We just dropped by Contour's booth at CES to check out the new Cerevo Live Shell accessory - it's a small, light, portable device that can hook up to an HD camera via HDMI and stream live video to Ustream over ethernet or WiFi. Settings for the Live Shell can be managed on a PC or through a smartphone app, and when paired with the Contour+, the system can capture roughly three hours of 1080p video on three AA batteries. Contour had a live demonstration at its booth which looked pretty smooth - video streamed from the Contour+ to Ustream, as promised, though the company says there's a 20-second delay for streaming video. (You can see Contour's …

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Panoramic photo technology is nothing new, but the Tamaggo 360-imager is a standalone fisheye camera that packs a decent amount of technology into a relatively small form factor. The prototype we handled felt pretty weighty, but its unique body made it comfortable to hold. The camera's name comes from the Japanese word for 'egg,' an obvious reference to the device's shape.

It can capture 360-degree panoramic images with its 14-megapixel sensor and 11-component lens setup. The internal accelerometer allows for capturing images in two modes: hold it vertically for 360-degree shots (see below) or hold it horizontally to capture wide-angle panor …

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Alright, the Lytro light field camera technology is pretty impressive and emergent all by itself (it will be shipping in about a month), but I can't help wondering what's next: what about video? Eric Cheng, the Director of Photography at Lytro, was surprisingly forthcoming. Without promising any products in the pipeline, he described the exact technical requirements, and the exact technical feasibility. What's really interesting, and was helpful in me actually understanding how Lytro works, is that it's like a 3D rendering engine in reverse. Instead of tracking a point of light from an object to a virtual camera, Lytro takes the information …

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We've wanted to check out Sony's NEX interchangeable lens video cameras, the VG20 Handycam and pro-level FS100, and finally got a chance on the CES show floor. We also got to see the full lineup of lenses for the E-mount system, including the new 50mm f/1.8 and 24mm f/1.8 Zeiss models, along with a pre-production 500mm f/4 telephoto for A-mount. Check out the gallery below - hands-on video impressions coming soon.

Update: Video below! Please excuse the audio.

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There probably aren't a lot of people who complain about the retro design of the Fujifilm X100, but if you're not happy, the company's shipping a limited run of blacked-out X100s. We got to check it out under the glass at Fujifilm's CES booth, and it looks…well, it looks like the X100, just black instead of silver. But it's gorgeous - I've always preferred the design of the X10 to the X100, and this limited edition makes the two look quite similar. Fujfilm's only making 10,000 of these, and they'll cost $1700 (a $500 premium over the silver model), so only the most aesthetically picky need apply.

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CES is full of gadgets we'll see sometime in the next year, but Panasonic is showing off two concept camera lenses that are likely much further off. Underneath the glass at the company's booth are 12-35mm and a 35-100mm (their respective equivalents are 24-70mm and 70-200mm), f/2.8 lenses that Panasonic reps said will bring far better focusing to its Micro Four Thirds cameras, especially for video recording. The Lumix GX1 has already improved focusing performance over Panasonic's previous models, and the new lenses will bring the GX1's speed and accuracy to Panasonic's other cameras, along with a new hybrid image stabilzation feature that wi …

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A rep at Nikon's booth just walked us through one of the D4's most intriguing features. Once the D4 is hooked up to a network via Wi-Fi or its ethernet port, you can pull a network IP address off the screen and use that to connect to the camera with your computer. Assuming the camera and computer are on the same network, you can navigate to the camera through your browser, no apps or connections needed. Once you're connected, you can take photos, adjust all manner of settings, switch to live view, focus by clicking on individual points, and even shoot video. It's worth noting that the live view feed is dependent on your network connection; t …

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