Posts with «cameras & photography» label

Canon's flagship 24-megapixel EOS R3 arrives in November for $6,000

Canon has officially unveiled the EOS R3, its flagship mirrorless camera designed for sports, action and wildlife photography. With the release, it has now filled in the blanks for key specifications not yet revealed in earlier teases, like resolution, ISO range and video capabilities. 

The EOS R3 was never likely to be a high-resolution camera as some folks hoped, but the 24.1-megapixel, back-side illuminated (BSI), stacked sensor (a first for Canon) is a significant upgrade over the 1DX Mark III's 20-megapixel sensor. Canon says it "achieves resolution performance exceeding that of the 30.1-megapixel EOS 5D Mark IV," despite having a lower pixel count.

With the BSI/stacked sensor and latest DIGIC X image processor, the R3 can shoot at 30 fps in electronic shutter mode (down to 1/64,000th of a second) or 12 fps with the mechanical shutter, with full AF tracking and auto-exposure. Better still, it offers blackout-free shooting in electronic mode and the high readout speeds deliver minimal rolling shutter distortion — making it feasible to shoot sports or action with the electronic shutter. 

Canon

The EOS R3 is Canon's first EOS model to support flash photography in electronic shutter mode. That allows for blackout-free flash shooting at up to 15 fps (at 1/180th of a second), which would probably look pretty wild in person. It also offers a silent shutter mode that turns off the artificial shutter and AF acquisition sounds. 

The EOS R3 has a number of new autofocus features, too. The flashiest is Eye Control AF that locks onto focus wherever your eye is looking when you half-press the shutter button. It can be used in combination with flexible zone and subject AF tracking, so it's "possible to quickly shift the target between multiple subjects," Canon says. It notes that the feature can be calibrated differently if you have glasses or contacts, and that "some glasses/contacts may prevent calibration."

Faster calculation speeds give the EOS R3 some new autofocus powers, too. The Dual Pixel AF system can now track in spot, single-point and flexible zone AF, and in lower light (-7.5 EV) than any other model. It can also acquire a subject just by getting close to it, so it will track an animal or human's head, face or eye if you place the AF point near their body, for example. 

Canon

On top of body, face, head and eye detection for humans, the R3 offers a new "Vehicle Priority" tracking system for open cockpit, GT and rally cars, along with on-road and off-road motorcycles. If the AI detects a helmet (on a motorcycle or open cockpit car), it will automatically lock onto that.

The new sensor delivers improved low-light performance too, with the EOS R3 having a normal range of ISO 100-102,400 for stills (expandable to ISO 50-204,800). Canon also promises improved automatic and manual white balance via new AI skills.

The 5-axis in-body stabilizer is the the same as the excellent system on the EOS R5 and R6. As with those models, it delivers up to 8 stops of stabilization with compatible lenses, down to a minimum of 6 stops (still beating most other brands) with other lenses. It also comes with dual card slots, supporting SD and CFexpress type B cards.

The R3 comes with a new 5.76 million dot, 120 FPS OLED electronic viewfinder (EVF) developed by Canon. This is a key feature for the sports photographers who might buy it, as many haven't switched to mirrorless because they prefer an optical viewfinder. Canon said it provides a level of clarity and field of view similar to an optical viewfinder "thanks to the HDR technology and high brightness performance." Like the R6 and R5, it also offers a fully-articulating, 4.15 million dot flip-out touchscreen — ideal for video shooters. 

Canon

In fact, the R3 is also a highly competent video camera, too. While it can't shoot 8K video like the R5, it can capture RAW 12-bit 6K widescreen (6,000 x 3,164) video at up to 60 fps to a CFexpress B card, besting Panasonic's video-centric S1H. Canon has yet to say if 6K RAW over HDMI will be supported, however.

