"Kodak has announced that it is ceasing production of digital cameras, pocket video cameras and digital picture frames."

Kodak has been a real mess for the past 20 years, with management trying to keep a hold on a lucrative but dwindling core business. As Kodak exits a market it never really could compete in against the Japanese, I wonder what the post-bankruptcy future it has? Paper? More film? Licensing the name is only going to go so far without some innovations from the parent company. In the end, I think this pretty much confirms Kodak as a has-been.

"With the Logitech Touch Mouse M600, things are set to improve, making mousing feel like second nature. You are able to scroll, swipe and surf regardless of where your fingertips rest on the mouse, and it does not matter whether you are a southpaw or not."

There are Touch people, Touchpad people and there are Mice people. Okay, there are probably some TrackBall people around, and TrackPoint/AccuPoint people too. Having grown up in front of desktops, I find mice the most efficient way of navigating my computing. For tablets and phones, sure, touch is great, but it is the mouse I crave when I want to deal with lots of information. But with Logitech's latest creation, why not get the best of both worlds? Touch mice have been around for a few years in several incarnations. I remember one of Logitech's earliest attempts 8 years ago with the v500, though that did not support multi-touch. The only problem is that I do not know if I will feel comfortable looking like I'm fondling my mouse while I whisk through all that data.

The big news of the past 24 hours is Olympus's E-M5 camera, which is part of the OM-D line. For the uninitiated, Olympus used to make small and very well-made film SLRs back in the day, under the OM moniker. I myself started photography using dad's OM-1 almost two decades ago. Ah, the memories!

Well, while Olympus is trying to stir feelings of nostalgia, I can say that the OM-1 and this E-M5 are quite different beasts once you get past the superficial. The E-M5 is a digital camera through and through, with the controls pretty much geared towards an electronically-controlled lens mount, unlike say, the Fuji X100. Still, it does look good, and the accessory battery grip is really retro; I have not seen something like that since the old motor winders back in the days of manual focus SLRs.

The camera itself is made from the best Micro Four Thirds has to offer. Highlights include a sensor that is the 16 megapixel Live MOS affair that goes from ISO 200 to 25,600 (presumably from Panasonic; about time Olympus ditched that old 12 megapixel sensor), a contrast-detect system that Olympus promises to be world's fastest (challenging cameras like the mighty Nikon D3S and Canon EOS 1DIV), an improved sensor-shift stabilisation system that promises to keep track and correct movement in five different axis, 1080i video at up to 60 FPS, continuous shooting at 9 FPS with single AF, 4.2 with continuous AF, 3" tilting VGA (presumably using a Pentile arrangement) OLED screen, a great SVGA EVF and a weather-proofed body that offers complete weather-proof capabilities when used with the right lenses. Despite that faux pentaprism hump (it is its successor, the EVF hump), there is no built-in flash, just like the old OM cameras.

Other niceties include things like a Live Bulb mode, so you can keep track of the exposure when it is progress. Ever shot in bulb and have no idea how long to open the shutter for, especially in conditions where the light level is rapidly changing? This is the crutch. There is also a tone curve overlay for finer control over how the camera handles shadows and highlights, though I suspect that is more for JPEG shooters.

All that nice stuff does not come cheap. The camera will ship in April for US$1000 for just the body, $1100 with a 14-42mm kit lens, and $1300 with the new 12-50 powerzoom lens (which is weather-proof). Along with the camera, Olympus also announced a 75mm f/1.8 lens, a 60mm f/2.8 macro, and a new flash with an LED for video work, the FL-600R. The FL-600R will ship in April for US$300, while pricing information for the lenses are not available.

More details and photos at the link, along with a preview! Be sure to see the grip, it just so old school!

Olympus has two compact cameras for show today as well. First is the SZ-31MR, which Olympus calls a compact superzoom. I am not sure what the difference between a compact superzoom and a travelzoom is now any more, since everyone is going crazy with the zoom ranges, but I digress. The camera has a 16 megapixel backlit CMOS sensor, a 24x 25-600mm equivalent f/3.0-6.9 (!) zoom lens, sensor shift stabilisation, a 3" VGA touchscreen LCD, 1080p video in h.264, 10 FPS continuous shooting mode, and of course, what Olympus camera would be without the Art Filters. Ships in late April for US$400.

