The future of cameras seem to be heading to is smaller, more portable, more disposable and mirrorless (DSLRs have a mirror). When Nokia’s Executive Vice President Anssi Vanjoki told 2010 that Cell Phone Cameras Will Replace DSLRs, I could not believe that on time. But it really seems to become more and more to truth in 2014: Nowadays you can take professional level (“good enough photos”) using consumer level cameras and smart phones. Technical quality is good enough for majority. There is going on a rampant replacement of point and shoot cameras of all flavors and varieties with smart phones and their built in cameras. Now the market is being effectively gutted. Gone. Non-existent. Same thing is happening to video as well.
Part of the technical race came to a (maybe temporary) end: “How can I match and exceed the quality of conventional metrics that we used to get from medium format film.” There’s nothing else pressing to solve, technically. Many photographers are fully equipped but uninspired to move forward. We have have set down for “good enough.” The engineering idea is that we’ve hit the sweet spot and to go for a Six Sigma improvement would be costly and unnecessary.
DSLR sales were down in 2013, worldwide, by 18.5% according to CIPA. The total decline in the entire dedicated camera market is closer to 43.5%. The decline will continue. Credit Suisse prediction: “Only those who have a strong brand and are competitive on price will last – and only Canon, Nikon and Sony fullfil that criteria”. Mirrorless cameras are not a big market: According to CIPA is the total sales of mirrorless system cameras in N. America was slightly fewer than 39,000 units. Total.
The challenge will be: How do you bridge that gap between high photo-capture quality and high-quality camera devices and the cloud where every amateur photographer’s images live? The company which has the most innovative post-processing, easy to share photos feature set wins! The future of photography is same as future in pretty much everything: software and connectivity. Camera manufacturers have been slow on those: we are just now seeing cameras with full operating systems like Android The advantages to smart phones are size, constant (annoyingly constant) access, multi-task tool set, and the ability to send your images, electronically, to an audience just about anywhere in the world.
Several smartphone makers have clear strategies to take photography to extremes: 40 megapixel camera is already on the market and several manufacturers are playing with re-focus after shooting options.
Consumer video device trend is that separate classic video cameras have pretty much faded from market. New smart phones have high definition video cameras in them, so for most users there is no need for separate video camera. For special uses there are small “action” video cameras that are so tiny that you can place them almost anywhere and they can take some beating while you perform your extreme sports. If the video quality of those do not suffice, many people use their DSLR to shoot higher quality high definition video. For professional video production there is still some market left for professional and prosumer video cameras.
The world seems to be heading to situation where separate DSLRs and separate video cameras will be more like high fidelity audio, which used to be common selling point in 1970s, 80s and early 90s, but now only some geeks care about audio quality. This will more or less happen to photographs and video.
Connected TV technologies get more widely used and the content earlier viewable only on TV can be now seen on many other screens. Your smartphone is the screen in your pocket. Your computer is the screen on your desk. Your tablet is a screen for the couch. This development is far from ready. Gartner suggests that now through 2018, a variety of devices, user contexts, and interaction paradigms will make “everything everywhere” strategies unachievable.
Video streaming has really become mainstream as Netflix And YouTube Account For Over 50% Of Peak Fixed Network Data In North America. Because of the rise in video services like Netflix and YouTube, peer-to-peer file-sharing has dropped (meaning less piracy of movies and TV series). Netflix remains the biggest pig in the broadband python, representing 31.6% of all downstream Internet traffic in North America during primetime hours in September — well ahead of any other streaming service. In other parts of the world, YouTube is the biggest consumer of bandwidth. In Europe, YouTube represented of 28.7% of downstream traffic.
Post HDTV resolution era seems to be coming to TVs as well in form of 4K / UltraHD. It was introduced in the 2013, and the manufacturers start to push it more in 204 because all LCD makers are looking to move their business models on from cheap mass production to higher-margin, premium offerings. They try to innovate and secure their future viability by selling fewer, but more profitable displays. On this road giant curved TVs is gaining ground: LG announces that it will present the “world’s first ” 105-inch curved ultra-hd-TV in January in Las Vegas at CES. Almost at the same time , however, Samsung also announced the proposal at CES “the world’s first and curved” 105-inch ultra HD television.. TV screens are in fact higher resolution the basic 4k level of ultra hd: Samsung and LG screens resolution is 5120 × 2160 pixels in the image (11 megapixels).
4K resolution ecosystem will get more ready for use. Netflix is testing out 4K video streaming and Netflix’s House of Cards was shot in 4K. Amazon Studios also just recently announced that it will shoot all of its 2014 shows in that format as well.
4K and 4K streaming are definitely coming in 2014 regardless of how many people can actually view it. 4K will still require a lot of work “with the compression and decode capability” to be ready for mainstream use. There are a great many things that need to happen before 4K really becomes a reality or needs to do so.
PC hardware with 4G capable graphics cards is already available, so decoding the stream is not a problem. The biggest issue is that the market penetration of 4K-capable televisions needs to grow, but to that happen the prices must drop to ranges for the average consumer. Many users have already fast enough fixed broadband connection, but can the networks handle peak usage 4K streaming? According to Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, it won’t require more than a stable 15 Mbps to stream 4K.
