Not a few hours after our report on the Sony NEX-FS700 and its rumored specs with no pictures to be spoken of, we learn of the camera’s official specs with a few pictures to hold us over until NAB 2012 which will be held in Las Vegas at the end of April. So the big rumor of course was the camera’s ability to shoot in 4k resolution and I’m happy to report that those indeed were true. So what else can you expect? Find out after the jump.
Remember how we may or may not have told you about a new Sony NEX-FS100 firmware which was suppose to arrive on March 22nd and add features such as 50Hz recording system (PAL): 1920×1080 50p, 50i, 25p and 1280×720 50p? Well, you may noticed that March 22nd has come and gone and no firmware was released. That’s because Sony has decided to delay the latest firmware till April 19th. The reasons behind the delay are not clear and no new features have been added to the already impressive list of updates which can be found after the jump.
Come March 22nd, Sony’s camera division is releasing a new firmware update for the NEX-FS100. The NEX video camera is already a darling to videographers as it gives them a Super 35mm sensor that shoots 1080p60 content at up to 28Mbps. Like most recent cameras and camcorders from Sony, the NEX-FS100 is capable of recording on SD and Memory Stick flash cards. Now, a new firmware update for the NEX-FS100 will add and improve a host of features on the high def camcorder like added 50Hz recording system (PAL): 1920×1080 50p, 50i, 25p and 1280×720 50p. After the jump, the full list of updates.
At CES 2012, Sony unveiled a new MP4 camera with a Go Pro-like mentality, the Sony Bloggie Sport. The camera, which builds on the Bloggie family once again, packs in 1080p video recording with Sony’s Exmor CMOS sensor and 5-megapixel stills on its internal 4GB memory. Other things which we’ve come to expect, like a 2.7-inch touchscreen, face detection, and HDMI, are all back once again. However, one major thing sets the Sony Bloggie Sport apart from other MP4 cameras and Sony’s own growing line and it’s all in the name.
The Bloggie Sport is meant to be abused. No, we don’t recommend taking a sledgehammer to it, but if you like to hike, snowboard, swim, and do just about anything else in the outdoors, then the Bloggie Sport should now be on your radar. Unlike other Bloggie models which we don’t recommend taking near water, for instance, the Bloggie Sport, which comes in black, red, and blue, is capable of going up to 16 feet under water. As Sony puts it, the Bloggie Sport is also has a
shock resistance rating for up to 5 foot drops plus dirt and dust resistant seals that help make it nearly impervious to mud, snow, rain, and grime.
With a pop-out USB and compatibility with Mac and PC, sharing is as easy as ever with services such as Facebook and YouTube, or to Sony’s PlayMemories Online service. The Bloggie Sport MHS-TS22 is now available for $179.99. After the jump, our video preview and your chance to weigh in.
During CES 2012, Sony introduced a new generation of their Balanced Optical SteadyShot, designed for their line of HandyCam camcorders. With the five new camcorder lines shown, three of them would feature this new technology. It is aimed at further reducing the shaky footage which can be caused by shaking hands or by walking around. The new Balanced Optical SteadyShot is built on a new concept in which the lens floats in the middle of the camera housing. With this new floating-lens technology, the camera and the parts around it will shake from your movement while the lens in the middle continues to point forward. This means that the lens will not take in the shaking which would no doubt otherwise cause your footage to be shaky.
The result is quite remarkable, given how previous Sony technology already did a wonderful job at reducing shaky footage. However, no words can quite capture the difference between the previous technology and what Sony has in store this time around. That’s why below is a video demonstration of the two technologies, side by side, with the left camera incorporating the new Balanced Optical SteadyShot floating-lens while the camera on the right uses Sony’s previous SteadyShot technology.
In lieu of of the new Sony Bloggie Live and Bloggie Sport, Sony has dropped the price of the Bloggie Touch by $70, now down to $129. The Bloggie Touch, which we’ve reviewed in the past, is part of Sony’s now-growing line of MP4 cameras which are designed to give those who like to make films or capture moments a low-cost and simple-to-use option. As the name suggests, the Bloggie Touch is a touch-based device with a 3-inch LCD screen with only three physical buttons; on/off, camera (to take pictures), and record.
The Bloggie Touch is available in an 8GB configuration with full HD 1080p video and a 12.8-megapixel stills. Coming in black, silver, and pink, which is exclusive to Sony retail stores, the Bloggie Touch is both Mac and PC compatible.
Our editor and social media manager Allegra and I had a chance to attend CES 2012 as you can probably tell from our main page. For those of you who missed it, we provided a live blog from Sony’s press conference and have done several videos from the show floor. Our friends at Sony, specially Sukhjit, were also kind enough to gift us the just-announced Sony Bloggie Live, just two days into our long week of coverage. Of course, this gave us a unique chance to not only use a superior camera than our current Bloggie Touch on the floor, but to also offer you a new video unboxing. We’ll of course be doing a proper review of the Bloggie Live once we’ve spent some more time with it. Till then though, here is our Sony Bloggie Live unboxing.
