Focused product: Gadgets can help transform the difficult into the routine and make the impossible possible. In the world of home movies, the current challenge is developing the technology that drives autofocus in video cameras. This is tougher than it seems, because the average camcorder user makes home videos that feature children, who never stay in one place for long. This often means blurry footage of the little ones.
Panasonic is trying to take a leap forward by crafting camcorders that can maintain autofocus on moving objects. Moreover, the latest camcorders from the company automatically adjust the brightness and contrast.
The idea takes technology from the facial-recognition systems that have become popular for still cameras, in which the camera recognizes a face and keeps it in focus without the photographer having to do anything else. Panasonic is bringing the feature out in a range of four new HDC series digital camcorders.