Technology

The problem with adopting a new camera system is that lens availability tends to be a bit scarce at the start in terms of variety. This is versus long and established camera systems that have been building up their portfolio for years. This is one of the downsides to adopting the new Nikon Z mirrorless cameras, but Nikon definitely has plans to change that.

The company has recently released an updated roadmap for its Z-mount lens lineup for the next few years and it looks like photographers will have quite a few to choose from. In 2019 alone, the company plans on releasing at least six new lenses, one of which has since been announced in the form of the 14-30mm f/4 S lens. The rest of the year is also expected to see the introduction of more prime lenses like a 24mm f/1.8 S and an 85mm f/1.8 S.

If you’d rather not spend money buying one of Fujifilm’s high-end flagship cameras like the Fujifilm X-T3, X-H1, or the X-Pro2, then maybe one of the company’s mid-rangers could be of interest to you. In fact last we heard, the company could be working on a successor to the X-T20 in the form of the X-T30.

Now according to a tweet by Nokishita Camera, it appears that the camera might have already been registered at the Bluetooth website. While the registration does not explicitly mention the X-T30 by name, safe to say that given the rumors, there is a good chance that the camera in question is the X-T30.

#CES2019 – If you are buying a new car, you might be given the option to choose an infotainment system that will support Android Auto or CarPlay. If you aren’t buying a new car but want those features, there are some aftermarket options to check out. However if you think that those are still a bit too pricey, maybe Pioneer could have something for you.

At CES 2019, the company announced a new device called the SPH-10BT Smart Sync in-dash receiver. This will basically take your smartphone and turn it into an in-dash car display that will use the Pioneer Smart Sync Driving system. This means that it won’t be Android Auto or CarPlay, but at the same time it will leverage the use of your phone which should help cut down on costs.

There are many reasons why users will want to change their DNS. A good reason is privacy where using another DNS could prevent your ISP from tracking what you are doing. Another reason is that it allows users to bypass certain blocks or restrictions that their ISP might have in place, like access to certain websites.

Google’s Public DNS is one of the more popular ones available at the moment, largely thanks to the fact that it works and is free. Now it seems that Google has made some changes and updates to it (via Android Police) where it will now be fully compatible with Android 9.0 Pie. “We implemented the DNS-over-TLS specification along with the RFC 7766 recommendations to minimize the overhead of using TLS. These include support for TLS 1.3 (for faster connections and improved security), TCP fast open, and pipelining of multiple queries and out-of-order responses over a single connection.”

4K video recording is something that we’re starting to see included in many smartphones and cameras, but for videographers who’d like to futureproof themselves or stay ahead of the curve, then Canon might be a brand to watch out for because the company already has plans for an 8K capable EOS R camera in their roadmap.

This is according to an interview that Imaging Resource (via Photo Rumors) did with Canon exec Yoshiyuki Mizoguchi where they discussed the future of the EOS R lineup. One part of the interview touched on the topic of video recording where it was asked how does video fit into the EOS R lineup.

Many were surprised by the lack of features when Google launched its new Podcasts app. It didn’t have Cast support, auto-downloading, and compatibility with Android Auto. The company is rectifying at least one of things today. It has added support for Android Auto to the Podcasts app.

Most people tend to listen to podcasts on their commutes. It makes perfect sense to do so. It was thus surprising to see that Android Auto support was not a part of the new Podcasts app when it was released not too long ago.

Nokia has been quick to roll out the Android 9 Pie update for many of its compatible devices. Having released Pie for the Nokia 8 a couple of weeks ago, the company today confirmed that the Nokia 8 Sirocco is now receiving the much-awaited Android 9 update. Nokia 8 Sirocco is the more premium version of the Nokia 8 from HMD Global, the company that now makes Nokia-branded smartphones.

HMD Global points out in the press release that this is the 8th Nokia smartphone to receive a stable build of the Android Pie update. Some other manufacturers have only been able to release Pie for one or two of their most recent flagship models (looking at you, Samsung).

