Tag Archives: zoom

Oppo Find X3 Pro brings microscopy to phones!

Oppo Find X3 Pro

There is always an outlier when it comes to phone innovation and we have to give it to Oppo in 2021 as it seems to have created a phone that really delivers features that seemed impossible just months ago.  The Oppo Find X3 Pro can deliver the usual 4k 30p and 60p video and up to 720p 480fps slow motion along with the common standard of 240p at 1080p.  Where the phone jumps ahead of the pack is the inclusion of a real microscopy camera module that has a ring light to boot.

The Microscope camera can deliver a mind-altering 60x microscopy range magnification that looks so good that you might think it was taken with a professional clinical microscope.   It will not be enough to show blood cells that usually require over 100x to be appreciated but it delivers detail on small insects, fibers, textures, and electronics that previously required a complicated camera setup attached to a multi-lens instrument. → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Slow Motion on DJI Pocket 2 & Fuji X-S10 Offers 240fps!

Slow Motion on DJI Pocket 2 & Fuji X-S10

Two very different new cameras were released this week that are able to shoot in 240fps Full HD 1080p. One is the Fujifilm X-S10 which is an all-rounder mirrorless camera with 6 stop IBIS and cinema video profiles for $999 body only, the other is the sequel to the very well received DJI Osmo Pocket now named DJI Pocket 2 dropping the OSMO part of the name & starting at $349 in its most basic form. Slow Motion on DJI Pocket 2 & Fuji X-S10 is close on both.

Both cameras are able to do 120fps as well but the interest peaks at 240p where the speed makes things moving slower more detailed, especially people as at that speed lifeforms moving relatively slow are excellent subjects. For faster animals like birds or flying insects, you need many more frames per second, usually in the 700+ range to create a good enough effect.

Slow Motion on DJI Pocket 2 & Fuji X-S10 – Two cameras that are very different but can shoot the same fps!

Fuji X-S10 Video Modes:

Video Recording Modes H.264/MOV 4:2:0 8-Bit
DCI 4K (4096 x 2160) at 23.976p/24.00p/25p/29.97p [100 to 200 Mb/s]
UHD 4K (3840 x 2160) at 23.976p/24.00p/25p/29.97p [100 to 200 Mb/s]
DCI 2K (2048 x 1080) at 23.976p/24.00p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p [50 to 200 Mb/s]
Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 23.976p/24.00p/25p/29.97p/50p/59.94p/100p/119.88p/200p/239.76p [50 to 200 Mb/s]

So starting with the Fuji X-S10 we cans ee that it has a plethora of video recording modes with the absence of the now much coveted 4k 60p which is not here in any form. We do have a 2k cinema mode with 60p which is an ok consolation prize but in a world of 4k it seems they could have added that 4k 60p just to be competitive.

We get 100fps and 200fps at 1080p in PAL format and 120fps and 240fps in NTSC mode. As far as we know every camera can be switched with a single menu to be able to use either of the two systems.

The great news here is that the slow motion modes at 1080p offer up to 200Mb/s in the codec which is pretty remarkable considering not many cameras pass 50Mb/sec in these modes.

The bad news is that the slow motion seems a bit mushy and pixelated which is an unwelcome sight. We found a short video showing this mode at the video below at 8:16:

Fujifilm X-S10 Hands-on Review by DPReview TV:

While we need more samples for full confirmation it does look more like a 720p up-rez than true 1080p, which is common in cameras that shoot these kinds of frame rates and are not dedicated slow motion cameras.  Even Jordan the reviewer above states that the quality of the footage at 240p is nothing to brag about and it is pretty low quality. Kind of sad considering the maximum bitrate of 200Mbps at 1080p.

The Fuji X-S10 is an interesting camera that can do a lot of things right, it is great that it offers very good frame rates as options and we will re-visit this camera in the future when more samples are available. If you are a Fuji system enthusiast, we actually think the new X-S10 is probably the best bargain for a powerful camera in Fuji Land and you really cannot go wrong if you want to shoot video with its great stabilization and flip out Vari-Angle screen.

