Nikon has released the firmware 2.0 update for its flagship mirrorless Z9 camera that gives it significant new video powers including 8.3K 60p RAW. It also offers benefits to photographers with autofocus and EVF enhancements along with a new feature that pre-captures photos before you hit the shutter button. 

The 45-megapixel Z9 was already a powerful mirrorless camera for video, but the new enhancements put it ahead of all rivals, including Sony's A1 and Canon's EOS R5, at least on the spec sheet. The biggest update is the addition of 12-bit RAW video at up to 8.3K 60p using Nikon's new RAW video format called N-RAW, along with 12-bit ProRes RAW HQ capture at up to 4.1K 60p.

Nikon

N-RAW "records a vast amount of scene information, yet is a significantly smaller file size, allowing for much more recording time and [a] less intensive workflow," Nikon wrote in a press release. The files take up about half the space of equivalent ProRes RAW HQ files (ProRes RAW HQ 12-bit, 4K 24p video has a data rate of 80-140 MB/s). 

A company called IntoPix previously said that Nikon would be using its TicoRAW technology for RAW video. When the firmware is released, N-RAW will be supported on DaVinci Resolve and Edius, but not Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro or other editing apps. 

On top of 8.3K 60p, the Z9 can capture N-RAW 4.1K 120p, 60p, 30p and 24p (plus equivalent PAL formats) in full frame FX mode, 5.3K 60p, 30p and 24p with a 1.5X crop and 3.8K 120p with a 2.3X crop. It also creates an MP4 proxy file, allowing for "previews, quick transfers or edits on the fly," according to Nikon. 

If you'd rather shoot ProRes RAW HQ, 8K isn't an option as capture is limited to 4.1K 60p, though crop options are available. Nikon has also introduced an "extended oversampling mode" delivering 2:1 oversampled 4K 60fps footage from an 8K capture. That setting requires a very fast CFexpress card, limited to ProGrade's Cobalt 650GB or 325GB memory cards. Nikon also launched its own CFexpress card today, the 660GB MC-CF660G, arriving in June 2022 with up to 1700 MB/s and 1500 MB/s read/write speeds.

Video operation is also improved with several new features. The most requested is the addition of a waveform display that greatly helps visualize exposure, particularly with in log modes. You can also put a red frame around the display during recording and adjust the magnification. Other features include finer ISO increments for smoother transitions and a "Fast AF On" function that lets you quickly change the AF speed without diving into menus — another much-asked-for setting.

Nikon

On the photography side, the Z9 now has a pre-buffer option for JPEGs only, at 30fps full resolution and 11-megapixel 120 fps modes. It captures buffered images when the shutter button is half press pressed, keeping up to a second of images when you fully press it. It also retains up to 4 seconds afterwards. 

Meanwhile, Nikon boosted the EVF's refresh rate to a smoother 120 fps, bringing it in line with rivals like Sony and Canon — though enabling the setting will reduce battery life. It also added custom Wide AF zones, letting you select which parts of your scene are active and create two user-defined zones. That way, you can keep the AF and subject tracking in a defined area to improve focus reliability. 

The update is one of the most impressive I've seen and significantly improves the $5,500 Z9's functionality and desirability. Features like MP4 proxy recording are usually only seen on pro video cameras. However, Nikon has nothing to lose by making the Z9 a limit-free video powerhouse, because unlike Sony and Canon, it has no professional video lineup to cannibalize. The firmware 2.0 upgrade will be available to download for free starting on April 20, 2022 at Nikon's website.

Hyundai will manufacture EVs in the US starting in December this year with the electrified Genesis GV70 crossover model, the company announced at the NY Automotive Forum in a video seen by Automotive News. It's part of a grand plan to invest $7.4 billion in the US by 2025 to develop a family of EVs and smart mobility technology. 

Hyundai will start electrified production at its Montgomery, Alabama plant in October with the Santa Fe Hybrid, the company announced at a ceremony with Alabama Governor Kay Ivey. It'll invest $300 million to start with, creating 200 new jobs at the plant (its only manufacturing facility in the US). The company currently builds the Elantra sedan, Santa Fe and Tucson SUVs and Santa Cruz sport adventure vehicle on the Montgomery assembly line.

Genesis

The Genesis GV70 EV was quietly revealed late last year at the Guangzhou Auto Show in China. The company has yet to announce US specs, which may be why it didn't mention the GV70 EV at all in its press release. However, the Korean version will come with an 800 volt charging system and 77.4 kWh battery good for about 400 km (247 miles) of range according to the Korean testing cycle. 

It also features two electric motors that produce 482 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque, considerably more than the ICE version of the GV70. According to photos, the luxury and tech-adorned interior will be similar to the one on the current gas-powered GV70. 

