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Want better car insurance rates? Let the AA track your driving

If you could save over $1,300 on your annual car insurance by letting your provider track your driving, would you?

That's the question U.K. drivers are mulling this morning, as the country's Automobile Association (AA) is set to launch a new insurance policy that would place a "black box" into a car, allowing the organization to make sure its insured drivers are behaving on the road.

According to the BBC, which first reported on the move, the technology will monitor speed, braking severity, and the roads drivers are on. The information collected from the … Read more

Nikon Coolpix L120 review: Remain in light

Anyone looking for a megazoom for simple point-and-shoot photos at a lower cost should look at the Nikon Coolpix L120. It's a refresh of the generally good L110 (generally good for its class, at least). In fact, the L120 is basically the same as the L110, but with a wider and longer lens (21x up from 15x) and a higher-resolution 3-inch LCD (920K dots compared with 460K dots). Its photo resolution jumps to 14 megapixels from 12, too, but that's not necessarily a good thing.

Shooting performance, particularly shutter lag, is better this time around and the LCD … Read more

Panasonic adds AA-powered LS5 to Lumix lineup

Compact cameras powered by AA-size batteries are a rarity these days and when you do find them they're either large megazooms or budget-priced entry-level compacts. The Panasonic Lumix DMC-LS5 announced today is the latter, but at least Panasonic didn't make it without value.

Instead of sticking a slow, narrow lens on the LS5, it has a 5x, 26mm wide-angle lens with a maximum aperture of f2.8. That's wider and longer than you typically find in this class and while the f2.8 aperture probably won't give you a shallow depth of field for anything other … Read more

Sexiest AA batteries ever

I know, I know, that's a bold statement up there in the headline, 'cause there are a lot of fine-looking AAs out there. These are Sanyo's newest NiMH rechargeable batteries and, honestly, when was the last time you saw batteries with a tribal tattoo?

Called XX, Sanyo says the black-and-silver design is symbolic of their "appropriateness for professional use" with a look inspired by gadget users that "further emphasizes both Sanyo's commitment to offering the latest in digital fashion as well as its design capabilities."

For those of you that just care about … Read more

Canon PowerShot A1200 camera review: Optical viewfinder, AA batteries, and good photos

Canon all but abandoned optical viewfinders on its PowerShot cameras; the high-end G12 was the only one. That changed at CES 2011, though, with the announcement of the Canon PowerShot A1200, an entry-level point-and-shoot with a real-image zoom viewfinder.

Along with the viewfinder, this budget-friendly 12-megapixel compact is powered by AA-size batteries, has a large selection of shooting options, uses an f2.8 28mm-equivalent wide-angle lens with a 4x zoom, and captures 720p HD-resolution movie clips. About the only thing missing is optical image stabilization, but you can counteract hand shake by using the viewfinder.

Like most cameras in its … Read more

Sony's entry-level camera is just that

Most people buying a $100 pocket camera don't seem to check for reviews before they buy. At least not "expert" reviews. Judging by CNET site traffic, though, the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S2100 appears to be an exception. It's the company's entry-level compact that basically exists for AA-battery lovers; the S2100 is the only current Sony camera powered by them.

The S2100 is very basic. Really, its main selling points are the batteries, a 3-inch LCD, and its general ease of use. (Why consumers can only get budget and megazoom cameras that use AA-size batteries, I don'… Read more

Kodak Z981 megazoom more downgrade than upgrade

It's completely reasonable to think an update to something will be better than its predecessor--or at least its equal, but for less money. The Kodak EasyShare Z981 isn't either of these things. The refresh of 2009's Z980, it was released at CES 2010, but was never really announced. And after testing it, it's understandable why.

The Z981 comes across like a last-minute effort to enable the company to keep a model in the full-size megazoom category. For example, basic features such as the ability to turn off digital zoom and Quickview--the instant playback of shots after … Read more

Is your perfect camera coming soon?

The number of compact and ultracompact digital cameras available from major manufacturers is overwhelming--and it's about to get worse. Before summer's out, most of the companies will have announced a new batch of point-and-shoot models in an attempt to woo you into upgrading or at least penciling them into your holiday shopping budget. Judging by the reader e-mails I receive, none of the current crop seem to have all of the features you desire, so maybe some new options are exactly what's needed.

My fear, though, is it'll just be more of the same, with too … Read more