in having both a telecoms services portfolio and a handset operation have decreased, Ericsson said in a statement:
"Ten years ago when we formed the joint venture, thereby combining Sony's consumer products knowledge with Ericsson's telecommunication technology expertise, it was a perfect match to drive the development of feature phones. Today we take an equally logical step as Sony acquires our stake in Sony Ericsson and makes it a part of its broad range of consumer devices."
Apple’s secret Kinect plans revealed
Apple pioneered touchscreen gesture control on a mobile with the iPhone, but according to a newly discovered patent application, it’s looking to take that screen out of the equation, letting you issue orders to your iOS devices with a wave of your hand. Sounds more than a bit like Kinect to us.
Video editors were up in arms at Final Cut Pro X’s drastic UI revamp, so they’re definitely not going to like the plans outlined in “Real Time Video Process Control Using Gestures”, unearthed by AppleInsider this week.
The patent application is primarily about using one touchscreen device to film, while applying processing, editing commands and filters to it on another device, as the video is streamed to it in realtime over Bluetooth.
What’s most interesting though is the suggestion that these gestures needn’t be touchscreen based. “Other embodiments describe hand gestures in either two or three dimensions that can be sensed by the video capture device using IR sensors, optical sensors” reads the application, attributed to Benjamin A Rottler and Michael Ingrassia Jr I.
Could a future iPhone use its front facing camera to detect your movements? Could that rumoured Apple HD TV make use of similar technology to control what you’re watching? We can but dream. Microsoft’s Kinect is fantastic, and we’ve always said its greatest potential is outside of gaming. Here’s hoping Apple adopts natural body language as well as natural language for controlling its next gen tech.
(via AppleInsider)
Samsung Galaxy Nexus coming 17 November, for £550
Android fans have only three weeks to wait until the first phone running Ice Cream Sandwich touches down. Amazon is listing the Samsung Galaxy Nexus as due to be released on 17 November, Engadget reports, and it'll cost £550 SIM-free. That's the same day initially announced for the Samsung Galaxy Note, though since then an online retailer popped up to say it'll actually be shipping as early as Tuesday next week. So many new phones, so little time.
Previously all we knew was the Galaxy Nexus would be coming to O2 "in November," but this date, confirmed by Samsung, means we can put the day in the diary. You can pre-order it now from the Amazon page, contract free. As well as O2, it'll also be coming to Vodafone and Three.
The Galaxy Nexus packs a mammoth 4.65-inch Super AMOLED screen, dual-core 1.2GHz processor, 32GB of storage, and a 1,750mAh battery. NFC tech also lets you communicate wirelessly with other handsets. Plug in a USB controller, hook the phone up to the TV via an HDMI cable, and it doubles as a games console, letting you play games on the big screen.
Ice Cream Sandwich brings a bundle of new features to Android handsets, including the ability to unlock your phone using face recognition, resize widgets on the homescreens, and file apps in folders, just like the iPhone. Also like the iPhone, you can take screengrabs from the handset.
Have you put in your pre-order? Or are you waiting for the network deals? Maybe you're quite happy with your iPhone 4S, thank you very much? Or is it a new Nokia you've got your eye on? Let us know on our Facebook page
Samsung tops Apple in global smartphone sales
Samsung has overtaken Apple in worldwide smartphone sales in Q3 2011. According to researchers Strategy Analytics, the South Korean company sold more than 10 million more devices than its nearest rival in the period from July to September.
With no new handset on sale, and customers tired of waiting for the iPhone 4S, Apple shifted 17.1 million devices globally in that quarter, giving it a 14.6 per cent market share, while Samsung sold 27.8 million smartphones, commanding a massive 23.8 per cent market.
Surprisingly, perhaps, Nokia was the third biggest smartphone supplier in Q3. Its sale were just shy of Apple's at 16.8 million, giving the Finnish company a 14.4 per cent share of the smartphone market, even before the Lumia 800, its first Windows Phone 7 handset, was announced.
The rest of the mobile phone manufacturers, including HTC, LG and Motorola, sold 55.3 million smartphones between them.