During CES, Sony announced two new versions of the Bloggie MP4 cameras. The Bloggie Live and Bloggie Sport are the newest additions to the Bloggie line, bringing in a similar, yet fresh, take on the popular MP4 cameras with all new functions. Starting with the Bloggie Sport, Sony designed this camera with sport enthusiasts and outdoor adventurers in mind. Capable of being dropped, submerged in up to 6 ft of water, and dustproof, this 4GB unit is really the perfect camera for those who want to capture their most extreme moments in 1080p without having to worry about coming home with a dead camera. The Bloggie Live, on the other hand, targets the geeks in us who want to keep up with our Facebook and YouTube channels. With built-in Wi-Fi, the Bloggie Live is capable of posting videos directly to the mentioned services from any location. The Bloggie Live is also true to its name in utilizing Qik service by allowing you to stream your videos live to the web for your audience to see in real time. Again, all that is required is an active Wi-Fi and in minutes, you’ll be on the web. Below is our video overview of the Bloggie Live and Bloggie Sport from the Sony CES booth.
When Apple made the transition from Snow Leopard to Lion (10.7), those who were loyal Bloggie users on the Mac platform found themselves unable to use the Bloggie software that was provided by Sony. We’ve previously covered the software in depth which allows you to quickly share your photos and videos to sites like Facebook and YouTube. While Sony began working on a fix, we were able to get a work around method, though it seemed to be hit or miss for some users. Now, Sony has released the Bloggie software update 1.3 which among the usual bug fixes and enhancements, includes support for Mac OS X 10.7 Lion.
After the jump, a link to the nearly 50MB download.
A little under a month ago, Apple released their latest operating system, Mac OS X Lion. As with all new operating system launches, there tends to be some unforeseen consequences and this time, the victim happened to be Sony’s Bloggie software. We’ve previously covered the Bloggie software on the Mac and quickly, after Lion’s release began to get hear from Mac users that the Bloggie software would no longer function under Lion. After launching the application, users would discover a white window, instead of software loading. Even users who had attempted to redownload the software were faced with the same problem; no matter what, the Bloggie software would not work on Lion.
As many of our regular readers know, my actual paying job is being an Apple Consultant, and over the years, I’ve built a great relationship with Sony and their staff. I quickly contacted Sony and they put me in touch with one of their engineers. After exchanging some console logs, Sony has been able to create a fix which is documented in the video after the jump. Sony has said that they will have a software update in the works, to ensure proper compatibility with Mac OS 10.7 though no given timeline has been put in place. After the jump, you can find a quick video walkthrough and the given steps needed to enable this fix.
Today, Sony unveileved a new and interesting product, a pair of digital recording binoculars called the DEV-3 and DEV-5. However, unlike your traditional binoculars which are only good for viewing, the Sony DEV-3 and DEV-5 have one big trick of their sleeve; to record as well. Both units are capable of recording 1080p HD video while capturing stills with a 7.1 megapixel camera. It also wouldn’t be Sony without them incorporating their Exmor R CMOS sensors which are designed to provide noise free images, even in low light situations. But once again, this digital recording binocular has a trick up its sleeve—or maybe two tricks. Sony opted to include not one, but two Exmor R CMOS sensors in both the DEV-3 and DEV-5, allowing for native 3D 1080p video recording with dual f/1.8-3.4, 0.5-10x optical zoom lenses, and a pair of 1,227-dot viewfinders. Other features include manual focus, SteadyShot, and Image Stabilization. All this puts you at a $1,399 price point for the DEV-3 while those who are looking for some more features can look towards the DEV-5 for $1,999. The extra $600 in this case will get you 10x digital zoom, GPS, a carrying case, and neck strap. Both models will come equipped with Memory Stick Pro Duo and SDXC support for capturing your content, a stereo microphone with an audio input jack, and HDMI-out for playback on other devices.
While all of this sounds fine and I’m sure the device will be more than capable with traditional build quality that Sony provides, I have to wonder why Sony has decided to make such a device in the first place. As I noted, the concept is pretty cool and it seems like a great device to use but I doubt too many family members will opt for a binocular to record their next kid’s birthday party or vacation, and forget business, unless they are in the espionage market. This automatically greatly reduces the market share to a very small niche community who enjoys the great outdoors and has disposable income. The great question in this case than becomes, can Sony, who is notorious for creating great devices but is always been poor at marketing them, really sell enough of these to be worthwhile? Outside of the cost of building one of these, boxing them, shipping them to retailers which will of course be only a limited few providing some form of support, there is still the R&D to take into consideration. When we add all these costs and consider the limited market that will take interest in this device, unless Sony had a 50% profit margin on these (which they don’t), I cannot imagine them ever making a profit on such a device. In a time where many of Sony’s core businesses are hurting, unless I’m missing something about this device and the targeted market, it seems that Sony needs to kill off all niche market products and strengthen their core business. After which, I would be more than happy to see them work on side projects like this which are catered to the small crowds out there. However, till then, Sony has an obligation if not to itself, then to its shareholders, to increase profitability and market share and I don’t believe such devices are the answer to that.
