Category: Reviews

Panasonic announced new professional level camera Panasonic LUMIX GX8, that can record 4K ( 3840 x 2160 pixels ) videos. Its Live MOS Sensor has 20 MP resolution and 17.3 x 13.0 mm sizes, camera uses Micro Four Thirds standart for lenses mounting. Maximal photos resolution is 5184 x 3888 pixels, camera saves them in JPEG, RAW and MPO formats and sRGB and Adobe RGB color spaces. Panasonic LUMIX GX8 can save videos in AVCHD ( with Dolby Digital 2ch sound format ) and MP4 ( with AAC 2ch sound format ) formats, it supports following videos recording modes : 4K ( 3840 x 2160 25p / 24p ), Full HD ( 1920 x 1080 50p / 25p ), HD ( 1280 x 720 25p ) and VGA ( 640 x 480 25p ). Camera have images stabilization functions, which move sensor, when camera is shaked. Its sensory OLED display has 3-inch size and 1040 dots resolution; viewfinder also manufactured with use of OLED technology and has 2360 pixels resolution. Microphone of camera records audio in stereo format and supports wind cut functions, there is ability to plug external microphone via 2.5 mm connector. It has following connectors options : USB 2.0 for data transmitting and battery recharging, micro HDMI Type D for photos and videos viewing on TV and monitor screens, audio-video output and 2.5 mm input for external microphone or remote shutter. One charge of Li-ion battery is enough for making of approximately 330 photos. Camera sizes are : 133.2 x 77.9 x 63.1 ( width x height x depth ), and weight is : 487 g. It can save photos and videos on SD, SDHC and SDXC flash memory cards with recommended speed class UHS-I UHS Speed Class 3 and above; and supports Wi-Fi connections for transmitting of photos and videos to mobile devices and for remote control of camera from smartphone. It can work under 0 – 40 degrees on Celsius temperatures and in 10 – 80 % air humidity range. There are lots of accessories already released for camera, among them are : different objective lenses, external flashes and microphones, optical filters, additional batteries and other accessories. Package contains : Panasonic LUMIX GX8 camera itself, USB cable, recharger, DVD disk with software, power cable, user’s guide and different caps, straps and coverings for camera. It will be available in shops from 16th August of this year.

DJI released quadrocopter DJI Phantom 3 with Professional and Advanced modifications. This device is little helicopter with 4 propellers and with camera attached to it, which can record photos and videos. It has Sony EXMOR sensor with 1/2,3” size and 12.76 MP ( 4000 x 3000 pixels ) resolution and objective lenses with 94 degrees field of view. Professional version can record videos in following formats UHD ( 4096 x 2160p 24 / 25 and 3840 x 2160p 24 / 25 / 30 ), Full HD ( 1920 x 1080p 24 / 25 / 30 / 48 / 50 / 60 ) and HD ( 1280 x 720p 24 / 25 / 30 / 48 / 50 / 60 ); advanced version can record videos only in Full HD and HD formats. Dron saves photos in JPEG and DNG formats and video in MP4 or MOV formats ( with MPEG-4 AVC or H.264 encoding ). Its camera writes them on Micro SD flash cards with 64 GB maximal capacity ( it is recommended to use Class 10 or UHS-1 speed class memory cards ). Weight of quadrocopter is 1280 g and its size on diagonal is 590 mm. Maximal speeds are : 5 m/s ( ascent ), 3 m/s ( descent ) and 16 m/s ( in horizontal plane without wind ). Vertical positioning accuracies are : +- 0.1 m ( with visual positioning mode on ) and +- 0.5 m ( without it ); and horizontal is : +- 1.5 m. Maximal altitude above sea level is 6000 m and operating temperatures range is 0 – 40 degrees on Celsius. Drone navigates with use of GPS and GLONASS. Quadrocopter is supplied with remote control unit, which works in 2.4 – 2.483 GHz frequencies range with 2000 m maximal connection distance and USB connector for data transfers. One charge of DJI Phantom 3 battery is enough for approximately 23 minutes of flight. Drone can be controlled from smartphone with use of DJI GO application; it supports auto return home function, when control is lost or when battery charge is low.

FUJIFILM announced new professional level camera FUJIFILM X-T1. It is equipped with X-Trans CMOS II sensor with sizes 23.6 x 15.6 mm and 16.3 MP ( 4896 x 3264 pixels ) resolution and with image processor EXR Processor II. Camera can save images in JPEG, RAW and RAW+JPEG formats. It supports following videos recording modes : Full HD 1920 x 1080 60p / 50p / 30p / 25p / 24p and HD 1280 x 720 60p / 50p / 30p / 25p / 24p, and saves them in MOV format with H.264 compression; audio is stored in Linear PCM stereo format. FUJIFILM X-T1 supports optical image stabilization with OIS-compatible objectives lenses and have 3-inch LCD-display and 0,5-inch OLED viewfinder. Its body is protected from dust and water splashes and allows it to work under low temperatures ( it can work in -10 – +40 degrees on Celsius temperatures range with 10 – 80 % humidity ). One battery charge is enough for shooting of 350 photos or for recording of 103 minutes of video. Camera saves photo and video files on SD, SDHC and SDXC ( UHS-II ) flash memory cards. Its sizes are : 129 x 89.8 x 46.7 mm ( width x height x depth ), and weight is : 440 g. FUJIFILM X-T1 supports Wi-Fi connections for data transmits to mobile devices and for remote control of camera from mobile phone. It has USB 2.0 connector ( for data transfers and battery recharging ), HDMI-output ( for images and videos watching on TV or monitor screen ) and 2.5 mm stereo connector for external microphone or remote shutter. Package contains : FUJIFILM X-T1 camera itself, Li-ion battery, recharger, external flash, CD-ROM disk with software, user’s guide and different straps, caps and coverings for camera. It will be available in shops from 31-st October of this year.

