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Cameras

Travel bag for gadget fans

Here in the CNET editorial cube farm, we're usually not too fond of receiving random, unannounced packages from tech vendors. Not that I'm afraid of anthrax or suspiciously ticking boxes. No, it's more that I prefer to be aware of the products I'm receiving to ensure that they're not being sent to me in vain--there's not a lot this San Francisco-based MP3 editor can do with a digital camera accessory except ship it to the camera editors in New York. But every once in a while, I receive an unexpected package that contains something … Read more

Olympus' spring camera offerings

Olympus has a handful of new digital cameras on the way, including two models with some interesting features we haven't seen before.

The 7-megapixel Olympus SP-550UZ replaces the SP-510UZ as the company's premier ultrazoom camera. While the SP-510UZ had a powerful 12x zoom lens, its replacement goes even further. The SP-550UZ uses the most powerful zoom lens we've seen in a midrange camera, a 28mm-to-504mm-equivalent telephoto lens that offers an 18x magnification factor. The zoom power is impressive enough, but the 28mm-equivalent wide-angle shot makes the camera seem even more appealing. The SP-550UZ features Olympus' dual image-stabilization … Read more

Camcorder built into a tie--that's right

So you've found the perfect spying device, a pinhole camera built into a tie that's "virtually impossible to detect with the naked eye." Its high-resolution video can also be seen on a 2.4-inch LCD screen that fits neatly on its cigarette-pack-sized recorder that holds up to 4GB of data, complete with remote control. All this doesn't come cheap--nearly $1,300, actually--but it's worth it because no one will ever suspect a thing, right? There's just one problem: You never wear a tie.

Pentax's newest cameras

Pentax announced two new 7-megapixel digital cameras for the spring, the Optio T30 and M30. The high-end T30 sports a 3-inch touch screen as its biggest feature, while the more conventional M30's appeal is in its solid feature set and much smaller price tag.

The Optio T30's touch-screen LCD functions much like the Sony Cyber Shot DSC-T50's, with most settings and features accessible through the touch screen's menus instead of buttons. It also includes a basic paint mode, for editing and drawing on images in the camera itself. Besides the touch screen, the T30 includes face-recognition … Read more

With the Art Pad, all you need is a beret

We feel as though you've gotten to know us pretty well here at Crave, so we'll let you in on a dirty little secret: We never learned Photoshop. Yes, it's true. But we've stumbled across something that may help us mess around with images in a way that even our tiny Luddite brain can handle.

Coolicam's "iCam Art Pad," Gearlog says, "turns your digital photos into art"--though, in our case, that may be a loose interpretation. Even if you're no Rembrandt, the Art Pad's clever design may well … Read more

Two new Canon cameras

Canon has just announced two new models in its PowerShot A-series line of cameras. The PowerShot A460 and A550 are two new, inexpensive point-and-shoot cameras scheduled to hit stores in February.

The PowerShot A460 features a 5-megapixel sensor, lagging a bit behind most 6- and 7-megapixel budget cameras on the market. It includes a 38-to-152mm-equivalent 4x lens, which gives it a bit more power than most compact cameras' 3x lenses. Finally, it uses a small 2-inch LCD screen, which thankfully leaves enough room for an optical viewfinder.

The PowerShot A550 is slightly more impressive than its little brother, but not … Read more

A Webcam you don't have to hide

We've often wondered why decent design has eluded the Webcam. In just the last few months, for example, we've seen the blender, the floating eyeball and even the sea monster.

Finally, Mustek has come to the rescue. Its aluminum-cased offering would look equally good sitting atop your monitor or your desktop--anywhere, really. SlashGear says its all-glass auto-focus lens "delivers awesomely clear videos" in 1.3-megapixel resolution. It's enough to give our computer an inferiority complex.

Battle of the super-keyboards

We've seen a lot of tech companies try to cram everything under the sun into a single device, but we didn't think anyone would envision the humble keyboard as an uber-gadget. Yet a manufacturer called Solid Year (who could resist such a name?) seems to be headed in that direction.

Its multimedia keyboard, according to Uber-Review, sports "a VGA hide-away Webcam, speaker phone, microphone and 10 one-touch hot keys for Skype." But for all its hard work, Solid Year may have left out one killer function that rival super-keyboard "KB Dock" features most prominently: … Read more

Who needs a designer baby monitor?

It's a sure sign that tech fashion has invaded the home when you see a designer baby monitor. Ubergizmo liked the mod look from U.K.-based Techwall Electronics, and we must admit that it's sleek form and neon green hue make the product more attractive than the traditional alternatives. The monitor also has a camera, which brings it more up to date than older versions. But let's face it: No matter how much you try to dress it up, it's a baby monitor. And if you really want a camera to monitor the baby, you … Read more