Samsung NX10
(Interchangeable lens camera)

Well, Samsung did it – they achieved two things today: being the first camera manufacturer to launch something new for the year 2010, and releasing the first (out of many to come) camera in the new mirrorless, interchangeable lens NX camera system. Let me introduce to you, the new Samsung NX10!

What makes the Samsung NX10 different is that it’s a whole lot smaller than conventional digital SLR cameras, and roughly the same size as Panasonic’s G1/GH1 cameras. That’s been made possible by removing the mirror mechanism and optical viewfinder prism found in traditional SLRs. The NX10 features a 14.6 megapixel APS-C sized CMOS sensor, 3 inch display (along with a VGA resolution electronic viewfinder), full manual controls that you’d expect in a digital SLR and 720p HD movie recording capabilities. A more complete of specifications include:

• 14.6 megapixel CMOS sensor (2.0X crop factor)
• New Samsung NX lens mount (see below for 3 announced lenses)
• Dust reduction
• 3 inch high resolution AMOLED display has 514,000 pixels; promises better contrast ratio and viewing angles versus LCD
• Electronic viewfinder has 921,000 pixels (VGA resolution), 0.86X magnification
• On-board flash
• Smart Auto mode simplifies automatic shooting; Smart Range feature improves dynamic range
• Full manual controls with RAW mode and flash hotshoe
• 720p (1280 x 720 at 30 FPS) movie mode with sound; H.264 codec
• Takes SD/SDHC memory cards
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available this spring; exact price and availability to be announced

Samsung will also be releasing completely new lenses made specifically for the NX camera system (means that you won’t be able to use any existing camera lenses with the NX10 at the moment). Unlike digital SLR makers like Olympus, Pentax and Sony which have in-body image stabilization, Samsung here is taking the same route as Canon, Nikon and Panasonic – with in-lens image stabilization (also known as optical image stabilization). As usual, the presence of optical image stabilization inside the lens is denoted by the “IS” in the name. The three lenses that they’ve announced today are a 18-55 mm f3.5-f5.6 IS kit lens, 55-200 mm f4-f.5.6 IS telephoto zoom lens and 30 mm f2.0 pancake lens. The Samsung NX10’s APS-C sized sensor means all lenses will be subjected to a 1.5X focal length crop factor.

Thanksgiving is this week, so for those celebrating, I hope you’ve got turkey ready. For those rushing out to get Black Friday deals, be sure to check out some of our digital camera recommendations so you make the right choice! Here’s a list of cameras you may want to consider this Thanksgiving/Black Friday 2009! I’ve picked one recommendation, each from several possible categories, so we’ve got everyone covered here!

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Probably one of the best kept secrets about Canon’s compact cameras is the built-in, animated clock. This bizarre feature has been around since the days of the Canon PowerShot SD550 Digital ELPH AKA Digital IXUS 750 in 2005 (that lovely camera of mine has since been stolen, unfortunately). The clock is a fancy, animated, flash-based feature that’s built right into many PowerShot/Digital ELPH/Digital IXUS cameras… and NO, it’s not a hack – in fact, it’s something Canon has been officially including in their compact cameras for years now, but apparently the feature was not publicized enough so not many people know of its existence.

You probably haven’t noticed it because it can’t be found anywhere in the camera menu or setup area – but the animated clock may just be in the camera YOU are using now. So where is it? Find out now…

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The new, rugged Casio Exilim G1

Casio announced their first ever rugged camera (about time!) today. Their new Exilim G1 (not to be confused with the ancient Canon G1 or Micro Four Thirds Panasonic G1) is supposedly the slimmest rugged camera in the market yet doesn’t compromise build quality. In fact, the Exilim G1 is just as durable, or more durable, than competing cameras – it’s dustproof, waterproof to 3 meters/10 feet, shockproof to 2.13 meters/7 feet and freezeproof to 14 degrees/0 Celcius. Other than that, the camera’s feature set is the usual compact camera affair: 12 megapixels of resolution, a 3X internal lens that covers 38-114 mm (with a slow aperture range of f3.9 – f5.4), 2.5 inch LCD, point-and-shoot operation and WVGA movie mode with sound. The Casio Exilim G1 will start selling next month for $300, just in time for freezing cold temperatures in the Northern hemisphere, or summer downunder (depending on where you’re from).

