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After unveiling the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 smartphone earlier today, Samsung went on to present another addition to the ever-expanding Galaxy family—the Samsung Galaxy Camera. This snapper boasts Wi-Fi, 3G and 4G connectivity.
This 16-Megapixel camera has a 21x zoom lens with a focal range starting at a wide-angle setting of 23 mm. On the rear it has a 4.8" touchscreen.





The Galaxy snapper lets you annotate and add captions to photos directly with your finger, straight on the touchscreen.

Samsung claims that this camera is surprisingly easy to handle and use, especially since its Android interface will already be familiar to many users.

Check out this ultra-compact camera's tech specs below:

The Galaxy Camera is less than 2 cm thick (19.1 mm) and weighs 305 g. It has an 8 GB internal memory but storage can be easily boosted with a micro SD memory card.

> IFA Berlin 2012: Products, Pictures, Videos and More: See all news

Samsung put on a real show at its IFA press conference yesterday. A magician took to the stage to welcome the crowd, followed by a live orchestra and film director Wim Wenders as "Creative Ambassador" for the real star, the Galaxy Note 2. This smartphone with an outsized 5.5" AMOLED screen is due to launch in October 2012.

Samsung is clearly hoping to pack a real punch with the Galaxy Note 2!
Wim Wenders started the show by declaring how honoured he felt to be the "Creative Ambassador" of the Galaxy Note 2, a phone that will apparently "encourage users to unleash their inner creativity".
Next there was JK Shin, President of the IT & Mobile Communications Division at Samsung Electronics, to officially present the Galaxy Note II.

This latest version of the Note has a bigger, 5.5" AMOLED screen (16:9), a stylus, and promises improved multitasking capabilities and boosted power.


The Galaxy Note 2 is due to launch in October and will be available in two different colours.

"Last year at IFA, we launched the Galaxy Note, which opened a new category of smart mobile devices. This year, again at IFA, I am proud to announce the Galaxy Note II" said Samsung's JK Shin, keen to push the firm's mini-tablet/outsized-smartphone as a Samsung-grown concept. Could this be backlash to Samsung's recent woes with Apple? Who knows.

So here's a shot of JK Shin with the Galaxy Note 2 in hand: does that look big to you or is it still a manageable size?
The new model is 9.4 mm thick and weighs 180 g.

Samsung's new Note comes with a stylus for taking notes, annotating text or sending part of a photo as an e-mail attachment.

The Galaxy Note 2 has a 5.5" display with 720 x 1280 pixels that's bigger than the screen in the previous model (5.3"). This updated version is also due to be more powerful and slightly slimmer—trimmed down from 9.65 mm to 9.4 mm. Plus, it has a more powerful battery, at 3100 mAh compared with 2500 mAh for the original Note.

The Galaxy Note 2 has an 8-Megapixel camera with LED flash.

Check out the full tech specs below:



> Mobile Phone Reviews


> IFA Berlin 2012: Products, Pictures, Videos and More: See all news

In the run up to the IFA tech show in Berlin, which opens on Friday, Sony has presented a hybrid Vaio tablet-turned-netbook that closes the gap between the tablet and PC markets. Meet the Vaio Duo 11.



The Vaio Duo 11 is a compact PC that can be used flat like a touchscreen tablet or slid up into netbook mode. Running Windows 8, this hybrid tablet has an 11.6" screen with touch-controls and can be used with a stylus. It has Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and NFC connectivity.



The 1080p tablet screen slides up to reveal a full physical keyboard. The device will be powered by Intel's Core i3, i5 or i7 processors and weighs 1.3 kg.

The Vaio Duo 11 will be available with a 128 GB or 256 GB SSD and is hopefully set to be released in October.

As expected, Sony today announced its first 4K Bravia TV, the KD-84X9005, at a pre-IFA press conference in Berlin.



Sony's 84" 4K Bravia offers an eye-wateringly sharp 3840 x 2160 pixel resolution equivalent to four times Full HD. It features Sony's 4K X-Reality Pro Engine for 4K upscaling and has Edge LED backlighting.

Like the LG 84LM960V, the X9005 uses passive 3D technology. The glasses therefore don't have any built-in electronics, which makes them more comfortable to wear and cheaper to manufacture than active-shutter models. And with 4K resolution, the good news is that even when the resolution is effectively halved in 3D mode (3840 x 1080 pixels)—as is always the way with passive 3D—the resulting image is still twice as sharp as Full HD!


Otherwise, this TV features the usual host of functions seen in current high-end Sony TVs, such as motion interpolation and smart TV services (apps, web browser, DLNA, etc.) available via Ethernet or built-in Wi-Fi.

The 84X9005 has a 10-speaker sound system for immersive audio and is due for release in the run up to Christmas.

> IFA Berlin 2012: Products, Pictures, Videos and More: See all news

After outing the NEX-F3 back in the spring, it's only logical to see Sony announce a replacement for the NEX-5N. So here it is, the NEX-5R, a camera that looks very similar to its predecessor. On the outside, the only real change is the arrival of a new settings thumb-wheel, but on the inside, this updated hybrid has been treated to a new sensor, Wi-Fi connectivity and access to an app store.