It also offers 4K recording at up to 120 fps, albeit in a cropped 1:1 pixel mode to a CFexpress card. Still, you can capture 4K 60p or 30p video using the full width of the sensor, which should make for some crisp video. Again, for the best quality, you'll need a fast SD UHS II or CFexpress card. 10-bit 4:2:2 video will be available for all 4K modes in either HDR PQ or Canon Log 3 modes, with both All-I and long-GOP file options. 

As usual with Canon cameras, the Dual Pixel autofocus should be a strong point for video, as it can lock in to a subject quickly without any hunting. As it stands now, however, the Eye Tracking feature only works for photography, not video. Still, the extra tracking features should make it extra powerful in terms of video autofocus, but we'll need to test the R3 to verify that. As you'd well expect, it has microphone, headphone and HDMI ports — though the latter is a micro and not a full-sized HDMI connector, unfortunately.

Canon

What about heating, the bugbear of the R5? Again, Canon has significantly improved the R3 here. It now offers two temperature options for auto power off: standard and high. The latter will let you shoot 6K RAW or 4K All-I at 60 fps for 60 minutes or more, though the camera might get a bit hot to the touch. 4K 120p All-I is limited to 12 minutes in either mode. Canon promises that you'll be ready to shoot again after just five minutes, though shooting times afterward will be limited in 6K 60p and 4K 120p modes. Normal 4K 30fps shooting (down-sampled or otherwise) has no heat limitations. 

Other features include network streaming functions and wired or wireless transfer to a 5G or LTE smartphone. It uses the 1DX Mark III's LP-E19 battery that delivers 440 shots with the electronic viewfinder and comes with a new electronic hot shoe that supports more accessories, including a smartphone link adapter. Finally, the EOS R1 offers dust and drip resistance equal to the EOS-1DX series DSLRs, and weighs in at 1015 grams (2.24 pounds) including a memory card and battery.

Canon

Along with the EOS R3, Canon unveiled two new lenses, the compact RF16mm F/2.8 STM ultra wide angle model priced at $300 (left) and the RF100-400mm f/5.6-8 IS USM model priced at $650. Both of those should be decent budget full-frame RF-mount options if you're looking for an ultra wide-angle or tele zoom lens. 

With the EOS R3, Canon has built a supercharged flagship that should appeal to both the serious photographers and videographers who have the bucks to afford one. It arrives at the end of November for $6,000 (body only). 

Vivo's X70 Pro+ does optical stabilization on all four rear cameras

The Vivo brand may not immediately ring a bell in the West, but its recent mobile photography ambitions are worth paying attention to. The company's latest flagship, the X70 Pro+, is the world's first smartphone to feature optical image stabilization (OIS) across all four of its rear cameras. Like the previous model, these all have Zeiss optics and Zeiss T* lens coating, but the main camera is further enhanced by an SLR-grade high-transmittance glass lens to reduce chromatic aberration.

Vivo

Vivo continues to offer one of the more versatile sets of cameras I've seen lately. The X70 Pro+ comes with a 48-megapixel f/2.2 ultra-wide camera, which is further stabilized by Vivo's now-signature micro gimbal; a 50-megapixel f/1.57 main camera powered by a large Samsung GN1 sensor (as featured on the X50 Pro+); a 12-megapixel f/1.6 portrait camera with the much newer Sony IMX663; and an 8-megapixel f/3.4 5x zoom periscopic camera. 

All four rear cameras support electronic stabilization for video shooting, and if you really want to, the main camera can film at up to 8K resolution. The X70 Pro+ also packs Vivo's very own "V1" AI imaging chip for better noise reduction in low-light video recording, as well as more efficient motion smoothing in video playback and gaming.

I don't usually spend much time in the camera filter section, but Vivo's selection of bokeh effects look fun, as they were apparently meant to mimic classic Zeiss lenses. The X60 series already introduced the "swirly" Biotar filter, and with the new X70 series, you also get the "anamorphic" Distagon, the "genuine" Planar and the "creamy" Sonnar. Apparently Zeiss took part in developing these bokeh effects, so that should speak for their faithfulness.