Extreme overkill resolution will also push to tablet and smart phone markets. There are already smart phones with full HD resolution. In high-end smartphones we may be moving into the overkill zone with extreme resolution that is higher than you can see on small screen: some makers have already demonstrated displays with twice the performance of 1080-progressive. Samsung is planned to release devices with 4k or UHD resolutions. As we have seen in many high tech gadget markets earlier it is a very short journey to copycat behavior. And we will see also see smart phones that can shoot 4K video.
For a long time music has been listened mainly with small portable MP3 player and such, which for most users provide “good enough” audio quality. The market had already shifted from separate MP3 players to the same functionality included to other devices (smart phones and tablets), so sales of music players sales have plummeted in year 2013 as much as as one-third. Separate music players mostly only used for listening music during fitness hobby, and growing popularity of fitness hobby is full of players saved the market from total collapse. Uncompressed music player to appreciate the need of a decent storage capacity, so some hifi people buy some high-end separate players, but that’s a small market.
Apple’s iPod continues to lead an ever-shrinking market of portable media players with a staggering 72 percent of the market for standalone music players. Apple has never been afraid of reducing demand for one of its devices by creating demand for another, in this case iPhone. The future of separate music players looks bleak.
Smartphones have taken the music player market. The growing popularity of smart phones and music streaming services will rise in the future to eat even music players sales. If smart watch will become a hit, the music player may be lost in exercisers shopping list.
1,214 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
This Finnish video projection screen innovation is now installed in big shopping center in Finland:
Fogscreen – Iso Omena
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OS5C6GASVeE
Ads in the Air
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mapping The International Availability of Entertainment Services
http://www.macstories.net/stories/mapping-the-international-availability-of-entertainment-services/
It is 2014 and we live in a rapidly globalizing world. Unfortunately, that is not always apparent from the technology press, which focuses primarily on developments in the US.
But thanks to our global and interconnected world, companies increasingly need to be able to do well in more than just one geographical market to succeed and grow. Additionally, customers outside the US are more aware than ever (thanks to the Internet and technology press) of new products available in the US and will place loyalty in the companies that bring those products to their country too.
The purpose, as was the case last time, is to see the international availability of entertainment services from Apple, Google, Microsoft and Amazon. Not only have we updated the information on all of these, but we have also added data about the availability of Rdio, Spotify, Deezer, Netflix, Hulu, Kobo, and Nook. Hopefully, with the aid of new maps and graphs included, you will get a better picture of how these entertainment services fare in catering to today’s global market of consumers.
Tomi Engdahl says:
‘Beats’ boss in talks to join Apple
http://nypost.com/2014/05/08/beats-electronics-boss-jimmy-iovine-is-in-talks-to-join-apple/
Beats Electronics boss and veteran music industry executive Jimmy Iovine is in talks to join Apple as a “special adviser” to Tim Cook on creative matters, two sources close to talks tell The Post.
Iovine, who is the co-creator of Beats with partner Dr. Dre, is also chairman of Universal Music Group’s Interscope, Geffen and A&M labels, home to Lady Gaga and Eminem, among others
Tomi Engdahl says:
Why Apple Is Betting Big on Beats: Hardware for Now, Streaming for Later
http://recode.net/2014/05/08/why-apple-is-betting-big-on-beats-hardware-for-now-streaming-for-later/
Apple is set to make the biggest purchase in its history: A $3 billion-plus deal for Beats, the company that sells high-end headphones and recently launched a streaming music service.
The deal, first reported by the Financial Times, isn’t closed yet, according to people familiar with the transaction. But let’s assume it is going to go through, generating a big payday for co-founders Jimmy Iovine and Dr Dre, as well as investors who include the Carlyle private equity firm, Len Blavatnik’s Access and Universal Music Group.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Netflix FREEZES prices for existing UK users to stop them quitting vid-streaming service
Hikes monthly subscription for newbies, though
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/05/09/netflix_freezes_prices_for_existing_uk_customers_to_halt_them_quitting_vidstreaming_service/
Netflix is hoping to retain its UK subscriber base by fixing its price tag for existing customers for two years, in a move designed to stop them abandoning the video-streaming service and its relatively small catalogue of films and TV shows.
Meanwhile, the company has jacked up its prices to £6.99 for newcomers in Blighty.
Brits who are already signed up to Netflix will continue to be charged £5.99 per month
The firm, which claims to have 48 million subscribers worldwide, has previously acknowledged it had “a continuous ebb and flow of titles” on its service. The company is bound by licensing rules relating to television and film rights that expire after a certain time. In January, it culled 500 titles from its UK list.
It’s one of the reasons why Netflix creates homegrown TV shows
Tomi Engdahl says:
Hulu promises free and full TV episodes for mobile devices
http://www.cnet.com/news/hulu-promises-free-and-full-tv-episodes-for-mobile-devices/
Mobile users will be able to catch selected full TV episodes for free without need of a Hulu Plus subscription starting this summer.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Amazon inexplicably granted patent for common photography flash setup
http://www.theverge.com/2014/5/8/5696356/amazon-inexplicably-granted-patent-for-common-photography-flash-setup
Taking photos of people or products against a clean white background is perhaps one of the most common studio photography techniques in use — and an essential skill for any studio photographer using off-camera flashes and lighting. That hasn’t stopped the US Patent and Trademark Office from granting Amazon one of the most bizarre and seemingly needless patents we’ve heard of in a long time: a studio lighting setup that allows photographers to “achieve a desired effect of a substantially seamless background.” Yes, Amazon now holds a patent for taking photos with a “near perfect” white backdrop.