In total handset sales, including feature phones, Apple also fell behind, with Nokia topping the list with 27 per cent of the market, Samsung second with 22.6 per cent, LG third with 5.4 per cent, and Chinese manufacturer ZTE pipping the Cupertino giant with 4.7 per cent. With no new handset on offer, Apple only held 4.4 per cent worldwide market share.
Of course, not only will the successful launch of the iPhone 4S (more pre-orders than ever before) alter the landscape for Q4, but it must be remembered that Apple only releases one new device a year, while Samsung, while bolstered by excellent sales for the Galaxy S II, has many on the market, at a range of price points.
Perhaps the most surprising thing, therefore, is the absence of HTC in the top three.
What do you think is the reason behind Apple's slight dip? And why is HTC missing? Let us know in the comments below...
Via: bbc.co.uk
Kamis, 27 Oktober 2011
Nokia Lumia 710
Nokia Lumia 710 Windows Phone : Nokia has introduced Nokia Lumia Smartphones and new accessories at the Nokia World Event in London. The affordable Nokia Lumia 710 Windows Phone is a no-nonsense smartphone that brings the Nokia Lumia experience to more people around the world. The purposely built, no-nonsense Nokia Lumia 710 Windows Phone can be personalized with exchangeable back covers and useful apps to bring the Nokia Lumia experience to more people around the world. The Nokia Lumia Smartphone is designed for instant social media and image sharing, and the best mobile browsing experience with Internet Explorer 9. The Nokia Lumia Windows Phone is equipped with a 1.4 GHz processor, hardware acceleration and graphics processor.
Nokia Lumia 710 Windows Phone
The Nokia Lumia 710 smartphone include signature Nokia experiences optimized for Windows Phone, including Nokia Drive, which delivers a full-fledged personal navigation device (PND) with free, turn-by-turn GPS navigation and dedicated in-car-user-interface; and Nokia Music introducing MixRadio, a free music streaming app that delivers hundreds of channels of locally-relevant music. In an update delivered later this year, Nokia Lumia smartphone users will also gain the ability to create personalized channels from a global catalogue of millions of music tracks.
Nokia Lumia 710 camera features
• 5 megapixel digital camera
• Large aperture / low F2.2
• Auto focus camera
• Powerful LED flash
• 720p HD video recording at 30FPS
• Panorama photo mode & image effects
• 2 stage key (focus & shoot)
• Anti-shaking technology
• 28mm wide angle lens
• Geotagging
Nokia Lumia Smartphone sales package
• Nokia Lumia 710 Windows Phone
• Nokia AC-10 phone charger
• Nokia CA-190CD charging and data cable
• Nokia WH-208 stereo headset
• Nokia BP-3L battery
Nokia Lumia 710 price & availability
The new Nokia Lumia 710 Windows smartphone is scheduled to be available first in Hong Kong, India, Russia, Singapore and Taiwan toward the end of the year and available in further markets in early 2012. The Nokia Lumia 710 mobile phone carries a retail price of approximately € 270 Euro excluding taxes and subsidies. The Nokia Lumia 710 will be available in black and white with black, white, cyan, fuchsia and yellow back covers.
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Nokia Lumia 710 Windows Phone
The Nokia Lumia 710 smartphone include signature Nokia experiences optimized for Windows Phone, including Nokia Drive, which delivers a full-fledged personal navigation device (PND) with free, turn-by-turn GPS navigation and dedicated in-car-user-interface; and Nokia Music introducing MixRadio, a free music streaming app that delivers hundreds of channels of locally-relevant music. In an update delivered later this year, Nokia Lumia smartphone users will also gain the ability to create personalized channels from a global catalogue of millions of music tracks.
Nokia Lumia 710 camera features
• 5 megapixel digital camera
• Large aperture / low F2.2
• Auto focus camera
• Powerful LED flash
• 720p HD video recording at 30FPS
• Panorama photo mode & image effects
• 2 stage key (focus & shoot)
• Anti-shaking technology
• 28mm wide angle lens
• Geotagging
Nokia Lumia Smartphone sales package
• Nokia Lumia 710 Windows Phone
• Nokia AC-10 phone charger
• Nokia CA-190CD charging and data cable
• Nokia WH-208 stereo headset
• Nokia BP-3L battery
Nokia Lumia 710 price & availability
The new Nokia Lumia 710 Windows smartphone is scheduled to be available first in Hong Kong, India, Russia, Singapore and Taiwan toward the end of the year and available in further markets in early 2012. The Nokia Lumia 710 mobile phone carries a retail price of approximately € 270 Euro excluding taxes and subsidies. The Nokia Lumia 710 will be available in black and white with black, white, cyan, fuchsia and yellow back covers.