It's taken Hyundai awhile to establish US EV production dates, and follows recent, similar announcements by Toyota and Volkswagen. All three companies, which operate non-union plants in the US, opposed the Biden administration's plan to provide extra tax incentives to unionized automakers. At the same time, Hyundai's unionized workers in Korea want the company to boost domestic EV production rather than investing abroad. It has to balance all that with US vehicle import tariffs, set at 2.5 percent for cars and 25 percent for pickups and SUVs. 

Robosen Robotics' Optimus Prime robot can automatically transform into a truck just like the movie/cartoon versions, but the breathtaking $900 price makes it more a toy for collectors than children. Now, Hasbro and Robosen have launched a companion Trailer and Roller set for Optimus Prime with equally cool auto-conversion features and an equally steep $750 price. 

Based on the G1 design, the trailer measures an impressive three feet (1 meter) in length, fully extended. Using Robosen's clever robotics, it automatically unfolds and tilts vertically into a nearly flat rectangular shield, complete with an integrated, articulating sentry blaster. In truck mode, it houses the Roller vehicle and human sidekick Spike "who is ready to jump into action or enjoy the ride." The blaster can also be mounted for "further firepower and support," according to Robosen. 

You can open the Trailer's rear swing doors with a voice command, or control the truck and Roller car using an app. It auto-converts in seconds, and you can, of course, tow it with Optimus Prime, "exposing the sentry weapons to fire on the Decepticons during the chase." 

The trailer and Optimus Prime robotic are expensive, but unlike other collectibles, the price appears to be justified. The company promises "meticulous" craftsmanship, high-grade metal allow parts and cutting-edge robotics tech. It uses 18 of Robosen's proprietary servo motors and 60 microchips, with over 2,000 components in total. 

Robosen

Pre-orders are now open for the $750 Trailer and Roller Set, though deliveries won't start until around November 2022. The package includes a protective storage case with handle for easy transportation, along with a collectible pack including an individualized serial number, Autobot magnetic car badge, metal challenge coin and sticker pack. 

Hasbro and Robosen also released a limited number of Flagship Optimus Prime robots selling for $750, though that deal already seems to be gone. Despite all the cool features, the combined $1,500 price means it's likely that many of these items will stay in their collectible protective cases, never to transform into anything but cash. 

If you don't need all the fancy features of Google's Nest thermostat, Amazon's smart thermostat is a solid, budget-friendly option. Now, it's an even better deal thanks to a 20 percent discount that has dropped it down (again) to an all-time low price of $48. 

The smart thermostat has a discreet, squarish design that shouldn't detract in any way from your décor. It uses Honeywell's Home Thermostat tech and is Energy Star certified, meaning you could see up to $50 savings per year on energy costs — a nice restaurant meal or two.

It works with Alexa using voice commands or the Alexa mobile app, letting you set schedules or change settings while you're away so that the house is cozy when you get back. There are some tradeoffs for the much lower price, though. It doesn't have features found on Google Nest, like automatically turning down the temperature when you leave the house. It's obviously not as ideal as a Nest product in a Google Home-centric house, either.

Google

Luckily if you do want those features, Google Nest products are still on sale at Amazon, as well. The standard Google Nest Thermostat (above) is on sale for $115 ($15 off) and the Nest Learning Thermostat is priced at $199, down $50 from the regular $249 price. Both work with Google Home and will automatically turn the temperature down when you leave, and the Nest Learning Thermostat will automatically learn from you and program itself. The latter also works with Alexa, if you're more partial to that voice assistant.

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GoPro has unveiled the Hero 10 Black Bones, a lightweight version of the Hero 10 Black designed for FPV and "Cinewhoop" drones that have taken off in popularity. It offers features like HyperSmooth 4.0 and 5.3K video, but is light enough to be mounted on 3-inch class and larger drones.

"Bones is an important step in our strategy to leverage GoPro’s core camera-technology to produce derivative products that address the needs of a specific audience of customers," said GoPro founder and CEO Nicholas Woodman. "Bones delivers Hero 10 Black image quality and performance in a lightweight body that is ideal for aerial cinematography."

GoPro

At 54 grams, the Hero 10 Black Bones weighs 100 grams less than the Hero 10 black, making it the lightest GoPro ever, the company said. Helping keep the weight down is the fact that it doesn't carry its own battery but is instead powered by the drone's own 2S-6S or 5-27V batteries — a typical setup on FPV drones.

The miniscule weight makes it ideal for fast and maneuverable "Cinewhoop" drones designed to take crazy aerial footage. The best recent example of that video genre is the drone flythrough of Tesla's new Gigafactory in Berlin.