The patent’s diagrams show very specific numbers and placements of the light sources, but those details aren’t the point. Enforcing such a patent seems near-impossible
If the USPTO had asked around a little, it probably could have found dozens of photographers who have used nearly identical setups for years
Tomi Engdahl says:
Apple poaches Nokia photo guru Ari Partinen from Microsoft
Expect the next iThingie to be a much sharper snapper
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/05/09/apple_poaches_nokia_photo_guru_ari_partinen_from_microsoft/
Microsoft’s Stephen Elop is no doubt busy digesting the mobile remains of Nokia, but he has lost a key engineer – Lumia photography lead Ari Partinen – to the clutches of Cupertino.
Partinen, who later confirmed that Apple is indeed his new paymaster, started at Nokia working on the optics for the Finnish firm’s N8 model. He was one of the key developers of the PureView 808, a Symbian mobile with a large 41 megapixel camera sensor and a dedicated GPU that was the first handset to address what has become a key selling point for Nokia hardware: superb photography.
This focus on cameras as a differentiator has been developed by Partinen and others, and Nokia has gone to incredible lengths to develop thin cameras and the software to support them
Tomi Engdahl says:
Physicists Turn 8MP Smartphone Camera Into a Quantum Random Number Generator
http://science.slashdot.org/story/14/05/09/1854254/physicists-turn-8mp-smartphone-camera-into-a-quantum-random-number-generator
“Random numbers are the lifeblood of many cryptographic systems and demand for them will only increase in the coming years as techniques such as quantum cryptography become mainstream.”
“Now physicists have worked out how to use a smartphone camera to generate random numbers using quantum uncertainties. The approach is based on the fact that the emission of a photon is a quantum process that is always random.”
How To Generate Quantum Random Numbers With A Smartphone Camera
https://medium.com/the-physics-arxiv-blog/602f88552b64
Physicists have exploited the laws of quantum mechanics to generate random numbers on a Nokia N9 smartphone, a breakthrough that could have major implications for information security
genuine random numbers are notoriously hard to find. In particular, they cannot be generated by a deterministic process such as a computer program.
So physicists have long searched for other ways to make genuinely random numbers based on physical processes that produce random outcomes. The gold standard is the quantum random number generator—a device that exploits the probabilistic nature of quantum mechanics to produce a sequence of entirely random digits.
However, quantum random number generators are complex, expensive devices.
And now they’ve found it. Today, Bruno Sanguinetti and pals at the University of Geneva in Switzerland have worked out how to generate random numbers on an ordinary smartphone using genuine quantum processes. And they say their new technique can produce random numbers at the rate of 1 megabit per second, more than enough for most security applications.
The quantum process that these guys exploit is the way light sources emit photons.
They put this to the test with a Nokia N9 smartphone, which has an ordinary 8 megapixel rear-facing colour camera
So the process of generating random numbers consists of pointing the camera at a green LED that evenly illuminates all the pixels and pressing the shutter button. A simple program then extracts the random digits.
Sanguinetti and co calculate that their numbers are pretty close to random.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Nokia Camera guru: I’m finished being Finnish, and off to ‘the company you’re thinking of’
You’ll simply never guess. Well, maybe you will actually
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/05/12/apple_gets_new_employee/
Ari Partinen, who worked on the PureView camera, announced his move on Twitter. Nokia’s cameras are considered to be the best in the business, whereas Apple’s aren’t. Perhaps Tim Cook wants this to change.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Have An Unused DIY Instrument? Send It On Tour With [Imogen Heap]
http://hackaday.com/2014/05/10/have-an-unused-diy-instrument-send-it-on-tour-with-imogen-heap/
[Imogen Heap] is well-known for performing with DIY and cobbled-together instruments, and now she’s teaming up with another famous DIY instrument musician for a world tour.
The team is looking for video submissions of any musical creatures you’d like to send around the world. The only real guideline on what they’re looking for is, ‘the weirder the better’
Tomi Engdahl says:
Cameras for hacks: Idiot-proof suggestions invited
What’s the best simple kit for roving mo-journos?
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/05/08/cameras_for_hacks/
The world of journalism is changing fast, and while the image-hungry internet demands ever more photographs, shrinking budgets mean the days of a hack going into the field with a snapper in tow are pretty much over.
Although mobile phone manufacturers boast that their kit will by next Thursday at the latest boast 200 meg sensors and lenses to outperform a Nikon D3S, mobes just don’t cut the mustard in the imaging stakes.
We’ve only got a few criteria, which are:
Basic point-and-shoot operation
Reasonably knock-proof construction, preferably beer-proof
Non-interchangeable zoom lens
Built-in flash
Decent battery life
Instruction manual of one page or less
Good balance of price/image quality
Tomi Engdahl says:
Hey, does your Smart TV have a mic? Enjoy your surveillance, bro
Little reminder: Your shiny new telly is a computer, it can run malware
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/05/10/smarttv_bugging/
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden told lawyers he met during his sojourn in Hong Kong to put their cell phones in his fridge to thwart any eavesdroppers.
But new research suggests he should have been worried about nearby TVs, too.
Smart tellies with built-in microphones and storage can be turned into bugging devices by malware and used to record conversations, security experts at NCC Group said. And they demonstrated exactly that just down the road from the Infosec Europe conference, held in London.
