The Coolest Cameras in The World

8 Coolest Cameras in The World

Panoramas like never before

Digital cameras are constantly evolving. The sensors get bigger, the mega-pixel count higher, and thus the images produced improve. But innovation and evolution can also throw up some interesting anomalies, as these amazing cameras show. For example, if you want to create a digital panorama you usually have to stitch together the pictures using an app or PhotoShop. The Seitz 16 x 7, however, has been designed to capture perfect panoramas in seconds. Up to 160 million pixels are packed into each shot, so every photo looks vibrant and sharp enough to step inside. For creating incredible epic landscapes, capturing architectural wonders or vibrant city scenes, the Seitz 16 x 7 Digital Panoramic Camera can be considered one of the best in existence.

Photography and video in 3D

Films, televisions and video games have all made the jump to the third dimension recently, and now your photos can too. The Fine Pix Real 3D W3 is the first camera that shoots high-resolution 3D photos and movies mass produced for consumers. It's surprisingly easy to use — just press the shutter and capture the world as it was meant to be seen. It also has a feature where you can take two shots of the same subject from different positions and the camera will merge them into a single 3D photo. Clever stuff.

The value of history

It might not look it, but the camera pictured above is the most expensive in the world. So if you thought a camera's price tag reflected how much high-tech gadgetry it had, think again. This 1923 Leica 0-Series is worth an incredible $1.74 million thanks to its historical significance and iconic status. Only 25 were ever produced in order to test the market for a new Leica camera; this is the seventh, and the only one with "Germany" engraved on the top plate. In 2007 the very same camera sold at auction for $475,000 — an amazing return on investment.

The camera engineered like a car

Leica still makes some of the finest cameras in the world, and the M9 Titanium is no exception. This exclusive special edition model is the result of collaboration with Walter de'Silva, famed for his design work with Audi. The camera body is made from precision-engineered titanium, and the trim is a special leather typically used in Audi's top-of-the-range cars. Only 500 Titanium M9s have been produced worldwide, each one is individually numbered and costs around $30,000.

A camera for space travel

The Wide Field Camera 3 is the size of a small piano. But when you're taking pictures of the farthest reaches of the universe, you need something with a big zoom lens. It's actually the third version of the camera housed inside the Hubble Space Telescope, installed during a spacewalk in early 2009. It can capture images of astronomical targets over a wide wavelength range, and has a massive field of view, allowing scientists to see as much as possible of deep space. As well as being scientifically useful, the images captured by this camera are also extremely beautiful.

Incredible resolution in a single image

The megapixel count often overshadows all other aspects of a camera's performance, even though the sensor, lens and other features are just as important for producing great images. However, for professionals shooting images that are going to appear on billboards or glossy magazines, normal digital cameras are often not enough. By using a traditional medium format camera with a digital camera back, the professionals are able to get great single images in incredible detail — and there's none higher than the Phase One IQ180 back, which can capture 80 million pixels.

Incredible images in the palm of your hand

The Pentax Q is currently the smallest camera body in the world featuring interchangeable lenses, a feat made possible by Pentax's newly developed Q mount system. The removal of an optical finder, mirror box, focusing plate and AF sensor makes the camera super light, too, so it's perfect for popping in a pocket.

Redefining the disposable camera

With a diameter of just 0.99 millimeters, the Medigus video camera is the tiniest in existence; yet the minute CMOS sensor inside is still able to capture video with a 45,000 pixel resolution. It's been designed for use in medical procedures that require the use of a small-diameter endoscopic device and is made from materials that won't harm the human body. Despite these impressive specifications, the camera is actually designed to be disposable, eliminating the need for sterilisation after use.

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5 unique auto insurance policies

New products introduced this year are offering unconventional coverage, from pet injury insurance to a vanishing deductible.

Insurance with a difference

Let's face it, car insurance policies are about as exciting as Hello Kitty Snuggies.

