Wi-Fi Looms Large At International CES

By David Elrich -- TWICE, 1/10/2012

LAS VEGAS — In a nutshell, Wi-Fi capability and more potent zooms are the broad themes for new compact point-and-shoot cameras in 2012.

Samsung will unveil six Wi-Fi enabled cameras with the WB850F ($349) the top model. It has a 16-megapixel BSI CMOS sensor, 21x optical zoom, 3-inch AMOLED display, 1080/30p FullHD video with Dual Capture and GPS. Its popular Dual View line will also have Wi-Fi, including the DV500F Dual View ($299) with a 16-megapixel BSI CMOS sensor, 6x zoom, 3.5-inch AMOLED Touch Display plus a 1.5-inch front LCD, 1080/30p FullHD video with Dual Capture.

Canon U.S.A. is unveiling two PowerShot Elph-series point-and-shoot cameras and a new flagship Power- Shot G-series model. The G1X (shipping in February at a $799 suggested retail) will be positioned for advanced amateurs and professionals looking for a walk-around point-and-shoot model and offers a large 1.5-inch 14.3-megapixel CMOS image sensor and a 4x (28-112mm) optical zoom lens.

It is said to have a shallow depth of field and an aperture range of F/2.5-16 affording better low-light capability.

Other new features include 14-bit RAW file support, a new DIGIC 5 image processor with improved low-light support, high-speed burst HQ shooting of up to 6fps/4.5 fps at full resolution, multi-area white balance adjustment, expanded Smart Auto settings, child-weighted face detection system, handheld night scene and HDR mode. It will shoot up to FullHD 1080 video and includes a 720p Movie Digest mode to automatically compile a video log of all still shots.

The new Elph models both offer improved low-light shooting and the new DIGIC 5 image processor. The Elph 520HS (shipping in March at a $299 suggested retail) offers a compact form factor, MicroSD card slot, 12x zoom lens starting at a 28mm wide angle, 10.1-megapixel CMOS image sensor and ISO range to 3,200. Also included is a 3-inch LCD, 58 scene Smart Auto settings, Intelligent Image Stabilization, burst shooting speeds of up to 6.8 fps at 4-megapixel resolution, and body color options of silver, blue, green and red.

The Elph 110HS (shipping in February at $249) offers a 16.1-megapixel highsensitivity CMOS sensor, DIGIC 5 image processing to 3,200 ISO, FullHD 1080p video recording, 5x (24-120mm) zoom, intelligent image stabilization, 3-inch 461,000-dot LCD, 58-scene Smart Auto settings, high-speed burst shooting of 5.8fps at 4-megapixel resolution, full-size SD card slot and Movie Digest mode up to 720p HD resolution.

Casio is introducing a new longzoom camera at the show. The Exilim EX-ZR200, which ships in March ($380 suggested retail), features a 12.5x optical zoom (24-300mm) with fast start-up and focusing times. Casio claimed the ZR200 needs as little as 0.27 seconds between photos. The compact 16.1-megapixel CMOS digicam offers 30 fps shooting speeds, FullHD video HDR, HDR-ART and Premium Auto Pro to handle issues like backlighting and night scenes.

GE Cameras (General Imaging Technologies) is also making the move to CMOS sensors and longer zooms. The Power PRO G100 is first in a series of CMOS cameras. The 14.4-megapixel digicam ($200 suggested retail) will feature high-speed, continuous shooting capabilities among other high-performance features. It has a 15x optical zoom lens and will record video in up to 1080 HD resolution with stereo sound. Also slated is the ultra-compact power series E1410SW ($160 suggested retail) camera featuring 14-megapixel resolution, 10x optical zoom, thin-form-factor design and a wide-angle to long-zoom focal range.

Kodak is introducing a Wi-Fi-enabled EasyShare M750 (shipping in Q2 at $170). The 16-megapixel, 5x optical zoom camera with 3-inch touchscreen offers Wi-Fi to email and post images to social sites such as Facebook, Wi-Fi copy to smartphone or tablet, and auto Wi-Fi backup to computer. Kodak also has an EasyShare camera app for Apple iOS, Android and BlackBerry.

Olympus is introducing five new digicams at the show, and while none have built-in Wi- Fi, a pair is Eye-Fi compatible. The SP-620UZ ($199 suggested retail) has a 21x wide-angle zoom, 7 fps shooting and HD video. The SZ- 12 (also $199) has a 24x zoom, 7 fps burst shooting, high-def video and 3D capture. They are adding to their Tough lineup with the TG-320 ($179.99) which is shock-, water-, freeze- and dust-proof.

Panasonic will introduce five new models — all less than $199. In keeping with the long-zoom push, the slim Lumix SZ-7 and SZ1 have 10x optical zooms. Both feature Leica lenses and start at 25mm. The 14.1-megapixel MOS DMC-SZ7 can record FullHD AVCHD video while the 16.1-megapixel CCD DMC-SZ1 records 720p HD video.

Vivitar by Sakar International is unveiling at International CES a range of value-priced digital cameras featuring stylish compacts and a rugged weatherproof entry.

Among the highlights is the iTwist F129 ($90 suggested retail) offering 14.1-megapixel resolution, a 4x digital zoom, a 2.7- inch articulating flip-up LCD ideal for selfportrait work, face-and-smile detection circuitry and 720p HD video capture with anti-shake control.

The ViviCam F332 ($70) also features 14.1-megapixel resolution and 720p HD video capture, but adds a 3x optical zoom and three AAA battery power.

The ViviCam 8426 ($70) plays into the exploding outdoor photography trend by offering an all-weather waterproof body featuring 8.1-megapixel resolution with autofocus, face detection, shake reduction and a self-timer.