DJI Pocket 2 Video Modes:

Slow Motion:

  • 240 fps Recorded at 1920 x 1080p
  • 120 fps Recorded at 1920 x 1080p
Video Rec Formats 3840 x 2160p at 24/25/30/48/50/60 fps (100 Mb/s MP4 via H.264/AVC, MPEG-4)
2720 x 1530p at 24/25/30/48/50/60 fps (100 Mb/s H.264/AVC, MPEG-4)
1920 x 1080p at 24/25/30/48/60 fps (100 Mb/s MP4 via H.264/AVC, MPEG-4)

The DJI Pocket 2 is a very impressive device. On the one hand, it has a larger sensor than its predecessor, one rivaling the old P&S prosumer cameras like the Canon G series back in the last decade.  The sensor is  1/1.7″ 64 Megapixels which allows for 8x true zoom crop on the image if needed.

On the other hand, it has a gimbal that is the main selling point that this camera has going for it. A true stabilized system akin to those on DJI drones but on your pocket/hand.  The performance of stabilization is remarkable and the addition of an optional lavalier mic. option with a clip-on module makes it ideal for Vloggers to shoot on a minute and cheap all in one package.

The slow motion modes at 120fps and 240fps are there and easily accessible which is great news since the original Pocket maxed out at 120fps with a 200fps hack that was not really usable.

We found a couple of great samples of slow motion 120p and 240p in the video review below at 9min 45seconds run time:

DJI Pocket 2 | Wider FOV, Bigger Sensor, 240fps by Potato Jet: → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Lumix Camera as a Webcam using USB for free!

Lumix Camera as a Webcam

Panasonic has released a Beta tethering software package for use in Windows 10 that allows you to control your Lumix camera from the computer to shoot images and video while at the same time use it to monitor the live view video signal with now the specific change that lets you remove the overlay display items from the camera to get a clean feed to your video conferencing software.

However, it is not that easy to get it to work and requires a couple of free pieces of software to let you extract the live view feed from the camera and redirect it to a video conferencing application of your choice.  We were able to get it to work well and it really makes a difference compared to the small sensor webcams you have been using.  Place a 1.4 lens in the camera and look at the beautiful feed that will result by using a professional camera and optics system to make you look better.

Lumix Camera as a Webcam what you need:

Cameras supported on the first release of the Beta.
(Note you will need to input your camera serial number to download the software)

  • DC-S1R
  • DC-S1
  • DC-S1H
  • DC-GH5S
  • DC-G9
  • DC-GH5

Official Computer Requirements:

  • OS: Windows 10 (32bit/64bit)
  • CPU: Intel CPU of 1 GHz or higher
  • Display: 1024 x 768 pixels or more
  • RAM: 1GB or more (32bit),2GB or more (64bit)
  • HDD: Free space of 200 MB or more for installation
  • Interface: USB 3.0/3.1

It is good to see the Lumix GH5 on the list as it is one of the best Lumix cameras for video recording ever released and many of our readers own it.

In order to get the video feed to get routed to your video conferencing software you are going to need to install these three programs in your Windows 10 PC:

  1. The Luimix Tethering Software Beta!
  2. OBS Free Open Source Video Capture Software!
  3. OBS Virtual Cam Plug In!

The excellent video below by Richard Wong will guide you through the steps to do this properly and activate the software for a variety of uses.  Support Richard by subscribing to his great channel here!

Setup your Panasonic Camera for Live Streaming / Webcam (GH5/G9/S1/S1H..etc) by Richard Wong:

Things to think about:

Make sure you have enough battery. On our test GH5 we needed to have battery power or AC connected for it to work as USB power is not available.  If other cameras can do it from the Linux Family it becomes easier as the PC can feed power essentially forever while you video chat.

There is some lag reported by users as the PC is taxed by capturing the video bypass and encoding can create a delay for webcam uses.  It is all a function of the speed of your computer here and the faster the better.  It would be ideal for Panasonic to allow for direct webcam pass-through from the Lumix cameras to video streaming software without requiring OBS. By using a driver the camera would show up as a webcam option without configuration steps. Lag should also be eliminated. This however is a workable solution and great first step.

The software as of now is only available for Windows 10, Mac OS and Linux support is not yet here and we hope it does in the future. Windows is being used as a testbed for bugs and once it is stable and solid enough we could see it being ported to at least Mac OS X.

Enjoy your new professional streaming solution and wow your boss, co-workers, friends or family with a beautiful image.  -HSC 

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P40 Pro Super Slow Motion extends Huawei’s reign!

P40 Pro Super Slow Motion

Last year the Huawei Mate 30 Pro was our slow motion phone of the year with its real 1920fps 720p with interpolated 4x mode to 7680fps and real 960fps at full 1080p. Now Huawei has again brought back the same performance with an even better optical system and what looks like better interpolation algorithms to the new P40 Pro and Pro Plus phones.

