The week in gadgets


25 Jul 2011

A look at gadget, game and geek happenings in the week ahead.

New Sony Cyber-shot cameras capture 3D images

Two new digital cameras from Sony, the Cyber-shot TX55 and WX30, have been designed to shoot DSLR-style still photos, full HD video and 3D images.

The Cyber-shot TX55 and WX30 both feature a 16.2-megapixel Exmor R CMOS sensor, plus new ‘By Pixel Super Resolution’ technology that boosts zoom range to 10x at the image sensor’s maximum resolution of 16.2m pixels. The two cameras also mark a Cyber-shot first, with new Picture Effect mode that broadens artistic possibilities with no editing software needed.

At 12.2mm, Sony has dubbed the Cyber-shot TX55 the world’s thinnest camera, whereas the Cyber-shot WX30 has been deemed the first-ever Cyber-shot WX-series model featuring a 3-inch Xtra Fine LCD wide touchscreen for fingertip operation.

The cameras are available now.

Retro video game Space Invaders may reach the big screen

Producers Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Gigi Pritzker have optioned the rights to the classic arcade video game Space Invaders, leading to rumours about a Space Invaders film.

“Option the rights” in this case may only mean the producers bought the name, as fans of Space Invaders know there isn’t really a plot to the video game. Unless a movie maker takes it further and films a story about an alien invasion and an ensuing battle to save planet Earth.

Coincidentally, the creator of Space Invaders, Tomohiro Nishikado, has credited a childhood spent watching a movie adaptation of HG Wells’ The War of the Worlds as an inspiration.

Student collects most common iPhones passcodes

New York student and iOS Developer Daniel Amitay has collected passcodes from thousands of iPhones and produced an analysis of the number combinations.

The top 10 iPhone passcodes? They are 1234, 0000, 2580, 1111, 5555, 5683, 0852, 2222, 1212 and 1998.

Amitay began his work on this project with the Big Brother Camera app for the iPhone, which lead to an analysis of passcodes his app was sending back (not the screen unlock codes), and eventually the back and forth with Apple as it removed his app.

Photo: The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-WX30

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