Remember the network and Wi-Fi icons in the Canon patent we shared yesterday? Well, they both appeared today in the Canon 1D X announcement, but only one of them is built in. The new DSLR offers a built-in gigabit Ethernet jack for ultra-fast data transfers, but wireless transfers will require an additional add-on: the WFT-E6A Wireless File Transmitter. It’s designed exclusively for the new camera, and supports Bluetooth in addition to Wi-Fi. Priced at $600, it costs as much as an entry level DSLR.

There will also be a Canon GP-E1 GPS Receiver add-on for logging location data and camera direction. It’ll have a retail price of $300 when it’s released alongside the camera in March 2012.

In other news, Canon has passed the 70 million mark for EF lenses produced, while Nikon has just produced its 65 millionth SLR lens.

We may be close to seeing a Canon DSLR with an articulating touchscreen — and possibly even built-in Wi-Fi. A patent filing discovered by Photography Bay has more details on the touchscreen, which we reported on two years ago. A sensor above the screen prevents your nose from changing settings by detecting when your face is pressed against the camera. There are also what appear to be network and Wi-Fi icons on the screen, suggesting that Canon may soon bring Eye-Fi style data transfers to DSLRs.

View the Patent (via Photography Bay)

P.S. Canon will reportedly be announcing a new camera tomorrow. Stay tuned.

Here’s one of the most creative examples of light painting and long-exposure photography we’ve seen — a few techie guys built a special 12-foot-long rod with 80 LED lights that light up depending on how strong a particular Wi-Fi signal is. By walking the stick around and capturing the lights in real time, they were able to photograph “light charts” showing how a particular Wi-Fi signal strength fluctuates in a particular area.

Immaterials: light painting WiFi (via Gizmodo)

PhotoSync for Lazy is an app for iOS devices that automatically syncs photographs with a PC folder over wi-fi. Once the program is installed on the a Windows PC, a special folder is monitored, and when the app is opened on the iPhone (or other iOS device) it will automatically update to reflect the contents of that folder. This can be a good way to keep your phone for sharing photos on the go, or for having your latest portfolio pictures with you at all times. It’s not currently available for the iPad, but will be soon. You can have 50 photographs synced with the free version of the app, or buy the paid version for $3 for unlimited photos.

An alternative way you can sync photos is with Dropbox. It works over the Internet rather than wi-fi, but the good news is that it’s completely free (up to 2GB) and works on Macs and iPads. It also works in both directions — you can have your iPhone photos synced to your computer.

PhotoSync for Lazy (via Lifehacker)

Canon announced today that five upcoming models of the Canon PIXMA printers will feature a “full HD movie print” feature that allows users to print individual frames from their HD movies. The big catch is that the HD movie files have to be .MOV file format created by certain Canon cameras only. The company has yet to release sample prints using the feature.

Other notable features on some of these models include their Wi-Fi capabilities, allowing the printers to access both the Internet and local networks. Also with the Wi-Fi models, Android OS, iPhone, iPad and iPod users can usethe Canon Easy-PhotoPrint app to print camera photos directly from their phones. The wireless models start at $80.

Most of the new printers will also include access to exclusive content on Canon’s CREATIVE PARK, which is a nifty creative site with project ideas, templates, and cards, as well as cool 3D paper craft projects.

In 1998, this US Navy photo was published, showing a Nikonos camera no one recognized from the IPTC caption:

NAVAL AIR BASE CORONADO, California (June 8, 1998) — Navy SEALs attached to SEAL Team One, Naval Air Base Coronado, CA, conducts training using the Nikon/Kodak DCS 425 underwater digital camera which can sends real time digital images to decision makers, and an LPI LPD tracking device uses brevity codes to send both mission status and precise longitude/latitude. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate 2nd Class Ted Banks. (RELEASED)

The enigmatic photo and description sparked much interest — this is a digital SLR that requires no underwater casing, and was far advanced for its time with its built-in tracking, real-time uploading, GPS, and communications. The underwater film Nikonos RS camera existed on the market already, but this futuristic iteration was unheard of in 1998.

What’s more, Kodak denied existence of the camera altogether. When Jarle Aasland of NikonWeb did some research into the matter in 2005, Kodak told him:

“I’m sorry but those cameras never existed here at Eastman Kodak. We never made cameras for that specific use. The information you have is incorrect.”

Another Kodak source told him:

“I think the issue is who they were made for.”

