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Pentax Unveils a Cheap Body Cap Lens of Its Own for Its Q System

Olympus isn't the only camera company toying around with the concept of cheap body cap lenses. At the CP+ show in Japan, Pentax took the wraps off a body cap lens of its own for its Q system line of mirrorless cameras. Officially called the "Mount Cap Lens," the accessory is a pint-sized hyper-focal lens that will reportedly produce toy-camera-style photographs.

Pentax Announces Its Own Retro-Styled Camera, the MX-1

More and more camera companies are giving their products vintage camera-inspired designs these days, and Pentax wants to join in on the fun. The company announced its own retro-styled camera earlier today called the MX-1.

It's a fixed lens compact camera that features a sleek metal body, a fast lens, and a 12-megapixel sensor.

Facebook Rolls Out Photo Sync Feature for Android and iOS

Today Facebook finally launched the photo sync feature that it has been privately testing for smartphones over the past couple of months. The feature is built into the social network's official mobile app for Android and iOS, and makes it easier to automatically sync your phone photos to the Facebook cloud.

GoPro Unveils the Hero3: Smaller, Lighter, Faster, and 4K Resolution (Kinda)

At a special event in San Francisco tonight, GoPro launched its latest action camera: the Hero3. Compared to the Hero2 that it succeeds, the new camera is both more portable and more capable. It's 30% smaller and 25% lighter, making it great for helmet cams and attaching to random things. The image processor inside is twice as fast, allowing the camera to shoot both video and photographs at faster frame rates.

Leica Unveils the M and M-E: Beefed Up and Stripped Down Rangefinders

With much fanfare, Leica announced its new M and M-E digital rangefinders at Photokina today. The M breaks new ground by introducing some fancy new features that have never been seen before in an M rangefinder, while the M-E is the company's attempt at offering an entry-level digital rangefinder.

Notice that Leica has done away with its standard naming strategy. Apparently Leica is doing what Apple did with the iPad: leaving out the generation in the name entirely. In future, we'll be saying "Leica M" with "20th generation" in parentheses rather than Leica M20.

Olympus Unveils the E-PM2, E-PL5, and X-Z2: Two Mirrorless and a Compact

Olympus is entering Photokina week with three new cameras: the E-PM2 and E-PL5 for its PEN Micro Four Thirds lineup, and the X-Z2 as a flagship compact camera. Both PEN cameras feature a 16.1MP CMOS sensor, a max ISO of 25,600, in-body image stabilization, a 3-inch touchscreen, touch shooting, 8fps continuous shooting, photo filters, RAW files with in-camera editing, and 1080i HD video recording.

Nikon Unveils the D600, a Portable and “Affordable” Full Frame DSLR

After months of rumors and speculation, Nikon has finally announced its new full frame camera, the D600. In terms of specs, the rumors were right on. However, we missed the mark by quite a bit regarding the price. We'll come back to that later.

The D600 is in fact the company's "entry level" full frame DSLR, designed to bring the benefits of an FX-format sensor to enthusiasts who were previously unwilling to take the plunge. The camera features a 24.3 megapixel CMOS sensor, an ISO range of 100-6400 (expandable to 50-25600), a 39-point autofocus system (9 cross-type points), a 0.13 second startup time and a 0.052 shutter lag, 5.5fps continuous shooting, dual SD card slots, a viewfinder with 100% coverage, built-in HDR, 1080p HD video recording with full-time AF, and a 3.2-inch LCD.

iPhone 5 Camera Stays at 8MP and f/2.4, but Gets a Little Leaner

Apple is on stage right now announcing its new iPhone 5, and has just revealed the details of the smartphone's camera. It's pretty much the same camera as the one found inside the iPhone 4S, except they made the whole thing "thinner" (the iPhone 5 is 18% thinner than its predecessor). You'll find a slightly improved backside-illuminated sensor that shoots the same 8-megapixel photos at 3264x2448 resolution, and the same 5-element lens with a f/2.4 aperture.

Sony RX1 Brings Full-Frame Sensors to the Point-and-Shoot World… for a Price

Sony shook up the digital camera world today by announcing the RX1, a game-changing camera that was somehow kept under wraps until news about it leaked a few days ago. Regardless of whether or not ordinary consumers will readily adopt it, it's a bold camera that sets the bar for what the world can expect in a point-and-shoot. Why is it so revolutionary? It's the first time a full frame sensor has been put inside a compact camera body.

Sony NEX-6 One-Ups the NEX-5R with an Electronic Viewfinder

Sony has announced the new NEX-6, a mirrorless camera that follows up -- and one-ups -- the NEX-5R that was announced a couple of weeks ago. In the NEX pecking order, the 6 falls somewhere in between the 5R and the 7 (announced back in December 2011). It differs from the NEX-7 in that it features a new secondary mode dial and has less resolution (16.1MP, down from 24.3MP), and differs from the NEX-5 in that it has a 2.36-million-dot electronic viewfinder.