The phones have gathered little attention outside of China as Android cannot be updated and the Play Store is not accessible due to US restrictions on Huawei as a technology company that poses a risk to national security. Most of these phones are acquired by the use of importers or the pre-owned market and no US carriers offer them. Still, it is the amazing hardware design and the best slow motion performance on any phone to date that makes it impossible to ignore.

P40 Pro Plus Camera Specs:

Back Module Five on Plus

4x on Pro

50 MP, f/1.9, 23mm (wide), 1/1.28″, 2.44µm, omnidirectional PDAF, OIS
Periscope 8 MP, f/4.4, 240mm (telephoto), PDAF, OIS, 10x optical zoom
8 MP, f/2.4, 80mm (telephoto), PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom
40 MP, f/1.8, 18mm (ultrawide), 1/1.54″, PDAF
TOF 3D, (depth)
Features Leica optics, LED flash, panorama, HDR
Video 2160p@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60fps, 720@7680fps, 1080p@960fps, HDR; gyro-EIS
SELFIE CAMERA Dual 32 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/2.8″, 0.8µm, AF
IR TOF 3D, (depth/biometrics sensor)
Features HDR
Video 2160p@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60fps

It is important to note that only The Pro and Pro Plus will have the full slow motion capability. The regular P40 has 3 camera modules and a top slow-mo spec of 960fps at 720p, missing the best features. The best value in our opinion will be the P40 Pro non-Plus version but if you can afford the Plus, by all means, it may be the phone to beat.

The Phone largest sensor is 50MP at 1/1.28 inches but that is reserved for stills and regular video. The sensor used for Ultra slow motion is the 40MP 1/1.54″ sensor which looks similar to that of previous phones.

We see improvements in processing and the AI interpolation is doing an incredible job of extrapolating 1920fps of real 720p data and slowing that by 4x to 7680fps. The end result has much fewer artifacts than the Mate 30 Pro especially in occultation background objects.  It is of course not flawless as interpolation as of now is no match to real captured frames.  Anything with a busy enough detailed background will create distortion and mush artifacts that are not valid for any scientific experimentation. You will have to cap the phone at 1920fps 720p or 960fps 1080p for real frame capture.

We were able to find very cool samples of the phone shooting slow motion below:

Huawei P40 Pro Slow Motion Video Initial  Samples:

Huawei P40 Pro Ultra Slow Motion – 7680 FPS Slow Motion by TheFonoGuy:

Huawei P40 Pro Plus Ultra Slow Motion – OMG 7680 FPS ULTRA SLOW MOTION IS SUPER by MKP Captain: → Continue Reading Full Post ←

OPPO Reno Has 240fps Slow Mo But not on 10x!

OPPO Reno Slow Motion

The OPPO Reno 10x is getting a lot of attention due to the inclusion of a supposed 10x optical telescoping lens which uses a prism and a series of stabilized lens elements to create the first built in telephoto option on a camera phone.  In testing, this turns out to be about a real 5x optical lens with very clever processing to generate even higher software magnification.  However, you will be sad to know that the 10X version of the phone does not shoot Super Slow Motion.

The Regular OPPO Reno which is cheaper and lacks the 10X camera does shoot up to 1080p 240fps which is not class leading and there are as of this time no samples to speak of. We believe this phone uses slow motion as an after-thought spec and focuses more on the stills and 4k 60p video mode only on the 10x version which are a higher selling point.  We still believe the OPPO Reno is a worthy phone for anyone wanting cutting edge optics on a phone but not as a slow motion contender.

OPPO Reno Series (Non 10x Zoom) Camera Specs:

Rear Sensor : 48MP & 5MP
Front Sensor : 16MP
Aperture :
Front: 16MP F2.0
Rear: 48MP F1.7 + 5MP F2.4
Features :
Rear 6P camera of 48MP, PDAF;
Front 5P camera of 16MP with beauty function
Camera Mode :
Photo, Video, Expert, Pano, Portrait, Night, Time Lapse, and Slo-Mo
Video :
Front camera: 1080P/720P@30fps
Rear camera: Up to 4K@30fps, 1080P@60fps/30fps, 720P@60fps/30fps, 240fps 1080p Slow Motion!