After the jump, a press release, video overview and additional pictures await you.
Bloggie owners of the world, it’s time to fire up the Bloggie Software for the Mac or PC so that you can download the latest software update for your device. The new Bloggie firmware 1.17 adds:
When 3D is brought up in most conversations, whether people are fans of the ever-growing format or not, two things tend to come to mind; the dislike for 3D glasses, and how expensive the technology can be. These two topics have turned into a sticky point for consumers while big companies like Sony are hard at offering 3D in whichever way they can. Currently, Sony Pictures has released 3D films like The Green Hornet, The Smurfs and will be releasing the upcoming The Amazing Spider-Man which has been shot in native 3D. In the meantime, their PlayStation division has an ever-larger list of 3D games with titles like Gran Turismo 5, Killzone 3 and the highly anticipated Uncharted 3. Of course, 3D content is without an avenue to playback the medium and so to address the cost and availability of the format, Sony this fall is releasing a PlayStation branded 3D TV for $499 which includes Resistance 3 (which is 3D compatible) and a pair of 3D glasses. Sony also knows that, in order for the 3D format to advance, they cannot just rely on professional content. No format has ever survived without availability to the everyday consumers, and thats where the Bloggie 3D steps in for Sony.
The Sony Bloggie 3D (MHS-FS3) is designed to break the stigma of 3D and address the two sticking points of 3D. First, the Bloggie 3D, which is capable of recording in both 2D and 3D, is priced at $249 which automatically makes it accessible to a large demography. Second, the Bloggie 3D is capable of playing back 3D footage right on screen without the need of 3D glasses. We’ve long at the site been using the Bloggie Touch as our main source of capturing footage when at an event, seeing that it would only be fair to use the products that we talk about. So two days prior to Comic-Con, we trooped out to our local Best Buy to buy a Bloggie 3D (yes, we have to purchase all of our review products) and put it to the ultimate test. You see, in order for a format like 3D to succeed, it has to be able to form to your current workflow and lifestyle. Sure we can make tweaks here and there but if it requires us to completely change our flow to make it work, then the technology has failed. Comic-Con presented the perfect opportunity, seeing how we were going to cover the event with our Bloggie Touch anyways. The question then was, can we substitute our Bloggie Touch with a Bloggie 3D and still have a successful Comic-Con. Hit the jump for our full review, as well as sample video and photos.
The Bloggie 3D is an enigma of a product, designed to break all stereotypes of what 3D is and can be. With a $249 MSRP, the Bloggie 3D is in reach of most consumers while also taking away the need for 3D glasses to view its 3D recorded content. After our video unboxing, we put the Bloggie 3D to the test during San Diego Comic-Con 2011 to see how this pocket-sized 3D camera would hold up during the insanity. For those of you who are looking for some reading material, we will have a written review for you in the near future. The following is our Sony Bloggie 3D video review in which we discuss the camera’s hardware, 2D & 3D recording capabilities, as well as the Bloggie’s photo taking capabilities and a final verdict to wrap things up.
Video review, after the jump.
Comic-Con 2011 marked a significant turning point for our site. Those who are regular readers will note that 3D is something that we are strong supporters of over here. Whether it’s 3D gaming, movies, or photos, I wholeheartedly believe in and stand behind the format. Of course, talk is cheap when it comes to 3D, especially those who just casually dismiss the format as nothing but a fad. So when prior to Comic-Con, I found out that the Bloggie 3D from Sony was available at Best Buy, I knew that I had to buy the little MP4 and give it a try.
After I preformed our Bloggie 3D video unboxing, I quickly put the camera to test the day prior to Comic-Con to see how it would perform and soon after, we were off to Comic-Con. This post is meant to give you an idea of the 2D and 3D footage that the Bloggie 3D is capable of recording, which happens to be at the same time. Later on, I will be posting a full written review as well as a video review of the Bloggie 3D which will cover the unit in depth. For those who are curious as to the video quality of the Bloggie 3D in both 2D and 3D, the following will give you a pretty good idea as to where we are headed with our review. Those with a 3D computer or 3D television can use their passive or active 3D shutter glasses to view our content. Anybody else who happens to have a pair of colored 3D glasses can also view the 3D from any computer or TV. Note that you can click on the 3D icon to toggle the 3D on or off.
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