Some cool updates today…

Today is a big day. 

Today is the first OFFICIAL day of activity over at CES in FAH-abulous Las Vegas.  Its also the day that Apple is launching the Mac App Store.  Now you can find, buy and install apps right from iTunes, like you do with all of your iOS devices.  Apple also released a minor (115MB) software update to OSX 10.6 Snow Leopard (version 10.6.6) that specifically enables this ability and includes all the necessary support files and stuff.  What I think is col, is that now your desktop apps can be managed, redownloaded, etc. just like your device apps.  If you ever have to rebuild your Mac, reinstalling everything just got a whole lot easier.

I’ve used a couple of digital cameras and only recently started to deal with digital camcorders.  Previously, I used my digital cameras to take video footage.  In the past couple of months after getting some cats as well as video tutorial creation requirement at work, I started using digital camcorders.  I was initially shooting my projects with a Cisco Flip HD until I was given the opportunity to test drive a DXG Pro Gear Series DXG-A85V HD.  This camcorder boasts of 1080p HD recording with a 10MP Image sensor and a 12x optical zoom.  This looked very different from the Flip I was using and initially I felt a bit intimidated.  I soon learned however that using a much higher quality camera does not have to be a scary experience.  So I set forth with my trusty tripod to shoot anything and everything whether it was of my 2 new cats, the white elephant portion of a party, or driving down the road (mom did the driving, I just sat in the passenger side and shot video).  So how well did this camcorder fare?  Read on to find out!

What’s in the Box:  No, you won’t find the camera in there with lump of coal – far from.  Inside in addition to the camera you’ll find a slew of goodies:

• Pouch-Style Case (Sorry, Mr. Peripherals sales person…I already got a bag…I don’t need that attachment).
• Battery and proprietary charger.
• Arcsoft Total Media HDCam 2.0 software for editing and blue ray conversion.
• HDMI cord to connect the camera to the TV or even a monitor!
• RCA cable to connect the camera to the TV
• Manuals and quick start guides.

What’s not included in the box that you better get:

• SD Memory cards – Preferably a nice speedy SDHC as those HD videos gobble up memory faster than you can say “Chubby Chipmunk”.  Be warned that the maximum file size is about 3.75GB.  Which equates to about 30 minutes of shooting per clip.
• Firmware Update (http://www.dxgusa.com/CustomerService/Forms/DXGA85FW.zip) is optional, but I initially ran into some problems getting my Arcsoft Total Media HDCam software to work in which case DXG instructed me to install this update.  The software worked afterwards so I believe this did fix something although there is no formal change log as to what this update does.

Quick Look: Before getting down to the features, let’s take a quick look at the DXG supplied demo unit.  On the side where you can see the flip out portion, you’ll notice the 3 dots for the microphone.  The placement of the microphone is excellent as it will pick up sounds in all directions whether it be of me behind the camera, my subject, or other directions.

Start by rotating the camera to the front part and taking off the lens cover.  The lens is huge in comparison to the other lenses that I’ve seen (such as the DXG-5B1V which only sports a digital zoom) .  That 12x optical zoom lens rocks!  You’ll notice to the bottom is the flash for photography as well as an uber-bright LED light to the right side. This thing is really bright and is sure to light up places that are particularly dark (although your subjects may not be too happy being blinded).

The opposite side of the flip out touch screen LCD is where the hand strap goes.  It took a while to adjust the strap to a comfortable position where it allowed me to easily get at the controls.  There is a learning curve to this camcorder and practice does help to achieve perfection.  So don’t be crestfallen if you don’t get the handling immediately.

The top is where the stereo speakers are placed for on unit playbacks of captured video.  You’ll also see the zoom controls which feel great when the hand strap is properly adjusted.  This zoom control is an easy to use rocker switch that can go left and right.  Unlike other camcorders, there is also a button (covered by the glare in this photo – but is directly about the “bil” of “mobile” in the JAMM watermark) which allows you to be in video mode but still be able to take photos before and during a video clip.