Chances are, you haven't even read your auto policy cover to cover, unless you did so in a desperate move to lullaby a colicky child to sleep.

But this year, five new car insurance offerings hit the streets with enough thunder to wake the masses.

Two of these hot new products kicked off with equally funky national TV campaigns -- the commercials are for Vanishing Deductible from Nationwide Insurance, in which an insurance spokesman vanishes, and Better Car Replacement from Liberty Mutual, in which a guy peels away a wrecked car to reveal a new car underneath.

Two other innovative products -- pet injury coverage from the Chubb Group of Insurance Companies and mobile food vendors insurance from Whorton Insurance Services -- fill a very real insurance need that has never been met before.

Finally, you would need to witness the annual spontaneous artistic combustion in the Nevada desert known as Burning Man to fully appreciate the unique challenges of Heffernan Insurance Brokers' insurance program for Burning Man participants.

Shrinking deductibles, equal auto protection for pets, props for our favorite taco wagons, a guaranteed newer car and coverage for whatever weirdness might happen at Burning Man?

How to make your deductible vanish

If you've never filed an accident claim, why should your deductible remain the same?

Now it doesn't have to. Nationwide's Vanishing Deductible program will lop $100 off your deductible for every year of safe driving, up to a maximum deduction of $500, for preferred auto customers only. New program enrollees receive an immediate $100 deduction.

How do you qualify for preferred at Nationwide? "You need to maintain auto insurance for at least six months, have fewer than two at-fault accidents and fewer than three moving violations (aka tickets) with no major offenses such as a DUI," says spokeswoman Elizabeth Stelzer.

What constitutes "safe driving"?

"A safe driver is someone who does not have an at-fault accident," she says. "Not-at-fault accidents and moving violations do not impact the earning of our vanishing deductible."

The vanishing deductible magic act is available to preferred auto policyholders in all Nationwide states except North Carolina for a cost of $30 for the first vehicle on your policy and $5 for each additional vehicle. The fee is charged every six months at renewal.

The deductible credit can be used multiple times throughout the policy period and on all types of claims, including at-fault, not-at-fault and glass damage, Stelzer says.

Affordable coverage for food on the move

Mobile food vendors are all the rage today, with menus that extend well beyond tacos and tamales to fancy fare such as lobster and gourmet cupcakes. There are estimated to be 8,000 to 10,000 rolling restaurants in Los Angeles County alone and 10,000 among Dallas, Houston and Austin, Texas, according to Ron Ortega, program manager of Whorton Insurance Services in Austin.

Unfortunately, obtaining insurance coverage for the three major risks -- foodborne illness and fire and auto accidents -- required chefs to cook up piecemeal protection from expensive surplus-lines underwriters.

That just didn't taste right to Ortega. So he developed the nation's first mobile food vendor insurance, or MFVI.

"Costs vary by state and region, but on average, premiums range from $2,500 to $3,500 for $1 million to $2 million general liability and $1 million auto liability, including physical damage on a stated amount basis," Ortega says.

He estimates his MFVI policy saves mobile food vendors an average 30% over similar surplus-lines policies while providing better coverage.

"What's fueling this industry is its popularity, convenience and affordability in tough economic times, spiced up by social networking," says Ortega. "People love it and want more of it."

Car totaled? Replace it with a better one

Depreciation doesn't just affect the resale value of your new car. It also has an impact on the insurance money you'll receive if you total it.

Liberty Mutual feels your pain and includes new-car replacement as part of its standard auto coverage. If you total your new car within a year of owning it and within its first 15,000 miles, the company will give you the vehicle's full value minus any deductible.

The idea proved to be so popular that Liberty Mutual dreamed up Better Car Replacement for customers who don't drive this year's model. The optional coverage, which costs on average $60 per year, is now available in all states except Kentucky and North Carolina.

