A majority of the jobs being lost will be the result of consolidating overseas manufacturing efforts and reducing the size of their already troubled camera business. Depending on who wins out in the bidding over shares of Olympus, Either Sony or Panasonic will be dumping hundreds of millions of dollars into the Company.

This comes at a bad time for Sony and Panasonic as both are currently recovering from considerable quarterly losses and poor sales performance. The decision as to who will control the ten percent stake at Olympus should be decided by the end of June.

Olympus has been in a state of limbo since a scandal involving several ex-Olympus executives and bankers was exposed by, then fired, chief executive Michael Woodford. Apparently, ex-president Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, former executive vice president Hisashi Mori and former auditor Hideo Yamada conducted fraudulent dealing in order to cover up enormous losses incurred from high-risk investments during the late 1980′s financial bubble.

In December, Olympus filed five years worth of corrected financial reports that revealed over $1 billion in losses from its balance sheets and an additional $410 million loss projected throughout the remained of 2012 for shortcomings in their existing camera business.

The Qi standard incorporates magnetic induction technology, which uses a transmitter coil and a receiver coil – an alternating current is pushed through the transmitter coil, which generates a magnetic field which induces a voltage in the receiver coil. Panasonic will provide its own moving coil system, which automatically detects where a device is sitting on the charging pad, and compensates accordingly.

Below is a small clip describing Qi charging terminals:

Panasonic is also developing Qi-compatible battery packs, for older devices that won’t take a charge from the wireless stations. The latest Eluga smartphones support the technology, and if the initial roll-out goes well, Japanese users will soon have a new way of charging up.

The detail of this new plasma screen that stuck out most to me is the mention of 120fps, a sort of increase that has been creating quite a stir as of late. Apparently, during a screening of some clips from the first of Peter Jackson’ new Hobbit movies, viewers were quite displeased with the director’s opting to shoot the entire movie at 48fps, double the traditional 24fps. The additional frames cause footage to look a bit odd in regards to the human persistence of vision – sequences look harsher in movement than standard sports video, and much of the cinematic glaze afforded by the emulsion of old is diminished. Presently available TV’s with 120Hz refresh rates hint at the unnatural quality I’m describing. It’s not ideal, and can even put off a bit of the uncanny valley. I don’t like the uncanny valley. Still, it’s not clear how the increase in frame rate will even affect the progressive signal of the new plasma.

Panasonic and NHK have also developed a new drive method for stifling flicker that occurs at ultra-high resolutions, and the Super Hi-Vision TV is said to image maintain stability, even at 8K. Also, NHK plans to reveal it’s new 8K 120fps sensor sometime in May.

The incorporation of of 48fps and 120fps content seems fine when one is cruising in a Jetta whilst listening to Coldplay on the way to a viewing of Avatar 2, in the acheivement of a sort of iLife trifecta of all that is slick, cold and dead – but when it comes to real things, like Middle Earth, the new concepts are… not ideal. Likewise, a new consideration for Hollywood in its war on movie piracy might involve talented encodists rendering this 48fps hocus-pocus back down to 24 in a seamless way, just to make things watchable.

The Panasonic Lumix GF5 is fairly close to the GF3–the most recent model–in appearance, but the specs are rumored to vary a bit; a 12MP sensor with “improved signal-to-noise ratio” (read: better low-light performance), a maximum ISO of 12,800, a 920k-dot touch screen and faster AF. The ISO sensitivity range of the GF3 starts at 160 as opposed to 100 in the previous model, the GF2.

The reason the latest model is called the GF5 and not the GF4 is because the number four sounds like the word “death” in Japanese, and it is considered to be unlucky.

Although Angelababy has already taken down the post from her Twitter account, the leak has spread like wildfire around the web and is garnering quite a bit of attention from shutterbugs, who are all speculating on the tech specs of the product.

Here’s the spec’s and features from Panasonic:

Features

 A 1280×720 HD, 5.0 inch LCD screen with a 9.6mm thin frame.
 Slim form factor – 136..
 Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 1.5GHz dual-core processor, Android 4.0.
 International standard IP57 water and dustproofing.
 NFC – allowing for contactless payment and data transfer.
 Main camera with 8MP autofocus and 1080p Full video , including auto scene recognition and 8x digital zoom, as well as a front-facing camera.
 Superfast charging – 50% charge takes just 30 minutes, and 80% takes 57minutes (provided starts charging from a 10% charged status).
 8GB of internal memory, with Micro SD Card Slot supporting a further 32GB.

Specifications

Dimensions – 136 x 70 x 9.6mm
Display – 5,0″, LCD, HD (1280×720), Full Touch screen
Memory – 8 GB integrated memory
Weight – 133g
Battery – 1800 mAh battery
Baseband – GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900, UMTS 900, 2100
Internet Connection – EDGE / HSPA+ / HSDPA14Mbps / HSUPA 6Mbps
Connectivity – Bluetooth 3.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, GPS
USB Connection – USB2.0 High Speed (Micro USB Connector)
Processor – Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor with 1.5GHz dual-core CPU’s
Operating System – Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich)
Camera – 8MP-AF, digital zoom 8x
Video Capability – Full HD (1080p) Record and Playback
NFC – On board
Waterproof & Dustproof – IP57
GB-English Color – Black

General Manager and Head of Mobile Communications at Panasonic System Communications in Europe,Toshiya Matsumura commented on the new phone:

“The ELUGA power is a real landmark for us as it redefines everything a modern smartphone should be. For too long, smartphones have either compromised on looks to embrace new features or dropped functionality in the pursuit of the perfect form. The ELUGA power marks a true turning point – delivering both high performance and high-end style.”

