HOUR 1:
Tech News & Commentary
Joe in Lincoln, Nebraska listens to the Podcast & WWCR Shortwave and asked: “The new Olympus PEN Cameras: How many megapixels are these things and how do they perform in low-light situations, where you don’t want to use the flash but still get a good picture without a lot of noise?”
All of Olympus PEN cameras have 12.3 megapixel sensors, as for low light situations your milage may vary depending on your gear. PEN cameras are like small SLRs, and to a great extent the quality of your low light photos will depend on your lens.
We’ve seen lenses for these cameras ranging from a quick 45mm f1.8 to slower f5.6 lenses. If you use something like the 1.8 you will probably get decent pictures without a flash under normal low light conditions, if you use a slower lens odds are you’ll depend on the flash a lot more.
Since you asked about noise specifically, what you’re probably wondering about is how the cameras perform under high ISO settings. We haven’t had the chance to test them at very low light and very high ISO yet but, from what we’ve seen of other tests online, if you max out the ISO, like with all cameras you will notice some noise, it’s the same compromise you make with any other camera.
The highest ISO setting for PEN cameras is somewhere around 6400, and that’s even higher than some entry level SLRs! At that sensitivity we would expect to notice some noise, having said that, 90% of the time you probably won’t go anywhere near that high a setting, and we’ve been impressed with the quality of the pictures we’ve taken.
We’re sure you’ll be too but, if you want to be sure, you can have a look at some sample pictures here.
For more information, tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
Consumer
Reports Feature with Terry Sullivan
Printers have become more affordable and increasingly full featured. Consumer Reports Associate Editor, Terry Sullivan tells us about three of the best quality, inexpensive all-in-one models.
The “Into Tomorrow” team discussed the latest apps that they
have been playing with recently.
For Android:
• Mark recommends: IMDb, FREE
“I don’t know how conversations get started around YOUR houses, but let me tell you how they get started around MINE. With a question, usually something like “What TV series was he in?” or “Wait, who played the girl in that movie?” One of the best resources for cast, crew, and plot synopsis online has been the Internet Movie Database or IMDb for short. Now there’s an IMDb app for Android. You can easily search by show or movie title, actor’s name, or almost any other bit of trivia you might know about what you’re looking for. The IMDb app runs fast and gives you full access to their database. Much easier than the browser, much faster than most of the conversations around my house. It’s free in the Android market.” — Mark
For iOS:
• Chris recommends: swackett, FREE
“swackett is a whole new way to look at the weather. We convert complex weather data to easily-understood, visual weather reports designed for people of every age. Our unique approach is to combine raw weather data (current conditions, radar, and detailed forecasts) with thoughtfully crafted people symbols (called “peeps”) who always appear appropriately dressed for the weather.”
Tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast for more details.
What are your favorite apps?Let us know!
George in Milton-Freewater, Oregon listens to the Podcast and recommends GO SMS Pro, he said: “I have been using Handcent for years and Go SMS Pro is like that, on steroids.”
GO SMS Pro for Android
Thank you for your suggestion, George!
If you’d like to help your fellow listeners call 1-800-899-INTO (4686) anytime 24/7!
For more information, tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
Juan in Miami Beach, FL listens online and asked: “Are 3D Smartphones worth all the fuss?”
Like with everything else regarding smartphones it’s all about personal choice and what you value in a smartphone… having said that, probably not. We first saw the EVO 3D back in March at CTIA Wireless and it didn’t really wow us, it’s got a screen that’s a little like that of the Nintendo 3DS, it can show 3D or 2D, so you get to pick whether you want to turn 3D on at all. The real 3D uses for the phone are really just shooting videos and pictures in 3D and viewing them, but it’s almost more odd than it is impressive.
One of the problems with shooting 3D video or pictures is that you don’t really have many places to view them outside of the phone’s own screen, you won’t record your entire vacation in 3D and share it on Facebook, YouTube can play 3D videos, but that usually requires wearing 3D glasses (even the little paper ones that sometimes come with magazines) or sitting there cross-eyed for a while, which isn’t all that comfortable, so the truth is you probably won’t be uploading a lot of 3D content to YouTube just yet either.
We suspect that if you buy a 3D smartphone right now, you’ll play with the 3D features for 2 or 3 days, then disable them and only turn them back on to impress your friends.
Now, if you do want a 3D smartphone,it will cost roughly the same as any other smartphone, so you won’t be throwing a lot of money away, the phone will be able to do all the regular smartphone stuff, and the monthly plan will cost the same.
So, if you really want to try a 3D smartphone, by all means, try it in the store and if you think it’s cool get it and you’ll probably enjoy it… the only thing is, you’ll probably enjoy owning it for the other features more than for the 3D.
For more information, tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
| HOUR 1 GUESTS | 2011 CEA INDUSTRY FORUM | |
 |
 |
 |
| Dr. James Canton, President & Chairman – Institute | ||
 |
 |
 |
| Health & Fitness Panel | Striiv, a fitness device that counts every step you take and credits you |
Marlon in Memphis, Tennessee asked: “I have a PC with Windows Vista. Been trying to install Service Pack 2. Every time, I get an error message at the end. Wondering what I can do to install this to my Windows program.”
That would really depend on what the error message is. If you’re getting it right at the end, is it possible that you’re running low on disk space? Windows service packs take a ton of disk space, since they make careful backups of the system files they’re replacing. Anyway, without having even a hint of what the error message is, there isn’t much we’re going to be able to offer you.
One thing we would say, though, is why Windows Vista? Service pack 2 does indeed make Vista better, but it’s still a poor alternative to the much better Windows 7 system. Our recommendation for you would be to buy a Windows 7 upgrade. It’s faster, less crash prone, and just in general the most stable version of Windows, ever.
For more information, tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
This Week’s Prizes for Our Listeners
Energizer: Several Weather Ready 2 LED Flashlights
Otterbox: Several protective cases, including: Defender for Amazon Kindle & Defender for iPad 2
Philips: Sonicare AirFloss (interdental cleaner) … Experience a microburst of clean in-between.