About the fate of photography, 3D video filming and virtual reality, announcements Android of smartphones, leaks about the new Nexus and Samsung's touching concern for the figure of its users.
I always take a video camera with me
Photo and video filming have long been an integral part of our life. There are just a huge number of cameras around us: constantly working DVRs in cars, ubiquitous surveillance cameras, smartphones in the hands of those who like to shoot everything, from food in a restaurant to every minute selfies … At the same time, photography as an art is of interest only to a relatively small audience, for the bulk of users it is just a way capture the event of interest and share it with other people. The maximum is to publish a 'highly artistic' photo in Instagram, having previously covered it with filters until it is completely unrecognizable. Mostly just for the sake of indulgence and collecting more likes.
Photography has become available to everyone and, perhaps because of this, has lost some of its charm in the eyes of users. What is the point of filming something yourself, if any more or less interesting event is already removed from all conceivable and inconceivable angles? Moreover, why buy a separate device for this, if the camera is already in the smartphone? Maybe a couple of decades ago, photos of a festive fireworks or the coast of some exotic resort were unique, but now one simple search query is enough to find hundreds of thousands of exactly the same pictures. The photos posted on the pages of social networks more and more resemble the inscriptions 'Vasya was here', because their only goal is to prove to others that you really saw this very fireworks and were at this very resort. The pictures themselves are unlikely to surprise anyone – what the sea coast looks like in any weather and at any time of the day is well known even to those who have never been to the sea in their lives. And even the photographers themselves are unlikely to view them in full resolution or print and hang them on the wall. The format Instagram is enough for most.
For some it may seem wild, but most of the pictures these days are taken not at all out of a sense of beauty, but out of banal greed. A luxurious vacation at the sea, for which a person has saved money for several years, will last only a few days, then it will again be replaced by gray days. Maybe someday he will return here, maybe not, but these moments, for which he worked for a whole year, will still not be returned. But you really want to leave all this forever: the sea coast, the sound of the surf, the sultry summer sun and the 'all inclusive' hotel room … At least in the form of a bunch of photos and slippers from the hotel. As a result, instead of enjoying a well-deserved rest, a person begins to photograph everything and everyone in order to somehow preserve what he spent so much money on. Previously, this behavior was called the 'Japanese tourist syndrome', now it is almost the norm.
However, money here is just an example, and far from the most common. Someone is trembling in his knees afraid of missing a unique moment, someone cannot come to terms with the idea that the memories of the trip will fade over time, someone fears that his feed Instagram will not collect all possible likes. All these cases have one thing in common – the photographer has no time to admire the surrounding beauties, he looks at the world exclusively through the lens of the camera (or rather, the phone screen) and does not notice anything else. There is no time to think about the quality of photographs, to choose the right moment or place of shooting, all the more so, the main thing is to take more pictures. Actually, even watching them after the trip is optional, the main thing is to know that they are there and that there are many of them. This is a kind of proof that the day was not wasted. And that everything on vacation was really gorgeous, even if there was nothing to remember, except for endless photos.
It is no coincidence that the sales of 'soap boxes' have left much to be desired for many years. Yes, there will be slightly better image quality, and, more importantly, there will be an optical zoom, which is extremely useful even for the most undemanding photographers. But most users do not care about this, the smartphone camera is enough for them. Maybe the photo will turn out worse, but what's the difference? No one will buy a special set of pastels in order to write 'Vasya was here' on the first wall that comes across.
It would seem that since the cameras are not doing very well, then what about video cameras? If these days there are enough of those who consider themselves to be cool photographers, then there is something to see who wants to become famous as a cool director. No one will take pictures of landscapes or interviews instead of portraits and selfies. Here's to collect a bunch of views on youtube – you are always welcome, but here it is necessary that the video is not well-staged and insanely beautiful, but either unique or just ridiculous. A video recorder has a much better chance here than an amateur video shot with a cool digital camera.
Nevertheless, in the future, it is video filming that may take the place that photography occupied in our lives. In any case, if the development of technology continues to go with the same speed and in the same direction.