“Installing the bugging software requires physical access to the device, which is how we did it, or by installing a malicious app,”
In other words, Ingram’s research shows smart TVs can be abused in much the same way that dodgy apps on Android software stores hijack smartphones and tablets.
“There is nothing specific about them running Linux that makes the hacking any easier, though some manufacturers have released some of their source code, which could make developing applications for the devices a little easier.”
The smart TV hacking was part of a demonstration by NCC experts to highlight security shortcomings on the home front of the Internet of Things. Broadband routers and Wi-Fi-controlled power plugs were also attacked, and a smartphone with NFC wireless radio was used in an attempt to clone a hotel room access card.
Tomi Engdahl says:
What the frag? Earn millions as the world watches you SLAY rivals
Well, in theory … Elgato vs Hauppauge gaming video capture kit deathmatch
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/05/12/review_gaming_elgato_game_capture_hd_hauppauge_hd_pvr_rocket/
After learning how much Swedish gamer PewDiePie earns in a year from his YouTube channel (reportedly $7m for 3.7 billion views), I recommend everyone buys an HD capture device and starts uploading gaming videos.
As a games reviewer, the ability to capture high quality video content from PC or consoles with a nifty super portable box is indispensable, and whatever your internet fanbase, being able to upload an HD video of death by Angry Chicken in Hearthstone couldn’t be simpler.
What might make matters a little more difficult is deciding on which capture box to buy. I’ve been using both the Hauppauge PVR Rocket and the Elgato Game Capture HD lately and I can see the appeal in both.
Amazingly portable and easy to use, the Hauppauge HD PVR Rocket and the Elgato Capture HD produce good-quality video and audio. I do feel the editing and streaming software on the Elgato is superior but the recording accessibility of the Rocket’s one-touch big red button makes it a comparable product.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Feast your PUNY eyes on highest resolution phone display EVER
Too much pixel dust for your strained eyeballs to handle
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/04/16/au_optronics_high_res_2014/
It’s trade show season in Hong Kong and the Taiwanese display manufacturer AU Optronics has trumped its rivals, principally Samsung, by producing the highest resolution phone display yet.
The AMOLED 5.7-inch display has 2560 x 1440 resolution – which gives you 513ppi (pixels per inch). This compares with the iPhone’s retina display resolution 326 ppi, and the Galaxy S5’s 432.
How useful this is depends on how close you hold the device to your face.
According to Michael Tusch, CTO of Apical, you’d need to be nearer than 18cm (7 inches) away and would need very good eyesight to see 513 pixels per inch. Tusch said that tablets are typically held 38cm (15 inches) away from the eye.
The pressure is always on handset manufacturers to make phones thinner, so AU Optronics’ 5-inch in-cell touch AMOLED panel HD720 will be targeted at them. It is just 0.57mm thick
Tomi Engdahl says:
In 2020, the music streaming service have replaced the cd’s , and the music -makers must find new sources of income for record sales in parallel . The solution can be found in big data recovery .
British consulting company Music Ally Research Karim Fanous says that music distribution, streaming , or streaming services are rolling over once the other channels .
” Compact discs in addition to the download of music files based on the popularity of the service is reduced dramatically in the coming years ,” Fanous predict.
” In 2020, the CDs, however, has become a marginal product in Finland. Their share music store can then be 10-30 per cent , ”
Teosto Research Ano Sirppiniemi believes that in 2020, the great masses have adopted as their own streaming services in Finland. Their popularity increases among other things, the diversification of supply .
” There will continue to be music services where you can find anything and everything. They will, however, in addition to certain types of music or artists that focus on services. The market will also be services that connect music, music videos , and other content , ”
Jari Muikku says that in 2020, the consumer does not necessarily have to go to individual music or books sells online services.
“The variety of products can be purchased from the same place.”
“Service to know what the consumer is listening to music in the past and know how to make recommendations accordingly. In addition, the service can not tell you what kind of a situation and the emotional state of music he wants. ”
The streaming service Spotify is now the number one, but it has got rivals such as Deezer new challengers. Karim Fanous period of five years after the market seems likely to be very different.
Then the current suppliers are likely to remain only a handful.
“The music of the Amazon, Apple and Google like major media and consumer brands grabbed a market for themselves. They offer customers, including streaming video content are made up of multi-media packages in which the music is one part ”
“Smartphones and tablets, in addition there will be new devices älylaseihin watches. In the future, the music can be most likely to listen to the devices that are integrated into the car, home decoration and accessories. ”
The new smart and big data in a networked environment, namely the large masses of information utilization will rise beyond all recognition.
“Big data, a lot of people talking about it, but its recovery is firmly in the music industry just beginning,
“Artists should be to do everything that they are in possession of the fans of the information and direct access to them. The better you know your fans, the more you can sell your products and experiences that people are willing to buy whatever way and time. ”
Karim Fanous says that the threat rather than the artists want to find a great change in potential. Open-mindedness and the breaking of barriers thinking is needed, especially when the traditional record sales in parallel with the development of new sources of income.
“They pop up all the time. A number of funding is a good example ”
Source: http://www.teosto.fi/teosto/blogi/big-data-myllaa-musiikkibisneksen
Tomi Engdahl says:
Spotify removes silent album that earned indie band $20,000
http://www.theverge.com/2014/5/7/5690590/spotify-removes-silent-album-that-earned-indie-band-20000
Spotify has spent years battling the perception that it skimps on royalties; on average, the company pays out $0.007 each time an artist’s song is streamed by its millions of users.
