Posted by Kevin Huffman
Tech
Sunday, March 28th, 2010
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For most geeks, the only thing that can trump video games is, well, porn. Which is exactly why so many companies are exploring the world of sex based video games. For those old schoolers, you may remember games like Sierra’s Leisure Suit Larry Series, which was a computer adventure game about a guy trying to get lucky in any way possible. Of course we are talking about pixelated cartoonish sexual imagery but hey, back in the day this stuff was awesome! Certain game development companies continue to make straight out porn focused games, but there are also some ‘mainstream’ games including sex as part of a storyline like Heavy Rain, Mass Effect 2 (again), and the always controversial Grand Theft Auto series. With the advent of the video game rating system, it seems like mainstream games that really push the envelope are becoming less and less prevalent. Partly because any game slapped with an “AO” rating practically means suicide for the developer because no brick and mortar store will stock the game. With this move towards keeping our games clean, it seems almost counter intuitive to bring back sex video games a la Lesiure Suit Larry and Benny Hill. It’s a surprise to see new sex-based games hitting the market like Bonetown, Project X, and Digital Playground’s new 3D world, that bring players into a world where they can pretty much do whatever they want without judgement. All of these games feature well known porn stars (helllllooo, Ron Jeremy is in Bonetown), which is cool for fans because they can interact with them virtually like never before. Unlike Bonetown and Project X , Digital Playground’s Utherverse focuses more on leisure and social networking rather than gaming. Users aren’t expected to complete missions or earn points, rather, they’re expected to roam around the world, have fun, and do all the things they can’t really do in real life (because unless you’re Tommy Lee, it’s doubtful you’re hooking up with porn stars). The Utherverse creates a place for fans to interact and play, making this new genre of sex games a rule free social networking experience. “We don’t refer to the virtual world as a game, but rather as the 3D Web, or the Virtual World Web. It’s really is less of a game and more of the Internet in 3D. It’s a place where users come to have social networking in real time, to watch movies together, to shop for real-world goods and services, as well as virtual goods and services – but there is no objective,” said Brian Shuster of Utherverse. Basically the goal is to have sex, hook up, and do all the naughty things you can’t do in real life without getting yourself in trouble. While Bonetown and Project X both feature well-known porn stars, Digital Playground’s Utherverse is the first game to feature all Digital Playground branded pictures, videos, and characters, possibly marking a new frontier for porn. Aside from screenings of their DP porns, the game features the contract star, Raven Alexis, a self-professed geek and WoW gamer. For Raven, this new avenue is an obvious choice, “It’s been so cool and exciting so far, getting to know the ins and outs of the game took a little while, and I’ve already met some amazing people. I don’t think that Digital Playground could be teamed up with a better company to begin putting virtual characters of their contract girls into a game.” The technology behind this emerging trend is what’s really interesting. Utherverse , the company that created Digital Playground’s 3D world explained that the creation of virtual worlds can take upwards of four years and cost up to 10 million dollars. Utherverse took the technology that goes into making these games and created a tool set and prop editor that allows companies to completely customized and create their own world without much coding or time. The way it works is that a company will choose from basic landscape and surroundings and then can further customize with a prop editor, cutting down on time and making the world of 3D games available to many companies. “The prop-editor also allows the user to pull images from the web, web pages, flash object, flash streams or any of the scripts that need to go onto objects. Scripts can include a wide range of tools, including the ability to inter-link objects, so that when a user clicks, they are transported from one are of the virtual world to another, or from one world to another.” For Digital Playground, this meant that they would import lots of fun things like videos, pictures, and toys. Raven was also able to create her own character in the game, “I did make my