Samsung's SCH-i929 and SCH-W999 dual-screen clamshell get certified in China
Of course, the real star of the show is the SCH-W999, a follow-up to the SCH-W899 of the same dual-screen clamshell form factor. As you can see on the right, on the outside this phone features a 3.5-inch 480 x 800 AMOLED display along with three touch buttons, while on the inside it packs a similar screen plus a physical keypad. Like the i929 above, this funky flip phone is also powered by a MSM8660 chip and supports both GSM and CDMA2000 on China Telecom, though its camera is limited to five megapixels instead. Anyhow, we'd certainly love to get hold of a world-friendly version of this 204 gram beast, so what do you say, Won-Pyo Hong?
TENAA (SCH-i929), (SCH-W999)Canon confirms cameras hit by Thailand floods (update)
Canon has confirmed that its digital camera production will be hit by the Thailand floods because factories supplying key parts have been damaged in the disaster.
The news comes as two Canon inkjet printer factories in central Thailand remain closed, halting production of the company's flagship Pixma Pro-1 printer that was announced on Monday.
Though Canon has not divulged which cameras will be affected, a spokesperson told Amateur Photographer this afternoon: 'While Canon does not have camera manufacturing facilities in Thailand, our parts suppliers have also sustained damage due to the floods which will affect Canon camera production.'
The spokesperson said the firm has established a 'recovery task force' to minimise the impact on customers.
Last month Canon unveiled its PowerShot S100 digital compact (pictured above), which combines a 'high-sensitivity' 12.1-million-pixel CMOS sensor with a Digic 5 image processor.
Last week Canon unwrapped the EOS-1D X (pictured below), an 18.1MP full-frame DSLR designed to replace the EOS-1D Mark IV and EOS-1Ds, Mark III. It is not due to go on sale until next year.
News of the impact of the floods on Canon's camera output first emerged in the firm's financial results, released yesterday. The firm said 'due to the floods in Thailand in this month, the company anticipates delays in production for select [sic] inkjet printer and digital camera products'.
Earlier this month the floods forced Canon Hi-Tech (Thailand) Ltd to shut down two inkjet plants in Ayutthaya, one in Rojana Industrial Estate and one in the Hi-Tech Industrial Estate.
Meanwhile, Canon yesterday told visitors to its Pro Solutions show in London that it expects the Pro-1 printer to be delayed by the floods.
The Pro-1 was originally due to go on sale in November.
However, visitors were told that availability may be pushed back to the end of November or December.
How to Buy an MP3 Player
Even though many of us have ditched our MP3 players in favor of cell phones or tablets that can play our digital music, the dedicated portable media player (PMP) market does still exist. It might not feel like it, though, since Apple's iPod line has evolved dramatically in the ten years since its inception, and enjoys the lion's share of that ever-shrinking market. If you're dead-set on an Apple player, this iPod comparison can help you pick the right one. But an iPod isn't an automatic choice for everyone, and there are still some worthy competitors to consider. Whether you live in the iTunes ecosystem or not, this article will help you choose your ideal PMP.Capacity: Flash Memory or Hard Drive?
While there are few models available these days, hard-disk-based players offer the highest storage capacities. They're ideal if you want to carry all of your media in your pocket, or if you want your player to double as an external hard drive. Most people don't need that much storage, however, and hard-disk players have a serious disadvantage: They're far more fragile than their flash-memory-based counterparts. While Apple still currently offers the iPod line in hard-disk and flash-memory flavors, most other companies have phased out hard-disk devices altogether, though you might still find an older Archos or Creative player from a third-party online retailer. The largest, major-brand flash players available currently top out at 64GB, and have been stuck there for a couple of years, but if they advance to 128GB, it will likely kill the hard-drive player altogether. If you're looking for maximum capacity right now, your best (and possibly only) bet is the 160GB Apple iPod classic.