On the other side of the X70 Pro+, you get a 32-megapixel f/2.45 punch-hole selfie camera at the top of a 6.78-inch screen. This 3,200 x 1,400 AMOLED panel offers better colors (10-bit or 1 billion colors) and brightness than before, thanks to Samsung's latest E5 LTPO tech. It also delivers a refresh rate of up to 120Hz and a touch sampling rate of up to 300Hz, which should deliver some silky smooth scrolling and gaming.

Vivo

The Android 11-based X70 Pro+ comes with many other flagship elements, namely a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888+ processor, fast LPDDR5 RAM, IP68 dustproofing and waterproofing, stereo speakers and a dedicated Hi-Fi chip. There's even an infrared remote feature to let you control home appliances the old-fashioned way.

As for charging, the 4,500mAh battery here supports Vivo's 55W FlashCharge and 50W Wireless FlashCharge. The latter requires a special charging stand, which packs two coils to handle both portrait and landscape orientations. You can also use any Qi pad, with the trade-off being a slower charging rate, obviously. The phone itself does 10W reverse wireless charging, should you need to revive other phones, smartwatches or wireless earbuds.

Vivo

The X70 series includes two other models: the quad-cam X70 Pro and the tri-cam X70. Both models are powered by MediaTek's Dimensity 1200-vivo chipset, and their smaller 6.56-inch AMOLED screens (2,376 x 1,080, 120Hz) translate to smaller batteries as well. But hey, you still get an infrared remote on either model.

While the X70 Pro and X70 also receive the Zeiss treatment, they baked the micro gimbal into their main cameras (50 and 40 megapixels, respectively) instead of their 12-megapixel ultra-wide cameras. It's also worth mentioning that their 12-megapixel portrait cameras lack OIS. Given their missing V1 imaging chip, it'll be interesting to compare their low-light shots with the X70 Pro+.

Vivo X60 Pro and X60 Pro+.
Vivo

For what it's worth, the version of the X70 Pro sold in China will be powered by a Samsung Exynos 1080, and it also includes a V1 chip.

Outside of China, Vivo's X70 series will initially roll out in markets like India, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan and the United Arab Emirates, among others. There's no word on a European launch just yet, but Vivo might want to plan one soon to keep up with the likes of Oppo and Xiaomi. Meanwhile, stay tuned for our upcoming X70 Pro+ hands-on.

How are camera sensors still improving?

Cameras keep getting better, but it sometimes feels like the pace of improvement has slowed. You can look at photos from the original Canon 5D, released in 2005, and they look pretty good! In some tests of performance, sensors seem to have barely changed in the past decade. However, there have been big advancements in noise reduction, dynamic range and how fast sensors can be read, which have not only improved image quality, but enabled photographers to work in more challenging environments and shoot in new ways. While the original 5D could capture three 13-megapixel images per second at a native ISO 1600, Sony's latest a1 can shoot 30 50-megapixel images at a native ISO 32,000 in the same timeframe.

In the latest episode of our Upscaled series, we explain how sensors work, and how camera makers have overcome the physical challenges of trying capture a lot of light in a very short time. For the full story, check the video below.

Fujifilm’s $3,999 GFX 50S II is its most affordable medium format camera yet

Fujifilm has announced the latest addition to its GFX family of cameras. Body-only, the new GFX 50S II will debut at $3,999, making it the company’s most affordable medium format camera to date. That’s still a lot of cash to put down to get the tonality and micro-contrasts you can only find on a medium format camera, but it’s significantly less than the $5,999 and $5,499 Fujifilm sells the GFX 100S and GFX 50S for at the moment.

Fujifilm

Headline features of the GFX 50S II include a 51.4-megapixel sensor that’s 1.7 times larger than what you’ll find on a full-frame camera like the Sony A7 III, five-axis in-body stabilization Fujifilm claims provides up to 6.5-stops of shake reduction and a body that weighs just under two pounds. According to Fujifilm, the GFX 50S II also features faster and more accurate autofocus than its predecessor thanks to the inclusion of its latest X-Processor 4. In practice, we’ll have to see how quickly the GFX 50S II can acquire a subject since it uses a contrast-detection system, instead of the more modern phase-detect approach, for autofocus.

