TechWire

Panasonic Lumix GF3

Today I picked up a review unit of Panasonic's latest Lumix GF3.

It's one of those nice hybrid 'Micro SLR' (micro four-thirds) cameras with the body of a compact and a choice of interchangeable lenses.

The 12 megapixel review model itself came with a 14mm lens (no zoom). It has a nice one-touch video button, too (full HD). It's light and has a full array of manual controls. The touchscreen is a little clunky to use, but you can get around using the clickwheel.

Even though I find a prime 14mm lens a little limiting, there's no doubting the quality of the glass. Like other Micro-SLRs (Sony's Nex-5, Olympus's EP series) this is a gorgeous piece of kit.

The model I got -- with 14mm lens -- costs €500. A cheaper variant -- with a 14-42mm lens -- costs €450.

Here are a couple of test shots in the local park earlier this evening.

Daily tech notes...

 
With the cold weather possibly on the way back, be warned: Apple won't fix your broken iPhone if you use it below zero degrees celsius.

Speaking of smartphones and data allowances, got a Windows 7 phone? If so, better check it's not sending out between 30-50MB per day without you knowing. That's 1GB in 20 days, possibly leading to data bill misery.

Facebook is making its "new" profile layout compulsory, starting today. Hey, if it helps the company's stock price...

Notice an increase in your spam? You're not alone. Spam has rocketed in January, according to experts. And it's mainly down to one Russian botnet, Rustock (responsible for up to 50% of all world spam at its peak).

Nintendo: upcoming 3DS "might be harmful" to kids' eyes but, apparently, "is not dangerous".

My SBP colleague, Dick O'Brien, interviewed Ciaran Crean, co-founder of Mick's Garage. That company is going a bomb.

The first cinema-release movie coming out shot entirely on iPhones. By Oldboy's acclaimed director, Park Chan-Wook, no less.

Know what turns most people off eco-friendly hybrid cars? Their boring looks and design. The new Toyota Prius range, for example.

The first wannabe porn game for Microsoft's Xbox 360 Kinect. Can't see this one getting released.

Even before any of us have gotten Gingerbread yet, Android has a new mobile OS on the make: 2.4 'Ice Cream'. (Like hurricanes, they name each updated OS alphabetically, it seems.)

Anyone else think Pat Rabbitte bears even a slight resemblance to Angry Birds?

What Panasonic plans for Ireland

Walk into any big Irish electronics store: chances are it'll be dominated by Samsung, Sony, Canon or LG.

Panasonic doesn't seem to be on the radar with the punters of Power City. Perhaps this is because its stuff is pretty high-end.

Nevertheless, I've had a good root through the stuff Panasonic will be launching on the Irish market this year, thanks to a big tech conference I'm at in Munich. It's impressive.

What's on offer is three things: 3D HD televisions, 3D Blu-Ray players and some new camera equipment.

The 3D tellies aren't especially unique, with Sony, Toshiba, LG and Samsung all doing them too. Its Blu-Ray 3D players are interesting, though. Firstly, because there are 31 3D titles coming out in 2010, most of them blockbusters. Secondly, because Panasonic has gotten the start-up time of its Blu-Ray payers down to seven seconds. (My current Sony model -- which is two years old -- takes about 35 seconds to start up.)

The best of the rest is the HDV cam that will shoot in 3D and a couple of Lumix compact digital cameras.

There's also a range of iPod/iPhone docks, which I didn't know Panasonic was into. Here are two of them that I had a short play with: the SC-HC3 (€200)

and the quite lovely SP100 (€140).

Samsung R10 HD camcorder

What does this actually look like? A miniature submersible? A travel projector?

You've got to hand it to Samsung: it's certainly out there when it comes to design.

The latest model in its range of compact high definition camcorders is aimed firmly at your pocket -- literally. Measuring just five inches by two inches, it's the smallest full-HD (1080p) camcorder on the market. I had a go with it and liked it a lot. (I especially liked its price.)

But such miniaturisation requires some sacrifices. So the R10 has no hard drive. Instead, you'll need SD memory cards (which cost about e50 for 8GB models). It also has a fairly poor optical zoom, at just 5x.

However, there's a nine megapixel camera sensor crammed in, making this a decent compact digital camera replacement.

Price: e420 online (www.dabs4work.ie)

Sony's XR520 HD camcorder

I got a short play with one of these recently.

It has to be one of the (if not the) most tech-integrated camcorder on the market. (And you'll pay the price for that.)

Firstly, there is its stupendously large (by comparison with its rivals) 240GB hard drive. At that size, you can cram 30 hours of video in at the very top high definition setting (or just shy of 150 hours at a standard setting).

Another 'high end' feature is its onboard GPS function. Now I'm not fully sold on GPS integration into camcorders and digital cameras. But Sony is. And, in fairness, it has a better track record of producing gadgets than I do.

So this camcorder automatically maps your videos according to where they were shot.

Finally, the XR520 has plenty of ports and connections for accessories, such as microphones.

The XR520 is not top of its class in all respects, however: its optical zoom is a modest 12x, while its maximum frame-rate is 16fps, compared to the now-standard 24fps among high-end models. However, this may not make too much of an impact for most users.

Price: e1,310 online (www.pixmania.ie)