Paul Gardner wrote:
Adding the GPS interface is a very simple firmware revision. Most people who need a GPS already have one. All we want is the interface to write lat/lon into the EXIF. This should be a "no-brainer"!!
No it aint. You need the firmware modification (both the functionality itself and the controls integrated into the menu structure) and you need some form of connection to a GPS chip and GPS antenna. That can be a chip and internal antenna, it can be a external connection or maybe just a chip bluetooth and antenna, which would allow a cable-less external GPS unit with antenna and chip.
Negetive!!!! All you need is to tie this firmware interface to the existing USB connector on the bottom of the camera that normaly plugs into your computer USB. This plugs into an external GPS. We don't want or need the GPS itself in the camera. All we need is the lat/lon written into the exif. There are too many specialized GPS units on the market, BUT they all use a standard interface! For example of one go to http://www.garmin.com
My handheld plugs into a boat, an airplane, mapping software on a PC or Mac,
etc.
Still, I can see how Canon doesn't want to open that can o' worms. The flash trigger connection of my 10D is self-sealing with a proper rubberized connection, and so is the remote trigger connection. The USB socket definately isn't.
It's not just a matter of having the interface per sé. Canon needs to think about more than just connectivity issues here. How about Usability? Reliability? Compatibility?
Paul Gardner wrote:
Adding the GPS interface is a very simple firmware revision. Most people who need a GPS already have one. All we want is the interface to write lat/lon into the EXIF. This should be a "no-brainer"!!
Having worked with only software development in a major company, a "little change" amounts to huge amounts of time and money after all the testing and integration is done. It's no "$5.00" change--more like $50.00, distributed over each camera sold, and $50 is significant.
Moreover, why stop with GPS? Doesn't everyone have a special "little change" he wants? Let's do all of them for $50.00 each and see how much the camera costs.
Phil Bonner wrote:
Google Earth satellite photos and map template overlays of the earth has allowed me to later pinpoint objects in my shots. But you do need at least some terrain features or landmarks for frame of reference.
So what landmark would I have in this image? Having GPS coordinates solves the problem instantly.
I have been using Google Earth for all my trips over the past few years (incl. Antarctica which predates Google Earth, but I had the data recorded) so I know how it works. But if you want to plot a line of your trip you either need GPS data or a very, very big number of landmarks that hopefully don't move. http://rescomp.stanford.edu/~stanj/Travel/Antarctica/w1-25/0015-b.jpg
Joel Slack wrote:
All due respect, but nobody crafts their mass-market products around the special challenges presented by Antarctic expeditions.
With all due respect, the question was "what would GPS be good for", not "what would everyone want to use it for". Did you hear about the questions about the "usefulness" of the ENIAC back in the days? Or, today, how useful is digital zoom? Still, pretty much all P&S cameras have it. Sometimes, adding a feature only as a marketing gimmick is exactly reason enough, even if _some_ people end up actually using it.
JohnLL wrote:
Surely, if stores really knew the 30D was going to be discontinued, then we'd all know by now?
Not sure about that. Perhaps the store knows what we do and is making their own decision. Perhaps they know the 40D is on the way shortly. I didn't bother to ask. None of the other Canon cameras were on 'Clearance'.
Am I the only one that would be excited to see Canon launch a whole new line of printers? They seem to be very interested and capable. I love my little Epson but I wouldn't mind seeing some competition from Canon. I hate the tiny little bits of ink they make you buy for example. Wouldn't some competition end that kind of nonsense? Also I really like Canon support and I think they would be really nice to deal with in terms of printer support. They seem to me to be interested in the high end photo printer space...
Paul Gardner wrote:
Negetive!!!! All you need is to tie this firmware interface to the existing USB connector on the bottom of the camera that normaly plugs into your computer USB. This plugs into an external GPS. We don't want or need the GPS itself in the camera. All we need is the lat/lon written into the exif. There are too many specialized GPS units on the market, BUT they all use a standard interface! For example of one go to http://www.garmin.com
My handheld plugs into a boat, an airplane, mapping software on a PC or Mac,
etc.
It's not so simple. The USB connector found on your Canon camera is connected to a USB client interface. Your GPS unit also has a client interface. You can't connect two client interfaces together and have things just work. The camera would either have to become dual interface, implementing both a client and a host and have it switchable, or implement USB OTG (on-the-go) which allows client-to-client connections between some devices. Unfortunately OTG isn't very widely implemented among devices and my quick Google search wasn't able to find any commercially available portable GPS receivers, although some may exist.
So in any case, it's more than a trivial modification, and I can tell you from experience that developing the necessary pieces isn't as simple as it may seem.
That being said, I too would like to see a GPS interface on Canon cameras implemented somehow, but I doubt they can justify it except perhaps as an optional add-on.
dinoadventures wrote:
god forbid they actually do something to push the limits of physics instead of trying to convince Joe Sixpack that he needs a dSLR.
These days Joe-6 can do it with a cell phone with built in camera and he seems to be really taking a liking to it. The Cell phone is the AE-1 to a new gen-X
Lotusm50 wrote:
Yeah. The same people that think mp3's sound good. Quality is dead.
If they learn to love the music they will eventually buy the next generation of Lamms, Mark Levinson s, Pass Labs, AR, etc. If they learn to love photography they will buy the next generation of Canon, Leica, Hasselblad...when they come into their prime earning years.
snowboarder wrote:
Did someone notice an unusually large LCD on one of those
1D's at the end of the game?
Yes.
I even have it on tape. In one shot there are two and then then three 1Ds right next to each other obstructing the TV camera's view of Mannings' face. The two on the left have an LCD that looks to be considerably larger than the one on the right.
But isn't that part of the "N" upgrade?
A few seconds later another 1D intrudes on the left that appears to have an even larger LCD but I can't tell if it's an optical illusion or not.