Next up is the rugged TG-820. The camera packs a 12 megapixel backlit CMOS sensor, a 5x 28-140mm equivalent f/3.9-5.9 zoom lens, sensor shift stabilisation, a 3" 720x480 LCD screen, 1080p video, a rugged body rated to be waterproof to 33 feet (10 metres), shockproof to 6.6 feet (2 metres), freezeproof to 14F (-10C), and dustproof. Ships in March for US$300. More photos and details of the two cameras at the links below.

DPReview: Olympus SZ-31MR

DPReview: Olympus TG-820

Pentax has updated their line of rugged compacts again with the WG-2. Strangely the press release makes a claim that this is the 13th generation. I thought superstitions would mean people tend to not talk about such things. Oh well! The camera itself has some updates, with a new 16 megapixel sensor (backlit CMOS, so hopefully it is not too terrible), a 3" HVGA LCD, and 1080p videos at 30 FPS in h.264. The lens seems to be the same unit as the WG-1, a 5x 28-140mm equivalent f/3.5-5.5 lens which does not appear to be stabilised. Also carried forward are the six LED lights surrounding the lens to act as lighting for close-up shots. Pretty neat. The camera is rated to be waterproof to 40 feet (12 metres), shockproof from 5 feet (1.5 metres), freezeproof to 14F (-10C) and dustproof. Ships in March for US$400 for the GPS version, and US$350 for the one without. More photos and details at the read link.

So the parade of compacts continues. Canon yesterday announced a bunch, and I will start with the more interesting ones. The Powershot ELPH 320 HS and ELPH 530 HS (IXUS 240 HS and IXUS 510 HS respectively outside of North America) are the latest additions to the ELPH/IXUS line up. The 320 HS features a 16 megapixel sensor with a 5x optically stabilised 24-120mm equivalent f/2.7-5.9 zoom lens, while the 530 HS features a 10 megapixel sensor with a 12x optically stabilised 28-336mm equivalent f/3.4-5.6 zoom lens. This uses folded optics to get fit into the small body. The two ELPHs share a lot of features otherwise, with a 3.2" HVGA touchscreen LCD and very little physical controls, 1080p video at 24 FPS, still shooting at up to 5.2 FPS, and new here, built-in wifi that in addition to uploading to various services, also allows transferring files to a smartphone, with an app coming for iOS and Android. The 530 HS also uses microSD cards instead of the usual SD cards for storing its photos. I sense many cameras will switch to the smaller form factor as time goes by; this is the third camera announced in 2012 utilising the smaller format. The two cameras will ship in late March, with the 530 HS going for US$350, and the 320 HS going for US$280. More cameras after the break!

DCResource: Powershot ELPH 320 HS / ELPH 530 HS

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Product Category: HDR Software

Manufacturer: Oloneo SAS

Where to Buy: Oloneo's Website

Price: US$149

System Requirements: OS:Windows XP with Service Pack 3 (32-bit or 64-bit), Windows Vista (32-bit or 64-bit)

Windows 7 (32-bit or 64-bit) Hard disk: 200MB of available space CPU: 1.6 GHz Intel or AMD with SSE2, dual-core recommended RAM: 1.5GB Screen: 1280 x 720.

Specifications: Complete Feature List

Pros:

• Great-looking and pleasing HDR images in just a few clicks;
• Fast rendering live preview of changes;
• Offers a high level of control for the advanced user.

Cons:

• Auto-alignment for handheld HDR shots not perfect;
• Active noise reduction controls not present.

Summary: Oloneo's PhotoEngine may be the most expensive, but it is easily the best HDR software available in the market currently. Its ease of use with beautiful and natural results makes it hard to beat. It also has an additional neat trick in the form of HDR ReLight. There are a few minor issues, but for a 1.0 product, they do not overshadow the positives as a whole.

[Editor's Note: Today we bring a special review, written by a top professional photographer with well over a decade of experience. Jed Wee will be reviewing Oloneo's PhotoEngine, which made a splash when the beta was first released back in 2010. Now that the product is shipping, how well does it live up to the early promise? Join Jed as he puts the software through its paces!]