own character, which took about a week in total – and she has all kinds of customized outfits that she can wear. For a gamer, it was completely fun for me, and I’m totally addicted to this game! I’ve already been told by many people in game that my character looks just like me!” The world of online sex games marks a new chapter for the adult industry. Where previously adult stars were only able to interact with their friends through video and a hand full of in-person appearances, companies are now exploring different ways like online games. Are the family collations like MAVAV, Mothers Against Videogame Addiction and Violence that complain about games like Grand Theft Auto going to come after these truly hardcore sex focused video games? Only time will tell. Guest columnist Lydia Leavitt writes about sex and, oddly enough, social media. For more information on the latest intimate technology, check out 69adget.com and check out check out Digital Playground’s Utherverse (NSFW)
Posted by Kevin Huffman
Tech
Thursday, March 11th, 2010
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With Microsoft becoming increasingly marginalized in areas like mobile media, DirectX is becoming less of a must-use toolset and more of a gaming-specific one. The other side of the coin is, of course, the increasing relevance of standards like OpenGL, OpenAL, and OpenCL: powerful cross-platform systems for graphics, audio, and parallel processing . You may remember OpenCL from its debut on the Mac in Snow Leopard, and OpenGL ES of course powers the UI on the iPad . OpenAL is still a ways from being brought under the public eye, but it’s getting there. In the meantime, OpenGL 4.0 was announced today at GDC, and clearly it has DirectX in its sights. 4.0 has a lot of features which users like you and I don’t really need to know about. Texture swizzling? Awesome. Tessellation? Sure, as long as it’s not like whatever they used in Messiah — remember that game? These new toys for developers will make for a richer and faster graphical experience, to be sure, but I’m not going to list them off for you. The big news for graphics is handhelds right now. Mobile gaming is blowing up and Microsoft can’t get a foot in the door. Hell, it’s getting its foot booted out from the other side. In the other corner, OpenGL (and the rest of the Open toolset) is setting itself up as being flexible enough to be applied on a handset, a laptop, or a desktop. It may not have DirectX 11 fidelity in water shaders or the latest normal mapping technique, but it’s damn close and what’s more, it doesn’t need a high end graphics card to be the library in use. Though I feel I should add that the games coming out on Windows Phone 7 Series and the Zune HD 2 are looking pretty awesome. This race isn’t over by far. The OpenCL thing is great as well. If you remember, OpenCL is a set of tools for offloading certain tasks from the CPU onto the GPU, when those tasks are better served by parallel processors. Loading web pages may work fine on your Snapdragon, but decoding video will have it at 100% and drain your battery — better to send it over to the GPU. The GPU computing thing hasn’t quite taken off yet, but it’s pretty much inevitable that it’ll start being implemented on a low level, since it can improve the user experience so dramatically. I’m always happy to see this kind of steady progress. More capabilities, more competition, and better devices for everyone, OpenGL-based or not. If you’re interested, there’s much more information available. Many links in the press release:
Posted by Kevin Huffman
Tech
Monday, March 8th, 2010
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We have written repeatedly that Windows itself is one of the main reasons why touchscreen computers have never caught the general public’s attention. The interface just wasn’t designed for finger input . Like it or not, that’s the truth. Windows was designed to be used with a mouse, and to a lesser extent, a pen or stylus. That’s fine. Windows 7 works great. I’m writing this on a Win7 machine. But I hate Windows on my tablet computers for the aforementioned reason. It’s also the reason I’m very apprehensive of the upcoming onslaught of slate computers. I’m afraid that wonderful hardware will be passed up in favor of the disappointing iPad because of the interface. But Adobe gave me hope today in its demo of Flash and Air on the HP slate device. The first minute or so of the demo is Adobe’s Flash Product Marketing manager talking about this and that. The real fun comes at the 1:30 mark. That’s when we get a glimpse of what appears to be a Windows 7 HP app manager program that has clearly been designed