"Better Car Replacement works like this: If your car is totaled, we will give you the money for a car one model year newer with 15,000 fewer miles on it," says Liberty Mutual spokeswoman Nicole Guidara. "For example, if you total a 2008 Toyota Camry with 60,000 miles on it, we will give you the money for the value of a 2009 Camry with 45,000 miles on it."

Pets need auto insurance coverage, too

When you load up the van with Fido and the family, one of you isn't covered. Guess which one.

To rectify this industry oversight, the Chubb Group of Insurance Companies now offers $2,000 in pet injury coverage as part of its standard auto policy, at no additional cost to customers. So far, coverage is available in Arizona, Maryland, Texas and New Jersey.

The policy pays up to the claim limit to treat, board, euthanize and replace your pet if it is injured or killed in a crash. It even covers horses in trailers.

"We have a lot of customers who have pets and love their pets," says Chubb spokesman Dave Hilgen. "The distinction is, it will cover any animal that isn't used for business or profit. If you have a race horse and you're taking it to the track, it wouldn't cover that. It has to be a pet."

Any pet? Sure, says Hilgen: snakes, monkeys, hedgehogs. Even bigger exotic animals.

"The bottom line is, it's difficult to get a lion sitter if you happen to have a lion, so sometimes you have to take that lion with you," he says. "If it's a pet, it's covered."

Insurance that’s too hot not to like

Take Woodstock. Lose the headline acts. Add fantastically decorated "art cars" and theme camps. Multiply by Salvador Dali. Allow to rise in the desert sun. Then flambé.

That's Burning Man, a weeklong communal artistic experience that occurs each year in Nevada's Black Rock Desert, culminating in the ceremonial torching of a giant humanoid figure.

Woodstock with open-road vehicles -- what could possibly go wrong, right?

Enter coverage for Burning Man participants, offered for the first time by California-based Heffernan Insurance Brokers. For a premium of $500 to $850, the policy provides property and liability coverage for claims against participants in a theme camp, art car or artistic installation at Burning Man, from setup to breakdown.

Heffernan's Amy Vitarelli and Ben Stern spent two years developing the unique coverage. "As 'burners' ourselves, we know the risks inherent in an event like Burning Man," Vitarelli says.

They're also aware of the irony.

"There is no insurance requirement; that would be very un-Burning-Man-like for the organization to require anyone to purchase insurance," she says. "When you say 'insurance and Burning Man,' it's like this oxymoron -- like wait, those things go together?"

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6 sites transforming how you shop

It's not always about brand extension. These 6 small websites are pointing consumers to new strategies for buying, selling and trading merchandise.

Over the past 15 years, the Internet has transformed society. It has generated an entire industry, revolutionized commerce and altered the ways people communicate, connect and build relationships.

From a commercial perspective, online shopping has generated a shift in consumer behavior. According to two studies by the Pew Research Center, this shift is far from over. In September 2010, 58% of Americans went online for information about products to buy, up from 49% six years earlier.

The six companies profiled here are building strong momentum in the realm of online shopping. Their technologies can help consumers save time and money, but the websites also do something else: They expose people to new strategies for acquiring, selling or trading consumer goods. Plus, they plug in consumers to the new currents that will inevitably follow as technology continues to transform personal transactions of all kinds.

thredUP

Based in San Francisco, thredUP is an online clothing swap. Parents can exchange used clothes, as well as books and toys. The website bills itself as a time-saving solution for busy, thrifty parents. You don't have to rummage through garage sales, and the inventory is more abundant than what you'd encounter at the thrift store.

In the real world, clothing swaps are few and far between because they are time-consuming and difficult to organize. ThredUP's marketplace streamlines everything into one browser-friendly interface.

For basic swaps, thredUP customers pay $5 plus $10.95 in shipping fees.

ModCloth.com

ModCloth.com is a boutique-style online retailer that chooses small lots from a variety of designers, all retro in style. ModCloth features only a few of each item in each individual size, enhancing the uniqueness of its shopping experience.

