Miele, the premium household appliance manufacturer will in April launch an all-new Combination Steam Oven — the Miele DGC 5080 XL — a fully-fledged oven and steam cooker in one appliance. The new oven offers a larger cabinet (39 litre) despite having a height of only 45 cm and demand in Germany has been so high that production targets have had to be increased. It will be available in April 2010.
Anyone familiar with the earlier steam oven models with appreciate the increased cabinet size, achieved by moving the water reservoir from beside the cabinet to a redesigned water-tray above it. This means that baking trays from the larger Miele ovens can be used in this combination model.
The dual functions of the oven can be used separately, or combined for specific cooking requirements.
Other features of the Miele DGC 5080 steam oven include:
Oxygen sensor measures and regulates the amount of steam in the oven
Automatic and Gourmet settings; wireless roast probe
Stainless steel interior surface with non-stick PerfectClean finish
Soak programme for heavy soiling
Finished in fingerprint-resistant CleanSteel
Also available as a plumbed-in model (DGC 5085 XL)
According to Miele, the oven combines
‘all the benefits of steam cooking with the programs and usability of a conventional oven to increase cooking abilities.’
And is:
‘unparalleled for roasting meat’
As it features an oxygen sensor and wireless roast probe to test if meat is moist and properly cooked.
The XL’s cooking abilities are available to cooks of various ability levels as it incorporates a number of automatic and gourmet programmes that allow a gourmet to cook just the way they like it and a hobbyist cook to follow the oven’s instructions and get it just right.
The oven is also available as a plumbed-in model (DGC 5085 XL). Both models go on sale in April.
Miele products have a good reputation for quality and durability and this is reflected in the price of around $3000.
Miele have launched a ‘hybrid’ vacuum cleaner. No, it doesn’t have a gasoline engine but earns its ‘hybrid’ label because, like your laptop, it can be powered either by the mains or by a lithium-ion battery — and switches seamlessly between the two.
I was introduced to the Miele S4812 vacuum cleaner at the new Miele Gallery in West London which is a promotional venue for the company where the Miele vacuum cleaner was put through its paces on an assault course of dirty carpets, food-covered car seats and a stair-case covered in a variety of small household objects.
Concept
First, the hybrid label is nothing to do with the S4812’s ‘eco’-credentials. It’s not about saving electricity as you vacuum your home by switching power sources. The ‘hybrid’ nature of the Miele cleaner is to provide convenience for the user: extending range and allowing the cleaner to be used where no power supply is available or just to prevent power leads from being trailed across the house as you clean.
The Meile S4812 is therefore able to replace conventional full-sized vacuum cleaners as well as miniature ‘dust-devil’-like portable models.
Where the S4812 can claim to be environmentally-friendly is in the newly designed vacuum head which has been optimized for low-wattage cleaning, and a variable suction control so you only use as much power as you need for each floor surface.
The Miele S4812 is base on the S4 vacuum cleaner but with the addition of lithium-ion batteries that can run the cleaner at 600W for up to twenty minutes (compared to 1800W normal operation). This allows you to pull the chord out of the AC supply and carry on cleaning beyond the range of the mains lead (9m). When the cleaner is plugged in again the battery recharges and the user can switch between power sources any time the mains lead is plugged in.
Batteries
The batteries are made to last about ten years and charge in about three hours. Recharging is automatic and there is no need for an external charger. This function is assumed by the so-called AutoLoad function: As soon as mains power is reapplied, the electronic controls check whether the battery is fully charged and, where necessary, begins recharging. A charge indicator provides information on the recharging progress. The battery power remaining is indicated by a series of lights.
Lithium ion batteries are not prone to the memory effect we all know and love on mobile phone batteries so that batteries can be recharged at any time and are always ready for use.
Durability
The casing of the Miele S4812 is of ABS plastic and is said to be able to withstand a load of 100Kg. This was demonstrated to me by a sales representative standing on the casing with no ill effects (although she didn’t look anything like 100Kg!).