Meanwhile, the "well-ventilated, semi-durable enclosure promotes continuous airflow cooling for long captures or flights," says GoPro. It also comes with a lightweight housing that features the Hero 10 Black's replaceable cover lens, which can be swapped for third-party Hero 10 Black and Hero 9 Black ND filters.

GoPro

It has the same GP2 processor as the Hero 10 Black so there's no compromise in quality or features, either. You get the latest HyperSmooth 4.0 video to stabilize shots, or you can do stabilization in post using the ReelSteady tech in GoPro's new Player + ReelSteady app unveiled yesterday. As the company showed, you can now combine HyperSmooth and ReelSteady stabilization to create even smoother footage.

As for video quality, it delivers 5.3K at 60fps, 4K 120 fps and 2.7K at 240 fps in 16:9 mode. In the 4:3 aspect ratio that's best for HyperSmooth footage, you get 5.3K at 30fps, 4K at 60 fps and 2.7K at up to 120fps. That matches the resolutions and framerates available on the regular GoPro 10 Hero Black. 

It includes multiple means of control via a pair of physical buttons, the Quik App, GoPro Labs QR Codes, GoPro's The Remote or a drone's transmitter. It comes with a single screw boss for the drone mount, a standard FPV industry connector, and an optional in-box adapter for the GoPro mounting ecosystem.

GoPro

As with other GoPro cameras, the Hero 10 Black Bones is cheaper with GoPro's one-year subscription, which is free the first year. It costs $400 with the subscription and $500 without it, meaning GoPro thinks you're going to like the subscription benefits enough to renew. (Those benefits include no-questions-asked camera replacement, discounts on accessories, unlimited cloud backup and more.) Either option includes a license for the GoPro Player + ReelSteady desktop app, or you can purchase that separately for $100. 

Lectric already has a good reputation for delivering solid electric bikes at budget prices, thanks to models like the $1,000 XP 2.0. Now, it has taken that to a new level with the launch of the Lectric XP Lite. It's a 46 pound folding e-bike with a 48 volt electrical system that can hit speeds of 20 MPH, and costs just $800. 

To get the price down to that level, Electric reduced the battery size from 9.6Ah (461Wh) on the XP 2.0 to 7.8Ah (375Wh). It also has smaller, narrower wheels than the XP 2.0 and lacks its 7-speed gearshift and front suspension.

Still, Lectric claims you'll get 40 miles of autonomy, just five miles less than the XP 2.0, though that'll require a lot of pedaling as range drops to 15 miles with the throttle only. Speed-wise, it can hit up to 20 MPH with pedal assist or throttle, compared to 28 MPH for the XP 2.0

It's got the same style of folding frame that lets you get it down to a portable size (36x16x26 inches) for travel or storage, and at 46 pounds, it's very light for a foldable e-bike. It can use many of the same accessories as the XP 2.0, including the racks, baskets, lights, comfort package and more. 

Other features include an easily swappable battery compartment, twist throttle, backlit LCD display with a large readout, 160mm disc brakes, integrated front/rear lights and IP65 water resistance. It's also what the company calls its "most customizable e-bike to date" with four color options (Arctic White, Midnight Black, Lectric Blue, and Sandstorm) and three accessory package options at $99 each (Carry, Commuter and Comfort). 

Lectric gave first ride on the new model to Electrek, which has tested the company's previous models like the XP 2.0 in the past. It noted that a lot of bikes in the $500-$800 category are "junk," but called the XP Lite "a quality offering at a super low price." As mentioned, Lectric's XP Lite e-bike costs $799 without accessories and is now available to order. 

Apple's Mac Mini M1 has gone on sale multiple times since it launched in 2020, but it's available now at the best price we've seen so far. The 256GB version has returned to an all-time low of $570, thanks to a $99 discount voucher that's applied at checkout. 

The Mac Mini M1 is the most budget-friendly way to get into Apple's ARM-based M1 processor family of PCs. It comes with an eight-core CPU, eight-core GPU and 16-core Neural Engine, with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of very fast SSD storage. You can expect speedy performance, even for content creation and iOS apps, along with nearly instant wake times and high energy efficiency. 

It's largely unchanged on the exterior from past Mac Minis, so the small but sleek silver box can fit into cramped desktop spaces and look nice doing so. You won't be wanting for ports, either, as it offers a pair of Thunderbolt connectors, two USB-A ports, an HDMI connector, an Ethernet port and a 3.5mm headphone jack. It keeps cool and quiet thanks Apple's "advanced thermal design," but has an active cooling solution with a fan that can kick in for demanding rendering and other chores.