Other specs include an APS-C-sized CMOS sensor, ISO that goes up to 25600, a 3-inch tilting LCD screen, a built-in flash, a speedy hybrid AF system, 10fps continuous shooting, and 1080/60p video recording.

Sony Unveils the A99: The World’s First Full Frame SLT Camera

Sony has launched a beastly new full frame camera to wage war against the flagship DSLRs of rival camera manufacturers. The A99, which saw its share of leaks over the past couple of weeks, is the company's new flagship professional camera, replacing the full-frame A900 and A850. It's also the world's first pellicle mirror full-frame digital camera, combining the image quality benefits of having a large sensor with the speed benefits of having a semi-transparent mirror.

The camera features a 24.3MP sensor, an ISO range of 50-25600, 6fps continuous shooting, 14-bit RAW files, a viewfinder with 100% coverage, a 3-inch LCD that tilts in three directions, and a high-res OLED EVF (the same one found in the A77, NEX-6 and NEX-7).

Fuji Announces the X-E1, the Smaller and Cheaper 16.3MP Sibling of the X-Pro1

Fuji has announced its new, much leaked, X-E1 mirrorless camera. It features the same high-quality CMOS sensor as the X-Pro1, but packs it into a smaller and lighter body for increased portability. Specs include a 16.3 megapixel APS-C sensor, a 2.8-inch LCD, a pop-up flash, ISO of 200-6400 (expandable to 100-25600), shutter lag of just 0.05 seconds, focusing speed of up to 0.1 seconds, and RAW and built-in RAW conversion.

Nikon Coolpix L610: A Compact That Turns AA Batteries Into a Feature

Remember the days when portable electronic devices were mostly all powered by AA and AAA batteries? Consumers had to regularly purchase new batteries to keep their gadgets juiced -- a big sink for your hard earned money. When rechargeable batteries started becoming ubiquitous, they were touted as a feature for saving both time and money. All you had to do was plug your camera into the wall (or your battery into a charger) and a few hours later you were recharged.

Now things are moving back in the other direction. It's more difficult to find a quality AA-powered camera on the market, and it can be difficult for travelers to find a suitable power outlet while overseas. That's why Nikon's new CoolPix L610, freshly announced today, boasts about the fact that it supports AA batteries.

Pentax Announces the K-30: A Weather-Sealed Mid-Level DSLR

Pentax has officially announced its new K-30 DSLR, a mid-level weather-sealed camera that's geared towards active outdoor photographers. In addition to its durable build, the camera features a 16MP APS-C sensor, 6fps burst mode, speed autofocus with 9/11 cross-type points, in-camera stabilization (4 stops), 60fps Live View, an optical viewfinder with 100% coverage, a 3-inch LCD screen, dual electronic diables, 1080p HD video recording, ISO 100-12800 (expandable to 25600), and three body colors (white, blue, and black).

Panasonic Lumix GF5 Becomes Official

Panasonic has officially announced the Lumix GF5, conveniently skipping over the GF4 from the GF3. The tiny Micro Four Thirds camera is geared towards beginners and offers some subtle changes from its predecessor. While the 12.1-megapixel sensor hasn't changed, the new camera offers a new max ISO of 12,800, faster autofocus, a new 1080/30p HD view mode, a stereo microphone, a higher-res 3-inch touchscreen, a refined user interface, and an increase to 4fps (up from 3.8).

Nokia Unleashes a Game-Changing 41-Megapixel “PureView” Camera Phone

Nokia dropped a bomb on the cameraphone market today by introducing its new 808 PureView phone -- a phone that is capable of capturing 41-megapixel photos. The native resolution of the phone (16:9) produces 38-megapixel images measuring 7152x5368. The phone also allows you to capture 5-megapixel images by condensing every seven pixels into one, which dramatically reduces noise and improves image quality. Other features include a 4-inch screen, 16GB of built-in storage, a Carl Zeiss f/2.4 lens, lossless digital zoom (i.e. cropping a photo out of the giant image), and HD video recording. It'll hit store shelves in May at a price of €450 (~$600).

Nikon Unveils the D800: A DSLR That Tips the Scales at 36.3 Megapixels

The months of rumors and speculation are finally over: Nikon has announced its long-awaited D800 FX-format DSLR. As was revealed back in October 2011, the camera offers a staggering 36.3-megapixels -- the world's highest in a 35mm DSLR. Other specs include an ISO range of 100-6400 (expandable to 25,600), 91k RGB 3D color metering, a speedy 51-point AF system, a 3.2-inch LCD screen, 4fps continuous shooting (5fps for DX shots), 1080/30p HD video recording, and... in-camera two-shot HDR.