In March, one Michigan-based band set out to defy the odds and bring in enough money to fund an upcoming tour. And they took a brilliant approach in getting there. Vulfpeck’s latest album Sleepify is a completely silent recording composed of tracks that are each a half-minute in length. (Users must listen to a song for at least 30 seconds before Spotify counts it as a proper “play.”)
Upon its release last month, the band asked fans to stream Sleepify continuously at night as they slept, hoping the coordinated effort could morph Spotify’s less-than-a-cent royalty rate into something lucrative. And it actually worked: according to Vice, Vulfpeck earned around $20,000 in royalties from the album.
Spotify has asked Vulfpeck to remove the album, complaining that it violates the company’s terms of content.
Tomi Engdahl says:
BEAK DRONE: 1080p HD Wi-Fi quad-copter by Parrot takes to skies
Forget Peak Drone, this is the ultimate SELFIE util
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/05/12/parrot_flies_high_with_new_drone/
French phone-accessories-maker-turned-drone-manufacturer Parrot has built a quad-copter with a super wide-angle lens and hi-def cam.
Like its predecessor, the Parrot AR Drone, the new BeBop has a polystyrene foam shell that protects itself and whatever it collides into.
Also, like the earlier version, you control the device by Wi-Fi. The drone talks to your Android or iPhone and transmits back live video.
the drone only has a 12-minute battery life.
There is no announcement on price or availability for the Bebop. As a guideline, the AR Drone 2.0 sells for about £300 ($500).
Tomi Engdahl says:
5 reasons to converge video surveillance onto corporate IP networks
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2014/05/5-reasons-ip-convergence.html
A recent technology brief from Allied Telesis outlines 5 reasons to converge video surveillance onto the corporate IP network
“IP cameras no longer need special cabling, special receiving equipment or special recording equipment. They just use IP-over-Ethernet, like all the other equipment in the corporate LAN,”
The five reasons for such convergence, as elucidated by Allied Telesis, include: cost-savings; consistency; opportunities for new service deployment; flexibility; and participation in a network management framework.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Steve and Jimmy: The Roots of Apple’s Bid for Beats
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-05-12/apple-s-deep-ties-with-iovine-key-driver-of-beats-deal.html
When news spread last week that Apple Inc. (AAPL) was near an acquisition of Beats Electronics LLC for $3.2 billion, Beats co-founder Dr. Dre appeared in a video boasting of becoming the “first billionaire in hip hop.”
Apple executives, by contrast, were characteristically silent.
Beats co-founder Jimmy Iovine, a longtime producer and executive, was friendly with Apple co-founder Steve Jobs and is a big supporter of the company’s efforts in music. Apple, meanwhile, has cultivated extensive relationships in the music business and its iTunes team is populated with former radio promoters, music writers and other industry veterans. The familiarity may help Apple more quickly reap the benefits of a deal once it’s completed.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Apple May Unveil Iovine, Dr. Dre Exec Appointments at June Conference
http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/legal-and-management/6084792/apple-wwdc-jimmy-iovine-dr-dre-executive-appointments-jobs
Apple could unveil Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre as its latest recruits at its Worldwide Developers’ Conference in June, according to people familiar with the Beats Electronics acquisition talks.
Iovine and Dre, co-founders of Beats, are in talks to sell the company for $3.2 billion to the iPhone and iPad maker in a deal which is expected to be announced later this week.
Both are expected to join Apple in yet-to-be confirmed executive roles. One person said Iovine would likely oversee all of Apple’s music strategy and handle relationships with labels and publishers.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Standards Group Adds Adaptive-Sync To DisplayPort
http://hardware.slashdot.org/story/14/05/13/014250/standards-group-adds-adaptive-sync-to-displayport
“Over the past nine months, we’ve seen the beginnings of a revolution in how video games are displayed. First, Nvidia demoed G-Sync, its proprietary technology for ensuring smooth frame delivery. Then AMD demoed its own free standard, dubbed FreeSync, that showed a similar technology. Now, VESA (Video Electronics Standard Association) has announced support for “Adaptive Sync,” as an addition to DisplayPort. The new capability will debut with DisplayPort 1.2a. The goal of these technologies is to synchronize output from the GPU and the display to ensure smooth output.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
VESA Standards Group Adds ‘Adaptive-Sync’ DisplayPort Video Standard
Read more: http://hothardware.com/News/VESA-Standards-Group-Adds-AdaptiveSync-DisplayPort-Video-Standard/#ixzz31ZxntDEG
Tomi Engdahl says:
Lytro’s new light-field camera looks like an actual camera, costs $1,599
http://www.engadget.com/2014/04/22/lytro-illum/?ncid=rss_truncated&cps=gravity
Lytro’s new light-field camera looks like an actual camera, costs $1,599
If Lytro’s first camera offered us a sneak peek at the promise of light field photography, the company’s second-generation product swings those doors wide open. A far cry from the toy-like appearance of its predecessor, the $1,599 Lytro Illum looks and feels like a genuine full-fledged camera meant for a more professional crowd. The innovation doesn’t stop at just looks either, as the Illum is a much more serious effort at light field photography, with cutting-edge optics, a larger sensor and a whole lot of computational power that might make the Illum the most technologically advanced camera to land in consumer hands.
