Most Interesting Digital Cameras and Camcorders of 2009
Digital Camera Reviews and Camcorder Reviews for Holiday Gift Ideas
Camcorder Reviews
Nikon S1000pj
Olympus E-P1
Samsung DualView TL225
Fujifilm 3D-W1
Sony HDR-XR520V
Every year, digital camera manufacturers churn out about 300 new cameras a year with at least a hundred digital camcorders in tow. Standing out in this crowd is not easy. But every year, products do break the mold – offering truly unique features, design elements or technologies that set them apart from the pack. That doesn't mean they're the best - in many cases, being first to market with a technology means experiencing the usual growing pains as bugs are discovered. Nonetheless, innovations deserve recognition.
So with that in mind, these are the five products that caught our eye this year:
1. Nikon S1000pj: Tired of cramming four people around your digicam so they can take a look at your shots? Nikon's S1000pj sports a built-in projector for sending images and videos up to 40-inches in size on the wall. You can play back slide shows with music on the camera, and through the projector, as well. Check out a video of the Nikon S100pj in action.
2. Olympus E-P Series: The first and second cameras from Olympus that boast many of the benefits of digital SLR photography – such as interchangeable lenses – in a camera body that’s lighter and more compact. The first model out this year was the 12-megapixel Olympus E-P1 (reviewed here), followed shortly thereafter with the Olympus E-P2 (reviewed here).
3. Samsung DualView TL225: Digital cameras won us over with their LCD displays. Now, Samsung has slapped on a second one - on the front of their TL225 DualView camera. All the better for taking self portraits or helping pose your subjects.
4. Fujifilm 3D W1: Three dimensional HDTVs are starting to bubble up among the gadget geek set, so it’s only natural that someone would develop a 3D camera to compliment this brewing fad. Fujifilm has taken an early stab at it with the 3D W1 - camera with two lenses for snapping 3D pics that you can view on the LCD without special glasses. Read our Fujifilm 3D W1 digital camera review here. With its dual lenses it can do other neat stuff: like take one image in wide angle, the other in telephoto or apply different effects to the same scene. It will also be sold with a 3D viewer, which, like the LCD, will display 3D photos without glasses.
5. Sony HDR-XR520V: Inside this traditional looking HD camcorder lies a GPS receiver, for adding geographical data to your video footage. Sony was the first consumer camcorder maker to integrate GPS, and they’ve put it to some interesting use in the XR520V. You can use it to pull up a map on the camcorder’s LCD screen of your current location (just don’t expect street-level views). You can also use the GPS data to plot your videos on a map where they were shot. Lastly, and perhaps most useful (and least sexy) the GPS receiver allows the camcorder to automatically set the date and time stamp to the local time – a real plus for world travelers.