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Posts Tagged ‘units’

Leica unveils M Monochrom Oslo Edition, limited to just 10 units

29 Aug

The Leica Store in Oslo has announced a special edition Leica M Monochrom (Typ 246) camera simply called the Oslo Edition. This model is offered exclusively by the Leica Store Oslo, and though it is available worldwide, the edition is limited to just 10 units—this might be your best chance to get an ultra-rare Leica at a not-totally-insane price.

Both the camera body and the lens are engraved with the word ‘OSLO’ and a unit number ranging from 1 to 10. In addition to the special engraving and edition numbers, the Leica M Oslo Edition is shipped with a Leica Summaron-M 28mm F5.6 lens sporting a unique black finish.

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The special edition is packed in a gift box containing the lens, a battery, battery charger, and a Certificate of Authenticity. The Oslo Edition is available to purchase now for Kr. 118,000 / $ 14,800 USD. In other words: approximately double the cost of the regular Leica M Monochrom Typ 246.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Jinbei Studio Flash Units Recalled for Electrocution Risk

25 May

The Swiss government last month issued a recall for ten models of Jinbei studio flash units. While the recall notice has made the rounds on message boards, I am frankly surprised that photo media outlets have not picked this up. Read more »
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Samsung planning to sell refurbished Galaxy Note 7 units

29 Mar

It’s probably fair to say its Galaxy Note 7 flagship has been an absolute disaster for Samsung. After a number of devices caught fire Samsung eventually made the decision to discontinue the model and, after an internal investigation, announced that the fires had been caused by design and manufacturing errors on the Note 7 batteries. 

In a press release, the South Korean company has now laid out how it will recycle and dispose of the hundreds of thousands of Note 7 units that had already been produced and partly sold. According to the statement, ‘devices shall be considered to be used as refurbished phones or rental phones where applicable.’ This is dependent upon consultations with regulatory authorities and carriers and local demand, which probably means it’s unlikely any refurbished units would make it to Europe or the US.

For remaining devices, reusable components, such as semiconductors and camera modules, ‘shall be detached by companies specializing in such services and used for test sample production purposes.’ For anything that is left after the first two steps, ‘Samsung shall first extract precious metals, such as copper, nickel, gold and silver by utilizing eco-friendly companies specializing in such processes.’

Meanwhile, Samsung’s new high-end phone, the Galaxy S8, is expected to be launched tomorrow at events in New York and London. Hopefully it’ll have more success than its ill-fated cousin.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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MicroPAD: Tiny Mobile Units Aim to End Homelessness in San Francisco

24 Dec

[ By SA Rogers in Architecture & Houses & Residential. ]

micropad-tiny-housing-unit-1

Could tiny prefabricated stackable mobile housing units help solve homelessness in cities like San Francisco, where nearly 7,000 people sleep in the streets every night? Affordable housing has all but disappeared in the Bay Area, pushing thousands of people out and giving many people nowhere to go. While most developers in San Francisco are busy working on building the kinds of expensive condos that exacerbate the problem, one is offering a potential solution in the form of minimalist pods.

micropad-tiny-housing-unit-4

micropad-tiny-housing-unit-8

Patrick Kennedy and his team at real estate development and rental company Panoramic Interests present the MicroPAD, a self-contained, 160-square-foot mobile home that can stand alone or be stacked into a complex of up to 300 units. Nine-foot ceilings and generous windows flood the interiors with natural light, and each home contains a bed with storage drawers, a modest kitchenette, armoire closet, desk with chair and shelves, and a bathroom with a toilet and shower.

micropad-tiny-housing-unit-6

micropad-tiny-housing-unit-7

The units can be manufactured in about a week, exceed California seismic code, are made of non-combustible materials and feature engineered soundproofing and 24/7 filtered ventilation. Ultimately, aside from the size, the MicroPAD offers better quality housing than the more conventional apartments for which many of the city’s residents already pay lots of cash. The size and stickability is a response to the eye-watering $ 1,200-per-square-foot cost of development within the cramped city – it’s quick and easy to build, and doesn’t take up a lot of space.