When Lytro first introduced its light field camera two years ago, it shook up not just the world of photography, but of technology in general. Bundled inside a tiny rectangular block was a groundbreaking image sensor that could capture millions of rays of light along with their color, intensity and direction — a task that previously required hundreds of cameras and a supercomputer. That hardware, combined with some complex software, meant that you could not only get a 3D image from a single shot, but also had the ability to refocus a photograph after you take it. It’s this latter trick that is arguably the Lytro camera’s most identifying characteristic, and the one that put it on the technological map.
Tomi Engdahl says:
4K becoming common faster than FullHD
This year, only four per cent of TVs sold in separates files UltraHD , or 4K resolution.
In 2020, the 4K TVs overall market share is expected to be already 41 per cent.
Strategy Analytics predicts that the United States will overtake China in the prevalence of 4K TVs . Up to now, China has been a clear market leader in 4K , because that is where the state has supported the purchase of equipment and through local manufacturers.
At the moment , for example, the Chinese sell TCL 50 -inch 4K televion a little less than a thousand dollars.
The major manufacturers such as Samsung, LG, Sony and Panasonic low end 4K TVs prices are expected to fall this year to less than $ 2,000 .
Analysts said the 4K TVs generalization occurs faster than the 1080p quality screens almost 10 years ago. End of this decade 4K will become the most common resolution for more than a 40-inch size range.
Source: http://etn.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1344:4k-yleistyy-fullhd-ta-nopeammin&catid=13&Itemid=101
Tomi Engdahl says:
Get rid of film director? Automated filmmakers developed in Tampere
Tampere audited the dissertation focuses on automatic video analysis and controlling .
Friday of this week reviewed Tampere University of Technology doctoral dissertation , which deals with the computerized control of the film .
University of release, the Francesco Cricrìn Multimodal Analysis of Mobile Videos – thesis develops methods designed to compensate for a man of films and video director .
The study used a number of different photographers and mobile phone video recorded concerts and sporting events. Cricrìn methods were able to distinguish between the video material , inter alia, the type of event and interesting scenes .
According to the University of Cricrìn methods developed by means of a human being could be replaced by a video or movie director or at least speed up the work.
Source: http://www.digitoday.fi/tiede-ja-teknologia/2014/05/13/ohjaajille-kenkaa-tampereella-kehitellaan-automatisoitua-elokuvaohjaajaa/20146740/66?rss=6
Tomi Engdahl says:
VESA Adds Adaptive-Sync to DisplayPort 1.2a Standard; Variable Refresh Monitors Move Forward
by Ryan Smith on May 12, 2014 8:50 PM EST
http://www.anandtech.com/show/8008/vesa-adds-adaptivesync-to-displayport-12a-standard-variable-refresh-monitors-move-forward
Tomi Engdahl says:
TV Ad Dollars Slowly Shifting to Web Video
Increasing Portion of Broadcast and Cable Budgets Follow Younger Audience Online
http://online.wsj.com/news/article_email/SB10001424052702303851804579558091795473048-lMyQjAxMTA0MDEwMjExNDIyWj
Online video outlets are finally starting to chip away at television’s hold on advertisers.
Several major advertisers, including MasterCard, Mondelez International and Verizon Wireless in the past year have moved a portion of the money they previously spent on television to online outlets, conscious that viewers are more frequently watching video online, ad executives say. And with online outlets in recent weeks unveiling plans to ramp up their programming, more shifts are likely, say media buyers.
Money for online video is “definitely coming out of TV,”
Digital media drew about 25% of total ad dollars. EMarketer predicts television will remain bigger than digital until 2018, by which time TV’s share of total ad spending will slip to 36.1% and digital—including not just online video but all website ads and mobile ads—will reach 36.4%.
“Younger consumers are consuming less TV as a portion of their total media consumption,”
Analysts and marketers say advertisers are feeling more comfortable with moving TV dollars as Nielsen and others have begun to be able to offer better measurement of how their TV ads compare with the performance of online video digital ads.
Tomi Engdahl says:
$10 Smartphone to digital microscope conversion!
http://www.instructables.com/id/10-Smartphone-to-digital-microscope-conversion/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Popcorn Time Is Now On Android
http://techcrunch.com/2014/05/13/popcorn-time-is-now-on-android/
Hollywood’s worst nightmare just went mobile.
A popular fork of Popcorn Time just launched its Android app. Time4Popcorn’s Popcorn Time app is now available for consumption on the developer’s website and brings all of the program’s pirating tools to the mobile ecosystem.
The Android app looks and feels like the desktop program, and sports the same access to pirated TV shows and movies. And just like its desktop counterpart, the Android version streams torrents. Your data plan is going to love it.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Your Old CD Collection Is Dying
http://hardware.slashdot.org/story/14/05/14/1459235/your-old-cd-collection-is-dying
“Adrienne LaFrance reports at the Atlantic that f you’ve tried listening to any of the old CDs lately from your carefully assembled collection from the 1980′s or 1990′s you may have noticed that many of them won’t play won’t play. ‘While most of the studio-manufactured albums I bought still play, there’s really no telling how much longer they will.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Library of Congress Wants to Destroy Your Old CDs (For Science)
That old Michael Jackson disc? You’ve probably been treating it wrong.
http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/05/the-library-of-congress-wants-to-destroy-your-old-cds-for-science/370804/
If you’ve tried listening to any of your old CDs lately, if you even own them anymore, you may have noticed they won’t play. That’s what happened to mine, anyway.