The back of the unit is where all the controls are.  On the top you’ll see the mode “Mode Dial” where you can set it to camcorder, camera, and SET modes.  Switching between modes between taking video and stills is a snap.  You get a D-pad navigation button to navigate through menus as well as going through features quickly like manual and auto focus.  On the left hand side of the D-pad you’ll see the cover that covers the USB and HDMI ports.  The USB is one way to get your photos and videos off the camera without having to keep on removing your SD card.  On the right hand side of the D-pad is the camcorder record button.  The open switch below it is for the battery bay door. 

Here’s a close-up of the battery bay.  There is a little gray latch on the left hand side that keeps the battery seated.

On the bottom, you’ll notice that this little guy has holes for tripod mounting.  I’ve learned that tripods whether small or large are a video maker’s best friend as it keeps things nice and steady for the optimal picture.

The 3 inch touch LCD pops open and reveals a very nice screen.  This screen is also rotatable which is useful for trying to film yourself or to get that perfect shot angle. On the edge of the LCD touch screen is the playback button which allows you to view your recordings as well as photos.  The round power button that is in the center of the control section is seldom used.  The only time I find myself using it is if I left the camcorder on the tripod and needed to turn the camcorder off.  By opening the LCD screen, the unit turns on.  Closing it turns it off.  The lighting controls for flash as well as the super bright LED are the last two, top-right buttons that are above the power button.  Pressing display will toggle the on screen display (OSD) icons on and off.  Near the hinge of the LCD is the SD card slot.

The menu button will take you to the options for a specific mode (camcorder or camera).  In camcorder mode, you’ll be presented with options such as resolution, quality, white balance, and color.  In camera mode, you’ll get a similar array of choices including megapixel, brightness, self timer, and even aspect ratio options.

If the Mode Dial is on SET mode you’ll get options such as “toggle beeps”, auto-off, NTSC/PAL, formatting of the memory card, language, hertz, and date.

Technicals: The DXG-A85V is the flagship of DXG’s Professional Gear series and as such has loads of options.  But what kind of features do professionals need that this camcorder provides? 

• DXG utilizes B frames for smoother video and uses H.264 main profile for efficient video compression. 
• Accurate exposure control for Exposure Value (EV) adjustment on the fly.
• Auto Focus (AF) Accuracy – As auto focus will fail in certain situations, Multi Focus (MF) must be ready on hand.
• 60 frames per second (fps) for fast motion.
• Eye-Fi support – DXG works directly with Eye-Fi to ensure compatibility.
• Fastest way to get AVCHD DVD formatting for any third party non AVCHD members (Canon, JVC, Sony, Panasonic, etc.) is through special licensing which DXG has.  Unless you are a member, you cannot save to a format that is directly playable off of a Bluray player.  By having this special licensing, the encoding can be done in 10-30 minutes in comparison to 17 hours on a 2GHz Dual Core computer.  The advantage of this type of formatting also allows the video to be uploaded to viral video sites such as YouTube.  AVCHD is not directly uploadable and can be considered a disadvantage depending on the circumstances.

Video: Recording is a cinch – no manual is needed to get going (although it is highly advisable to read it).  Open the screen to turn the unit on.  Make sure the Mode dial is set to the correct function and hit the record button.  Voila!  In the settings section for resolution, you’ll see that this camcorder offers a wide variety of formats to shoot with.  Choices include 1080p at 30fps, 720p at 30 or 60fps, WVGA (480p) at 30 or 60fps, and WQXGA (1600p) at 240fps.  I do recommend turning on the stabilizer option as without it, things can become very blurry especially with the oscillations of using the camcorder without a tripod.  I have never shot in anything greater than 720p and having that extra resolution sure makes a difference!  Furthermore, with the 12x optical zoom, I can zoom in very close to objects (like my cat) where I can almost seem to touch him.  The detail of the photo is wonderful as each hair can be seen.  Shown below is a photo taken while in camcorder mode to quickly demonstrate quality.

Without the zoom (about 4.5 feet away)…

With maximum zoom!  You can actually see the individual hairs of my kitty cat.  It is important to note that when using the AF, it does take time to focus. 

Not waiting long enough for it to find the proper parameters for focus will cause ugly pictures like the one I shot below.  Which also goes to show the importance of using the flash and LED lights to properly light your subject.  I personally find it faster to let the AF do most if not all the work before switching to MF to fine tune things (if needed).

