Panasonic has revealed its latest point-and-shoot, the LUMIX DMC-3D1, and as the name suggests it’s packing a pair of sensors for 3D still and video photography. The DMC-3D1 has two 12-megapixel sensors with 25mm ultra-wide angle lenses with 4x optical zoom, and as well as shooting 8-megapixel 3D stills or 1920 x 1080 60i 3D video, can also shoot 12-megapixel stills and 1920x1080i full HD 2D videos simultaneously, each sensor being used independently.

That potentially makes the new LUMIX interesting even to those who aren’t really bothered by 3D stills or video. We’ve seen other cameras and camcorders capable of snapping still shots while video recording is taking place, but the still images are generally lower resolution than normal and are reliant on the same zoom/focus/exposure/etc settings of the video recording. By fitting two completely separate sensors, however, Panasonic has made it possible for independent settings for photo and video.

A dedicated 2D/3D switch on the back toggles between the modes, and there’s Panasonic’s quad-CPU Venus Engine for intelligent noise reduction and other post-processing. Continuous shooting can take place at up to 8 fps (without auto-focus) or 4 fps (with auto focus) in full resolution.  Both AVCHD and MP4 video formats are supported, with primary control via a 3.5-inch touchscreen.

Panasonic expects the LUMIX DMC-3D1 to go on sale in December, priced at $499.99.

Panasonic has a fair pedigree when it comes to mobile computing toughness – enjoying a 65.3 percent share of last year’s European rugged and durable notebook computer market – and says its new Toughpad FZ-A1 is built to perform where other tablets fail. The Android 3.2 tablet has a wide operating temperature range of -10 °C to 50 °C (14 °F to 122 °F), should be able to withstand a drop from four feet (120 cm) in a powered-off state, and benefits from the same ingress resistance rating as Panasonic’s somewhat chunky Toughbook H1 Field Windows tablet.

At its heart beats a Marvell 1.2GHz dual-core processor incorporating an SoC-compliant dedicated security processor core with FIPS 140-2 Level 2. This handles software and data encryption, enhanced VPN, authentication, trusted boot and device management, and protects against tampering. The processor is supported by 1GB of SDRAM and 16GB solid state storage – with SDHC media card expansion.

The 10.1-inch, 1024 x 768 pixel resolution capacitive touchscreen display couples anti-glare/reflection film with up to 500 nit brightness for daylight-friendly use, and includes an active digitizer that records pressure, direction and speed along with the signature for greater legal authority when signing documents. It comes supplied with a battery-free digitizer pen, and the tablet’s Lithium-ion battery is said to power it for about ten hours of usage between charges and can be replaced/upgraded by the customer’s IT support team.

There’s 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1 with EDR, optional 3G, built-in satellite GPS and a digital compass. Physical connectivity takes the shape of a single micro-HDMI port and one micro-USB 2.0 port, video and photographic needs are met by a 2 megapixel front-facing webcam and a 5 megapixel camera with LED flash at the rear, and security measures include Marvell hardware-assisted storage encryption, Marvell Trusted Boot, and Authentec Mobile Security.

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