In other news, Casio has also updated two of their super-high speed compact cameras announced earlier this year: the Exilim FH20 super-zoom and Exilim FC100 ultra-compact will be replaced by the Exilim FH25 and Exilim FC150 respectively. The only major change between the new models today and their predecessors announced earlier this year is the imaging sensor. Casio is popping in their latest 10 megapixel backlit CMOS sensor into the successors of both cameras; other features and the famous 40 FPS burst mode will remain the same.

That’s right folks, DPInterface will be covering yet another big event today, live from the floor as it happens. This time I’m waaay better prepared than the previous live coverage we did last month. There will be live updates (duh!) as the news breaks, and hopefully some pictures too. So stay tuned to DPInterface as we bring to you -the news-.

What’s going on right now?

• 1:00 am GMT – Preparing my live coverage gear. Event starts *soon*.
• 3:20 am GMT – Speeches, pictures, speeches, pictures and more speeches. Interesting stuff and very concise.
• 5:00 am GMT – Had a nice conversation with one of the guys from Japan
• 5:50 am GMT – Patience, people, patience!
• 6:00 am GMT – Olympus announces their PEN E-P2 camera along with two new Micro Four Thirds lenses. Click here for details. Preview and gallery to come…

BREAKING NEWS: Canon has just announced their new flagship sports digital SLR, the new EOS 1D Mark 4! The Canon EOS 1D Mark 4 is set to compete with the likes of other sports digital SLRs (the Nikon D3s announced last week comes to mind). Let’s check out the EOS 1D Mark 4’s mind blowing specifications now:

Our hands-on preview and sample photo gallery from the camera will come later today!
16.1 megapixel CMOS (1.3X crop factor)
Canon EF lens mount
10 FPS burst mode at full resolution (up to 85 pictures in a burst)
ISO range of ISO 100-12,800 (Expandable to 50-102,400)
45 point AF (39 cross type points)
3 inch high-resolution LCD (921,000 pixels)
Full manual controls with RAW mode and flash hotshoe
Full HD 1080p (1920 x 1080) movie mode with sound; frame rates (24, 25 or 30) and other resolutions available
Dual memory card slots (Compact Flash Type I/II and SD/SDHC)
Uses a lithium-ion battery
Available in November 2009

Nikon just announced an update to their sports/flagship camera today – the new D3S adds a new sensor (though the same resolution), movie mode and super high ISO. Makes me wonder if we’ll see a Nikon D3Xs in the near future… but for now, here’s the Nikon D3S. I can’t wait to see what *someone* is brewing in response to Nikon’s latest….

Nikon D3s
(Professional high-speed SLR)

• 12.1 effective megapixels (Full-frame CMOS, new sensor)
• Nikon F lens mount with no conversion factor; two new ‘crop’ modes allow 1.2X and 1.5X crop to 8.4 MP and 5.0 MP respectively
• NEW: Dust reduction
• Rugged, weather-sealed body
• 3 inch super-high resolution LCD (920,000 pixels); live view available
• 9 FPS burst in FX-mode, 11 FPS in DX-mode (crop)
• Full manual controls with RAW mode and hotshoe
• ISO range of 200-12800 (expandable to 102,000!!!)
• 51-point AF with 3D tracking
• NEW: 720p 24 FPS movie mode with mono sound; external microphone jack available
  New: Nikon has come up with solutions to reduce the ‘rolling shutter effect’ (an issue in most SLR movie modes) and allow high sensitivity recording for low-light
• Dual Compact Flash memory card slots
• Uses a lithium-ion battery
• Available in November for $5200 (body only)

On a side note, our review of the Panasonic Lumix ZS3 aka Lumix TZ7 will be posted later today, so stay tuned for that!