According to VholdR, a waterproof case should be available for the ContourHD before the holidays.

(Credit: VholdR)

It figures that the day after we decide to give the VholdR ContourHD wearable camcorder our coveted Editors’ Choice award, that VholdR would go and announce something better. This, dear readers, is what we like to call a “good problem.”

The cleverly named ContourHD1080p takes the standard ContourHD’s 720p HD resolution and bumps it up to–you guessed it–1080p. All of the features that we loved in the original will still be there in the new unit, including the rotating wide-angle lens assembly, the rechargeable lithium ion battery, and the dual frickin’ laser beams.

What’s new is a plethora of additional recording modes. In addition to the original 720p/30 frames per second HD and 480p/60fps SD modes, the ContourHD1080p adds:

• Full HD – 1080p (1,920×1,080 pixels) at 30fps
• Tall HD – 960p (1,280×960 pixels) at 30fps
• Action HD – 720p (1,280×720 pixels) at 60fps

Additionally, with the use of the included Easy Edit software, you can set the contrast (high, medium, or low), metering (center, average, or spot), and exposure (-4 to +4). Its microphone sensitivity can be adjusted as well, which should help to reduce some of the wind noise that we found when testing the standard ContourHD.

So, should you wait for this new model instead of picking up the current ContourHD?

Well, that depends. According to VholdR, the ContourHD1080p is aimed professional videographers, while the standard HD is for enthusiasts. Yet, the ContourHD1080p weighs in at an MSRP of $329.99, only $40 more than the 720p model. However, introducing more options for exposure and metering could confuse casual users and take away from the simple point and shoot nature that so endeared us to the standard ContourHD. We’ll wait and see how the controls pan out before making final judgment.

In the meantime, check out a video of the ContourHD1080p in action after the jump.

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Originally posted at The Car Tech blog

The Zune HD is upon us, and whether you love it or hate it, you have to admit that it is devilishly good-looking. I happen to think it’s also a great media player, based on my day with it and on previous demos, but the final judgment will come in a day or two with the full review.

In the meantime, I’m sure a lot of people have been waiting on a decent walkthrough of the Zune HD’s interface. I’ve got just that for you, in HD no less, so click that play button and get an in-depth tour of the music and video navigation, browser, and marketplace.

For the record, I didn’t choose the thumbnail. I’ll get a YouTube version up for the review since the HD matters for readability. I’ve tried to strike a balance between brevity and completeness, but it ended up being over 10 minutes long anyway. Well, what else have you got going on? Look at these pictures while I talk talk talk in the background.

I didn’t have time for the dock and HDMI out, video of that and the TV UI will be in the full review. It’s nice, but you’re not missing out on much — if you really must see it right away, there’s a video with no explanation or sound hereabouts.

Let’s start with Toshiba’s ad that looks like it came straight out of the early 90s. Pretty boring if you ask me. Aside from that the SV670 is quite stunning. For one thing, the 55-inch model would take up my entire living room and I’d be happy to watch from the next room. I can’t say too much about the local dimming and simulated 240Hz because all the Toshiba sets were looping the same video of the Rose Gardens in Portland, OR. The Deep Lagoon design might seem gimmicky, but when you’re in the store staring at hundreds of black trimmed TVs on the wall, the Regza is going to catch your eye. I can’t give it a proper “hands-on” because it didn’t seem to be calibrated correctly because the ZV650 seemed to be properly calibrated and the color on that particular set blew away the SV670. I was thoroughly impressed with Toshiba’s lineup that was re-announced today, but I’ll reserve final judgment until I’ve had proper time with each. In the meantime, check out the photos.

Toshiba Televisions