The hose is made of a memory material that even after severe stress (see video above) returns to its original form afterwards and does not split even after knotting.
Safety
The underside of the hose handle has an integrated metallic strip which is in direct contact with the hand when cleaning. This is an anti-static strip which prevents the user from receiving static shock from charges that build up from moving the cleaning head back and forth across a carpet.
Cleaning
Cleaning is initiated by pressing the power button on the casing which is large enough to be operated by foot. If the cleaner is plugged in to an AC mains supply the S4812 will operate at 1800W. If it is being run off the battery, 600W. If pushing the head over the floor becomes difficult because of the suction this can be dialled down by rotating a simple control on the back of the casing.
The head of the S4812 has a foot-operated switch which deploys a brush for use on hard floors. This lifts the metallic parts of the head above the floor to prevent scratching. The brushes themselves have a ‘castellated’ profile to allow air to pass under the head and into the cleaner and prevents the cleaner from sucking itself rigidly to the floor!
When you’re done cleaning and un-plug the mains a button on the casing quickly reels in the power lead.
Attachments
The Meile S4812 hybrid vacuum cleaner comes with the following attachments:
Crevice brush — narrow places such as between sofa cushions
Upholstery brush — furniture, curtains, car interiors
Filtration
The Miele hybrid is filtered courtesy of AirClean’s latest generation of HEPA filters. Theses filters have 9 layers of filtering material to minimize amount of dust and pollutants that pass through the system and back out into the room.
The bags are FJM and have an integrated mesh that protects the bag material from sharp objects and prevents splitting.
If that wasn’t enough the bags also incorporate air flow guides so ensure that air and dust reaches all four corners of the bag so you don’t have to change them so often!
Miele recommends changing the filter once for every five bag changes.
Noise
Maximum sound levels are 77 dB and 69 dB for AC and battery operations respectively.
Price
The Meile S4812 will go on sale in March 2010 and is expected to sell at prices from £499, € 770.
Conclusion
The Miele hybrid is based on the Miele S4 vacuum cleaner and inherits the S4’s compact design and relatively low weight. Thanks to hybrid battery and switching technology, Miele’s hybrid is a fully fledged vacuum cleaner when connected to the mains supply but also offers all the freedom of a battery-powered unit in one package. The duration of battery operation depends on the power setting and offers a maximum of 20 minutes of vacuum cleaning.
Canon’s EOS 7D has been around since September so time for a belated hands-on test of its abilities. We got hold of the EOS 7D along with the EFS 18-135mm lens and put it through its paces at Rickmansworth Aquadrome and Oxhey Woods.
The EOS 7D slots between the EOS 50D and the EOS 5D MkII in terms of price and features. In fact, its very similar to the 5D MkII on features except that it uses a smaller sensor (5184 x 3456 against 5616 x 3744). The EOS 7D is priced at up to $1700 while the 50D is around $1000 and the 5D MkII: $2700.
The main features of the EOS 7d are:
18MP APS-C crop sensor (new design)
Continuous shooting at up to 8 fps
Multi-axis cross-type 19-point AF grid
100% viewfinder with 1x magnification
Environmental sealing
LP-E6 battery (same as EOS 5D MkII)
HD video at 1920 x 1080 pixels with frame rates of 24, 25 and 30 fps
Dual Axis Electronic Level
Integrated wireless speedlite control
Manual control of aperture in HD movie mode.
ISO 100-6400 plus “H” (12800)
iFCL metering includes a 63-zone dual-layer metering sensor that reads both illumination and color
Controls
The top screen and dials are in a layout familiar to most Canon camera users and consists of a 10-position dial with the following modes:
C1, C2, C3 – Custom modes allow registration of most of the camera functions, so, for example, you can set C1 to Aperture Priority, ISO 800, Highlight Tone Priority on, Spot metering and Single Shot AF
B – Bulb
M – manual
Av – Aperture Priority
Tv – Shutter Priority
P – Auto (intelligent) program mode sets aperture and shutter speed, but leaves all other camera settings up to the user
CA – creative auto is similar to the green square mode (in fact it defaults to it), but you can bias exposure towards larger or smaller apertures, darker or lighter images
[] = Green Square - is basically a “point and shoot” mode where the camera sets everything for you
On the right of the camera is the monochrome LCD (which can be illuminated), along with buttons for:
ISO selection/FEC (flash exposure compensation)
AF/Drive mode setting and metering mode/white balance setting.
