Thursday, September 27, 2007
LCD
A liquid crystal display (commonly abbreviated LCD) is a thin, flat display device made up of any number of color or monochrome pixels arrayed in front of a light source or reflector. It is prized by engineers because it uses very small amounts of electric power, and is therefore suitable for use in battery-powered electronic devices.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Batteries
Digital cameras have high power requirements, and over time have become increasingly smaller in size, which has resulted in an ongoing need to develop a battery small enough to fit in the camera and yet able to power it for a reasonable length of time.
Essentially two broad divisions exist in the types of batteries digital cameras use.
Off-the-shelf
The first is batteries that are an established off-the-shelf form factor, most commonly AA, CR2, or CR-V3 batteries, with AAA batteries in a handful of cameras. The CR2 and CR-V3 batteries are lithium based, and intended for single use. They are also commonly seen in camcorders. The AA batteries are far more common; however, the non-rechargeable alkaline batteries are capable of providing enough power for only a very short time in most cameras. Most consumers use AA Nickel metal hydride batteries (NiMH) (see also chargers and batteries) instead, which provide an adequate amount of power and are rechargeable. NIMH batteries do not provide as much power as lithium ion batteries, and they also tend to discharge when not used. They are available in various ampere-hour (Ah) or milli-ampere-hour (mAh) ratings, which affects how long they last in use. Typically mid-range consumer models and some low end cameras use off-the-shelf batteries; only a very few DSLR cameras accept them (for example, Sigma SD10). Rechargeable RCR-V3 lithium-ion batteries are also available as an alternative to non-rechargeable CR-V3 batteries.
Proprietary
The second division is proprietary battery formats. These are built to a manufacturer's custom specifications, and can be either aftermarket replacement parts or OEM. Almost all proprietary batteries are lithium ion. While they only accept a certain number of recharges before the battery life begins degrading (typically up to 500 cycles), they provide considerable performance for their size. A result is that at the two ends of the spectrum both high end professional cameras and low end consumer models tend to use lithium ion batteries.
Essentially two broad divisions exist in the types of batteries digital cameras use.
Off-the-shelf
The first is batteries that are an established off-the-shelf form factor, most commonly AA, CR2, or CR-V3 batteries, with AAA batteries in a handful of cameras. The CR2 and CR-V3 batteries are lithium based, and intended for single use. They are also commonly seen in camcorders. The AA batteries are far more common; however, the non-rechargeable alkaline batteries are capable of providing enough power for only a very short time in most cameras. Most consumers use AA Nickel metal hydride batteries (NiMH) (see also chargers and batteries) instead, which provide an adequate amount of power and are rechargeable. NIMH batteries do not provide as much power as lithium ion batteries, and they also tend to discharge when not used. They are available in various ampere-hour (Ah) or milli-ampere-hour (mAh) ratings, which affects how long they last in use. Typically mid-range consumer models and some low end cameras use off-the-shelf batteries; only a very few DSLR cameras accept them (for example, Sigma SD10). Rechargeable RCR-V3 lithium-ion batteries are also available as an alternative to non-rechargeable CR-V3 batteries.
Proprietary
The second division is proprietary battery formats. These are built to a manufacturer's custom specifications, and can be either aftermarket replacement parts or OEM. Almost all proprietary batteries are lithium ion. While they only accept a certain number of recharges before the battery life begins degrading (typically up to 500 cycles), they provide considerable performance for their size. A result is that at the two ends of the spectrum both high end professional cameras and low end consumer models tend to use lithium ion batteries.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Memory Stick
Memory Stick (sometimes abbreviated as MS) is a removable flash memory card format, launched by Sony in October 1998 and is also used in general to describe the whole family of Memory Sticks. This family includes the Memory Stick PRO, a revision that allows greater maximum storage capacity and faster file transfer speeds; Memory Stick Duo, a small-form-factor version of the Memory Stick (including the PRO Duo); and the even smaller Memory Stick Micro (M2). In December 2006 Sony added the Memory Stick PRO-HG, a high speed variant of the PRO, to be used for high definition still and video cameras.