“All of the modern formats weren’t really made to last a long period of time,” said Fenella France, chief of preservation research and testing at the Library of Congress. “They were really more developed for mass production.”
“If you want to really kill your discs, just leave them in your car over the summer.”
France and her colleagues are trying to figure out how CDs age so that we can better understand how to save them. This is a tricky business, in large part because manufacturers have changed their processes over the years but won’t say how. And so: we know a CD’s basic composition—there’s a plastic polycarbonate layer, a metal reflective layer with all the data in it, and then the coating on top—but it’s impossible to tell just from looking at a disc how it will age.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Do you still collect physical music? What do you do with it?
http://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2012/nov/07/cd-collection-reorganise-physical-music
The notion of a physical music collection seems increasingly antiquated these days, though among people I know of around my age it has tended to be those who don’t care that much about music who have embraced streaming and downloading with the greatest vigour.
So, have you ever done the full-scale music reorganisation? Were you liberated or saddened? What did you do with the surplus? And what did you learn about your own tastes from what you shed and what you kept? And what was the one record you were horrified to discover you possessed?
Tomi Engdahl says:
Warner, Universal, Sony Buy Stakes in Music App Shazam
http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2014/05/14/warner-universal-sony-buy-stakes-in-music-app-shazam/
Shazam Entertainment, the music-identification app, landed small investments from the world’s biggest record companies, according to people familiar with the matter.
Shazam’s most recent valuation was $500 million, a spokeswoman said. She declined to comment on the labels’ stakes.
Shazam, which is based in London, helps people identify music playing on the radio or other public setting. For the labels, Shazam’s biggest value lies in its role as a marketing partner: The app lets people share the song’s name on social media, download it from Apple’s iTunes Store or stream it on subscription services such as Spotify.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Yahoo Makes New Push Into Video Content
Internet Company Hunts for Original Web-Series Programming
http://online.wsj.com/news/article_email/SB10001424052702304819004579485820610824060-lMyQjAxMTA0MDAwNjEwNDYyWj
tt says:
I couldn’t refrain from commenting. Well written!
Tomi Engdahl says:
Sony To Make Movie of Edward Snowden Story
http://entertainment.slashdot.org/story/14/05/14/222202/sony-to-make-movie-of-edward-snowden-story
“Sony Pictures Entertainment has acquired the rights to the new book by journalist Glenn Greenwald about fugitive US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden, the studio said Wednesday.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
TV sales PLUMMET. But no one’s prepared to say what we all know
Soz, LCD-makers, this is really happening …
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/03/24/tv_sales_dropping/
TV sales are falling everywhere. It’s kind of official, but people are still prepared to argue about it. The number of LCD screens are being forecast to recover but no one is giving a reason why, as the number of TVs that they ship in, are definitely not rising.
According to our forecast, TV sales will fall below 200 million this year, although even we think that is a very low number, and descent to that level may slip back a few quarters.
But the unique point is that Faultline made that forecast last year when both IHS and Displaysearch said that the recovery would begin in 2013. So at least we are going in the right direction in not forecasting exactly the opposite of what has happened.
The problem seems to be that there is a “rare” deceleration in the liquid-crystal display (LCD) TV space in China, in the Asia-Pacific and in Eastern Europe. These are the markets that everyone said would hold up. But they are also the markets that were latest to embrace tablets and now tablet mania is taking hold, replacing secondary TV sets in many instances.
“The global TV market continues to be in transition following a golden period of tremendous growth from 2009 to 2011,”
Tomi Engdahl says:
High-tech Centr camera shoots panoramic video
This HD video device is on the cutting-edge
http://www.electronicproducts.com/Optoelectronics/Image_Sensors_and_Optical_Detectors/High-tech_Centr_camera_shoots_panoramic_video.aspx
Comparable to a GoPro camera, the tech behind the Centr 360-degree panoramic camera is highly advanced. Created by a skilled team is comprised of several former Apple employees, Centr is a multi-purpose camera that captures everything around you when filming. Small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, you can control this panoramic camera with any smart device like a phone or tablet. To record, you can either wear it like a ring on your finger through the center hole on the camera or hook it up to a tripod for a phenomenal stationary 360-degree angle.
As described by Centr’s CEO Bill Banta, this camera is like an enhanced version of GoPro. “It lets you do everything you could with a GoPro, plus see another dimension.”
Users can even take panoramic selfies. While recording high-definition 360-degree video, the user will be able to capture amazing-looking footage.
This camera that calibrates and processes images in real-time will soon be hitting the shelves for $399.
The onboard calibration system has 4 HD image sensors that seamlessly knit panoramic videos together to generate a video with wonderful viewpoint and clarity.
you can shoot for up to 8 hours with a 64GB SD memory card when recording at a resolution of 720
Centr’s team has started a fundraising campaign on Kickstarter with a $900,000 goal
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mac OS X 10.9.3 delivers improved 4K support, fix for ‘serious’ iTunes flaw
Mavericks update available to download now
http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/2345217/mac-os-x-1093-delivers-improved-4k-support-fix-for-serious-itunes-flaw
Mac OS X 10.9.3 Mavericks is unlikely to get many users excited, but its headline feature is improved support for 4K displays for those using the new Mac Pro or 15in Macbook Air with Retina display. This “improved support” enables “HiDPI” Retina scaling on 4K displays, which means that text should appear sharper with higher refresh rates.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Some postings on idea of replacing video projector bulb with LED light source:
Fail of the Week: Projector LED Retrofit
http://hackaday.com/2014/05/15/fail-of-the-week-projector-led-retrofit/
Epson projector LED mod
http://hackaday.com/2013/03/28/epson-projector-led-mod/
Without a stock lamp installed, the projector would give an error message and shut itself off. So, the first step was to wire up a little bypass. Once that was taken care of, [Shawn] installed a 30W 2000 lumen LED and custom fit an old Pentium CPU heatsink to keep the LEDs temperature down.