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"Most modern smartphones, tablets, MP3 players, and other gadgets rely on USB-based chargers. Some of these come with their own AC wall adapters, while others include nothing more than a USB cable-meaning you have to plug them into your computer to get them charged."

The nice thing about this thing is that you just plug it into the existing outlet, so it's basically a cover. No need to replace the current outlet so you don't have to worry about shocking yourself silly. And it goes for the small sum of $15.00 USD at Lowes (currently out of stock in my area), or you can get it at Amazon.com for $12.47 USD (currently in stock with both white and almond colored versions).

"Canon has released three EF lenses, including an updated 24-70mm F2.8 II USM. The latest version features what is promised to be a more durable body, despite being a little smaller. In addition to this high-end full-frame standard zoom, there are completely redesigned semi-fast 24mm and 28mm F2.8 primes, both of which feature USM focus motors and image stabilization."

Canon has updated three lenses, including a highly popular one, and leaves me slightly confused. For some strange reason Canon has seen it fit to add IS to light wide angle primes, but thinks the heavier 24-70 with a telephoto end needs it less (which in my opinion, does not). Sometimes you wonder what the camera companies are thinking. In any case, the 24-70/2.8 L II is a new lens, and not just minor update to the previous 24-70/2.8 L. It promises better image quality, and better physical durability. The 24/2.8 and 28/2.8 have small wideangle primes, but now come with IS (which I still find utterly weird), and newly designed optics. No word on pricing or availability.

Alright, here we go! Nikon has just announced not one, but two cameras. The D800 and its sibling, the D800E. Both D800s feature a number of changes from the D700, the main difference being that 36 megapixel FX sensor. I am not sure if that many people need all those megapixels, but I guess Nikon is trying to woo the affluent amateur in addition to the thrifty professional with this camera. The sensor has a base ISO range of 100-6400, and an extended range of 50-25,600. No super high numbers like the D4 here. Still, a number of changes do carry over from the D4, including the new 91,000 RGB matrix sensor for determining exposures, the improved CAM-3500 AF module, and the 3.2" VGA LCD screen. There is an ambient light sensor for the LCD screen to boost its brightness levels, just like a smartphone, which is a nice touch.

The D800 also inherits the D4's video capabilities. That means the D800 does 1080p videos at 30, 25 and 24 FPS, with B frame compression in h.264 codec, HDMI pass through with uncompressed video data, a microphone jack, fine control of audio levels with visual indicators, a headphone jack to monitor said audio levels, and built-in time lapse recording. Each video clip is limited to 29m 59s (in other words, a second shy of 30 minutes, presumably for tax reasons in certain countries).

Back to the stills side, the camera has a maximum frame rate for 4 FPS at FX, and 5 FPS in crop mode. With the MB-D12 battery pack using other batteries than the default EN-EL15 (which replaced the EN-EL3e), the camera can do 6 FPS in crop mode. Shifting all those megapixels has made the D800 slower than the D700 in that aspect. Improved over the D700 however, is the viewfinder. It is now a 100% affair, unlike the D700 slighty cropped 95% coverage. Other improvements include faster contrast detect autofocus for live view, faster shutter response times, the addition of a SD card slot alongside the CF card slot, dual-axis virtual horizon (great for eliminating converging vertical lines), built-in two shot HDR, and overall changes to the UI. I particularly like the new frame advance setting dial on the left side of the camera. Finally one no longer has to peer at the top of the camera to confirm that self-timer mode has not been engaged. A dedicated bracketing button also means that the right function button next to the lens mount is no longer the only way to access bracketing. I hate it when camera manufacturers make features only accessible to custom function buttons, forcing you to pretty much set the custom function button to that feature anyway. It really doesn't leave much choice in setting the custom function!

Now, on to the D800E. It is essentially the D800, but with the anti-aliasing filter removed. Sounds pretty tasty. To compensate for potential moire, Nikon has added a moire removal feature in an upcoming version of Capture NX2.

The Nikon D800 will go on sale in late March for US$3000. The D800E will go on sale in mid-April for US$3300. That is right. Take away a part, promise higher image quality, charge US$300 more. More coverage at the link. Coverage of the D800 seems a bit sparse this time; DPReview even got the battery information wrong!

Update: DPReview has a preview up! Loads more information, especially on the new features.