Design and User Interface
It's not all about how much music or video you can tote, it's about toting the actual device itself. What are you going to use it for? If you want to work out with your player, it's best to look for a smaller model that you can strap to your arm or clip to your shirt. Also, you probably want a more durable player to exercise with. The iPod touch, with its sprawling glass screen, might not survive a drop on the pavement during your morning run. Controls are important, too: Do you want to put some music on your device and just listen? The tiny iPod shuffle will do the trick, offering minimal physical controls and no screen. Or do you want to be able to see what's playing and visually move around the user interface? Then you need a player with a display.
Screen Size and ResolutionIf you plan on watching movies or TV shows, keep in mind that not all players with screens handle video, most notably the iPod nano, which has a tiny one-inch display that only shows album art. If a device does support video, screen size is important. The 3.5-inch 960-by-640-pixel Retina display on the latest iPod touch is stunning—but it's not the only beauty on the block. The Zune HD, which has been discontinued by Microsoft but is still available widely available online, features a super-sharp 3.3-inch 480-by-272 OLED touch screen. Archos players also generally have big, beautiful displays, but as many manufacturers concede to Apple's iPod touch in the premium PMP market, fewer competitors remain, and the focus seems to be shifting instead toward tablets.
File Support
If you own a lot of protected content—be it audio or video—you'll want to make sure the file types you have will work with the player you choose. If you opt for an iPod, you don't have a lot of choice, but there are also file formats common to, ahem, some "sharing" sites that won't play on every device—such as XViD for video, or the audiophile favorite, FLAC, for audio. If you're counting on loading a device up with FLAC files, you'll want to make sure your device actually supports it first. (iPods don't support FLAC, so you'll need to either go a with a different player or first convert your files with a program like XLD.)
Special FeaturesMany MP3 players do a lot more than just play music. The Sony W Series Walkman, for example, builds the player into a pair of high-quality, gym-friendly earphones. The SanDisk Sansa Clip Zip integrates Rhapsody support. And the iPod touch, with its excellent built-in apps and access to another 500,000+ third-party apps and games is basically a mini-computer that happens to play music. Just keep in mind that more features tends to mean a higher price tag, which leads us to...
...The Most Important Part: Price
One feature everyone wants? Affordability. While some players will cost you an arm and a leg (the 64GB iPod touch isn't cheap at $400), inexpensive options abound. And if you do some smart online shopping, you can score a real bargain—even on a discontinued, but perfectly useable, player.
Before you buy an MP3 player, check out our recent reviews. And to amp up your listening experience, ditch those bundled earbuds, and read the Ultimate Headphone Buying Guide.
Sony: We're phasing out feature phones
Sony has revealed that it is to phase out feature phones and concentrate on smartphones in the future. The Japanese giant has very recently announced its acquisition of the Ericsson part of Sony Ericsson, and with the buy out, effect more change than a simple rebranding exercise.
One revelation is that the company will ditch production of feature phones, such as the W995 and, nigh-on, the entire Walkman range of handsets. Speaking at the company's press conference called to announced the merger, Sony's president and CEO, Sir Howard Stringer, revealed all: "We're phasing out feature phones," he said.
Ericsson’s president and CEO, Hans Vestberg, confirmed: "First of all, Sony Ericsson has gone through a big transformation. They will take the decision they need to make for the company to succeed. And I guess it's a question for the company more than for us.
"The answer is 'yes' from the management," he added.
So, it seems as if the new Sony mobile phone brand will be concentrating on Android solely. Or will it?
When asked whether the new arm would consider buying webOS, Sir Howard Stringer replied, "Never say never". Hmmmm...
What do you think of the merger and the news that the company will cease feature phone production? And should it buy webOS? Let us know in the comments below...
Which iPod is Right for You?