micropad-tiny-housing-unit-11

Using prefab materials shaves 40% off the cost of conventional construction, and the developers note that the units can be built on, or in the airspaces above, unused and underutilized city-owned lots to further cut costs. At a cost of $ 1,000 per unit per month, the MicroPAD would come in at well under the average $ 17,353 currently spent per year on each homeless person in other forms of supportive housing. Panoramic Interests has a bunch of proposals on their site showing how and where the units could be stacked into 33-unit or 300-unit buildings.

micropad-tiny-housing-unit-2

Clearly, a lot of thought has been put into this proposal, and the company has already produced a number of prototypes to demonstrate exactly how the units work – one is placed outside Kennedy’s office on Ninth and Mission, a neighborhood with a significant population of homeless people. Of course, in a city where anyone who isn’t a tech worker struggles to get by, this concept could and should be scaled up to offer affordable housing for all.

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[ By SA Rogers in Architecture & Houses & Residential. ]

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Nissin adds radio receiver unit to Air system for branded flash units

15 Mar

Flash manufacturer Nissin has announced it has produced a receiver unit for its NAS wireless flash communication system that allows flash units from Canon, Nikon and Sony to be used within its radio command structure. The new Air R units are designed to convert flashguns that usually rely on line-of-sight optical control when used off camera in a group to come under the company’s 2.4GHz radio network.

Once mounted into the hotshoe of the receiver flash units from Nissin and other brands compatible with Canon, Nikon or Sony systems can be controlled by either an Air transmitter from the hotshoe of the camera, or by a Nissin flash unit that features the Air commander mode – such as the new i60A.

The receiver is equipped with eight channels and can work in one of three groups. The system allows flash exposure compensation of +/-2EV and manual output from full to 1/128th power. The company says the NAS Air system has a range of 30m and supports high speed sync at shutter speeds of up to 1/8000sec. The Nissin Air R units will cost £59.94 or £109.98 with a Nissin Commander Air 1 transmitter.

For more information see the Nissin website or the Kenro website for an English version.

Nissin Air R Specifications:

Compatibility: For Nissin, Canon and Sony flashguns
Wireless system: Radio
Radio specifications: 2.4GHz ISM band
Channel: 8 channels. Auto or manual select
Flash groups: A, B, C (3 groups)
Power source: 2 AAA batteries (not included)
Guide number: Low GN mode / High GN mode (default)
Mode (set at NAS Commander): TTL, manual and manual zoom
EV Compensation on flash: (TTL) -2.0 – +2.0 in ½ EV increments (manual)
Each group can be adjusted independently or synchronised
Manual output: 8 steps of manual output 1/128, 1/64, 1/32, 1/16, 1/8, 1/4, 1/2, 1/1 – full power
Manual zoom: Manual adjustment 24 / 35 / 50 / 70 / 85 / 105 / 135 / 200mm
Continuous shooting speed: 10 shots per second
Number of flashes: Approx 5000
Transmission distance: Maximum 30 metres (dependent upon the environment)
High Speed Synchronisation: 1/8000 sec (controlled by NAS Commander)
External sync socket: Standard PC sync cable
Mode: TTL, N, M zoom, no setting is needed, all settings controlled from the NAS commander
Synchronisation modes: No setting is needed, controlled by NAS commander
Mounting: Built-in stand, cold shoe / 1/4” tripod bush
Dimensions: 60 (L) x 60 (W) x 50 (H) mm
Weight: 55g (excluding batteries)


Press release:

NISSIN LAUNCHES NEW RECEIVER AIR R RANGE 

Kenro Ltd, the specialist photographic and audio-visual equipment supplier, is delighted to announce the launch of a series of revolutionary new products from the Nissin Air System range.
 