In the real world, boutiques can be expensive and difficult places to shop because they tend to run out of inventory quickly. As a solution to this problem, ModCloth provides an extensive inventory of department-store alternatives.

Above all, the company engages in strong social-media efforts to engage its customers. Site browsers can vote on items that they'd like ModCloth to buy and sell.

The site transforms shopping by presenting a holistic experience online, an accomplishment that eludes many virtual retailers.

Etsy

Established in 2005, Etsy has gained a reputation as one of the world's strongest marketplaces for handmade creations. Its network provides people a place to sell their handcrafted clothing, jewelry, furniture, toys and other items.

Anyone with a handmade product can create a store on Etsy, and everyone can shop there. Brooklyn-based Etsy aims to foster a do-it-yourself culture. It periodically brings online users together for real-world social events that have nothing to do with commerce. Participants show up to learn new skills and socialize.

Lifesta

Lifesta is a marketplace for people to buy and sell daily deals picked up from sites like Groupon and LivingSocial, which bring out the "impulse shopper" in everyone with great face-value offers.

On Lifesta you can buy deals you missed, look for deals that might hold appeal or sell any deal you bought and won't use.

The site offers a way out for shoppers who may have been too eager in snapping up a great deal at Groupon for, say, a morning yoga class. Rather than be stuck with a voucher you'll never redeem, you can offer it on Lifesta at whatever price you choose. Lifesta gets its cut -- 99 cents plus 8% of the sales price -- and you get all or some of your money back.

Rehash

Rehash is another online community for trading clothes and books. The goal of the site is to provide a space for people to share items that would otherwise cost money or go to waste.

The majority of items in Rehash's database are secondhand, but items are typical of what a shopper would find in a mall. Products found on Rehash include Banana Republic tops, trendy ankle boots and Hollister T-shirts.

Rehash is owned by Orpheux Design, a Florida Web studio and creative agency.

Friendgiftr

Remember Facebook gifts? They were really fun and thoughtful -- until people realized that they weren't actually real.

Rob Carpenter decided to take Facebook gifts to the next level. In 2008, he established Friendgiftr, a business he has described as the world's first social-media and mobile-based e-commerce 2.0 company. Now, you can send real gift cards from about 150 merchants. Its apps aim to commercialize social networking sites and smartphones.

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Snow smacks Northeast; power could be out for days

Lights out for 3 million; travel snarled; 2 feet of snow in areas; 3 deaths blamed on storm

SOUTH WINDSOR, Conn. — Millions of people from Maine to Maryland were without power as an unseasonably early storm dumped heavy, wet snow over the weekend on a region more used to gaping at leaves in October than shoveling snow.

The snow was due to stop falling in New England late Sunday, but it could be days before many of the 3 million without electricity see it restored, officials warned.

At least three deaths were blamed on the weather, and states of emergency were declared in New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and parts of New York.

The storm worsened as it moved north, and communities in western Massachusetts were among the hardest hit. Snowfall totals topped 27 inches in Plainfield, and nearby Windsor had gotten 26 inches by early Sunday.Story: Snow cancels NY, Philly flights, makes road travel treacherous

"Look at this, look at all the damage," said Jennifer Burckson, 49, after she came outside Sunday morning in South Windsor to find a massive tree branch had smashed her car's back windshield. Trees in the neighborhood were snapped in half, with others weighed down so much that the leaves brushed the snow.

Compounding the storm's impact were still-leafy trees, which gave the snow something to hang onto and that put tremendous weight on branches, said National Weather Service spokesman Chris Vaccaro. That led to limbs breaking off and contributed to the widespread outages.

"We can't even use the snow blower because the snow is so heavy," Burckson said.

The 750,000 who lost power in Connecticut broke a record for the state that was set when the remnants of Hurricane Irene hit the state in August. People could be without electricity for as long as a week, said Gov. Dannel P. Malloy.