Nissan’s famous Leaf electric car will now be able to offer you more range. The company updated it back in 2017 and today it has introduced a new version of the Leaf. It’s called the Leaf e+ and can travel 226 miles on a single charge. Nissan says that this represents a 40 percent improvement in range. In the simplest of terms, the car has a bigger battery.

The updated Nissan Leaf that came out in 2017 had a 40kWh battery was good for 150 miles of range. This particular vehicle features a 62kWh battery which pushes the range over the 200 mile threshold.

One of the many things that Japan is known for are its capsule hotels. These hotels are designed for the office worker who might have worked too late to take the train home, and just needs a relatively affordable place for a hot shower and a good night’s rest. However it seems that Japan has taken the capsule concept and expanded it to now offer capsule offices too.

These capsule offices can be found in East Japan Railway’s Tokyo, Shinjuku, and Shinagawa Stations. Known as “Station Work”, these are little pods that can be used for free and up to 30 minutes at a time. Each pod will provide the user with WiFi, a desk, a monitor, and also USB charging outlets.

#CES2019 – If you own one of Sony’s noise-cancelling headphones, then you might be interested to learn that in an upcoming update to the headphones, Sony will be introducing support for Amazon’s Alexa digital assistant. This includes the Sony WH-1000XM2, WH-1000XM3, and the WI-1000X.

As it stands, the headphones already support Google Assistant, but for added variety and to give users more options, the update will make Alexa available as an option as well. However it should be noted that only one digital assistant can be activated at one time, so it’s not as if you can use both at the same time, just in case it wasn’t already obvious.

#CES2019 – At CES 2019 we’ve seen quite a number of interesting TVs from your usual suspects, such as LG who announced that their rollable TV will be launching this year, and Samsung who took the wraps off a monstrous 98-inch 8K QLED TV. Now it looks like Panasonic has some TV announcements of its own in the form of the GZ2000.

Now the GZ2000 is not the biggest TV announced at CES and is offered at 55-inch and 65-inch models. It doesn’t feature a flexible/rollable display either. It also seems to be using OLED versus other companies who are pushing QLED. However this is a TV that Panasonic is calling the “world’s most cinematic TV” thanks to Panasonic’s work with Stefan Sonnenfeld, a leading colorist who has worked with many filmmakers in the past.

Looking for a nice speaker for your next outdoor party? Consider the one that Sony has unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show 2019 in Las Vegas this week. It’s part of the new lineup of audio products that the company has unveiled at this busy trade show. The GTK-PG10 outdoor speaker is unique in that it has cupholders.

The GTK-PG10 looks like what you’d expect an outdoor speaker to look like but there’s an interesting design detail. Open up the foldable top panels and you get access to four cupholders that will easily fit Solo cups. The foldable panels also house the speaker’s tweeters.

#CES2019 – Despite not physically being at CES 2019, Apple seems to have a pretty big presence at the event. This is because several major TV manufacturers have recently announced support for some of Apple’s platforms and services, such as Samsung who announced that their smart TVs would support iTunes Movies and TV Shows and AirPlay 2.

This was followed shortly after by LG who also announced that their TVs would be supporting AirPlay 2, and now according to a report from The Verge, it looks like we can expect the same from Sony as the company’s Android TVs are expected to soon support not only AirPlay 2, but HomeKit which means that Sony’s Android TVs can soon be controlled (ironically enough) by iOS devices.

The quality of a photo taken by a camera is determined by many things, but hardware plays a huge role. However sometimes image quality isn’t everything as photographers might appreciate other features in a camera that could make their lives and jobs easier. The good news for Nikon Z camera owners is that you can look forward to some new features soon.

Nikon has recently announced that in an upcoming firmware update to the camera, they will be adding some new features and support that could come in handy. “The Nikon Z series will continue to adapt to changing user needs through the development and roll-out of firmware updates to meet and exceed creative expectations. Taking into account feedback from photographers and creators, Nikon will display three feature updates under development that open creative opportunities for the Z 6 and Z 7.”