Kenro is the exclusive UK distributor for Nissin, a market-leading producer of electronic flash units for photographers. Nissin has a history of developing innovative products with phenomenal quality standards, and the Nissin Receiver Air R is no exception.

The Receiver Air R is a game-changing new addition to the Nissin Air System (NAS) 2.4GHz radio transmission wireless flash system. Compared with the traditional optical wireless transmitters, 2.4GHz radio transmission is less susceptible to the usual issues caused by not having clear line of sight between transmitter and receiver, and provides coverage of up to 30 meters (98 feet). In addition, radio transmission ID technology gives each of the NAS-compatible devices a unique identity to prevent misfiring in the event of signal interference.

The Nissin Commander Air 1 was launched last year and has been very well-received by camera users all over the world – the Receiver Air R adds a new dimension of flexibility to this already popular product. Combined with the Nissin Commander Air 1, it allows a photographer to wirelessly control almost any kind of Nissin camera flash and original manufacturer’s flash in the current market with NAS and TTL & HSS support. Camera users who currently own a Canon, Sony or Nikon original flash will be able to make their existing flashes compatible with the Nissin Air System, utilising full TTL.

High Speed Sync up to 1/8000 seconds, zoom and manual power output can all be controlled wirelessly at a competitive price without giving up quality and reliability. What’s more, one Commander transmitter can control up to 21 separate Air R receivers, which can be programmed into three groups to give the camera user an almost limitless range of lighting options without having to spend precious time readjusting flashguns between shots.

Paul Kench, Managing Director, Kenro, says: “This is a great new addition to the Nissin Air System that will really open up the creative opportunities available to photographers and camera users and allow them to be much more flexible in their approach to lighting, without the need to replace all their existing kit. The Receiver Air R range expands the possibilities without breaking the bank.”

The Nissin Receiver Air R range is available now:
NFG014NR: Nissin Receiver Air R Nikon – SRP £59.94 inc. VAT
NFG014N/AP: Nissin Commander Air 1 + Receiver Air R Nikon – SRP £109.98 inc. VAT
NFG014SR: Nissin Receiver Air R Sony – SRP £59.94 inc. VAT
NFG014S/AP: Nissin Commander Air 1 + Receiver Air R Sony – SRP £109.98 inc. VAT
NFG014CR: Nissin Receiver Air R Canon – SRP £59.94 inc. VAT
NFG014C/AP: Nissin Commander Air 1 + Receiver Air R Canon – SRP £109.98 inc. VAT

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Sony camera and sensor business units report drop in sales in 2015

30 Jan

Sony Corp. released its third quarter 2015 earnings report [PDF], in which the company disclosed notable drops in both camera and image sensor sales. It has also lowered the forecast for both business units, though both are still expected to make a profit in the current fiscal year.

Note the drop in camera sales but increase in operating income due to the shift to higher-end models.

Sales in the Imaging Products unit dropped by 5%, due to decreases in unit sales of digital still and video cameras, reflecting ‘a contraction of the market, partially offset by an improvement in the product mix of digital cameras reflecting a shift to high value-added models.’ In other words, they’re selling fewer cheap compacts and more RX and a7-series cameras. Operating income went up by over 20%, however, due the aforementioned shift to higher-end digital cameras.

Image sensor and battery sales are way down in Q3 2015 vs Q3 2014, and the forecast for FY2015 has been lowered considerably.

The image sensor business took an even bigger hit. Sales in the Devices unit decreased by over 12% year-on-year due primary to a drop in sales of image sensors as well as batteries. Operating income dropped ¥65.5bn ($ 540m) to –¥11.7bn ($ 97m), due in large part to a write-down in assets related to batteries. While not specific to digital cameras, the company’s statement mentioned a 7.5% drop in sales to external partners.

Sales in Q1 and Q2 2015 were down more than 500k units each year-on-year and the company’s forecast shows the gap widening in Q3 2015.

