First look: DxO One promises to turn iPhone into DSLR quality camera

The DxO One Camera connects to an iPhone.(Photo: 1" aux:Firmware="1.1.3" ph)

NEW YORK — We take zillions of pictures with our smartphones and the cameras in recent vintage handsets have gotten really good. But they're not digital-SLR quality good.

DxO hopes to change that. The digital image processing company is putting the final touches on a clever pocket sized DSLR-quality camera called DxO One. Due out in the fall, DxO One can connect to the Lightning connector on iPhones and iPads, promising to turn your phone into a high quality shooter capable of delivering pictures that rival images shot with a DSLR.

Under such a scenario the iPhone or iPad becomes your viewfinder, but you can also use DxO One as standalone camera.

DxO One costs $599, and while that may seem pricey for what you might think of as an iPhone accessory, it is meant to compete against full-sized "mirrorless" type cameras. Still, at that price we're looking at something more likely to appeal to photo enthusiasts than mainstream photographers, at least at first. But everyone can appreciate stunning images. (Check out some of the samples posted here).

Shot with DxO ONE camera (Photo: DxO)

The camera weighs 3.8 ounces and stands just 2.65 inches tall, despite a 1-inch a 20.2 megapixel sensor and f/1.8 lens, 32mm-equivalent lens.

Through a free iOS companion app you can change the aperture from f/1.8 to f/8000s and the ISO from 100 to 51200. You can swivel the camera when it's connected to the iPhone or iPad, allowing shots from different perspectives, including, of course, selfies. You can also shoot 1080p videos.

The pictures you take can be transferred to the Camera Roll on the iPhone or iPad, from where you can edit them as is possible with images taken with the iPhone' or iPad's own cameras. Pictures and videos are otherwise stored on DxO One's own microSD card though.

For a limited time, DxO is including its own image processing software with the price of the camera, such as software that lets you process RAW files, and software that lets you reproduce the look and quality of analog film. The camera can capture a SuperRAW file resulting from four RAW files captured in quick succession. Those images are merged together when you connect DxO One to a PC or Mac.

Shot with DxO ONE Camera (Photo: DxO)

DxO One doesn't have its own flash, but it can leverage the iPhone flash. Whether you use the flash or not, the camera is meant to excel in low light. I haven't gotten to test the camera myself yet, aside from a couple of images I shot in my office. But I can certainly vouch for the quality of images that the company showed off while demonstrating the camera, some taken in dim light.

This low light image was taken with DxO (Photo: DxO)

I look forward to spending some time testing DxO One out in the real world.

Email: ebaig@usatoday.com; Follow @edbaig on Twitter

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Source: First look: DxO One promises to turn iPhone into DSLR quality camera

Google's Nest reveals upgrades, new camera for smart home:

CNET Update: Google's Nest reveals upgrades, new camera for smart home 2:53 / June 17, 2015

Nest is ditching the Dropcam brand for a new name, the Nest Cam - and with it come updates to other home monitoring products. Also, Amazon upgrades the Kindle Paperwhite, and Facebook launches the Moments app for private photo sharing.

Source: Google's Nest reveals upgrades, new camera for smart home:

Facebook makes private photo sharing smarter with the Moments app

The world's biggest social network seems to think that people aren't sharing enough pictures and so has created a new app that helps users to find even more images to post.

Called Moments, once installed it will work through a smartphone's entire camera roll and, using Facebook's facial recognition software, grab anything that features what it recognises as an image featuring Facebook friends.

The app's default setting is to create a private album that can be used for sharing the discovered image or images simply with those pictured in them.

The idea is that the privately shared album grows organically as both people continue to share new photos through it.

Facebook Moments is available from Monday for both iOS and Android devices.

AFP

Tags: Apps, Facebook, facebook app, Facebook Facial Recognition, Facebook Moments, Facebook Moments app, Moments app, photo sharing

Source: Facebook makes private photo sharing smarter with the Moments app

Mozilla launches an Android app for creating content in local languages

Nine months since it was announced, Mozilla's Webmaker app for creating content in local languages has finally arrived on Google Play — albeit in beta.

The organization's Webmaker program was launched in 2012 to let users across the globe create sites and apps easily. The Android app is limited to creating content with just text and images, such as photo galleries, memes and scrapbooks.

Fire up the app to create a project and you're presented with a bunch of blank pages. You can add text, photos from your camera or images from your gallery and move them around to tell a story or share an idea.

Once your project is ready, you can share it with other users who can view and 'remix' them into their own creations. There's also a gallery to discover more content from the community.

Webmaker is still very much in beta and will need a lot of work before it's ready for prime time. The interface isn't exactly intuitive and there aren't any templates to work with, so you're left to figure out how to use it on your own. With Webmaker's blank canvas approach, that could be a problem for first-timers.

Adding text and images feels clunky and there aren't many functions to manipulate your content, like a cropping tool for images. And although Mozilla says the app has been tested extensively by volunteers in Bangladesh, Kenya, Brazil, India, I couldn't find a lot of content to view or remix.

Webmaker needs to be a lot more intuitive if it's to be used by people who are getting online and trying smartphones for the first time. Still, it's interesting to see Mozilla's vision for a way for the world to create local content take shape.

➤ Webmaker [Android]

Read next: Yo for iOS now lets you share pictures, even with groups

Source: Mozilla launches an Android app for creating content in local languages