The main negatives with the Mac Mini M1 are the lack of upgradeability (both the RAM and SSD are soldered in place), and poor access to the rear headphone port. However, the latter isn't a huge deal, and the M1 chip works just fine with 8GB of RAM. With Amazon's $570 price, it's one of the better desktop deals out there — just remember to apply the $99 voucher at checkout.

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GoPro has unveiled Player + ReelSteady, a replacement for the GoPro Player app with added technology from GoPro's acquisition of ReelSteady. The new app introduces ReelSteady tools that let you stabilize most GoPro footage, including HyperSmooth shots. It works in real time, with "the ability to view the full-quality stabilized shot as soon as your video loads," GoPro wrote in a press release. 

ReelSteady Go has been a popular app with the FPV drone crowd, which used it to smooth out flight videos and add cinematic effects. GoPro purchased the company in March 2020, promising to integrate the tech "across the GoPro App ecosystem to enhance the cinematic output of your content." GoPro initially sold ReelSteady Go separately, but it's now been discontinued and replaced by the Player + ReelSteady app. 

Rather than using scene analysis like other apps to stabilize shots, ReelSteady uses gyro data directly from GoPro cameras. Previously, ReelSteady did not work with HyperSmooth footage (the setting needed to be disabled) but the Player + ReelSteady app now supports it. On the Player + ReelSteady product page, GoPro shows that you can achieve even smoother stabilization by combining the two (above).

Along with the stabilization features, the app lets you remove wide-angle lens curvature using ReelSteady, GoPro said. It also comes with a batch export feature to queue "hundreds of files" for export, the ability to reframe 360 MAX content, a player for regular and 360 content, the ability to do frame grabs and a trim function for editing.

It's now available for Mac and PC, with a $100 in-app purchase required to unlock the ReelSteady and Lens Correction features. However, existing ReelSteady Go customers "can use their existing activation key to redeem a free upgrade to the new GoPro Player + ReelSteady," the company wrote. 

As it does from time to time, Amazon has launched a sale on both Fire HD tablets and Kindle devices, with most items at the second-best prices we've seen so far. The best deal is on the Fire HD 8 tablet, now available for $50 instead of $90, for a savings of $40 or 44 percent off. You'll also find the Fire HD 8 Plus at $90 for a savings of 36 percent or $50 and can pick up the Fire HD 10 Plus for $120 ($60 or 33 percent off). 

There's a lot to like about the Fire HD 8 tablet, provided you're okay without direct support for Google apps. It includes Alexa support, a USB-C port for faster charging, solid build quality, 32GB of storage that can be upgraded via a microSD card slot, a relatively sharp 1,280 x 800 display, 2GB of RAM, a 4,850 mAh battery and a quad-core chip that offers decent performance.

The Fire HD8 Plus boosts RAM to 3GB, includes wireless charging and comes with a 9W charger in the box. And the Fire HD 10 gives you a 10-inch 1080p display, 32GB of upgradeable storage, 2GB of RAM, an 8-core processor and a battery that allows for up to 12 hours of reading with fast USB-C charging. 

Engadget

Several Kindle tablets are also on sale at the second best prices we've seen. The regular ad-supported model is on sale for $60, a discount of $30 from the regular $90 price. You can also pick up the Kindle Kids Edition with the "Rainbow Birds Cover" for $65 instead of $110, a savings of 41 percent.

The latest Kindle models offer a lot for the money, including an LED-lit screen, weeks of reading time and a touch interface. The Kids Edition adds some perks, like one of four colorful cases, a two-year worry-free guarantee and a year of complimentary access to the company's FreeTime Unlimited service.

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Apple Watch Series 7 models are still on sale at Amazon starting at $330, but one model in particular just fell even further. The 41mm GPS model with a green aluminum case and green "Clover Sport" band has now dropped to $314 or $85 off, marking a new low price for Watch Series 7 models. 

If you're fond of green, you'll get Apple's latest Watch Series 7 model with improvements over the Series 6 like a larger screen, faster charging and IP6X dust resistance. The bigger display makes it easier to see time at a glance, and the faster charging is handy if you like to wear your Watch continuously — even while you sleep. As with past models, it also comes with features like an always-on display, a rich app ecosystem and tight integration with Fitness+ and other Apple apps. On the downside, it doesn't have the best sleep-tracking app around and isn't the best option for Android users. 

If you're looking for a more neutral or other color, worry not. Other 41mm Apple Watch Series 7 GPS models are still on sale in Red, Abyss Blue, Midnight (black) and Starlight (white) at the $330 price tag we saw last week. And there are a variety of 41mm GPS+Cellular models on sale for $429 ($70 off), 45mm GPS models for $359 ($70 off) and 45mm GPS + Cellular models for $459 (also $70 off). These are essentially the same deals we saw last week, but a dollar cheaper for some reason. 

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