The GFX 50S II comes with 19 of Fujifilm’s signature film simulations. It also includes the pixel shift multi-shot feature the company introduced at the end of last year in an update to the GFX 100. In the case of the GFX 50S II, it allows you to combine 16 RAW captures into a 200-megapixel DNG file. One other notable feature is the 1.8-inch monochrome display on the top of the camera you can glance at to see your current capture settings. In addition to selling the camera on its own, Fujifilm will bundle the GFX 50S II with a new 35-70mm kit lens for $4,499. Fujifilm says the GFX 50S II should arrive in the US sometime in late October.

Fujifilm

Fujifilm has also refreshed its much-loved X-T30. The new II model features the same 26.4-megapixel X-Trans sensor as its predecessor but comes with more memory for faster performance and an LCD with 1.68 million dots of resolution. It will also include the company’s latest film simulations and firmware. Body-only, Fujifilm will sell the X-T30 II for $899. Lastly, the company added two new f/1.4 primes to its XF lineup. Both the XF23mm R LM WR and XF33mm R LM WR feature weather sealing and will come under $1,000 when they go on sale this fall.

RED's latest 8K pro camera has a new sensor that shoots 120FPS RAW video

RED is determined to stay at the forefront of 8K video recording, and its latest pro camera might just be proof. DPReviewnotes that RED has unveiled the V-Raptor ST, its first camera in the DSMC3 lineup. The body is only slightly bigger than the Komodo, but it touts a brand new, 35.4-megapixel VV full-frame sensor that offers a large 17 stops of dynamic range and "cinema-quality" scan times twice as fast as any other RED camera.

You might not have to sacrifice quality for speed, either. The V-Raptor ST can shoot 16-bit REDCODE RAW video at 8K and 120 frames per second, and you can ramp it up to 600 frames per second at 2K if you're capturing slow-motion shots. While RED may be stretching things by claiming you can "always deliver" at greater than 4K (you clearly need to step down in some situations), you might feel a twinge of regret if your production team spent close to $60,000 on a Monstro 8K that 'only' manages 60FPS at full resolution.

The new camera includes other creature comforts. A dedicated user display on the side helps assistants tweak settings and save presets, and improved cooling (including a quiet 60mm fan) helps you work in tougher conditions.

You'll have access to a wide range of ports, including two 12G-SDI outputs, nine-pin EXT (for breakout boxes), USB-C and the obligatory pogo pin connector for a monitor. ODU output on the side can break out to XLR or 3.5mm audio. Not surprisingly, you'll want fast storage — RED supports compatible CFexpress 2.0 Type B cards that can record R3D and ProRes at up to 800MB/s.

The price is squarely in pro filmmaker territory. The body alone sells for $24,500, and you'll likely want to spend $29,580 on a "Starter Pack" with useful add-ons like a 7-inch touchscreen, a RED 660GB CFexpress card (plus the matching card reader) and a pair of batteries. That's not including the RF-mount lenses and adapters you might need if you're new to the RED ecosystem. If you're the sort who regularly shoots 8K video for a living, though, this might represent a bargain if you're looking for high-end video equipment.

Oppo promises 5-axis OIS is coming to its phones soon

Never one to shy away from showing off its latest developments, Oppo is now teasing more upcoming mobile camera tech. The most interesting bit is perhaps the 5-axis optical image stabilization, which uses both lens shifting and sensor shifting for maximum effect — apparently three times the angle than that of conventional optical stabilization, according to Oppo. If true, this would compensate for greater shakiness, thus allowing for faster capture and better low-light performance, even when handheld.

Oppo

This kind of implementation is nothing new in the professional camera world, but the challenge here is to miniaturize the solution and fit everything into the little remaining space on a phone. The lens, driven by ball-bearing motors, serves as the primary stabilization tool for light vibrations. For bigger movements, both the lens and sensor kick in to achieve 5-axis stabilization, with the latter's shifting and rotation controlled by shape memory alloys.

Oppo

Oppo admits that incorporating extra moving parts means increasing the number of potential failure points, so it will continue to conduct various drop tests and reliability tests before beginning mass production. The company is targeting Q1 2022 to launch its first phone equipped with this feature.

Oppo

In addition to its 5-axis optical stabilization tech, Oppo teased its next-gen RGBW sensor, which the company claims can take in 60 percent more light and achieve a 35 percent reduction in noise. This will arrive in an unspecified Oppo phone sometime in Q4 of this year. The company is also working on an 85-200mm continuous optical zoom module to offer greater flexibility. It's unclear when exactly that might become commercially available.

Oppo isn't the only phone maker trying to further differentiate itself with obscure camera tech. To name a few, Vivo has been using its impressive micro gimbal camera since its X50 Pro last year, while ASUS is well into its third-gen flip camera on its aptly named Zenfone 8 Flip. Xiaomi even tried a shape-shifting "liquid lens" camera on its Mi Mix Fold, before picking up the latest-gen under-screen camera for its Mi Mix 4. And it now seems we'll see even more attempts in this arena in the coming months.

Android 12 beta feature lets you control your phone with your face

Beyond its ownaccessibility apps, Google offers a powerful API that lets developers create tools for people with disabilities. The beta version of the Android Accessibility Suite — which was part of the fourth Android 12 beta that recently arrived on Pixel handsets — includes a neat new way to control your phone. "Camera Switches" essentially lets you use face gestures to complete a number of actions. For instance, you can set the app to detect when you smile or raise an eyebrow in order to open your notifications panel or quick settings. You can also open your mouth to scroll forward or backward. As spotted by XDA Developers, the update lets you map around six face gestures to over a dozen phone controls. These can also be tweaked based on gesture size to prevent the app from constantly initiating actions.

Camera Switches builds upon the Switch Access feature in Android Accessibility Suite, which lets you interact with your device without using the touchscreen. Depending on the context, this can be done using an external device, such as a keyboard, via a USB or Bluetooth connection, or by pressing the built-in buttons on your phone. In that sense, Camera Switches takes the feature up a notch by introducing gestures to the mix. Seeing as most people are already accustomed to unlocking their phones with their face, the new additions shouldn't seem completely foreign.

While using Camera Switches, you'll see a persistent notification icon that indicates your camera is being used. However, as Android 12's privacy dashboard already includes a status indicator for both the camera and mic, this feature may be unnecessary. XDA was also able to sideload the app's APK to get the new feature on Android 11.

Xiaomi's Mi Mix 4 packs an under-screen camera in a ceramic body

Just days after Oppo unveiled its latest under-screen camera solution, Xiaomi is now launching a new flagship phone with a similar, if not the same, feature. The Mi Mix 4 is the Chinese company's slimmest ceramic unibody smartphone yet, featuring a 6.67-inch 2,400 x 1,080 screen that stealthily hides a 20-megapixel selfie camera underneath a near-indistinguishable patch of pixels — it's the same 400ppi density as the rest of the panel, albeit with smaller pixels and transparent circuitry thanks to advancements in AMOLED production.

If the selfie photos on the Mi Mix 4 turn out to be just as good, if not better, than Oppo's samples from last week, then it's no surprise that Xiaomi went with this under-screen camera tech. The Mix series has always been about pushing the boundary of form factor design, with the firsttwo models — both designed by Philippe Starck — offering super slim screen bezels along three sides. They were some of the first ceramic smartphones, too. 

With the Mi Mix 3, Xiaomi finally got rid of the chin by moving the selfie camera to a slide-up module. I wasn't a fan of that design, though, as it felt more fragile.

Xiaomi

Now that the under-screen camera is seemingly reaching maturity, it serves as a sensible evolution path to the Mi Mix 4. Still, CEO Lei Jun added that if you really care about your selfies, you should stick to phones with punch-hole cameras; but for him, the under-screen camera is good enough.

The screen itself is otherwise very much the same as what many other recent flagships are offering: 10-bit color, P3 gamut, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, 120Hz refresh rate and 480Hz touch sampling rate. It's protected by a layer of Gorilla Glass Victus. Like many recent Xiaomi phones, the Mi Mix 4 provides stereo sound tuned by Harman/Kardon, which should go well with that vibrant screen.

Xiaomi

The Mi Mix 4 also happens to be the first smartphone sporting Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon 888+ 5G processor, taking the clock speed up to 3GHz while being cooled by several layers of graphene and graphite. LPDDR5 RAM options range from 8GB to 12GB, whereas UFS 3.1 storage goes from 128GB to 512GB.

Much like the iPhone 12 series, the Mi Mix 4 also packs UWB (ultra-wide band), but instead of tracking tags, Xiaomi is using this for a feature dubbed "Point to Connect." Simply point your Mi Mix 4 to a compatible Xiaomi smart device like a TV, smart speaker (like the freshly-announced Xiaomi Sound) or air conditioner, and the relevant app will show up. 

The company will also offer a small UWB hub for existing TVs, and this will launch via a beta program in China on August 20th. But if you prefer the old-school way, this Android phone also has an infrared remote feature — as is the case with some Chinese smartphones these days.

Xiaomi

The rear cameras are impressive on paper. There's a 108-megapixel main camera (HMX sensor with optical stabilization), an 8-megapixel 5x optical zoom camera (with optical stabilization) and a 13-megapixel 120-degree ultra-wide camera (with free-form lens). Still, Lei admitted on stage that he's saving the better camera components for his main flagship line.

The Mi Mix 4 houses a 4,500mAh which is relatively standard these days, but it supports 120W wired charging, which goes from zero to 100 percent in 21 minutes by default, or in just 15 minutes if you enable "Boost Mode." There's also 50W wireless charging, which normally takes 45 minutes for a full charge, or just 28 minutes in "Boost Mode."

Xiaomi

Xiaomi will be selling the Mi Mix 4 in China starting from August 16th, with colors including white, black and a new gray option. Prices start from 4,999 yuan or around $770 for the 8GB RAM + 128GB storage model, and capping at 6,299 yuan or about $970 for the 12GB RAM + 512GB storage option. We'll have to stay tuned for international availability, but we'd be surprised if the world's second largest phone maker doesn't plan on taking the Mi Mix 4 outside of China.

Oppo's latest under-screen camera may finally be capable of good photos

Until recently, there was only one smartphone on the market equipped with an under-screen camera: last year's ZTE Axon 20 5G. Other players such as Vivo, Oppo and Xiaomi had also been testing this futuristic tech, but given the subpar image quality back then, it's no wonder that phone makers largely stuck with punch-hole cameras for selfies.

Despite much criticism of its first under-screen camera, ZTE worked what it claims to be an improved version into its new Axon 30 5G, which launched in China last week. Coincidentally, today Oppo unveiled its third-gen under-screen camera which, based on a sample shot it provided, appears to be surprisingly promising — no noticeable haziness nor glare. But that was just one photo, of course, so I'll obviously reserve my final judgement until I get to play with one. Even so, the AI tricks and display circuitry that made this possible are intriguing.

Oppo

In a nutshell, nothing has changed in terms of how the under-screen camera sees through the screen. Its performance is limited by how much light can travel through the gaps between each OLED pixel. Therefore, AI compensation is still a must. For its latest under-screen camera, Oppo says it trained its own AI engine "using tens of thousands of photos" in order to achieve more accurate corrections on diffraction, white balance and HDR. Hence the surprisingly natural-looking sample shot.

Oppo

Another noteworthy improvement here lies within the display panel's consistency. The earlier designs chose to lower the pixel density in the area above the camera, in order to let sufficient light into the sensor. This resulted in a noticeable patch above the camera, which would have been a major turn-off when you watched videos or read fine text on that screen.

But now, Oppo — or the display panel maker, which could be Samsung — figured out a way to boost light transmittance by slightly shrinking each pixel's geometry above the camera. In order words, we get to keep the same 400-ppi pixel density as the rest of the screen, thus creating a more consistent look.

Oppo

Oppo added that this is further enhanced by a transparent wiring material, as well as a one-to-one pixel-circuit-to-pixel architecture (instead of two-to-one like before) in the screen area above the camera. The latter promises more precise image control and greater sharpness, with the bonus being a 50-percent longer panel lifespan due to better burn-in prevention.

Oppo didn't say when or if consumers will get to use its next-gen under-screen camera, but given the timing, I wouldn't be surprised if this turns out to be the same solution on the ZTE Axon 30 5G. In any case, it would be nice if the industry eventually agreed to dump punch-hole cameras in favor of invisible ones.

Sony’s ZV-E10 brings interchangeable lenses to its vlogging camera series

Sony has launched its first vlogging-specific mirrorless camera, the ZV-E10, that borrows a number of features from ZV-1 compact vlogging model. At the same time, it's roughly based on the A5000 and A6000-series APS-C mirrorless cameras, with all the good (and bad) that entails. 

The two biggest advantages of the ZV-E10 over the ZV-1 are the larger 24-megapixel APS-C sensor and interchangeable mirrorless mount. The latter feature opens Sony's range of 60-plus E-mount lenses to vloggers, making the ZV-E10 much more versatile than the fixed-lens ZV-1. The larger sensor, meanwhile, will deliver improved light sensitivity and a shallower depth of field.

The ZV-E10 uses the aging 24-megapixel APS-C sensor found in the A6100 and other recent Sony models. While that delivers sharp, downsampled 4K video at up to 30 fps (or 120 fps 1080p), it's likely to have a serious amount of rolling shutter that's not ideal for its intended purpose. 

On the more positive side, it offers optical and active electronic image stabilization, just like the ZV-1. That should smooth out handheld shooting pretty well, though don't expect miracles for walk-and-talk type vlogging — especially if rolling sensor wobble proves to be an issue. 

Sony

Size-wise, the ZV-E10 is smaller than any of the A6000-series cameras and isn't much larger and heavier than the ZV-1. It lacks an electronic viewfinder, but it's Sony's first APS-C mirrorless camera with a fully-articulating flip-out screen — a basic requirement on any vlogging camera these days. 

The ZV-E10 comes with Sony's latest phase-detect autofocus system, both for video and still shooting. That means you should get incredibly quick subject tracking, along with reliable eye, face and head detect autofocus. It also has an S&Q (slow & quick) feature that lets you record time-lapse and slow motion footage in-camera without the need for any post processing work.

It borrows several vlogging features directly from the ZV-1. The first is called "product showcase," a setting that allows it to instantly focus away from your face and onto an object placed in front of the camera. That's particularly handy for vloggers reviewing products, devices, etc. 

The other is a bokeh switch that instantly sets the lowest f-stop available for lighting conditions. That way, you can have the background as defocused as possible, allowing your subject to stand out clearly. 

The ZV-E10 has a built-in, high-quality three-way microphone (left, right and central channels) that's designed to pick out your voice. That means you can vlog without the need to buy a microphone, though it still won't match the quality and voice isolation of a dedicated shotgun or lapel mic. It also comes with a hotshoe-attached muff to help block wind noise, and if that's not enough, a wind noise reduction setting. It also comes with a microphone input, though not a headphone output. 

Finally, if you're into live streaming, you can connect the ZV-E10 directly to a smartphone and stream directly to YouTube or other services — much as you can with Panasonic's latest GH5-II. It will also work directly as a webcam, streaming both video and audio (not just video like other cameras) so you can take advantage of its high-quality microphone. 

The ZV-E10 will be available in either black or white by the end of August and will cost $700 for the body, or $800 in a bundle including Sony's 16-50mm F/3.5-5.6 power zoom lens.