Panasonic released new Panasonic DMC-FZ300K camera, that is able to shoot videos in 4K resolution ( 3840 x 2160 pixels ). It has 12,1 MP MOS sensor, which allows camera to make good quality photos in low light conditions. Image lenses give 24x optical magnification, wherein camera supports 5-axis optical image stabilization. Body of Panasonic DMC-FZ300K is splashproof and dustproof, its 3-inch display can rotate under different angles and have sensor functions support. Camera can save photos in RAW format and record series of photos for shooting of dynamic scenes, for example, for shooting sports events. It can record high-speed videos with 240 frames per second frequency in VGA resolution ( 640 x 480 pixels ) and 120 fps in HD resolution ( 1280 x 720 pixels ) and supports macro shooting of objects at 1 cm distance from objective lens. Viewfinder display is produced with use of OLED technology and have good color reproduction and contrast ratio. Camera supports Wi-Fi connections for video and photo files transmitting and for remote control of camera from mobile phones. It saves data on SDXC flash cards, it is recommended to use UHS Speed 3 Class cards for 4K video recording. There are lots of accessories released for Panasonic DMC-FZ300K : external flashes, stereo microphones, different objectives and other accessories. Package contains : camera itself, USB cable for data transmitting and battery recharging, recharger and user’s guide.

OLYMPUS released new shockproof camera OLYMPUS STYLUS TG-860 Tough with middle photo and video abilities. It is waterproof ( can work at depths down to 15 m ), dustproof, shockproof ( does not break, when it falls from heights up to 2.1 m ), freezeproof ( can work at temperatures down to -10 degrees by Celsius ) and withstand static forces, that equivalent to 100 kg weight. Its 3 inch LCD monitor can tilt at 180 degrees angles : this allows to make photos under any angle and make selfie photos, while observing resulting picture on screen. OLYMPUS STYLUS TG-860 Tough is equipped with 16 MP CMOS sensor with 1/2.3“ size and TruePic VII image processor. Objective lenses are wide angle and can provide 5x optical zoom. Camera can shoot at 60 frames per second frequency in 1080, 720 and 480 modes; it can be increased up to 240 fps ( in 640 x 360 mode ) and up to 120 fps ( in 854 x 480 mode ). It also can shoot in Time Lapse Movie mode, in which it makes 1 frame per 0,5, 1, 3, 6, 12 or 30 seconds and saves frames in video file with normal playback speed. This mode is useful for recording slow processes like : flowers opening, clouds movement and other similar processes. Camera supports Wi-Fi connections, which allow to transmit videos and photo files to mobile devices and remotely control camera from smartphone. Also, it supports GPS navigation for coordinates of place of shooting storing in photo and video metadata. For OLYMPUS STYLUS TG-860 Tough there are following accessories released : waterproof case ( which lowers underwater recording depth down to 45 m ), sports holder ( which allows to attach camera to clothes ) and silicon case, which protects camera body from scratches. Package contains : camera itself, USB cable for data transmitting and battery recharging, recharger and user’s guide.

OLYMPUS released new camera OLYMPUS STYLUS SH-2 with 24x optical zoom. It can be increased up to 48x in wide angle shooting mode. Camera has 5-axis image stabilization functions, which make photos, that were made in motion, more clear. Its sensor has 16 MP resolution and camera can save images in RAW format. OLYMPUS STYLUS SH-2 has lots of specialized night time shooting modes, which make photos made in low-light conditions better : from night portrait to shooting of the stars. Camera supports video shooting in Full HD mode with 60 frames per second; frequency can be reduced to 30 fps to save space on flash card. It also supports videos recording with 240 fps ( in HVGA 432 x 324 mode ) and 120 fps ( in HD 1280 x 720 mode ). Camera supports Time Lapse Movie mode, in which it makes 1 frame per 5 minute – 5 hours and then saves video in file with usual playback speed. This mode is useful for recording of flowers opening, clouds movement and other slow processes. Camera supports Wi-Fi connections for photo and video files transfers to mobile devices and for remote control of camera from mobile phone. There is leather body jacket released for camera, that has 2 colors variations : black and light brown. Package contains : OLYMPUS STYLUS SH-2 camera itself, USB cable for data transfers and camera recharges, recharger and user’s guide.

At the 1st August Olympus will release new variant of Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark II camera with titanium color. It is equipped with 16.1 MP CMOS sensor and can make 8 succeeding photos and combine them into 1 single 40 MP photo. It can shoot videos in following formats : 1920 x 1080 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p), 1280 x 720 (60p, 50p, 30p, 25p, 24p) and 640 x 480 (30p). Camera supports image stabilization with use of VCM technology and can shoot high quality videos on professional cinematographic level. Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark II Limited Titanium Edition can save photos in RAW and JPEG formats, one battery charge is enough to make 310 photos. Its body is dustproof, splashproof and freezeproof ( camera can make photos and videos at temperatures down to -10 degrees by Celsius ). Camera supports SD, SDHC and SDXC flash cards. Its weight is 467 g and dimensions are : 8,5 x 4,5 x 12,4 cm ( height x depth x width ). There are lots of accessories already released for camera : external flashlight, external battery, red dot finder, underwater case ( which allow camera to make photos and videos underwater ) and other accessories. Package contains : Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark II Limited Titanium Edition camera itself, cables for data transmitting and recharging, recharger and user’s manual.