OPPO Reno 10X Camera Specs:

Rear Sensor : 48MP + 8MP + 13MP
Front Sensor : 16MP
Aperture :
Front: 16MP F2.0
Rear: 48MP F1.7 + 8MP F2.2 + 13MP F3.0
Features :
Rear 6P camera of 48MP, PDAF, dual OIS;
Front 5P camera of 16MP with beauty function
Camera Mode :
Photo, Video, Expert, Time-lapse, Pano, Night, and Portrait
Other Features : 10x telephoto
Video :
Front camera: 1080P/720P@30fps
Rear camera: 4K@60fps/30fps, 1080P@60fps/30fps, 720P@60fps/30fps

When we dig deeper in the camera spec differences we see that the regular OPPO Reno has a 5MP rear sensor for the standard non-high megapixel camera and the Reno 10x has an 8MP sensor in the same spot.  We estimate that the 5MP sensor has a higher possible frame rate than the 8MP which means that the 240fps mode being only included in the regular Reno and not the 10X is a function of which sensor is used as the standard camera.

As we saw on the Galaxy S10 phone, the slow motion feature is only available in the standard focal length 12mp camera and absent in the telephoto and or wide angle cameras.  Which means not every sensor is the same and the high speed memory access needed is only on the standard imager on that phone. It is why if you need to set up a shot for slow motion you have to stop thinking about the other two cameras.
The OPPO Reno has a similar compromise but even phone wise. If you need slow motion you need to only get the Reno (Non 10X version) for 240p and that is still not competitive with Samsung, OnePlus or Sony phones on the high frame rate feature.

Oppo Reno 10x Zoom Hands On: Peek-a-boo by Pocketnow:

OPPO Reno Slow Motion More High Frame Rate Innovation needed:

The trend so far in phones that shoot slow motion makes it hard to be optimistic in 2019 about what we will see when we look for the feature in new phones. All these new multi-sensor/Multi-Lens cameras have trade-offs which are dependant on their intended focal lengths. The fact that the slow motion feature is absent from the zoom and wide lenses means that the high frame rate trend might be put to the wayside in future phones as a gimmick.

If sensors and lens systems evolve to use a unified sensor with interchangeable internal lens elements we have a better chance of having the slow motion feature be consistent in camera selection. We, however, do not see this happening anytime soon.   How cool would it be to have a 10x zoom or super wide slow motion phone feature?  We will have to wait a long time to see this unless manufacturers take the feature as seriously as they did in 2017 and 2018.  We have some hope from Apple and OnePlus that their solutions could include slow motion in more than one sensor.

Oppo Reno vs 5G vs 10x Zoom | Series comparison by Tech Spurt: → Continue Reading Full Post ←

Sony RX100 VA Is Now Available Worldwide!

Sony RX100 VA

Sony has decided to release the RX100 VA worldwide and it effectively replaces the RX100 V production line. The new camera will have a better EVF refresh, modern Autofocus with improved tracking and a larger buffer of 233 images.  We considered the newly announced RX100 VI camera to be just a longer lens version of the RX100 V but with an increased price tag.  That camera does have a touchscreen and the reach but the fans of the faster f1.8-f2.8 lens of the RX100 V now can get a more up to date version.

We favor the RX100 VA to all other RX100 cameras as the $999 price tag is more in line with the segment. If you already own an RX100 V camera there is no reason to get a VA version as there will not be any improvement to the slow-motion component which is already one of the best out there.

Sony RX100 VA More Info:

The RX100 camera line now looks like this:

Out of the RX100 line, we believe the RX100 VA is the best value as you get the faster lens with improved electronics for the 315 AF points and larger stills buffer. For slow motion, you need better light and the faster lens allows that.  The RX100 VI long lens 24mm-200mm equivalent will be $200 more and only have the touchscreen as the separating factor.  The image quality and slow motion HFR modes should be identical. The cameras share the exact same sensor and software.

RX100 VA Sony’s Take:

“Tweaking an already stellar pocket-sized camera, the Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-RX100 VA Digital Camera improves on the RX100 V by increasing the buffer size to 233 images, reducing display lag time in the electronic viewfinder, and adding several other upgrades. With the 20.1MP 1″ Exmor RS BSI CMOS sensor, the RX100 VA can output detailed images at up to ISO 12800.”

The comparison below shows that besides the long lens and touch screen, the RX100 VA is essentially the same camera and shares the same capabilities for photo and video.

Sony RX100 VA vs Sony RX100 VI Comparison Specs by DSLR VS:

So all in all the RX100 VA at $999 is the best value RX camera that Sony has ever made considering it’s performance.  Unless you find an RX100 V for under $600 we recommend the RX100 VA instead. You can find good bundled deals below at Amazon for these cameras. -HSC

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