In the end, his first experiment was a success, but [Shawn] wants to try an 8000 lumen 100W LED to make it about as bright as the stock lamp was.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Augmented Reality with an FPGA
http://hackaday.com/2014/05/16/augmented-reality-with-an-fpga/
[Julie Wang] has created an augmented reality system on a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). Augmented reality is nothing new – heck, these days even your tablet can do it. [Julie] has taken a slightly different approach though. She’s not using a processor at all. Her entire system, from capture, to image processing, to VGA signal output, is all instantiated in a FPGA.
The amazing part is that there is no microprocessor involved in any of the processing.
Tomi Engdahl says:
AT&T to Acquire DIRECTV
http://about.att.com/story/att_to_acquire_directv.html
Creates Content Distribution Leader Across Mobile, Video & Broadband Platforms
AT&T (NYSE:T) and DIRECTV (NASDAQ:DTV) today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which AT&T will acquire DIRECTV in a stock-and-cash transaction for $95 per share based on AT&T’s Friday closing price. The agreement has been approved unanimously by the Boards of Directors of both companies.
The transaction combines complementary strengths to create a unique new competitor with unprecedented capabilities in mobility, video and broadband services.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Quantum Random Number Generator Created Using A Smartphone Camera
https://medium.com/the-physics-arxiv-blog/602f88552b64
Physicists have exploited the laws of quantum mechanics to generate random numbers on a Nokia N9 smartphone, a breakthrough that could have major implications for information security
Tomi Engdahl says:
Why a YouTube-Twitch Marriage Makes Sense
http://recode.net/2014/05/18/why-a-youtube-twitch-marriage-makes-sense/
Google may or may not be buying Twitch for a big pile of money.
OK. So what is Twitch, and why would Google want to buy it?
Twitch is a fast-growing service that lets people – mostly men — watch livestreams of other people — mostly men — playing videogames.
And it is booming: When Twitch started up in June 2011, it claimed 5 million users a month. In 2012, it was up to 20 million. By the end of last year, that number had jumped to 45 million. Broadband service provider Sandvine says Twitch now accounts for 1.35 percent of Internet traffic during peak hours in North America. That’s more than HBO Go’s 1.24 percent.
Tomi Engdahl says:
AT&T Buys DirecTV For $67 Billion In Second Major Deal To Reshape TV Industry
http://www.buzzfeed.com/passantino/att-buys-directv-for-67-billion-in-second-major-deal-to-resh
The deal, announced Sunday night after roughly a month of negotiations, follows Comcast’s impending acquisition of Time Warner Cable for $45.2 billion. Both deals will face intense regulatory scrutiny.
Tomi Engdahl says:
YouTube to Acquire Videogame-Streaming Service Twitch for $1 Billion: Sources
http://variety.com/2014/digital/news/youtube-to-acquire-videogame-streaming-service-twitch-for-1-billion-sources-1201185204/
Google’s YouTube has reached a deal to buy Twitch, a popular videogame-streaming company, for more than $1 billion, according to sources familiar with the pact.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Twitch chooses Google over Microsoft amid multiple buyout offers
http://www.theverge.com/2014/5/18/5729762/twitch-youtube-acquisition-report
Video game streaming startup believes YouTube is its best bet for mainstream success
Tomi Engdahl says:
Centr Camera, NeoLab Offer New-Look Machine Vision
Movidius, Cognivue play key roles
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1322395
For decades, the “vision” technology most commonly used by consumers was an ordinary camera, either a point-and-shoot camera, digital SLR, or smartphone.
But what if consumers could get their hands on more computationally intensive embedded vision technologies?
For example, the US Army has a device that senses and records in a 360-degree arc, capable of capturing images front, back, and on every side.
These are examples of new-generation vision technologies that are coming soon, as consumer products, to your neighborhood for a few hundred dollars.
The 360-degree camera described above is being redesigned as the first 4K resolution panoramic camera by Centr Camera, a San Francisco-based startup founded by ex-Apple engineers. The doughnut shaped camera is small, evocative of a roll of duct tape. The project is now pitched at Kickstarter.
The “smart” pen mentioned above is called Neo 1, developed by NeoLab based in Korea.
“The common thread (of those new products) is that we’re now at the point where we can build sophisticated vision capabilities into small, low cost, low power systems. This was not the case a few years ago,” Jeff Bier, founder of Embedded Vision Alliance, told EE Times.
Bier calls this sort of technology “a game-changer” based on his conviction that “machines that see can be safer, more responsive, more capable, and more efficient than their sight-deprived predecessors.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Chromecast Support Coming To Mobile Firefox
http://news.slashdot.org/story/14/05/18/1229203/chromecast-support-coming-to-mobile-firefox
“Chromecast is a great device, and concept, however it is more or less limited to Google’s Chrome browser and supported apps. That seems to be changing: Mozilla is working on bringing Chromecast support to its Firefox browser.”