“In developing the ELUGA power, we refused to compromise and remained ambitious. That’s how we’ve managed to deliver the convenience of a 5-inch HD screen and superfast charging, make it water and dustproof, as well as add impressive features like NFC and a 1.5GHz processor. All in a slim, pocket-friendly and stylish smartphone.”

The Eluga is IP 57 certified, meaning that it is water and dust proof, and weighs in at 3.6 ounces. Waterproof, as in it can be completely submerged, and still function. With it’s ultra-thin frame, it has the largest display area ratio around, at 68%. The Eluga also features a 4.3 inch capacitive OLED qHD screen, with a resolution of 960×540. It’s camera is 8 megapixels.

The new device is also NFC ready, a feature rumored to be included with the iPhone 5, which is likewise rumored to be launched in the fall.

Another Eluga feature, besides having a name reminiscent of a type of caviar, is it’s Eco Mode. This function shuts down background applications when the charge is running low, prolonging battery life. It is also said to be capable of operating as a remote control for Panasonic HDTV’s, as a bonus.

The Eluga can be purchased at European Panasonic retailers in April, with pricing to be announced.

Since MySpace has focused its attention on the music world in recent years, MySpace TV’s initial content will be center heavily on music. As the service expands, movies and TV programming – including news, sports, and more – will be included. MySpace TV is intended to work both with broadcast content and on-demand streaming content. Users will be able to invite friends to view with them and to chat about what they’re watching. There will also be MySpace TV apps for smartphone and tablet platforms.

MySpace TV is currently in laptop-based invitation-only closed beta, but is expected to launch in the first half of 2012. It will be available to owners of Panasonic TVs equipped with the VIERA Connect system. People who want into the beta can request an invite from MySpace.

[Source: Panasonic Press Release]

Panasonic’s chairman and CEO Joseph Taylor said that “[f]ull HD 3D is ideal for capturing the true spectacle of Olympic competition and the pageantry of Olympic ceremonies,” and said that the partnership “will deliver to home viewers an unprecedented 3D Olympic experience that will make them feel as though they are right there with the world’s finest athletes as they compete.”

Though it has been fairly popular at the movie theater, 3D technology in homes has been a bit slower to catch on. It is not entirely clear how many people will be able to watch the 3D broadcasts, especially with the events on a delay. It will be interesting to see how this remarkable experiment in 3D broadcasting turns out.

[Source: Panasonic Press Release; Image: Panasonic]

What makes the R1-W so unique is that it appeals to the image-conscious consumer, the consumer who favors practicality, and even the consumer who wants something extra. For the image- conscious, the design is much more sophisticated than other hearing aids and is available in over eight different colors. For the practical consumer, the batteries last over 300 hours and are easily changed. For the gadget fans, the Bluetooth feature can automatically connect the wearer to their phones and can store up to 2 hours and 40 minutes of voice memos. Sounds great for both grandma and grandpa!

Panasonic, a brand familiar to most for its TVs and keyboards, is demonstrating their interest in servicing a different kind of consumer- the consumer with special needs. This makes sense. If you are required to have a gadget on you at all times, why not get the most out of it? Yoshi Yuasa, Senior Vice President of Panasonic Corporation of North America states, “With the new R1-W series, Panasonic has introduced a line of hearing instruments with sound quality design that equals or exceeds anything we have seen in the industry. With Panasonic’s depth of research and design prowess in the audio field, our sights are set on new innovative solutions that are game changers for the end user and the Hearing Care Professional alike.”.

Beginning this Spring, buttons that specify "Netflix" – including some featuring the red Netflix logo – are planned to be on remote controls that operate certain new Blu-ray disc players from a variety of companies including Best Buy’s in-house Dynex brand, Haier, Memorex, Panasonic, Samsung, Sharp, Sony, and Toshiba.  Sharp, Sony, and Toshiba also will place the Netflix one-click button on remote controls for select new Internet-connected TVs.  Remote controls for the Boxee, Iomega and Roku set-top boxes also will feature the Netflix one-click remote.

"For members who want even more convenience when instantly watching TV shows and movies streaming from Netflix, the answer is about to be right in their hands," said Netflix Chief Product Officer Neil Hunt.  

"No more turning on the TV, going to a home screen and searching for the Netflix icon.  With the Netflix one-click remote, it’s simply a matter of pushing the Netflix button to instantly watch any of the vast selection of TV shows and movies available to stream from Netflix."

Netflix said there are now more than 250 Netflix ready devices on the market and it has more than 16 million members in the United States and Canada.