Memory Stick PRO
The Memory Stick PRO, introduced in 2003 as a joint effort between Sony and SanDisk , would be the longer-lasting solution to the space problem. Most devices that use the original Memory Stick form factor support both the original Memory Sticks and the PRO Sticks; some readers that were not compatible could be upgraded to Memory Stick PRO support via a Flash ROM update. Memory Stick PROs have a marginally higher transfer speed and a maximum theoretical capacity of 32 GB. High Speed Memory Stick PROs are available, and newer devices support this High Speed mode, allowing for faster file transfers. All Memory Stick PROs larger than 1 GB support this High Speed mode, and High Speed Memory Stick Pros are backwards-compatible with devices that don't support the High Speed mode. High capacity memory sticks such as the 4 GB versions are expensive compared to other types of flash memory such as SD cards and CompactFlash
Memory Stick Duo and PRO Duo
The MagicGate standard for Memory Sticks is an encryption system allowing music to be downloaded to the card and played back by an authorized device, but not shared. Certain standard Memory Stick and all PRO sticks are MagicGate compatible.
The Memory Stick Duo is slightly smaller than the competing Secure Digital format and roughly two thirds the length of the standard form factor. It was developed in response to Sony's need for a smaller flash memory card for pocket-sized digital cameras and cell phones. Memory Stick Duos are available in all the same variants as their larger cousins: normal ones limited to 128 MB, higher capacity PRO Sticks (called Memory Stick PRO Duo in the Duo form factor), with and without High Speed mode, and with and without MagicGate support. There's also a simple adapter (often sold along with the Memory Stick Duo) which allows a Duo to be used in any device that can accept its larger cousins.
The normal and PRO versions of Memory Stick Duo are also used with the PSP, which when inserted into the Memory Stick Slot show saved game data, music, pictures and videos
Memory Stick Micro
In a joint venture with SanDisk, Sony released a new Memory Stick format on February 6, 2006. The Memory Stick Micro (M2) measures 15 × 12.5 × 1.2 mm—roughly one-quarter the size of the Duo, around the size of a fingernail—with 128MB, 256 MB, 512 MB, 1 GB, 2 GB and 4 GB capacities, with a theoretical limit of 32 GB. Maximum transfer speed is 160 Mbit/s. It comes with an adapter, much like the Duo Sticks, to ensure compatibility with current PRO devices.
Memory Stick PRO-HG
On December 11, 2006, Sony, together with SanDisk, announced a new version of Memory Stick. The Memory Stick PRO-HG evolved out of the PRO.
Memory Stick PRO
The Memory Stick PRO, introduced in 2003 as a joint effort between Sony and SanDisk , would be the longer-lasting solution to the space problem. Most devices that use the original Memory Stick form factor support both the original Memory Sticks and the PRO Sticks; some readers that were not compatible could be upgraded to Memory Stick PRO support via a Flash ROM update. Memory Stick PROs have a marginally higher transfer speed and a maximum theoretical capacity of 32 GB. High Speed Memory Stick PROs are available, and newer devices support this High Speed mode, allowing for faster file transfers. All Memory Stick PROs larger than 1 GB support this High Speed mode, and High Speed Memory Stick Pros are backwards-compatible with devices that don't support the High Speed mode. High capacity memory sticks such as the 4 GB versions are expensive compared to other types of flash memory such as SD cards and CompactFlash
Memory Stick Duo and PRO Duo
The MagicGate standard for Memory Sticks is an encryption system allowing music to be downloaded to the card and played back by an authorized device, but not shared. Certain standard Memory Stick and all PRO sticks are MagicGate compatible.
The Memory Stick Duo is slightly smaller than the competing Secure Digital format and roughly two thirds the length of the standard form factor. It was developed in response to Sony's need for a smaller flash memory card for pocket-sized digital cameras and cell phones. Memory Stick Duos are available in all the same variants as their larger cousins: normal ones limited to 128 MB, higher capacity PRO Sticks (called Memory Stick PRO Duo in the Duo form factor), with and without High Speed mode, and with and without MagicGate support. There's also a simple adapter (often sold along with the Memory Stick Duo) which allows a Duo to be used in any device that can accept its larger cousins.
The normal and PRO versions of Memory Stick Duo are also used with the PSP, which when inserted into the Memory Stick Slot show saved game data, music, pictures and videos
Memory Stick Micro
In a joint venture with SanDisk, Sony released a new Memory Stick format on February 6, 2006. The Memory Stick Micro (M2) measures 15 × 12.5 × 1.2 mm—roughly one-quarter the size of the Duo, around the size of a fingernail—with 128MB, 256 MB, 512 MB, 1 GB, 2 GB and 4 GB capacities, with a theoretical limit of 32 GB. Maximum transfer speed is 160 Mbit/s. It comes with an adapter, much like the Duo Sticks, to ensure compatibility with current PRO devices.
Memory Stick PRO-HG
On December 11, 2006, Sony, together with SanDisk, announced a new version of Memory Stick. The Memory Stick PRO-HG evolved out of the PRO.
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