First of all, we are talking about action cameras and drones. Together, they allow you to shoot an impressive video sequence from very unusual angles, which from the very first frames attracts the viewer's attention. You won't surprise anyone with photographs of city landscapes and selfies against the background of the mountains, but the city from a bird's-eye view or the 'from the eyes' view of a skier rushing rapidly down the slope still makes an impression. Yes, and there is no less room for creativity.
One of the most famous cameras of this type, the GoPro, recently received another version. It is called the Hero 4 Session and, according to the manufacturer, is the lightest, most compact and convenient camera to date.
The camera supports video recording at 2560 x 1440 pixels at 30 frames per second, and also shoots Full HD and HD video at 60 and 100 frames per second, respectively. A system of two microphones is responsible for sound recording. The battery life is about two hours. The device is protected from damage and allows you to conduct underwater surveys at a depth of 10 meters.
[iframe url = '// www.youtube.com/embed/PjGkVCAo8Fw' width = '640 ″ height =' 360 ″ scrolling = 'no' frameborder = '0 ″ marginheight =' 0 ']
The video above will tell you exactly what such a camera can be useful for.
Link to news
TomTom also presented its action camera. The novelty features an unusual design and a GPS module.
The camera received a wide-angle lens and a 16 MP sensor, 4K video shooting is supported. Like the GoPro Hero 4 Session, the camera can be used underwater, with a maximum immersion depth of 50 meters.
Link to news
One problem is that no matter how impressive these videos look, they cannot achieve a real sense of presence with their help. It is impossible to feel what goes beyond the boundaries of your own experience. What exactly does a skier flying down the slope or a cyclist performing dizzying stunts feel, spectators who are not familiar with these sports can only guess. For them, this is just a beautiful picture that does not carry any special emotions.
Everything can change with the advent of virtual reality glasses and cameras that allow panoramic 3D shooting. Thanks to them, the video we are used to will be able to become something much larger, the viewer will be able not only to watch a beautiful cartoon, but as if to be in the operator's place. Appreciate something you've never seen before.
The first steps in this direction are already being made, however, how all this will end in a dozen or two years, we can only guess. Maybe these things will become as commonplace as computers and laptops. And maybe they will become the same gizmos that no one needs, like smartphones with a 3D screen.
Samsung recently talked about Project Beyond, the world's first 360-degree 3D camera.
Oddly enough, in this device the Korean company is fascinated not even by the characteristics, but by the idea itself. A short video below will tell you about the idea and philosophy behind the device.
[iframe url = '// www.youtube.com/embed/4Eb3VAfmRAQ' width = '640 ″ height =' 360 ″ scrolling = 'no' frameborder = '0 ″ marginheight =' 0 ']
At the moment, the device is still far from a commercial launch, but this is much more than some abstract concept. And it makes little sense to rush to launch such a camera into a series, because the video is designed to be viewed through virtual reality glasses like Gear VR. And they are only just coming into fashion.
Link to news
Leaks, announcements, trends
Over the past week, several smartphones from well-known manufacturers have been announced at once. All of them have good characteristics, a beloved corporate design and, as if by agreement, are trying to surprise the buyer with a small case thickness.
Nevertheless, I involuntarily catch myself thinking that such mobile devices have not evoked any special emotions for a long time. This is just a continuation of the long-existing lines, the new devices, although the previously set bar did not drop, but did not raise it particularly. I'm not sure that their future owners will even be able to remember their names in a couple of weeks after the purchase – for them it will be just 'LG G4 of something' or 'Galaxy A under some number there'.
Some might say that the whole point is in completely unfortunate names, more like a technical index. But all this happened before, but the words 'Nokia 5800' or 'Siemens C60', nevertheless, were not empty words for the owners of these smartphones. And no one would call 'Sony Ericsson K750i' any sort of Sony Ericsson.
Good or bad, but now we choose not so much a specific device as a brand. A lot of people want to buy 'some iPhone' or are thinking about buying 'Samsung Galaxy', very few are ready to figure out how the models within the same line differ from each other. Perhaps that is why manufacturers are trying to emphasize that they have once again released the 'thinnest' smartphone – given that they cannot change either the design or the proprietary shell within one series of devices (or rather, they can, but not more often than once per year, and only after the flagship is released), you have to go to such tricks.