It's been ten years since the first iPod hit the scene, with its 5GB hard drive, monochrome display, mechanical scroll wheel, and Mac-only software. Compare that with the current line of players, and it's clear: The iPod has come a long way, baby. Especially when you consider how much the MP3 player market has shrunk in that decade. Apple clearly dominates, and each year, the pool of contenders gets smaller and smaller. The latest casualty: The excellent Zune HD, which Microsoft discontinued earlier this month. Microsoft is instead concentrating its efforts on its mobile phone business. Its Windows Phone 7 handsets integrate Zune features.
Even Apple is of the same mind. Every iPhone and iPad comes with a built-in iPod, and it seems that the company is focusing on those segements of its business. As a result, the stand-alone iPod MP3 player line saw very few updates this year. The most notable change: The top-of-the-line iPod touch got a lower price and an upgrade to iOS 5, Apple's latest mobile OS, which brings a host of new features including iCloud wireless syncing. Oh, and now it comes in white in addition to the standard black.
The iPod nano also dropped in price and gained some very modest interface changes. The middle-sibling player shrunk to the size of a couple of postage stamps last year, and it lost its video capture and playback abilities along the way. There's no more room for a click wheel, so you navigate the nano via its 1.54-inch touch screen, swiping to move between screens, and rotating a finger to switch the display's rotation. The icons are bigger with this year's updates, but you still can't pinch to zoom, like you can on the iPod touch or an iPhone, though. The addition of a clip to the back of the nano (like you'll find on the even-smaller shuffle), along with its integrated Nike+ fitness features, seem to say that Apple is targeting the workout crowd here.
This has left an interesting hole in the iPod lineup: Now, if you want to watch and record video on your iPod, you'll need to cough up at least $199 for an 8GB iPod touch. The lower-end iPod shuffle stays the same, with minimal controls and no screen, while the unassuming iPod classic remains unchanged with its spacious 160GB hard drive and click wheel controls. It also supports video playback, but not video capture, for $249.
Selasa, 25 Oktober 2011
Samsung ST96 Digital Camera Review
The Samsung ST96 was announced in September 2006 along with the WB750. It is available in black with an RRP of £179.99.
High speed shooting mode lets you shoot pictures at up to 10fps, with slow motion video recording at up to 440 frames per second. Magic Frame offers 12 background templates for you to put your face on to make fun pictures. The ST96 can also shoot panoramic images by pressing the shutter and sweeping the camera, no stitching required, Live Panorama allows you to preview your panorama before you shoot it. Also featuring are Face Detection, Face Recognition and Face Tracking.
Adding to the creativity options is Smart Filter 3.0 which offers Cartoon Filter, Cross Filter, Zooming Shots, Ink Painting, Oil Painting, Half-Tone Dot and many more. The ST96 can even shoot 3D images.
Videos are recorded in full 1080p HD at 30fps and features Creative Movie Maker (which lets you combine stills and videos to create a slide show with a soundtrack) and Dual Capture (capture 10 megapixel images whilst recording full HD videos). The camera can be connected via HDMI to a HDTV.
The camera is ready to take pictures within a couple of seconds of switching on and is quick to focus. Where the camera is really let down is when using the flash. It takes 2 or 3 seconds to charge and is very frustrating when you are trying to capture a shot quickly. The camera impresses in continuous shooting mode, with full-sized images taken during testing at 3, 5 and 10 fps.
Noise isn't an issue at ISO 100 but at ISO 200 and ISO 400 there are steady increases in the amount of noise visible. At ISO 800 there is a significant increase in noise and a loss of sharpness in the images. This trend continues through to ISO 1600, but it is only ISO 3200 where there is a big loss in detail and an effect on colour reproduction.
Landscape mode produces image with excellent greens and blues creating very pleasant looking scenes. Portrait mode is excellent at producing images without red-eye with excellent skin tones. Backlight mode has been used in the of the sculpture, with examples of zooming shot and miniature also shown below.
The ST96 has panoramic mode using a sweeping method, either left, right, up or down. Images produced aren't packed with detail but there isn't any misjoined sections or ghosting.
Panoramic | 1/180 sec | f/9.4 | 4.7 mm | ISO 100
The auto white-balance (AWB) setting gives good results, under our incandescent lighting there is a slight orange cast in the image, with the incandescent preset actually giving us a better image. Under the fluorescent lighting there is very little difference whether using the AWB or fluorescent presets.