This outage will be worse than one caused by Irene, said Peter Bloom, 70, of South Windsor, because he relies on electricity to heat his home.

"I'm going to put another blanket on. What else can I do?" he said as he gassed up a snow blower to clear his driveway. "At least I'll save a few bucks on my electric bill."

The severity of the storm caught many by surprise.

"It's a little startling. I mean, it's only October," said Craig Brodur, who was playing keno with a friend at Northampton Convenience in western Massachusetts.

Some inland towns got more than a foot of snow. West Milford, N.J., about 45 miles northwest of New York City, saw 19 inches by early Sunday.

New Jersey's largest electric and gas utility, PSE&G, warned customers to prepare for "potentially lengthy outages" and advised power might not be fully restored until Wednesday. More than 600,000 lost electricity in the state, including Gov. Chris Christie.

Along the coast and in such cities as Boston, relatively warm water temperatures helped keep snowfall totals much lower. Washington received a trace of snow, tying a 1925 record for the date. New York City's Central Park set a record for both the date and the month of October with 1.3 inches of snow.

But in New Hampshire's capital of Concord, more than 22 inches fell, weeks ahead of the usual first measurable snowfall. Trees downtown still bright with fall colors were covered with snow. Some didn't survive — a large oak tree that had stood alongside the Statehouse fell, partially blocking a side street.

By 8 a.m., Dave Whitcher had already been clearing dozens of parking lots in and around Concord for eight hours as part of his work as a property manager.

Holding up his shovel, he said, "Me and this guy are going to get to know each other real well today."

Residents were urged to avoid travel altogether. Speed limits were reduced on bridges between New Jersey and Pennsylvania. A few roads closed because of accidents and downed trees and power lines, and more were expected, said Sean Brown, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

Two of the airports serving New York City, Newark Liberty and Kennedy, had hours-long delays Saturday, as did Philadelphia's airport. Amtrak suspended service between Philadelphia and Harrisburg, Pa., and commuter trains in Connecticut and New York were delayed or suspended because of downed trees and signal problems.

Philadelphia saw mostly rain, but the snow that did fall coated downtown roofs in white.

In southeastern Pennsylvania, an 84-year-old man was killed when a snow-laden tree fell on his home while he was napping in his recliner. In Connecticut, the governor said one person died in a Colchester traffic accident that he blamed on slippery conditions.

And a 20-year-old man in Springfield, Mass., stopped when he saw police and firefighters examining downed wires and stepped in the wrong place and was electrocuted, Capt. William Collins said.

Parts of New York saw a mix of snow, rain and slush that made for sheer misery at the Occupy Wall Street encampment in New York City, where drenched protesters hunkered down in tents and under tarps as the plaza filled with rainwater and melted snow.

Technically, tents are banned in the park, but protesters say authorities have been looking the other way, even despite a crackdown on generators that were keeping them warm.

Nick Lemmin, 25, of Brooklyn, was spending his first night at the encampment. He was one of a handful of protesters still at the park early Sunday.

"I had to come out and support," he said. "The underlying importance of this is such that you have to weather the cold."

Adash Daniel, 24, is a protester who had been at the park for three weeks. He had a sleeping bag and cot that he was going to set up, but changed his mind.

"I'm not much good to this movement if I'm shivering," he said as he left the park.

October snowfall is rare in New York, and Saturday marked just the fourth October day with measurable snowfall in Central Park since record-keeping began 135 years ago, the National Weather Service said.

But the unofficial arrival of winter was a boon for some. Two Vermont ski resorts, Killington and Mount Snow, started the ski season early by opening one trail each over the weekend, and Maine's Sunday River ski resort also opened for the weekend.

___

Associated Press writers Ron Todt in Philadelphia; David B. Caruso, Colleen Long and Deepti Hajela in New York; Holly Ramer in Concord, N.H.; and Bruce Shipkowski in Trenton, N.J., contributed to this report.

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