Sony also revised its October forecasts downward for both business units. The Imaging unit’s estimated sales has been reduced by 1.4% and now stands at ¥710bn (compared to ¥724bn in FY2014), while the forecast for the Devices business has been brought down by 11.3% to ¥940bn (compared to ¥927bn in FY2014). Both units are still expected to make a operating profit in FY2015, however.

On other item of note from the company’s earnings call mentions the Oita manufacturing facility it recently bought from Toshiba. Sony says that they are considering using a portion of the factory for producing ‘logic’ (processors) rather than photodiodes (sensors) in order to reduce the cost of its sensors. While the company is considering this change to ‘mitigate the downsized rate in [the sensor] business’, it is ‘confident in the long-term prospects of image sensors.’

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Nikon Japan announces price increases of up to 18% for lenses and flash units

29 Jan

Nikon has released details of price increases it will implement in the Japanese market from the beginning of March this year. The changes will affect a total of 73 of its DX and FX lenses, as well as three teleconverters. In addition, 21 lenses for the Nikon 1 system will be included, the FT1 mount adapter and six Speedlite flash units along with the systems associated wireless remotes. Newer lenses, such as the recently announced AF-P 18-55mm F3.5-5.6G/VR, the 200-500mm F5.6E ED VR, the 24-70mm F2.8E ED VR and the 24mm F1.8G ED are not included in the list. 

The degree of increase varies across the board, but some products, such as the SB-300 flashgun, will face a price hike of close to 18%. Others though will be increased by less than 5%. 

The company cites pressures from increasing costs of raw materials for the price rises, and claims that it has done all it can to absorb the additional costs itself.

As the information was intended only for the Japanese market there is no mention of the rises coming into force in other regions. We’ll update this story with more details as and when we receive them.  

For more information see the notice posted on the Nikon Japan website. 

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Rotating Condo Tower: Units Take Turns as the Penthouse Suite

28 May

[ By WebUrbanist in Conceptual & Futuristic & Technology. ]

rotating tower design

Spinning structures is not new territory, but shifting units around vertically as well as in horizontal circles is a fresh dimension of novelty with a likewise refreshed sense of purpose – to make housing truly fair for everyone, giving each person some time at (and views from) the top.

rotating tower

future variable unit views

Every since the elevator shifted the top floors from being least to most desirable in cities, real estate prices have reflected the relative values of these spaces. With this alternative arrangement proposed by designer Shin Kuo, each unit would take turns being on top as well as facing each different direction.

future spinning skyscraper condo

A lot of engineering is required to make such a thing work, from detachable infrastructural connections to prescribed times and safety locks for rotation (please keep limbs inside your home!).

Part of what makes the solution so intriguing is that it conceives of architecture like a product of industrial design – something that can be fundamentally improved upon through rethinking even our most basic assumptions.

future residential design diagram

Still, at least one big question remains: given the upfront and ongoing costs of making this whole thing work, who will ultimately be able to live in such a structure, which presents itself with such an egalitarian purpose? It may simply be ahead of its time – if more modular modes of plug-and-play dwelling become the norm, such infrastructure may also come to be more commonplaces (and come down in cost).

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[ By WebUrbanist in Conceptual & Futuristic & Technology. ]

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Samsung Galaxy S6 units found to be using different image sensors

07 May

When the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge were launched earlier this year there was no talk of the ISOCELL technology previously used by the Galaxy S5’s and Note 4’s in-house image sensors, so it was believed the 16MP 1/2.6 CMOS chip in the S6 was provided by Sony. However, rumors have emerged that in some units Samsung sensors are used instead of the Sony variant, and a company spokesperson has confirmed that different sensors are used. Read more

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Phottix offers Mitros and Mitros+ TTL flash units for Sony multi-interface hotshoe

13 Nov

Phottix has unveiled Sony versions of its Mitros and Mitros+ TTL flash units for that manufacturer’s multi-interface hotshoe. The Mitros+ offers remote radio flash control, with built in Phottix Odin and Strato II receivers. Both flash units provide a guide number of 58, with 180° rotation and tilt by 97°. Learn more

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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