The ST96 comes with Samsung's new Smart Filter 3.0 mode which has some filters previously seen on Samsung compacts and some interesting new ones such as cartoon mode, examples of which can be seen below.
Value For Money The Samsung ST96 is currently priced at £179.99. There are plenty of cameras with a similar specification available at varying prices such as the Olympus VG-130 at £68.00, Pentax Optio S1 at £78.00, Nikon Coolpix S3100 at £79.00, Fujifilm FinePix Z90 at £89.95, Canon Powershot A3200 IS at £109.00, Samsung SH100 at £144.00 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 at £148.99.
Panoramics taken using sweeping method
Interesting range of filters
Full 1080p HD video recording
Images can be taken during video recording
Impressive high-speed shooting
Excellent colour reproduction
Very small body
Flash takes ages to charge
Current price is high
Samsung ST96 Features
The ST96 has a 14.5 megapixel BSI CMOS sensor, which Samsung claim will work perfectly in low-light situations as BSI sensors are twice as sensitive as conventional CMOS sensors. There is also a 5x optical zoom lens, which is a 35mm equivalent of 26 - 130mm. Dual Image Stabilization helps prevent shake from ruining your shots with a combination of Optical and Digital Image Stabilization. Smart Auto 2.0 with Smart Flash automatically adjusts the camera settings from 16 photo modes and 4 movie modes to capture the best shot possible with minimal input from the user.High speed shooting mode lets you shoot pictures at up to 10fps, with slow motion video recording at up to 440 frames per second. Magic Frame offers 12 background templates for you to put your face on to make fun pictures. The ST96 can also shoot panoramic images by pressing the shutter and sweeping the camera, no stitching required, Live Panorama allows you to preview your panorama before you shoot it. Also featuring are Face Detection, Face Recognition and Face Tracking.
Adding to the creativity options is Smart Filter 3.0 which offers Cartoon Filter, Cross Filter, Zooming Shots, Ink Painting, Oil Painting, Half-Tone Dot and many more. The ST96 can even shoot 3D images.
Videos are recorded in full 1080p HD at 30fps and features Creative Movie Maker (which lets you combine stills and videos to create a slide show with a soundtrack) and Dual Capture (capture 10 megapixel images whilst recording full HD videos). The camera can be connected via HDMI to a HDTV.
Key Features
- 14.5 megapixel Samsung BSI CMOS sensor
- Creative Movie Maker
- Dual Capture (Full HD + 10M still)
- Full HD Recording 1080p
- 26mm wide angle lens and 5x optical zoom
- High Speed Shooting (video + still)
- Panorama Shot (Live/Action)
- Magic Frame
- Smart Filter 3.0
- Dual Image Stabilization
- 3D Photo
- Face Detection, Face Recognition, Face Tracking
- Smart Auto 2.0 with Smart Flash
Samsung ST96 Handling
Samsung make some really small compact cameras and the ST96 is no different, making it the perfect size for carrying around in your pocket. It is made of plastic with two tiny feet on the bottom, meaning the camera leans back when placed on a flat surface, useful if you want to set the self timer and get yourself into the shot. The buttons are typical for a compact camera, with a dedicated one for movie recording. The Fn gets you straight to the available settings for the mode you are in, which you cycle through using the d-pad. Samsung have made the menu system clear and simple to understand and navigate.The camera is ready to take pictures within a couple of seconds of switching on and is quick to focus. Where the camera is really let down is when using the flash. It takes 2 or 3 seconds to charge and is very frustrating when you are trying to capture a shot quickly. The camera impresses in continuous shooting mode, with full-sized images taken during testing at 3, 5 and 10 fps.