for a touch interface. The buttons are large, uses stars to mark favorites programs or Internet shortcuts, and seems responsive enough. It’s probably safe to say that it’s an Adobe product seeing as it makes an appearance in this demo. Even the browser seems to have been made over for the touch interface, which seems to be a custom build of Firefox. Of course it has all the multi-touch goodies like pinch zooming and two-finger scrolling, but it also feels different, too. That’s just as important as using standard Firefox or Chrome on a touchscreen is a drag without a bunch of plug-ins. And of course, Flash is fully functional, which is a clear shot across Apple’s bow. You notice a few times throughout the demo that there are a couple of different user notifications to compensate for web’s smaller buttons and higher-resolution interface. There appears to be a small water ripple effect at 1:42 when the user hits the play button for the online video and then a dramatically larger one at the end of the Photoshop.com demo at 3:45 when he presses and holds. These effects are not shown during the HP Home demo or NYT Air app lending to the thought that they’re a browser-only effect, designed to assist browsing. Now Adobe wouldn’t show off Windows in its demo. This was strictly an Adobe demo, but that’s fine. It answered a lot of questions about HP’s upcoming slate device. First, a full version of Windows is very much present, which is awesome. None of us wants a watered-down OS — except for iPad buyers, of course. But the demo also shows that there will be a versatile, touch-friendly interface for most tasks and multi-touch capabilities to exploit all the potential uses. Hopefully HP, Dell and all the other mainstream tablet makers are on the same page with Adobe. They have the ability to stand up to the monstrosity that is the Apple App Store if they agree to slate standards, which will allow app developers to code one version of the their program and not worry about various screen resolutions and hardware variations. Devin adds: This is an improvement on the smaller tablet we saw at CES. It’s about iPad-sized, which is to say a little smaller than a sheet of paper. I’m guessing an 8″ screen is what they’re working with there, though who knows what the final hardware will be. I still think that shrinking Windows is a bad start for a tablet device, as much so as puffing up the iPhone in the case of the iPad. The only device that may actually hit with a truly tablet-only OS seems to be the Courier , and that’s why I’m genuinely excited about it. The slate race does appear to be hotting up, though, and that’s a good thing.
Posted by Kevin Huffman
Press Releases, Tech
Sunday, March 7th, 2010
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So we finally have the official press release from Panasonic, we of course got a glimpse of the G2 and G10 the other day , but now we know all the news that’s fit to share. Both look like some decent kit, and a definite step up from most of the P&S cameras out there. Just to recap, the G2 and G10 are the latest from Panasonic using the Micro Four Thirds format. They both sport a 12.1 megapixel sensor and a 3″ LCD screen. Both shoot in 720p, and come with a 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 lens in the basic kit. The G2 also has an LCD touchscreen that is capable of folding out and twisting to whatever angle (within 180 degrees side to side and 270 degrees up and down). The G10 is a little more basic, but has a software set designed towards the beginning user. The G10 also has a standard LCD display instead of the touchscreen/rotating display. Pricing is still not available yet, but we should know about a month before release. Here’s the press releases for all the gritty technical details: LUMIX DMC-G2, WORLD’S FIRST* INTERCHANGEABLE LENS SYSTEM CAMERA WITH TOUCH-CONTROL MOVABLE LCD Panasonic LUMIX G2 Features a 3-Inch Touch-Screen, Allowing for Quick and Intuitive Setting Changes, such as Focus, with a Single Touch Secaucus, NJ (March 7, 2010) – Panasonic today announces the LUMIX DMC-G2, the world’s first* digital interchangeable lens system camera with a movable LCD that allows for touch-control, and the successor to the award-winning and revolutionary LUMIX G1, which was the world’s first Micro Four Thirds digital camera. The intuitive touch-control shooting elevates the camera’s operability, letting the user adjust auto focus (AF) simply by touching the subject on the large 3.0-inch 460,000-dot high- resolution LCD. The LUMIX G2, also shoots 720p High Definition video using the AVCHD Lite format, and joins the LUMIX G10, also introduced today, as the latest models in the LUMIX G Micro System. With the touch-screen operation, users can even snap a photo by touching the LUMIX G2’s screen. Additionally, the touch-screen operation excels not only for shooting but also during playback. Users can touch one thumbnail viewed among many to quickly and easily see the full size of the desired photo. Also, to view images one-by-one, photos can be dragged across the screen to browse as though flipping the pages of a book. “With the LUMIX G2, Panasonic is pleased to continue to lead the evolution of the Micro Four Thirds platform and also be the first in the industry to offer a touch-screen interchangeable lens system camera,” said David Briganti, Senior Product Manager, Imaging, Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company. “Touch-operation is a user interface with which many consumers are both familiar and expect, and we think the LUMIX G2’s touch-operation makes it easier and quicker to take photos and videos that have professional-like effects.” Using the touch-screen operation, once a user locks onto a subject, the LUMIX G2 enables AF Tracking and will track the subject as it moves within the frame. Then, with a touch on the screen, users can select the part and the size of AF area with the 1-area AF. The Multi-area AF sets a group of AF points according to the composition. While using the manual focus, users can enlarge a subject by touching it and then choosing to enlarge it by 1x, 5x or 10x and then smoothly moving the part by dragging it on the screen. With this touch operation, menu settings can be changed quickly; cutting the time it takes to navigate using standard cursors. However, all setting changes can still be done using the control pad, if preferred. The LUMIX G2 records 1280 x 720 HD videos in the AVCHD Lite format, which increases recording capacity and is highly compatible with audio-visual equipment. With a dedicated video record button, users can easily start recording a video. To complement its high-quality video capabilities, the LUMIX G2 features advanced audio options, as sound is recorded with Dolby Digital Creator and an optional accessory stereo microphone can be attached. A Wind Cut function further enhances the sound as it helps reduce noise caused from background wind. The 3.0-inch touch-operation LCD has a wide-viewing angle and rotates 180° from side to side and tilts 270° up and down, providing approximately 100% of field of view. This free-angle LCD with a touch-screen operation makes it possible to both view and touch the screen from any angle. The double Live-View function offered by the high-resolution, 460,000-dot free-angle Intelligent LCD and 1,440,000-dot 1.4x (0.7x) Live View Finder allows users to see the settings’ results before pressing the shutter. The 12.1-megapixel Live MOS sensor featured in the LUMIX G2 offers the best of both worlds – the outstanding image quality of a CCD sensor, and the lower power consumption of a CMOS sensor. Advanced technology enables it to read four channels of data simultaneously, helping the LUMIX G2 to deliver 60 frames-per-second Full-time Live View images, while faithfully reproducing high-resolution images with fine detail and rich gradation. Plus, with the high-speed, high-performance Venus Engine HD II, which has been re-engineered to further improve image quality. The new high-speed, high-performance Venus Engine HD II supports the new image processing technology Intelligent Resolution, which enables the recording of beautiful photo and HD video with high quality signal processing. With Intelligent Resolution technology, three areas – outlines, detailed texture areas and soft gradation – are automatically detected. The outline parts are enhanced effectively to give edges increased clarity, while simultaneously giving a moderate accentuation to the textured areas so they look finely detailed. For the soft gradation areas, the improved noise reduction system of the Venus Engine HD II is applied to achieve a smoother effect. Apart from the uniform enhancement of sharpness, the innovative technology Intelligent Resolution precisely performs signal processing pixel by pixel in the most effective way, resulting in images that are naturally clear. For users looking for additional creative options for both photos and videos, the LUMIX G2 delivers. While shooting HD video, users can set the camera in “P” mode – to change the aperture for professional-like movie effects where the images blur into focus. For still photos, the LUMIX G2 features the My Color mode with a total of seven preset effects – Expressive, Retro, Pure, Elegant, Monochrome, Dynamic Art, and Silhouette while also keeping the Custom mode, which lets users manually set the color, brightness and saturation levels and save their favorite settings into memory. On the other hand, for beginner users not yet ready for manual modes – the LUMIX G2 features iA (Intelligent Auto), a popular setting in the LUMIX point-and-shoots that automatically engages features and settings for optimal image quality by detecting the shooting environment. Panasonic iA is available in both still photo and video recording settings and a new dedicated iA button, which illuminates in blue when engaged, makes it even easier to use this handy feature. Other features of the LUMIX G2 include: • Dust Reduction System: If dust or other foreign matter gets inside the camera when you’re changing lenses, it could cling to the image sensor and show up as a spot in your photos. The Dust Reduction System in the G2 helps eliminate this possibility by placing a supersonic wave filter in front of the Live MOS sensor. Vibrating vertically around 50,000 times per second, the filter repels dust and other particles effectively. • Included Software: PHOTOfunSTUDIO 5.0 HD Edition makes it possible to sort and organize photos. Videos can be uploaded directly to YouTube using the built-in YouTube uploader – even in HD quality. It also lets you create a 360-degree rotation panorama file in .MOV files. The software is compatible with the Windows 7. The Panasonic LUMIX G2 will come equipped as part of its kit, with the newly announced LUMIX G VARIO 14-42mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH/MEGA O.I.S. lens. The new lens offers a versatile zoom range of 14-42mm (35mm camera equivalent: 28-84mm), making it suitable for a wide variety of scenes, everything from dynamic landscape to portrait. Additionally, the LUMIX G2 is compatible with all Micro Four Thirds System lenses, allowing users even higher levels of performance in a digital interchangeable lens camera. The LUMIX DMC-G2 and other LUMIX G Micro System digital cameras can use any interchangeable lens that complies with the Four Thirds standard via an optional mount adaptor DMW-MA1 and with the prestigious Leica M/R Lenses via DMW-MA2M or MA3R. Other accessories include external flashes, filters, a remote shutter, HDMI mini cables and a variety of stylish straps and bags. To learn about the Panasonic LUMIX Micro Four Thirds System and all the available accessories, visit www.panasonic.com/lumix. The Panasonic LUMIX G2 will be available in red, blue and black models and pricing and availability will be announced 30 days prior to shipping date. PANASONIC LUMIX G10, WORLD’S LIGHTEST* DIGITAL INTERCHANGEABLE LENS SYSTEM CAMERA WITH A VIEWFINDER Compact and easy-to-use, the LUMIX G10 shoots high-quality photos and HD video and is an approachable alternative for users new to system cameras Secaucus, NJ (March 7, 2010) – Panasonic today introduces an addition to its Panasonic LUMIX G Series, the LUMIX DMC-G10, the world’s lightest* digital interchangeable lens camera with a viewfinder, which packs a host of advanced digital camera functions designed to be easy-to-use for users new to system cameras. The new compact and portable LUMIX G10, which can record High Definition (HD) video in addition to high-quality still images, joins the LUMIX DMC-G2, also introduced today, as part of the Panasonic LUMIX G Series. “The LUMIX G Micro System has revolutionized the photography industry ever since the release of the Panasonic G1, the world’s first interchangeable lens system camera based on the Micro Four Thirds System standard,” said David Briganti, Senior Product Manager, Imaging, Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company. “We continue to expand this award-winning LUMIX G Series, and with its easy-to-use features and compact size, we expect the G10 to attract a lot of new users who want to step-up from their point-and-shoots.” The LUMIX G10, with its incredible compact body and portable design, uses a mirrorless structure as part the Micro Four Thirds System standard, eliminating a number of components that are found in a conventional interchangeable lens camera, including the mirror box and optical viewfinder unit. This innovative structure allows for the LUMIX G10 to be the world’s lightest system camera in a compact digital camera design that is a desired feature for new users. Adding to its lightweight body, the LUMIX G10 will come equipped as part of its kit, with the newly announced LUMIX G VARIO 14-42mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH/MEGA O.I.S. lens. The new lens offers a versatile zoom range of 14-42mm (35mm camera equivalent: 28-84mm), making it suitable for shooting a wide-range of scenes, from dynamic landscape to portrait. Panasonic designed the LUMIX G10 to be easy to use offers iA (Intelligent Auto) mode – with its shooting assist functions that have proven extremely popular in LUMIX compact cameras. Panasonic’s iA (Intelligent Auto), an easy shooting mode with automatic optimization according to the scene in either photo and video recording, is helpful to beginner users unfamiliar with an interchangeable lens system camera. With the new dedicated iA button, which illuminates in blue when engaged, activating this mode is even easier and can be used to shoot both photos and videos. When shooting still photos, iA offers the following: MEGA O.I.S., which helps prevent blurring from hand-shake; Intelligent ISO Control, which reduces motion blur by adjusting the ISO sensitivity if the subject moves; Intelligent Exposure optimizes exposure for each part of an image, preventing blocked shadows and blown highlights and helping ensure that gradation and details are reproduced properly; Intelligent Scene Selector detects the most common shooting situations – Portrait, Night Portrait, Scenery, Night Scenery, Close-up and Sunset – and switches to the appropriate Scene mode automatically – no setting changes needed. The LUMIX G10 can record 1280 x 720 HD video in Motion JPEG, QVGA, VGA and WVGA formats. Users can enjoy recording HD videos while taking advantage of the high quality lens and the flexibility to change to other lenses. Even users new to recording videos will find the LUMIX G10 makes it easy. Panasonic’s iA for video offers the following: Optical Image Stabilizer (O.I.S.) helps prevent handshake when using high-powered zoom; Face Detection** automatically detects a face in the frame and adjusts focus, exposure, contrast, and skin complexion; Intelligent Exposure continually checks the ambient light level and adjusts the exposure setting as conditions change to prevent blown highlights and blocked shadows; Intelligent Scene Selector automatically switches between Normal, Portrait, Close-up, Scenery, and Low Light modes according to the situation to optimize visual quality. With AF Tracking, the LUMIX G10 can lock onto any subject and keep it in focus even if it moves – making it easy to get beautiful, clear shots of moving subjects, such as children and pets. Simply aim, lock, and shoot. The Face Recognition function remembers registered faces to give an appropriate AF/AE on the people. In playback, you can choose to display only photos that contain a specific registered face using Category Playback. The contrast AF system adopted by the LUMIX DMC-G10 is not only accurate and easy to use, but also very fast. Users can choose from a wide range of AF modes, including AF Tracking, 1-area AF, Face Detection AF/AE and 23-area AF. The LUMIX G10’s Live View Finder, with a resolution of 202,000-dot equivalent, 1.04x (0.52x*) retains the viewability of an optical viewfinder and displays information about its settings that users can see without removing their eye from the subject. The 60 fps Live View is powered by the Live MOS sensor, which takes signals directly from the image sensor and sends them continuously to the LCD, in real time. Both the Live View Finder and LCD provide approximately 100% field of view. This allows the user, when composing a shot, to check the framing accurately from corner to corner. The 3.0-inch large 460,000-dot high-resolution LCD with wide viewing angle automatically controls the brightness according to the situation as an Intelligent LCD. The 12.1-megapixel Live MOS sensor and the new Venus Engine HD II help to separate chromatic noise from luminance noise and apply the optimal noise reduction to each, so users can capture clear and beautiful images even when shooting at high ISO sensitivity levels. The high-speed, high-performance Venus Engine HD II, which has been re-engineered to incorporate the new image processing technology, Intelligent Resolution, enables the recording of beautiful photo and HD video with high quality signal processing. With Intelligent Resolution technology, three areas – outlines, detailed texture areas and soft gradation –are automatically detected. The outline parts are enhanced effectively to give edges increased clarity, while simultaneously giving a moderate accentuation to the textured areas so they look finely detailed. For the soft gradation areas, the improved noise reduction system of the Venus Engine HD II is applied to achiever a smoother effect. Apart from the uniform enhancement of sharpness, the innovative technology Intelligent Resolution precisely performs signal processing pixel by pixel in the most effective