Apparently, buyers are completely satisfied with this state of affairs – it is always clear in advance what to expect from the next smartphone. If earlier people tried to find an opportunity to turn the phone in their hands at least a minute or two before making a decision to buy it, now pre-orders of just announced models are in vogue. A striking example of this is Honor 7, which in just one week from the moment of the announcement has collected 9 million pre-orders from China alone.
 |
Huawei Honor 7. First look |
Link to news
And since we're talking about Huawei, we can't help but mention rumors about the characteristics of one of the upcoming Nexus smartphones. Let me remind you that according to past unconfirmed leaks, one of the smartphones under this brand will develop LG, and the other Huawei.
If you believe the information of @evleaks (who still cannot 'tie' with the publication of leaks), the smartphone will receive a Quad HD screen measuring 5.7 inches, a metal case, a processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 and a fingerprint scanner.
Link to news
Meanwhile, the South Korean company LG Electronics has announced a new smartphone model – LG G4 Beat, which in some markets may be called G4s .. A smartphone equipped with a 5.2-inch Full HD display , an eight-core 1.5 GHz processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 and a 13 MP camera.
The rest of the technical characteristics of the device are as follows:
- Support for communication standards: 4G LTE; 3G / HSPA + (42.2Mbps)
- Dimensions: 142.7 x 72.6 x 9.85mm
- Weight: 139g
- Processor: 1.5 GHz, eight-core, Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 with support for 64-bit instructions
- Platform: Android 5.1.1 Lollipop
- Display: 5.2-inch, IPS, a resolution of 1920 × 1080 pixels
- Camera: 13 MP (8 MP for some markets)
- Front camera: 5MP
- Memory: 1.5 GB RAM, 8 GB built-in
- Communications: Wi-Fi 802.11 b / g / n, Bluetooth 4.1, NFC, USB 2.0, A-GPS
- Battery: 2300 mAh (removable)
Link to news
Samsung Electronics has officially unveiled its new A-series smartphone in China – the Galaxy A8. Interestingly, this is both the largest and the thinnest device in this line. The thickness of its body is 5.9 mm, the diagonal of the screen is 5.7 inches.
Other specifications of the Samsung Galaxy A8 are as follows:
- Support for communication standards: 4G LTE (FDD / TDD); 3G CDMA 800 MHz / TD-SCDMA 2010/1880 MHz / UMTS 2100/1900/850/900 MHz; 2G CDMA 800 MHz, GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz; two slots for SIM cards
- Dimensions: 158 x 76.8 x 5.9mm
- Weight: 151g
- Processor: eight-core (4×1.5 GHz + 4×1 GHz)
- Display: 5.7-inch, Super AMOLED, resolution 1920 × 1080 pixels
- Camera: 16 MP with autofocus and backlight
- Front camera: 5MP
- Memory: 2 GB of RAM, 16/32 GB of internal, slot for microSD memory cards (up to 128 GB)
- Communications: Wi-Fi 802.11 a / b / g / n (2.4 / 5 GHz), Bluetooth v4.1, NFC, ANT +, USB 2.0, GPS / GLONASS / Beidou
- Battery: 3050 mAh
Link to news
It's funny that the company is fighting against the excessive thickness of not only smartphones, but also their owners. In any case, one of the company's recently published patents talks about special sensors on the body or case of a smartphone that will measure the level of fat in the body of its owner.
This is such a struggle for a healthy lifestyle.
Link to news
Another particularly thin smartphone was presented in Prague by ZTE. It is called that – ZTE Nubia My Prague.
In principle, there is nothing particularly remarkable about it, if not for the same thickness – 5.5 mm. It had to pay for it with the battery capacity, which is quite modest 2200 mAh.
The main characteristics of the smartphone are as follows:
- 5.2-inch display, 1920 x 1080 resolution
- Processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 615
- 2-3 GB of RAM (depending on the version of the device)
- Main camera 13 MP
- Front camera 8 MP
- Battery with a capacity of 2200 mAh
Link to news