Samsung ST96 Performance
The ST96 consistently takes well exposed images with really good colour reproduction. Whether shooting wide or with the lens at its longest length, detail is good in the centre of the images but quite soft in the edges and corners. Generally when shooting with the sun in the shot there isn't any purple fringing but there is occasional lens flare. The lens has a minimum focusing distance of 5cm which is close enough for the camera to be able to take a good macro shot.Samsung ST96 Lens test images
 Wide-angle | 1/180 sec | f/9.4 | 4.7 mm | ISO 100High-Res |  Full optical zoom | 1/750 sec | f/5.9 | 23.5 mm | ISO 100High-Res |
 Digital zoom | 1/350 sec | f/5.9 | 23.5 mm | ISO 100High-Res |  Macro | 1/90 sec | f/3.3 | 4.7 mm | ISO 100High-Res |
Noise isn't an issue at ISO 100 but at ISO 200 and ISO 400 there are steady increases in the amount of noise visible. At ISO 800 there is a significant increase in noise and a loss of sharpness in the images. This trend continues through to ISO 1600, but it is only ISO 3200 where there is a big loss in detail and an effect on colour reproduction.
Samsung ST96 ISO test images
 ISO 100 | 1/6 sec | f/5.1 | 18.8 mmHigh-Res |  ISO 200 | 1/10 sec | f/5.1 | 18.8 mmHigh-Res |  ISO 400 | 1/20 sec | f/5.1 | 18.8 mmHigh-Res |
 ISO 800 | 1/45 sec | f/5.1 | 18.8 mmHigh-Res |  ISO 1600 | 1/90 sec | f/5.1 | 18.8 mmHigh-Res |  ISO 3200 | 1/180 sec | f/5.1 | 18.8 mmHigh-Res |
Landscape mode produces image with excellent greens and blues creating very pleasant looking scenes. Portrait mode is excellent at producing images without red-eye with excellent skin tones. Backlight mode has been used in the of the sculpture, with examples of zooming shot and miniature also shown below.
Samsung ST96 Scene modes
 Landscape | 1/750 sec | f/3.5 | 5.5 mm | ISO 100High-Res |  Landscape with building | 1/125 sec | f/9.4 | 4.7 mm | ISO 100High-Res |
 Portrait | 1/45 sec | f/4.7 | 9.3 mm | ISO 100High-Res |  Backlighting | 1/250 sec | f/3.5 | 5.5 mm | ISO 100High-Res |
 Zooming shot | 1/125 sec | f/9.4 | 4.7 mm | ISO 100High-Res |  Smart filter - miniature | 1/750 sec | f/5.4 | 20.5 mm | ISO 100High-Res |
The ST96 has panoramic mode using a sweeping method, either left, right, up or down. Images produced aren't packed with detail but there isn't any misjoined sections or ghosting.
Panoramic | 1/180 sec | f/9.4 | 4.7 mm | ISO 100
The auto white-balance (AWB) setting gives good results, under our incandescent lighting there is a slight orange cast in the image, with the incandescent preset actually giving us a better image. Under the fluorescent lighting there is very little difference whether using the AWB or fluorescent presets.
Samsung ST96 White-balance test images
 AWB preset - incandescent lighting | 1/10 sec | f/4.2 | 7.8 mm | ISO 100High-Res |  Incandescent preset - incandescent lighting | 1/10 sec | f/4.2 | 7.8 mm | ISO 100High-Res |
 AWB preset - fluorescent lighting | 1/4 sec | f/4.2 | 7.8 mm | ISO 100High-Res |  Fluorescent lighting - fluorescent preset | 1/4 sec | f/4.2 | 7.8 mm | ISO 100High-Res |
The ST96 comes with Samsung's new Smart Filter 3.0 mode which has some filters previously seen on Samsung compacts and some interesting new ones such as cartoon mode, examples of which can be seen below.
