April 2011

Toshiba offers waterproof US$150 HD vidcam
With Cisco dropping the popular Flip video cameras, for which housings were available from several sources, watersport enthusiasts now have to look elsewhere for inexpensive HD video hardware. One alternative is Toshiba's pocket-sized waterproof Camileo BW10 camcorder that can shoot full HD 1080p video up to six and a half feet under water, good enough for snorkeling and more. The BW10 had a 2-inch display, HDMI output, 10X digital zoom, SDHC card storage and you can also take 5mp still pics with it. [See Toshiba Camileo BW10] -- Posted Monday, April 25, 2011 by chb

DEMA brainstorms about future of scuba industry
A good number of DEMA members and other industry representatives attended Vision 2020 sessions, hosted by Beneath the Sea 2011, to talk about the dive industry and where they see it in 5 or 10 years. Most commonly mentioned: The importance of scuba retailers and supporting them; the need to listen to divers and tailor products and programs to their wants and needs; more “face time” between new divers and instructor/store personnel, as well as putting fun activities back into diving; a need to better embrace the internet and leverage it to the industry’s advantage; use and benefit from social media. Our take: These are noble goals, but they describe what should have happened five or ten years AGO, and not IN five or ten years. -- Posted Monday, April 4, 2011 by chb