After further investigation into the mythical camera, Aasland finally found photos of the camera listed on eBay, hard evidence of the cameras existence. He published a story on his findings.

Days after Aasland published his article, he was contacted by Kodak’s lead engineer for the DCS cameras, Jim McGarvey. As it turns out, the camera was not quite top secret, but it was so low-profile that few knew about it, including Kodak Professional, McGarvey said. Quite simply, the specialized cameras were not advertised on a consumer level, since they were designed for government use, McGarvey wrote:

“The Nikonos body cameras were made by Kodak’s Commercial & Government Systems division. Through most of the DCS years, that group would take our commercial camera designs and adapt them for government and other special needs. Some of that work was secret, but most of the products were simply only marketed in limited venues and didn’t appear on the commer[c]ical photography radar screens. I don’t think the Nikonos cameras were ever actually secret.

…I have no idea how many Nikonos units were built, but I doubt the total would be over 100. They had no super secret special communications stuff, just standard DCS420 features.”

While it’s still highly unlikely that we’ll see such a formidable does-it-all camera on the mainstream market anytime soon, it’s pretty fascinating to see how today’s consumer products are taking a step in that direction. Some 12 years after the legendary digital Nikonos, we’ve got cameras equipped with GPS, wi-fi enabled cards for real-time uploading, and a plethora of hardy, underwater point-and-shoots on the market.

(via Nikon Rumors)

Polaroid has been getting some viral attention today, partially from its addition of Lady Gaga to its staff, but also because it’s new nostalgic line of instant cameras. That’s right, folks, Polaroid’s back in the instant business — it couldn’t let such a good cash cow run away, after all. Several models of the PIC-1000 were displayed today at CES in Las Vegas, including this nifty wooden body camera:

Pricing and availability are still a mystery, but these cameras are compatible with Polaroid 1000 instant film. Features include a flash, self-timer and red-eye reduction.

(via Electricpig)

In other news…

• Canon reveals three new Wireless File Transmitters for the EOS-1D Mark IV, EOS 5D Mark II and EOS 7D that can link up to 10 cameras, wireless, Wi-Fi protected setup, FTP transfer mode, and more. Read the press release here.
• Camera makers are releasing new point-and-shoot cameras left and right. The Imaging Resource has a pretty comprehensive list of the announcements.
• Casio releases a new digital picture frame that adds art effects to your photos. Read more on CNET.

Check up on us tomorrow for more news and product announcements from CES 2010.

The Consumer Electronics Show hasn’t even officially begun, but product announcements and press releases are already flying around.

There are plenty of new, amazing, and often routinely updated camera features, point-and-shoots, and swanky add-ons like the upgraded Eye-Fi 8GB Pro X2. In addition to our regular content, we’ll be discussing some of the gear on PetaPixel and sharing noteworthy photo-related news links over the next few days as CES kicks off.

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HXV5 has GPS Feature

Sony’s got an interesting concept: the Cyber-shot DSC-HX5V features a built-in GPS and compass, on top of the included Sony G 25mm-equivalent lens, 10x optical zoom, and a 10-megapixel back-illuminated CMOS sensor, a full HD video mode, and 10fps. Impressive. However, for consumers who already have a functioning GPS system or a smart phone, GPS as a camera feature seems a bit redundant.

Read the Sony release here.

Sony starts new line of SD memory

Sony made a surprising announcement that they are to produce a new line of SD memory cards. In the press release, Sony claims the inclusion of SD technology in more products, along with manufacturing Sony branded cards will “compliment Sony’s existing Memory Stick line, satisfying the needs of a broader range of users.”

Read the release here.

Kodak and Canon release Wi-Fi enabled printers paired with Apps

Kodak’s new ESP 6150/ESP7250 models (ESP 7250 shown on left) are compatible with the Kodak Pic flick application which allows smartphone users to print images directly.

Canon multifunction printers (Pixma MX870 on right) also utilize the new Easy-PhotoPrint EX application for the Apple iPhone.

Read more on Kodak and Canon printers.

LaCie’s WhizKey and CooKey modern USB design

While not directly photo-related, the new LaCie key-shaped USB defices are worth a second look. LaCie came out with the innovative design last year, but jazzed the 2010 with faster transfer rates and a more durable handle.

Take a look here.

• Panasonic introduces brand new SDXC card memory
• Snow Goggle Camera by Liquid Image

Stay tuned for more CES 2010 news and product finds later today on PetaPixel.