This is something we’ve sort of seen before and Canon actually showed off a prototype for it back in 2015. But now a new patent has been granted to Canon, according to Canon Watch, for a new wireless charging system. With the catchy title “Power transmission apparatus for wirelessly supplying power to power reception apparatus”, Patent US10375639 describes a method of wirelessly charging cameras from a base station.
The advantage of camera WiFi when shooting concerts
As soon as I received my Canon 5D Mark IV, I turned off the Wifi. I thought that it would not be very useful to me and that it would only serve to drain the batteries quickly. As I divide my work between studio and concerts, the WiFi did not seem very useful to me.
In the studio, the USB cable was perfect for working with tethered to the computer; in concerts, the WiFi also did not seem to be of great utility. But even so, one day, I decided to install the Canon Camera Connect application to at least find out how it works. Quickly the WiFI has become a fundamental tool in my work, both in the studio and in the concerts.
Patent suggests wireless charging is coming to Canon cameras
Wireless charging seems to be the big thing with portable devices right now. There are various phones and tablets out there that support it, and as the technology evolves, companies are looking to see what other items can utilise it. Canon seems to think that cameras are one such possible device. At least if this new patent application being reported by Canon Watch is anything to go by.
Wireless charging certainly has its advantages, but it has some disadvantages, too. I just don’t know if it’s really going to be all that practical except in the most consumer level of devices that only see occasional use.
Eye-Fi unbrick their X2 cards to give us what we should have had in the first place
Several weeks ago, you may remember a post about Eye-Fi’s decision to “End of life” a bunch of their products. It’s not uncommon for companies to drop support for their older products, no matter how popular they may be. The problem with their decision, though, was that it would’ve basically bricked all of those products from September 16th, making them completely useless.
Ok, so you could still use them as regular SD cards. Although, who would use an overpriced Class 4 8GB card these days when fast 128GB UHS-I cards are so cheap? In a surprise email I received this morning, Eye-Fi have announced new software for those older cards. This software removes the need for online connectivity to activate or configure the cards.
They’re finally giving us the cards that the Eye-Fi should have been since day one.
Update: September 1st, 2016 – Windows version of the software is now available for download, see the bottom of the post for details.
Leaked photos and specs show Canon’s new Wi-Fi adapter is an SD card
Well, it looks like the issues with EyeFi may not be a problem for Canon shooters. At least, not all Canon shooters. A couple of weeks ago, Digicame-info reported that instructions and specs for Canon’s new W-E1 WiFi adapter had been leaked. One point of note was the listed dimensions. 24x32x2.1mm; the same as the SD card specification.
Now, new leaked photos confirm that this seems to be true and it is an SD card. Also leaked is some camera compatibility. Interestingly, the impending 5D Mark IV doesn’t appear in that list. This may confirm the rumour that the 5D Mark IV does, indeed, have built in WiFi.
EyeFi to drop support for some cards. They will ‘magically’ stop working on September 16, 2016
I’m a bit disappointed by this one. I’ve been a huge fan of Eye-Fi cards for several years and own and use several cards. Now, they’re taking planned obsolescence to a whole new level by effectively making most of their past products useless in one fell swoop.
According to an email I received from Eye-Fi today as an existing customer, as of today, Eye-Fi will no longer be offering support for its “legacy product lines”, which includes the very popular Pro X2 range and basically every other product they’ve made except for the current post-2013 Mobi Pro. Pulling the plug basically makes your existing products dead.
DJI’s new follow focus lets you remotely focus your drone’s camera lens from 3 miles away
Designed for both the land and air, the new DJI Focus remote follow focus system wants to change the way we record our aerial footage.
No longer are we limited to hyperfocal distance and infinity focus lenses that have everything sharp. Now, we’re able to nail focus on our subject and use cinematic focus pulling techniques while shooting from the skies.
This DIY GoPro Remote is one square inch and only costs $15
GoPro action cameras are small enough that they can be placed almost anywhere. But the problem with choosing unconventional locations is that you still have to press the record button yourself.
Of course, you could use GoPro’s smartphone app to trigger the camera. But there are undoubtedly times when you don’t want to put your smartphone at risk, or want to worry about your smartphone’s battery dying.
For these times, it’s best to have a backup wireless remote.
Now, with a little know-how, you can create a very inexpensive and incredibly small DIY GoPro remote, saving you from the cost of GoPro’s $65 proprietary remote.
FIND THIS INTERESTING? SHARE IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!