Camcorders, projectors make life enjoyable (article)

It was a hot Friday afternoon in mid 2006 in Kendari, Southeast Sulawesi. The hot weather, however, had no effect on Alim, a non- governmental organization worker, who on that afternoon sat absorbed in front of his computer with three electric fans cooling the hot air.

“Hot weather is all right for me as long as my computer works,” he said.
What was he doing? He was processing a video recording of activities conducted by his organization.

After a while, carrying a CD he left his room and went into the meeting room. With the help of a notebook and a projector, the video recording was projected onto the wall and dozens of people watched the documentary as if they were in a theater.

Thanks to technological developments, with a video camera and a computer you can make a film. Of course, first of all you must acquire the technical skills of operating these instruments. Various video camera producers are now competing to market their superior products, which are not only sophisticated but also come with various smart features. Besides, the prices are relatively lower than they were a few years ago.

Samsung Electronics, for example, has promised to introduce various revolutionary products this year, including Samsung VP-X210L, to strengthen its position as a market leader. “With the Samsung VP-X210L Sports Camcorder, hurdles in video recording can be minimized. This camcorder makes it easier to record an object hands-free and the durability of the batteries is also longer,” Lee Mun Bong, managing director of PT Samsung Electronics Indonesia, said at Ritz Carlton Hotel, Jakarta.

The Samsung VP-X210L, he said, is a future sports camcorder whose recording speed can be boosted by up to 25 percent with an optical zoom of 10 times. “The electronic picture stabilizer of the VP-210L makes sure that all features of an athlete will be recorded with great clarity,” he added.

As the use of a DVD format, which is capable of producing clearer pictures, is now gaining greater popularity, producers spare no time cashing in on this trend by offering various DVD-format video cameras complete with various sophisticated features that make it even easier for a user to make video recordings.

One such producer is PT Panasonic Gobel Indonesia, which has released its VDR-D300, VDR-D250 and VDR-D150 DVD-format video camera series. The VDR series allows recording output to be stored in the SD Card memory disc, thereby making it very practical to transfer it to a computer for editing. Technological sophistication and easy operation is, of course, helpful to the user in translating ideas into reality.

Another audio-video product that is gaining popularity is the projector. During the recently concluded FIFA World Cup Championship in Germany, people could not only watch the soccer matches on TV, but also on large screen thanks to projectors. Initially, a projector was invented for presentations in meeting rooms.

Today, however, many use one to watch movies or TV programs, such as aired soccer matches. Datascrip Business Solutions, which markets Optoma products in Indonesia, has launched at least seven series of Optoma projectors using Digital Light Processing (DLP) technology, namely DV10, EP729, EP7161, EP719, EP739H, EP758 and EP759.

DLP technology, said Jeremy Hemanto, manager of the multimedia division of PT Datascrip, uses an optical semi-conductor, which is better known as a Digital Micromirror Device (DVD Chip) to re-portray the existing material of a presentation. “With a Digital Light Processing processor, a projector is available at an affordable price and can be used by practically anybody in Indonesia,” he said.

Optoma, he said, is the leader in the world market of projectors using DLP technology, and in the third quarter of 2005 it enjoyed a market share of some 13.6 percent. Optoma of the EP729 series is a micro portable projector measuring 200 mm by 62.5 mm by 150 mm and weighing 0.99 kg. “Thanks to its brightness level of 1,600 ANSI lumens, this projector can present more lively pictures for various applications,” Jeremy said.

As for Optoma of the DV10 series, which is usually called MovieTime TM, it is a digital projector with an integrated DVD player and speakers. One can watch a movie using this device alone. Indeed, sophisticated technology has made it much easier for everybody to enjoy entertainment at home. [Asep Saefullah]

THE JAKARTA POST — TUESDAY, AUGUST 15, 2006 — PAGE 18