The Register® — Biting the hand that feeds IT

Feeds

Robotic personal photographer unveiled

Sony's self-snapping camera dock

Agentless Backup is Not a Myth

Everyone hates people who insist on photographing everyone and everything at parties. Now, thanks to Sony, you can replace them…with a robotic photographer.

Sony_Partyshot_01

Sony's Party-shot snaps pictures on your behalf

The Japanese electronics giant’s Party-shot personal photographer – also known as the IPT-DS1 – is essentially a self-rotating camera dock that covertly snaps pictures of its surroundings, whether you’re enjoying a family barbeque or having a housewarming.

Simply dock your camera onto Party-shot and it will pan 360° and tilt 24°, automatically detecting faces, adjusting the image composition and, of course, taking photos of you when you’re least aware.

Sony_Partyshot_03

Party-shot rotates and tilts by itself

Shigehiko Nakayama, Sony’s Product Manager for digital imaging accessories, said: “Party-shot captures candid moments that tell natural life stories”.

The downside is that you’ll have to own a Sony compact camera in order to use the robotic docking station, which currently is only compatible with the recently launched WX1 and DSC-TX1 Cyber-shot cameras.

Party-shot can be mounted on almost any tripod, Sony stressed, so you’ll be able to enjoy lots of varied photographic heights and angles. The dock is powered by two AA batteries, which will keep it going for up to 11 hours.

Sony_Partyshot_02

Up to 11 hours of automatic snapping

Sony’s Party-shot dock will be available in September, priced at roughly $150 (£88/€104). ®

Customer Success Testimonial: Recovery is Everything

Latest Comments

Great...

In theory.

0
0

Photographing Sex...?

I doubt it... facial recognition presumably triggers the "Oooh that'll make a nice pic" AI and unless the participants in the candid bonking session regularly lift their mugs from .. um... whatever they are doing to grin inanely at the camera, the thing is gonna sit there hunting the room for a decent picture in vain.

Oh look "decent picture" when what we mean is a "good, INdecent picture".

I made a funny.

Pars cos... well, if you need to ask then you just don't get it.

0
0

P.A.R.T.Y.

it would be good if it had a remote control with a 'force take picture' mode on it too.

0
0

More from The Register

 breaking news
Curtain drops on Apple Store ahead of WWDC: What lies behind?
Steve Jobs watching from on high. No pressure, lads
 breaking news
Cold, dead hands of Steve Jobs slip from iPhones: The Cult of Ive is upon us
Billionaire biz baron's death clears way for uber-shiny iOS 7
Airbus imagines suitcases that find themselves
Point your mobe at your smalls to track their every move
Surprise! Intel smartphone trounces ARM in power trials
Tests show equal performance while sipping significantly less juice
First look: iOS 7 for iPad
No, Apple hasn't released it yet, but that doesn't stop intrepid devs
Apple said to be 'exploring' 5.7-inch iPhone
Who's the copycat this time, Mr. Cook?
Review: Belkin Thunderbolt Express Dock
Missing Mac ports reunited, for a price
 breaking news
Australian 'Apple tax' repealed for MacBook Air
But the new MacPro is priced at a premium