Lytro, the first light field camera is up for pre-sale with an expected delivery date starting in early 2012 at prices that range from $499 for the Red Hot (red) 16gb or $399 for the Graphite (grey) or Electric Blue (cyan) 8gb. The 16gb version will hold 750 pictures and 8gb will hold 350 pictures.

So what’s so special about Lytro?

Technology: Lytro Light Field Sensor and Lytro Light Field Engine 1.0.
Lens: 8x optical zoom; Constant f/2 lens.
Controls: Power button: Shutter button; Zoom slider; Touchscreen.
Display: 1.46 in | 33 mm back-lit LCD display with glass touchscreen.
Exposure: Tap on touchscreen to set exposure.
Battery: Long-life Li-Ion internal battery.
File Output: Light field picture file (.lfp).
Light Field Resolution: 11 Megarays: the number of light rays captured by the light field sensor.
Software: Includes a free desktop application for importing, processing and interacting with living pictures from the camera. It is built for Mac OS and requires Mac OS X 10.6 or higher. A Windows application is in development.
Picture Output: Produces HD-quality interactive, living pictures.
Picture Storage: Free storage for living pictures on Lytro.com, subject to the Terms of Use. (Internet access required)
Picture Viewing: View and interact with living pictures on the Lytro camera as well as any internet-connected computer, smartphone or tablet supported.
Light Field Engine: Version 1.0. This is the software that processes light fields to produce interactive pictures. Keep watching this space!
Shell: Ultra-light anodized aluminum structural skin.
Grip: TPSiV-Injection Silicon Rubber.

That equates to a picture that you can zoom in and out of without having to reshoot the picture. So if you see something interesting going on in your background, you can zoom in at a later date – take a look at the Adobe Flash based photo gallery. This takes picture bombing to a new level.

The software is Apple Mac only at the moment, but there is a Windows version in development.

[ Links: Lytro Light Field Camera ]

Samsung Electronics today announced the launch of Samsung Monte, Model S5620, their new full touch screen device for style-conscious mobile users.

The handset is launched with a host of multimedia features and a sleek, organic design with a sophisticated and glossy look, providing the style and performance of a high-end handset at affordable price. With a stunning design and an intuitive TouchWiz 2.0 Plus User Interface (UI), the Monte is set to become the latest must-have full touch device.

The Samsung Monte has a lot to offer to the social network savvy consumer with a suite of native social networking applications including Facebook and MySpace, allowing users to access their profiles whenever and wherever they choose. This is combined with advanced Twitter and Bebo widgets – and multi-IM capability – to provide users with the opportunity to chat in real-time via their chosen service. In addition, Monte users can enjoy full Internet browsing, with an accelerometer sensor allowing the onscreen image to automatically adjust as you rotate the phone.

And for the connected lifestyle, the Monte includes GPS supported by Google Latitude™, ensuring you know where you are – and can keep your friends updated on your location at all times. This combined with Geo-tagging, allowing users to imprint their photos with geographic tags to share their travels and experiences with friends. Other connectivity features include optional anytime, anywhere Wi-Fi connectivity, Exchange ActiveSync for access to Outlook email accounts, and Google Sync™. This allows users to simultaneously update their social networks schedules and Outlook calendar, without the hassle of accessing each application individually.

To showcase this feature rich and stylish handset, the Monte comes equipped with a 3.0-inch WQVGA LCD screen with 16:9 landscape viewing. It also boasts a 3.2-megapixel camera with many value-added features including smile shot, panorama shot, and face detection. For convenience, the phone also supports Smart Unlock and One finger zoom.

Link to the original article…

LG Display has developed the world’s slimmest 2.6mm-thick LCD TV panel. This 42-inch 120Hz full HD LCD TV will be unveiled at CES 2010 held in Las Vegas.

Link to the original article…

Chi Mei Optoelectronics (CMO), among some others, seemed to have gotten a bit greedy for almost 5 years by secretly meeting and agreeing upon setting the price(s) for some TFT LCD displays used commonly in computer monitors.

“Six companies have pleaded guilty to worldwide price fixing of Thin-Film Transistor Liquid Crystal Displays from Sept. 14, 2001, to Dec. 1, 2006. For violating the Sherman Act, the companies have agreed to pay criminal fines of over $860 Million. In addition, nine executives have been charged in the scandal. The pricing scam affected some of the largest companies at the time, including Apple, HP and Dell. (If you bought a TFT-LCD from them in that time frame, you may be one of the victimized consumers.) From the DOJ release, ‘According to the charge, Chi Mei carried out the conspiracy by agreeing during meetings, conversations and communications to charge prices of TFT-LCD panels at certain pre-determined levels and issuing price quotations in accordance with the agreements reached. As a part of the conspiracy, Chi Mei exchanged information on sales of TFT-LCD panels for the purpose of monitoring and enforcing adherence to the agreed-upon prices.’”

Probably explains why CMO earned $30 billion dollars in 2009 alone. Yes, billion… with a “b“.

[ Source: Slashdot.org ]

ASUS has launched its 3D gaming notebook PC G51J 3D in the Korean market, equipped with Nvidia 3D Vision technology, 120Hz LED LCD panel and GeForce GTX260M GPU. It is powered by Intel’s latest Core i7 720QM processor, 4GB of RAM, 1TB HDD, Windows 7 64 bit OS and 1GB GeForce GTX260M graphics.

Link to the original article…

Samsung Electronics expects to release its 27-inch full HD LCD monitor ‘SyncMaster P2770H’ in Japan market. It supports 2ms response speed, 300cd/m² of brightness, 70000:1 dynamic contrast ratio and 170-degree viewing angle with DVI-I(HDCP) and HDMI ports.

This thing is sadly bigger than my television…

Link to the original article…

Quite possibly the most weird thing I’ve seen a laptop display do. Ever. Any clues to what causes this!?

Thanks silverx2 for the tip.