way, resulting in images that are naturally clear. All Panasonic LUMIX G Series digital cameras are equipped with the highly-efficient Dust Reduction System. If dust or other foreign matter gets inside the LUMIX G10 while changing lenses, it could cling to the image sensor and show up as a spot in your photos. However, with the Dust Reduction System, it helps eliminate this possibility by placing a supersonic wave filter in front of the Live MOS sensor. Vibrating vertically around 50,000 times per second, the filter repels dust and other particles effectively. Other features of the LUMIX G10 include: • My Color mode with a total of seven preset effects – Expressive, Retro, Pure, Elegant, Monochrome, Dynamic Art, Silhouette. Also includes Custom mode, which lets users manually set the color, brightness and saturation levels. For beginners, the LUMIX G10’s full-time Live View function lets users see how these settings will affect the images before they shoot, making it easier to capture the exact mood or atmosphere desired. • Scene modes total 26, including the Peripheral Defocus mode, which lets users take a photo where the foreground is in focus and background is blurred – or vice versa. This popular effect can be intimidating for a beginner, but in the Peripheral Defocus mode, by simply selecting the objects to be blurred and focused using the camera’s keypad, it is simple for photographers of any level. • Exposure meter can be displayed in the P/A/S/M shooting modes. The correlation between shutter speed and aperture is shown, with a color-coded warning system that alerts users when the settings are not in the proper range. For those new to system camera digital photography, this makes it easy to learn proper settings both visually and logically, enhancing their photography skills. The Panasonic LUMIX G10 is compatible with Micro Four Thirds System lenses, allowing users even higher levels of performance in a digital interchangeable lens camera. In addition to LUMIX G lenses, the LUMIX DMC-G10 and LUMIX G Micro System can use any interchangeable lens that complies with the Four Thirds standard via an optional mount adaptor DMW-MA1 and with the prestigious Leica M/R Lenses via DMW-MA2M or MA3R. Pricing and availability for the Panasonic LUMIX G10 will be announced 30 days prior to shipping date. It will be available in black. To learn about the Panasonic LUMIX Micro Four Thirds System and all the available accessories, visit www.panasonic.com/lumix. PANASONIC ANNOUNCES COMPACT AND LIGHTWEIGHT STANDARD ZOOM LENS FOR LUMIX G SERIES DIGITAL CAMERAS SECAUCUS, NJ (March 7, 2010) – Panasonic today introduces a new interchangeable lens for its LUMIX G Micro System, the ultra-compact and lightweight LUMIX G VARIO 14-42mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH/MEGA O.I.S. lens offers versatile zoom range of 14-42mm (35mm camera equivalent: 28-84mm), making it suitable for a wide variety of scenes, everything from dynamic landscape to portrait. The LUMIX G VARIO 14-42mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH/MEGA O.I.S. lens will be part of the kit lens for the latest additions to the LUMIX G Series of digital cameras: the LUMIX DMC-G10 and LUMIX DMC-G2, also introduced today. The new LUMIX G VARIO 14-42mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH/MEGA O.I.S. lens incorporates Panasonic’s MEGA O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer), which makes it easy to shoot clear photographs, even in low-lit situations, by suppressing the blur caused by a shaky hand. Adopting an inner-focus system driven by a stepping motor, the superior optical design realizes outstanding smoothness to support the high-speed AF (Auto Focus) system of LUMIX G cameras. When mounted on any of these cameras, this new lens allows users to maximize all of the AF system’s functions. With its minimum focus distance of 30cm even at full zoom, this lens provides a maximum photographic magnification of 0.32x (35mm equivalent). Seven aperture blades make up a circular aperture diaphragm to produce an attractive smoothness in out-of-focus areas even when shooting at a large aperture. The LUMIX G VARIO 14-42mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH/MEGA O.I.S. lens system uses multi-coated lens elements that reduce blur, helping to deliver superior performance. This new lens system also features excellent contrast even at its highest zoom level. The inclusion of an aspherical lens improves optical performance by minimizing distortion, even at the 28mm wide end. For more information on the Panasonic LUMIX G Series digital cameras, lenses and accessories, please visit www.panasonic.com/lumix.