With any one button the main control dial (near the shutter release) sets one parameter while the rear QCD (Quick control dial) sets the other.
Most of the rear of the camera is taken up by the three-inch LCD screen as well as the QCD (the large dial to the right). The button above the QCD acts like a miniature joystick and is used to navigate through the various menus. Near the view-finder is a start/stop button which in camera mode starts and stops LiveView mode (the ability to use the LCD screen as a viewfinder) and in video mode starts and stops recording and playback.
Five buttons down the left hand side of the camera back are:
Menu – this brings up the camera control menus
Picture Style – This allows selection of a picture style setting
Info – This cycles through various information displays which can overlay or replace an image
Playback – used to recall and image or movie
Delete – used to delete files
Autofocus
Canon has introduced a completely new AF system for the EOS 7D. Its a 19-zone system divided into three regions the centre of which is a high precision sensor based on the AF system of the EOS 5D which can also detect horizontal and vertical lines. The basic AF system requires lenses of f5.6 and faster and the high-precision system requires f2.8 or faster.
In auto mode the EOS 7D can either select from all 19 AF zones or the user can restrict the camera to one or more of the regions (right, left, top, bottom, centre). Using the custom function III-12 different region selections can be used for different camera orientations.
the EOS 7D introduces “Spot AF Mode” which allows the user to select any of the 19 zones and reduce the size down to a smaller area to further restrict the autofocus area. The 7D also has focus point expansion previously only available on 45-point models such as the 1D. This allows one point to be the primary autofocus point but surrounding points are also used.
Resolution
The EOS 7D has the highest pixel density of ant APS-C DSLR, which is to say it has the highest pixel count (18MP) and the smallest pixels (4.3 micron pixel pitch). This is theoretically great for cropping but may result in more noise. The images below show an example of tight cropping (click on any of the images below for the full-size version)
In use
In general landscape or portrait images the EOS 7D had no trouble making sense of the scene and focussing accordingly.
Zooming in on the higher branches in this image we can see that the autofocus seems to have compromised between some of the nearest objects as the primary focus point as none are particularly sharp.
Conclusions
The most significant feature of the EOS 7D is the autofocus system although our tree photo seems to have caught it out. The new 19-point system incorporates features that will appeal to those doing action or macro-photography. The 7D also features upgrades to the metering, processing, optical viewfinder, and flash system.
The new 18 megapixel CMOS sensor and expanded ISO range produce virtually no visible noise at all from ISO 100 all the way up to ISO 1600 so Canon has managed to increase image quality despite the relatively small sensor.
For the ‘prosumer’ camera buyer the Canon EOS 7D probably has every feature you would want for the next few years and even that wouldn’t be enough to discover everything it can do. The EOS 7D occupies a slot between the EOS 50D and the EOS 5D MkII but given the feature advantage over the MkII and the likely lowering of the price in the near future the Canon EOS 7D is going to be a ‘must buy’.
The day has come and all the Apple Tablet rumours that have built up over the last decade will finally be justified — or dashed as many rumours before.
Concept
Apple had two conceptual roads that they could have gone down. They could design the iPad to be a larger version of the iPhoneA closed system on which you can only run apps which come pre-installed with the product or which you download from the AppStore. Or they could simply make it a laptop with a virtual keyboard. Well, it’s pretty clear from the above image which way thy went!
Introduction
Steve Jobs comes onto the stage to rapturous applause — a little older looking but fill with contagious excitement as he ever is at these events. First he briefs us with some corporate numbers and comparisons with competitor companies but then he gets to point… the new Apple device. An image of a tablet appears over his head very similar to images leaked by various sites in the past few months:
