waterproof

Olympus' Tough line is rugged, feature packed

To show that it's still a leader in the rugged compact camera market, Olympus on Tuesday announced two Tough series models. Available in February, the $399.99 Stylus Tough-8010 is shockproof to drops of 6.6 feet and waterproof to depths of 33 feet, while the $299.99 Stylus Tough-6020 is shockproof to drops of 5 feet and waterproof to depths of 16 feet. Also, both cameras are freezeproof to temperatures as low as 14 degrees Fahrenheit.

Olympus does well with the rugged part of these cameras, but their feature sets were never very interesting. This time out, though, … Read more

Fujifilm FinePix XP10: Ultracompact with extra protection

As a basic point-and-shoot to keep poolside, the Fujifilm FinePix Z33WP is relatively successful. But if you are looking for any sort of drop protection, it's not worth considering. Enter the XP10, a full-on rugged model able to withstand drops from 3 feet, dives in 10 feet of water, and temperatures as low as 14 degrees Fahrenheit. The "proofing" in turn prevents dust from entering the body as well.

Unfortunately, the rest of the 12-megapixel camera's features are lackluster. It has an internal periscopic lens with a 5x zoom, digital image stabilization, a battery life of … Read more

Enhanced toughness: Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS2

So I really liked the Panasonic Lumix TS1, the company's first foray into rugged compact cameras, but it wasn't as indestructible as some of its competition. Round two, the TS2, corrects that as it's waterproof down to 33 feet, shockproof from drops up to 10 feet 6.6 feet, and freezeproof to 14 degrees Fahrenheit putting it in line with models from Olympus, Canon, and Pentax.

Panasonic didn't skimp on other features, either, basically making it a full-featured ultracompact in a tougher shell. It has a 14-megapixel resolution, a 2.7-inch LCD, 28mm-equivalent wide-angle lens with … Read more

A waterproof Kindle case that floats

Otterbox is known for its ultraprotective iPhone cases. Now M-Edge, which specializes in Kindle cases, is doing the same for the Kindle, with an announcement that it will sell the first waterproof Kindle case this spring.

The company says the Guardian is made of molded plastic and protects your Kindle in all water environments up to 1 meter deep, whether you're in the pool, ocean, or just soaking in the tub. Your e-reader is totally sealed in the case, but you can still access all the buttons through "flexible sealed button cutouts." Even better, the case turns … Read more

GoPro HD Hero Motorsports sacrifices simplicity for flexibility

On paper, the GoPro HD Hero is hitting on all cylinders. It's rugged, it's compact, and--to top it all off--it shoots in five modes of video (four of which are HD) and high-resolution still photography. But then you go to use it and things start to run a little less smoothly.

The HD Hero's weakest point lies with its thumbnail-size LCD screen and pinhead-size icons. With only two buttons and a cryptic menu system, the Hero's options screen probably shouldn't be tackled without an instruction manual close at hand. How else are you supposed to … Read more

Casio gives us a camera to beat the hell out of

When Panasonic, Fujifilm, and Canon announced rugged cameras this year, it was odd that Casio didn't pop one out, too, given its predilection for shock-resistant products. Well, I guess November isn't too late to join the market, as Wednesday the company added the Exilim EX-G1 to its digital camera lineup.

The $299 0.8-inch thick, ultracompact 12-megapixel camera can withstand a 7-foot drop because of a two-layer construction with a stainless steel outer casing, a resin ring protecting the lens, and a polycarbonate cover on the body side near the shutter. The wrist-strap holder is made of die-cast … Read more

ATC5K and ATC3K Action Cameras can handle tough times

The Oregon Scientific ATC3K Action Camera is a bit like the Jeep Wrangler of digital camcorders. On paper, the bare-bones digicam is only capable of capturing VGA video. In a civilized world filled with pocket HD camcorders, that's not a particularly impressive feat.

However, take the ATC3K into the rough and tumble great outdoors and you'll find that its rugged construction, waterproof design, and compact size allow it to be used in conditions that would instantly void the warranty of more complex and delicate pocket cameras.

Upping the feature set while maintaining its rough and tumble nature is … Read more

Another mouse that likes to wash

Worried about germs populating your peripherals? You may dream of giving them a nice bath now and then.

Go ahead, with the MW-2800 washable optical mouse from Cherry, a ZF Electronics brand.

The mouse is targeted at hospitals, clinics, schools, manufacturing lines, and other venues where many people tend to share workstations.

The MW-2800 is not the first washable mouse. Two years ago, Belkin introduced its F5L007 mouse with the scroll wheel replaced by a touch area that allows both vertical and horizontal scrolling.

On Cherry's new MW-2800, scrolling is done with sealed scroll-lock buttons. It's supposed to … Read more

Pentax goes deeper with Optio W80

There's been an explosion of waterproof and rugged cameras and camcorders this year, and Wednesday Pentax added one more to the list (though it's been making them since 2003). The Optio W80 is a water/dust/shock/freezeproof 12-megapixel camera with a 2.5-inch LCD selling for less than $300.

The W80 can apparently survive an impressive dunk: down to 16 feet for up to two hours. It'll also take a decent fall of up to 3.3 feet and keep working in temperatures as low as 14 degrees Fahrenheit.

On top of its "proofing," the W80 has fairly good camera specs, too. The internal lens has a zoom range of 5x and is wide angle, too, at 28mm. It records 720p, HD-quality video at 30fps. It also has the expected convenience features such as face, smile, and blink detection; auto scene recognition; and a bunch of other automatic shooting options.

About the only thing missing is optical image stabilization; the W80 only has Pentax's digital Pixel Track SR, which though it's good, still degrades photo quality. … Read more