Pentax K-01 Now Official with The World’s Thinnest Interchangeable Lens

Pentax officially announced its new K-01 mirrorless camera today after leaked photos emerged yesterday. The system features the world's thinnest interchangeable lens: a 40mm lens that's just 1cm thick. The body, on the other hand, isn't exactly the sleekest camera we've seen. It's designed by "acclaimed and influential" designer Marc Newson, who hadn't designed a camera before this one (he spends much of his time designing airplanes). The camera features a 16.28MP sensor, an ISO range of 100-25600, 1080p video recording at 30/25/24fps, and an aluminum body available in yellow, black, and white. The system starts shipping next month, with the body priced at $750, the lens priced at $250, and the combo priced at $900.

Canon Unveils the G1X: A Large Sensor Compact Answer to the Mirrorless Craze

Unlike Nikon, which jumped headfirst into the interchangeable lens mirrorless game last year, Canon appears to be content with simply upping the sensor size in its existing compact cameras. Today the company announces the G1X, a new camera into the G-series line that offers a sensor large enough to compete with existing mirrorless camera systems.

Nikon D4 Finally Becomes Official

After nearly a year of rumors, speculation, and leaks, Nikon has finally announced its new flagship D4 DSLR. The specs were already leaked, but here they are: 16.2MP, ISO that expands to 204,800, 10fps stills (11 if AE and AF locked), 51 AF points, a new full frame sensor, 1080/30p video recording, a 91K pixel meter (up from 1,005 pixels in the D3S), backlit controls, a 3.2-inch LCD with an ambient light sensor, a 0.12s startup time, and dual card slots (CF+XQD). It'll cost $6,000 when it hits store shelves in late February.

Fujifilm XS-1 Official: A Bridge Camera with Massive 26x Zoom

Fujifilm officially unveiled the XS-1 today after details and photos of the camera first appeared last month. Unlike the X100 and X10, the XS-1 isn't a rangefinger-esque mirrorless camera but is instead a beastly bridge camera. The camera packs the same 12-megapixel 2/3-inch sensor as the X10, and features a 26x zoom lens that's the 35mm equivalent of a 24-624mm lens. As if that range wasn't enough, they also decided to include a macro mode that allows the camera to focus from just 1cm away.

Swivl: A Motion Tracking Dock that Keeps Your Camera Pointed At You

We first heard about the startup company Satarii back in January when they began raising money for a novel camera dock that offers motion tracking. They went on to raise nearly $25,000 through crowdfunding, and now the dock is official and available for pre-order. Named "Swivl", it helps cameras follow a remote tracking marker by doing its best to keep the marker in the frame.

Panasonic Unveils the Lumix GX1 for Serious Shooters and GF1 Lovers

After photos of the camera were leaked a week ago, Panasonic has officially announced the Lumix GX1. The camera should satisfy GF1 shooters who loved the camera but were unhappy about the consumer-oriented GF2 and GF3 followup cameras. The 16MP Micro Four Thirds camera features a max ISO of 12,800, a solid build, .09 second autofocus (with iPhone-esque touch to focus), a 3-inch touchscreen, RAW mode, and 1080/60i HD video. The camera ships for $700 (body-only) starting in December 2011.

Canon Unveils the EOS C300, Jumps Into the Hollywood Digital Filmmaking Scene

Canon's historic announcement is here, and as most people predicted, it's geared towards filmmaking rather than photography. The company just unveiled its new C300 cinema camera in an effort to break into a Hollywood digital filmmaking scene that's dominated by the Arri Alexa and the RED EPIC. While it's not particularly powerful in any specific category, the new camera comes in EOS or PL lens mounts, shoots 1080p video with a 4K sensor, has dual CF card slots, and offers high quality footage in a relatively small form factor.

Google+ Now Has Retro Filters

The success of Instagram has shown that photo filters are very much in demand with the general population. Facebook is rumored to be working on its own retro filters, but Google has beaten it to the punch: today the company introduced a wide range of creative filters to Google+'s Creative Kit. The filters (called "Effects") include looks that mimic daguerreotypes, Reala 400 film, Polaroid pictures, Lomo, Holga, and even cross processed film.

Lytro Unveils the World’s First Consumer Light Field Camera

Lytro has finally announced its revolutionary consumer light field camera. It's a tiny camera with built-in storage, an 8x f/2 lens, and a design that looks more like a futuristic flashlight than a point-and-shoot camera. The camera captures "living pictures" that can be refocused by the photographer and the viewer, which means focusing is completely eliminated from the process of taking a picture. An 8GB that stores 350 pictures will be priced at $400, while a 16GB with a 750 image capacity will cost $500. The camera will start shipping in early 2012, but you can order one now over on the Lytro website.