First of all, we're disappointed to see that there's no built-in flash in the NEX-5R. Sony recently made this welcome addition to the entry-level NEX-F3, but the mid-range NEX is still left wanting in the 2012 series.

But the lack of flash means that the NEX-5R keeps the same ultra-compact body as the NEX-5N—a camera that stands out for being more squat than its lenses, as the lens mount and the handle jut out above and below the actual camera body. Handling has taken a step forwards in this 2012 edition, though, with the arrival of a new settings wheel inspired by those seen in the NEX-7, as well as direct access to the Quick menu. The tilt screen also now tilts a full 180° upwards, which is great for self-portraits. And, unlike the NEX-F3 screen, this display still tilts to 40° downwards, which is enough to help you line up shots above a crowds, for example.

Like its predecessor, the NEX-5R uses a 16-Megapixel CMOS sensor, but this updated version has 99 phase detection sensors built in to the CMOS. This kind of sensor has already been seen in Fuji, plus Nikon and Canon cameras, and allows the autofocus system to work in the same way as an SLR AF, speeding things up and greatly improving subject tracking, which is especially handy in video and burst modes.

The NEX-5R has even been treated to Wi-Fi, so you can send your snaps to a smartphone, a PC or a DLNA-compatible TV.

Optional Functions

One major new feature of this camera is that, once connected to the Internet, the NEX-5R can download all kinds of extra applications from a special Sony store. You'll therefore be able to customise your camera by adding extras like creative filters, an interval timer, advanced shooting modes, a smartphone remote control app, etc.

Some of the apps will be free while others will be to pay for, and users with several compatible devices will be able to install them on their various gadgets. However, for the time being, Sony has no plans to open up the store to third-party developers. Plus, we'll be interested to see how this function will be integrated into the camera—it seems that there won't be any direct shortcuts to the apps installed, so you'll have to access them via a special apps menu each time you want to use them.

All in all, the NEX-5R brings a certain number of interesting new functions to Sony's mid-range mirrorless camera, especially the ability to download and install extra apps (something we've been waiting to see since the arrival of the smartphone). However, this NEX still has the odd rather surprising limitation—for starters, the cheaper model has a built-in flash while this higher-end (and more expensive) model still has to be used with a screw-in accessory (supplied).

The Sony NEX-5R has been announced at €750 in Europe. That works out at about £600 in a straight conversion, but actual UK pricing is still to be confirmed.

> Digital Cameras: SLR, Micro 4/3 and Interchangeable Lens Reviews
> Photokina 2012: See all news

These two five-star printers are fierce competitors that have a lot in common and a similar consumer target base: small- to medium-sized businesses. Both are fully touch-activated with online capability.



Today's duel is a pageant for the best of what's out there today in the all-in-one inkjet printer world. The question is, how do you choose between two five-star products? This article will tell you where they stand in relation to one another and what advantages each has over the other, to help you split hairs over these two excellent devices.

> Duel: Lexmark OfficeEdge Pro5500 vs HP Officejet Pro 8600 Plus


> Reviews: Multifunction Inkjet Printers

NASA keeps feeding the web with pictures taken by Curiosity and sent to us from 100 million miles away. The rover is playing tourist, using its Mastcam to share its trip to the Red Planet with us, all in HD.

Curiosity is plodding along its guided tour of Mars with digital camera in tow. NASA has been constantly updating the rover's travelogue, which on Monday gave us some high definition photos of its travels.

To pull off this technical feat, the Mastcam relies on two 2-Megapixel (1200 x 1200p) Kodak CCD sensors. One has a lens equivalent to 334 mm in 24 x 36 (that's one big telephoto lens) and the other has a smaller lens equivalent to 115 mm in 24 x 36.

It's with this gear that the rover sent us these images of the Martian surface:





You can follow Curiosity's photo journal here or on NASA's website.

Microsoft has given its logo a facelift. After 25 years of loyal service, the firm's old black and white logo has been revamped with a new set of coloured squares and a fresh font.

Things are changing at Microsoft, as the brand looks towards a bright future with a new colourful logo. After recently updating its Windows 8 logo, Microsoft has gone on to develop a new visual identity for the company as a whole. The change marks a break with the past and a general revival, as Microsoft gets set to release a new series of products. The new logo is intended to "signal the heritage but also signal the future — a newness and freshness," said Jeff Hansen, Microsoft's general manager of brand strategy.

Each colour represents one field of activity: orange for the Microsoft Office software suite, green for the Xbox 360 games console, blue for Internet Explorer, Windows 8 and Skype, and yellow for the Bing search engine. However, it's perhaps ironic that Microsoft has added colours to its company logo (which mirrors the logos of Windows 3 to 7) when the Windows 8 logo has gone one-tone.

The new logo is already being used on the Microsoft US site, and is due to roll out to other sites, stores and products soon.