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It doesn't matter how powerful your home wireless router is, there might still be some corner in the basement the signal can't reach. This is when you need an alternative solution, such as a pair of Powerline adapters. Powerline adapters basically extend the length of the network cable by using the existing electrical wiring--this means you can bring your network port anywhere in the house where there's a power outlet.

For that reason, it's pretty exciting that Cisco on Monday will announce its third release of Linksys by Cisco Powerline adapters. The new lineup includes both … Read more

Olympus, Panasonic, and Sigma, the makers of Four Thirds cameras and lenses, have joined forces to make updating lens firmware easier. They have launched an online firmware update service that will enable people to update the firmware in their Four Thirds lens, even if the lens and camera are made by different manufacturers. Because lens and body mounting information in the Four Thirds system is based on an open standard, photographers can freely mix and match camera bodies and lenses supplied by participating manufacturers. Before lens firmware could only be updated if the lens was mounted on a camera by … Read more

When Panasonic announced its first interchangeable-lens camera, the Lumix DMC-G1, it said the camera would cost less than $800. Today it's official: $799.95 with the 14-45mm f3.5-5.6 (28-90mm equivalent) lens.

That price puts it in direct competition with inexpensive dSLR models like the Nikon D60 and Canon Rebel XS; it's a bit smaller compared to those, but lacks an optical viewfinder, which is a significant disadvantage. And it's significantly more expensive than more compact, fixed-lens enthusiast competitors like Panasonic's own LX3 and the Canon PowerShot G10. As yet, performance is a big unknown.… Read more

Summer has officially come to a close, yet it seems still to linger in the air. Baseball playoffs are just getting underway, BBQ parties are still going strong, and it's still hot out. It's downright humid, in fact. So hot and humid that a nice, cool glass of water sounds great right about now. If, like me, you're dreaming of water being not in the air, but in a glass, then WaterMill might be just what you're looking for.

WaterMill by Element Four is a combination dehumidifier and water purifier. I know that when I feel … Read more

Sigma has announced a 50mm f1.4 lens for Four Thirds system DSLRs, the Sigma 50mm f1.4 EX DG HSM. The 50mm lens, long considered the standard in 35mm SLR photography, will have a 35mm equivalent of 100mm on a Four Thirds camera, making it a 100mm f1.4 lens effectively. That is a very fast medium telephoto lens, great for lowlight shooting, or portraits with a very shallow depth of field. The lens features Sigma's Hyper Sonic Motor(HSM) for faster and quieter autofocusing; it also has full-time manual focus override. Pricing and availability information were not … Read more

update 9/26:  It turns out that the product will not be named E-A1; that was just a random name that appeared in a graphic accompanying the press materials. So mentally replace each instance of "E-A1" in this post with "Olympus 4/3rd's DSLR concept."

Of all the major camera manufacturers, Olympus stands out as lacking a prosumer model. Between the approximately $600 E-520 and $1,500-ish E-3 lies a huge gap for competing with the likes of the Canon EOS Rebel XSi and 40D, the Nikon D90, and the Sony Alpha DLSR-A700. And … Read more

We've seen stock images of the Lumix DMC-G1, but just how small is this camera that's the first in the world to use the new Micro Four Thirds Standard? Panasonic and Olympus (which jointly developed the new imaging format) have mentioned that this new system will shrink the size of dSLR-like cameras to make them more portable.

According to its specifications sheet, the DMC-G1 measures 124mm x 83.6mm x 45.2mm (about 4.9 inches x 3.3 inches x 1.8 inches), but nothing speaks louder than images.

Flickr user Luc Saint-Elie has posted several images … Read more

While it's too soon to tell whether it'll be good, or popular, or both, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1 does seem to be one of the more interesting camera announcements this year--and that's saying a lot, given how many innovative midrange and high-end dSLRs we've seen (and still have yet to see). The first non-dSLR camera to offer the flexibility of interchangeable lenses, at the very least the G1 promises to shake up the enthusiast compact market now dominated by models like the Canon PowerShot G9.

With the G1 specifically, and the Micro Four Thirds standard in … Read more

The bits have barely dried on the press release for Olympus and Panasonic's Micro Four Thirds standard for interchangeable lens point-and-shoot cameras and a competing announcement has already emerged from an unexpected source: Samsung. In an interview with the U.K.'s Amateur Photographer magazine, Samsung Techwin Executive Vice President Byung Woo Lee revealed that company's plans for a similar standard based on APS-C-size sensors--albeit not until 2009.

I suppose it's not that surprising that the announcement comes from Samsung. It certainly wasn't going to come from any Canon- or Nikon-driven initiative, since both of those … Read more