Ricoh introduced Tuesday its WG-M2 4K action video camera (pictured above) capable of capturing up to a 204-degree field of view.
The camera is an update of the WG-M1 , bringing a 40 percent lighter and smaller body, and retaining a rugged go-anywhere design. It will ship in April at a $300 suggested retail price in a choice of orange or silver body colors.
For video shooting, the camera will capture up to 4K Ultra HD Video (3840×2160) at 30 frames per second, Full HD 1080p at up to 60fps and 720p at up to 120fps.
For more about the Ricoh WG-M2 hit the jump:
Ricoh said the WG-M2 is designed to withstand freezing temperatures, knocks and scrapes, and is waterproof to 65 feet. The camera has a 1 2/3-inch CMOS image sensor capable of capturing up to 8-megapixel still images, and a 1.5-inch LCD monitor to easily frame subjects.
The camera allows high-speed continuous shooting at up to an 8fps rate. The camera also offers an ISO-sensitivity range from ISO 200-6400 in still-image shooting modes.
The lens is composed of 8 elements in 8 groups (6 aspherical elements).
Ricoh said the ultra-wide field of view can be reduced to better stabilize images.
For white balance of underwater images, the WG-M2 will optimize color reproduction and contrast using data accumulated from numerous underwater image samples.
When an underwater shooting mode is selected, the camera automatically switches to an underwater white balance mode to reproduce sub-marine scenes, and compensates for the loss of contrast caused by the diffusion of light. This is said to enable capturing clear, well-defined underwater images without bluish or greenish color casts.
When the movie recording button is pressed at the beginning and finish of a movie recording session, a vibration function in the WG-M2 signals the start and end of movie recording operation using vibrations of the camera body. This lets users know about camera operation modes in use.
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Video is recorded in the MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 (MOV) format, with sound recorded as PCM stereo. The camera includes a wind screen to reduce wind noise when shooting video.
The WG-M2 also provides an LCD orientation function to record movie clips in an upright position whether or not the camera is held at vertical or upside-down positions. Also added are an assortment of movie editing features such as a still image save mode and a divide movie mode (maximum image size of 4K), Ricoh said.
Another addition are the camera’s unusual image effects modes that allow offering desired visual effects to a movie clip for creative, personalized work. Selections are available before shooting for: Bright, Natural, Monochrome, Shading, Bleach Bypass, Bold, and High Contrast.
The lens is comprised of 8 elements in 8 groups (6 aspherical elements) and the aperture starts F/2.0. Images and video are stored to microSD/microSDHC/microSDXC memory cards.
By Greg Tarr
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