Samsung ST96 Digital filters
 Smart filter - normal | 1/15 sec | f/4.4 | 15.3 mm | ISO 400High-Res |  Smart filter - vignetting | 1/15 sec | f/4.4 | 15.3 mm | ISO 400High-Res |  Smart filter - soft focus | 1/15 sec | f/4.4 | 15.3 mm | ISO 400High-Res |
 Smart filter - old film | 1/15 sec | f/4.4 | 15.3 mm | ISO 400High-Res |  Smart filter - half tone dot | 1/15 sec | f/4.4 | 15.3 mm | ISO 400High-Res |  Smart filter - sketch | 1/15 sec | f/4.4 | 15.3 mm | ISO 400High-Res |
 Smart filter - fisheye | 1/15 sec | f/4.4 | 15.3 mm | ISO 400High-Res |  Smart filter - classic | 1/15 sec | f/4.4 | 15.3 mm | ISO 400High-Res |  Smart filter - retro | 1/15 sec | f/4.4 | 15.3 mm | ISO 400High-Res |
 Smart filter - oil painting | 1/15 sec | f/4.4 | 15.3 mm | ISO 400High-Res |  Smart filter - cartoon | 1/15 sec | f/4.4 | 15.3 mm | ISO 400High-Res |  Smart filter - ink painting | 1/15 sec | f/4.4 | 15.3 mm | ISO 400High-Res |
Value For Money The Samsung ST96 is currently priced at £179.99. There are plenty of cameras with a similar specification available at varying prices such as the Olympus VG-130 at £68.00, Pentax Optio S1 at £78.00, Nikon Coolpix S3100 at £79.00, Fujifilm FinePix Z90 at £89.95, Canon Powershot A3200 IS at £109.00, Samsung SH100 at £144.00 and Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX70 at £148.99.
Samsung ST96 Verdict
The ST96 impresses with good colour reproduction, full 1080p HD video recording and its smart filters. If you are using the flash a lot you'll soon get quite annoyed by how long it takes to charge and the camera is currently highly priced in a competitive market, with many cameras with a similar specification available for less. But it should not be forgotten that this is a very small camera, therefore easy to carry around, takes good panoramics and offers full sized images at 10fps in continuous shooting mode.Samsung ST96 Pros
Panoramics taken using sweeping methodInteresting range of filtersFull 1080p HD video recordingImages can be taken during video recordingImpressive high-speed shootingExcellent colour reproductionVery small bodySamsung ST96 Cons
Flash takes ages to chargeCurrent price is high| FEATURES |  |
| HANDLING |  |
| PERFORMANCE |  |
| VALUE FOR MONEY |  |
| OVERALL | |
Samsung ST96 Specifications
| Lens | ||
| Max Aperture | f/3.3 - f/5.9 | |
| 35mm equivalent | 26mm - 130mm | |
| Optical Zoom | 5x | |
| Image Sensor | ||
| CCD pixels | 14.5Mp (Megapixels) | |
| Pixels (W) | 4320 | |
| Pixels (H) | 3240 | |
| Sensor Type | CMOS | |
| Sensor Size | 1/2.3 inch | |
| Aspect Ratio |
| |
| LCD Monitor | ||
| LCD Monitor | 2.7in | |
| Screen resolution | 230,000 dots | |
| Touch Screen | No | |
| Focusing | ||
| Min Focus | 5cm | |
| Focusing modes |
| |
| Exposure Control | ||
| Shutter speeds shortest | 1/2000sec | |
| Shutter speeds longest | 8sec | |
| Exp modes |
| |
| Metering |
| |
| ISO sensitivity | 100 - 3200 | |
| White balance |
| |
| Exposure Comp | +/-2 | |
| Shooting Options | ||
| Continuous shooting | No Data | |
| Video | ||
| Movie mode | Yes | |
| Video Resolution |
| |
| Video FPS | 30 | |
| Stereo Sound | No | |
| Optical Zoom | Yes | |
| Other Features | ||
| Image Stabilisation | Yes | |
| Interface | ||
| HDMI | Yes | |
| USB | USB 2 | |
| Wi-Fi | No | |
| Storage | ||
| Card Type | ||
| File Type |
| |
| Power Source | ||
| Battery Type | Rechargeable Battery: BP-70A (3.7V, 740mAh, Min 700mAh) | |
| CIPA Rating | No Data | |
| Box Contents | ||
| Box Contents | Camera, AC adapter/ USB cable, Rechargeable battery, Strap, User Manual, CD-ROM, Quick Start Guide | |
| Dimensions | ||
| Weight | 110g | |
| Width | 90mm | |
| Height | 55mm | |
| Depth | 18.7mm | |
Buy Online
- Buy Samsung ST96 Digital Camera - Black (14MP, 5x Optical Zoom) 2.7 inch LCD from Amazon.co.uk for £179.99