Here’s a clip that was taken at a party.  Stabilizer was set to on and it was locked to AF.  The LED light was not used as I’d get a few too many complaints that it was too bright.

Doing some shooting in the car, I was very impressed with this camcorder.  Sure, I got dizzy watching this later, but the fact still remains that there was excellent AF despite constant movement – even in a zoomed-in position where when something shakes the shaking is compounded.  All in all, I am very impressed with this unit for video capture.  One thing I wish it had is a viewfinder which would help in stabilization.  Oh well.  We’ve already seen some photos taken, but let’s look at the photo capture aspect of this unit a bit more.

Photos:  The DXG-A85V can also take some good still photos.  Although I find it harder to take photos with this unit than the standard stand-alone digital camera.  Taking a picture is simple whether the camcorder is set to camcorder or camera mode.  Just use the shutter button labeled “Photo” on the top of the camera near the zoom controls.  Press the “Photo” button lightly for it to focus and harder for it to activate the shutter.  It does take some pressure to press the button so you’ll need to make sure to brace the unit well as the additional pressure needed to press the button may cause the hand to shake more.  It is important to wait until the little box turns from red to green before fully pressing the “Photo” button.

Here’s a shot that my mom took of Ella our cat.  Out of a large number of shots taken, many that mom took turned out blurry.

A large number of my initial photos taken also turned out blurry.  But with a bit more practice, a larger number of my photos started becoming more clear.  Again, it was learning to wait for the autofocus and remembering to use the flash. 

You can easily select what resolution you want your photos to have.  From 20MP to 2MP including 10MB and 2MB bursts.  In other settings you can also choose a self timer of 5 to 10 seconds to delay the shot so you can get into the picture too!

Playback:  This was extremely easy!  After pressing the playback button next to the touchscreen, the on screen controls allow you to cycle and playback your videos and photos.  You can also easily connect your camcorder to a big screen via HDMI or RCA – both cords are included.  Kudos to DXG for this!  As you can see with any touch screen, fingerprints can and do get in the way.

Battery: There are things to be said about trade offs between conventional and proprietary batteries.  DXG goes the proprietary method has a very good battery with a very long life.  I went through a couple of smaller 2GB Micro Center branded memory cards before I even started running low on battery life.  If you need even more power, go buy a battery.  The down side of course is the need to bring yet another charger – a small price for good power, though.  You can only charge the battery with the charger and not with the camcorder.   If you need to charge the battery, do it overnight and you’re good to shoot for the day.  When I did my tutorials for my previous employer, I used this camcorder to record the footage.  Shooting a session usually involves getting much more video than you really need and then whittling everything down during editing (clips used for this review have not been edited and were directly uploaded to YouTube).  The battery will last.

Bundled Software: Just when you thought things couldn’t be any finer, DXG again steps up and proves us wrong.  The DXG-A85V comes bundled with ArcSoft’s TotalMedia HDCam software.  This software allows for video clip and photo management across your entire computer.  What it does add and brings to the table aside from YouTube and Facebook uploading are also the ability to do cuts and merges to video,  the ability to create photo books and album pages, keyword tagging, user ratings, and finally the most important tool of all – Create AVCHD DVDs!  This is where you can create DVDs that will playback your 1080p HD content directly on a Bluray player.  Unfortunately, I don’t own a Bluray player – but a quick trip to the local electronics retailer proved quite rewarding watching mom’s little cat do…whatever cats do!  Please note that YouTube uploading does degrade the quality of the video considerably due to transcoding.

Conclusion: I’m impressed.  This certainly is a camcorder that can rival even more expensive competitors like Canon.   With that being said, it probably won’t be long before DXG becomes known as an elite brand in their craft.  The DXG-A85V HD, is my first personal experience in professional type gear.  I have had friends show me their studio camcorders and in comparison this (not so) little guy comes with loads of professional features.  It ranks close to the Canon HF200 and makes the Cisco Flip look like the Spider Man or Barbie kid camcorder.  Perfect for most occasions whether for photos or video, the DXG-A85V HD can get it done professionally and affordably.  I would recommend keeping this camera for well lit situations as it will struggle in darker situations.  If you want to watch your recordings on Bluray and you don’t want to pay higher prices for a camcorder with native AVCHD, this is hands down the way to go as it will quickly get your video to that format.

I am surprised to see 2 negative reviews by Amazon.com buyers regarding battery life and camcorder performance.  In my extensive testing, I was unable to duplicate such complaints as my sound was crisp and the battery lasted waaaaay longer than an hour.  In addition, all of my videos and still photos were captured at the highest possible resolution using a plain 2GB $6.99 Micro Center SD card.  In response to one buyer’s review, it is the opinion of this recording technologies graduate that the expectations of getting crisp clashing sounds of bowling pins crashing without the use of a boom microphone is absurd.  It appears that some people have unreasonable expectations in performance. 

The DXG-A85V HD  is available from DXG for $319.99

iPod Touch and iPad, will be coming to the App Store this Thursday 16^th December. To wet your appetite, check out the trailer:

Icelandic Studio Gogogic released their unique puzzle game for iPhone iPod Touch and iPad (HD), Symbol6 Redux.  http://itunes.apple.com/app/symbol6-redux/id397969134?mt=8

It’s a great little casual game which has been specifically designed to be appealing to everybody, regardless of age or gaming experience.

To celebrate the launch of Symbol6 Redux, Gogogic are also giving away copies of the game on their website www.gogogic.com via a treasure hunt competition.  Get it for $0.99 for the iTouch/iPhone version or $2.99 for the iPad version.

I have been anxiously watching the category of devices which have optimistically dubbed themselves “iPad killers.”  This is a new category of tablet devices, running operating systems which are typically associated with mobile devices, such as WebOS and Android.  This is a major shift from previous tablet devices, which relied heavily on mutations and adaptations of desktop-based operating systems like Windows7.  The first such device I have had the opportunity to check out is the Android-based Samsung Galaxy Tab, which the folks at Sprint were nice enough to loan me in order to test. 

As I mentioned, the Galaxy Tab relies on the Android operating system, which we have reviewed on numerous occasions here at JAMM.  As such, I am not going to spend too much time on the operating system itself.   I will say, however, that if you are a fan of Android, then this will feel extremely familiar and comfortable…in fact, it felt exactly the same as its mobile phone counterpart.  Even to the point in which the apps in the marketplace were the same…the exact same apps, without even offering any optimization for the larger screen.  The result was that many apps on this device failed to really make use of the larger real estate offered by the seven inch screen.  Otherwise, the device felt to me a lot like a larger version of the HTC EVO, without the HTC SenseUI.  I have to admit  that I have never really been a fan of Android without the extra features offered by HTC’s SenseUI.  It just feels a bit too plain to me, so I was disappointed that Samsung did not do more to dress up the interface on this device.

We have already hinted at it a bit, but let’s go ahead and take a look at the size of this device.  The Galaxy Tab sports a seven inch screen, which puts it nearly exactly in the middle of a large cell phone, like the EVO, and the iPad.   At first glance, I was a bit wary of this screen, which made the device feel too large to be portable, but too small to be effective.  In other words, the perfect compromise which no one was really seeking.  After using it for a bit, however, I found the size of the device worked well for many purposes.  I still felt it was too small to be effective for more than the most basic reading or writing tasks.  Any would be iPad competitor has to be able to accomplish similar tasks such as word processing, ebook reading, and even blog posting.  While some apps do exist for these tasks on Android, I simply did not find the size of this device was well suited for them.   On the other hand, I found myself reaching for the Galaxy Tab more and more often for basic tasks, such as checking email and even looking up websites (though it did tend to default to the mobile versions of most sites). 

The biggest advantage of this device over the iPad and other tablets, was that this one will fit in your pocket.  It is probably the largest device which could fit, and I would not recommend it in a tight pocket like jeans, though it slid right into my cargo pants.

Speaking of the hardware, let’s go ahead and take a quick look around this device.  As is common in many devices, the face is smooth and flat, with no lip between the screen and the surrounding bezel.  This is great in terms of usability, but combine it with the smooth back and you end up with one slippery device.  I never really understood why these devices cannot utilize a more textured or rubberized back in order to make it a bit grippier. 

Back to the face, there are four hardware buttons beneath the screen.  These are also simple touch sensors rather than raised buttons.  This means there is no tactile feedback when you push one of them.  Still, the buttons are well thought, with the menu button, home button, back button, and search button.

The right side of the device (as you are looking at it) has the power button, volume controls, and microSD card.  I was really excited to find the microSD card slot, allowing you to add external memory to the device.  This is one of the biggest failings of the iPad.  I was disappointed, however, not to find a hardware button for the camera.  Fumbling to find the camera icon on the onscreen menus can be a bit tricky at times, especially when you are trying to capture that priceless spontaneous moment.

There is nothing on the left except the microphone.  Likewise, the top contains only a standard 3.5 inch earphone jack.  On the bottom are the speakers, as well as the sync/charge plug.  I was a but disappointed to find a proprietary plug, rather than a standard mini or micro USB.  This means the Galaxy Tab will require yet another cable to be carried around when you travel.

Like the iPad, the back of the device will not open, meaning you cannot replace or change the battery.  That being said, I had no problems with this battery.  I subjected it to my regular daily use, and even a bit more than that, and it lasted more than long enough with a single overnight charge.  Also on the back of the device, you will find the 3.2 megapixel camera.

Speaking of the camera, I found it worked abut as well as any camera I have used in a mobile device.  It will never seriously contend with my Canon camera…or my DXG camcorder.  In a pinch, though, it can handle both still photos and video with relative ease (you can see the results, above).  As I mentioned, it can be a bit cumbersome to find the camera app within the onscreen menus, so you may want to consider adding the icon to your homescreen.  Once you are in the app, however, the controls are relatively easy.  Just point and shoot.  There are some nice large buttons on the screen, giving you full control over the app.  Still, I was surprised not to find a digital zoom here.  Additionally, I was shocked that this device did not have a front facing camera.  With all the emphasis which has been placed, lately, on mobile video conferencing, it was a real surprise to find a device like this without such capabilities.

I have to say though, despite the nice screen size and resolution, I was not terribly impressed by the video watching experience on this one.  First, loading video onto the device is a real chore.  It brings to mind something our own Chris Spera said once about the dominance of the iPad: it is all about the environment.  Apple features iTunes.  Love it or hate it, iTunes offers an easy way to transfer properly formatted videos to your device.  Google does not offer anything like that.  Likewise, I found streaming video online also did not work well.  First, many services, such as Hulu and Netflix are not available on this device.  I was able to test the screen with YouTube, but was fairly disappointed by the poor video playback quality I found there.  On the other hand, the Galaxy Tab does feature Samsung’s media hub (above), which allows you to purchase or rent TV shows and movies which you can download to your device for subsequent viewing.  The nice thing about this one is that the library of available videos is regularly updated, meaning there is a fantastic mix of both classic content and new releases.  I was impressed, for example, to find quite a bit of new content which was not even available on Netflix yet.

Finally, the Galaxy Tab is connected to the Sprint network.  I was a little surprised to find that it was not 4G enabled, but it did connect to Sprint’s 3G network with no problems.  I have to admit that I appreciated having a device which is connected to a dedicated network.  My iPad is the wifi only version, and while this works well enough with the Sprint Overdrive 4G modem, there are a few drawbacks.  First, the Overdrive requires you to carry extra accessories, which the dedicated Sprint device would not require.  More importantly is the ability to connect anywhere.  I do not have wifi at work, and I cannot use my Overdrive in my office.  This means my iPad cannot connect to the Internet during the day.  The Galaxy Tab can connect directly to Sprint’s network anytime…even from my office.

In the end, I have to say that I was a little confused by the market which the Galaxy Tab was targeting.  It is not quite a direct competitor of the iPad, though it does fill many of the same functions.  Ultimately, if you are an Android fan, then you are probably going to appreciate the familiar look and feel of the device and interface.  Still, there are too many missing features for it to seriously contend with many of the latest devices hitting the market today.  The HTC Evo, for example, offers nearly all of these missing features, and is still connected to the Sprint network.  The lack of a front facing camera and 4G connectivity, for example, are significant setbacks for the Galaxy Tab.   I was hoping for more, and was disappointed not to find it.  In the end, the Galaxy Tab is little more than a large-screen version of any other  Android phone, with few advanced features, and nothing which really took advantage of the larger screen size or resolution. 

The Samsung Galaxy Tab is available from Sprint for $299.99 with a two year contract.