In Search of Radio's Future

In Search of Radio's Future - the trailer from Jonathan Marks on Vimeo.

For the last five years I have been doing interviews with people around the world tracing radio's switch from analogue to digital production. These are challenging times for the medium, the future seems to be different for every single country. This documentary in the making takes some case studies explaining where radio understands it's role in society, and therefore why it's needed in the future. Interested when it's ready? Drop me an e-mail and be the first to know.

Wooden Radios

It takes 16 hours to make a wooden radio by hand. That, at least, is the story from South-East Asia. I remember reading about the ultimate minimalist wooden radio designed by Indonesian artist Singgih Kartono sometime last year. I was reminded by a follow-up article in British Airways' Business Magazine this week.

The story wasn't so much about the technology inside (which was simply a good but basic analogue AM/FM circuit in the first model), but the fact that the radio uses sustainably harvested pine wood and palisander/sonokeling. There's no dial...you feel your way across the dial. Designer Singgih (photo below) wanted to revitalize local craft industries, gradually creating jobs for up to 30 people who were making simple high-quality handicraft products. The workshop is in Temanggung in Central Java.

Singgih Kartono adds more details about the sustainability side of the project in a company brochure.

As a wood consumer, I feel morally responsible towards replacing the woods that I have used. This will ensure that all manufacturing activities that I conducted would not destroy the nature. I do this by re-planting every single tree that I’ve used from the forest. The amount of wood replanted and selected is based on our yearly wood consumption, suitable age for wood to be grown and cut, and the requirement of land per tree. We estimated that for the 40 people we could employ, we could have replanted one to two hectares of land with our selected wood. Currently, Kandangan has almost no forest land. The population is about 4.000 people.If we are to employ the whole population of Kandangan, we will abolish unemployment but most importantly, for every people we employ, we will generate more woods through our forest regeneration programs. Additionally, based on our current income, we receive USD 2.500-3.000 per month; enough to sustain 10 employees.

With regards to the forest regeneration, on the top of preparing our own tree saplings, we are also in collaboration with Gunung Sumbing (Mountain Sumbing) junior high school. We work together with the school to create a practical curriculum within the field of environmental generation. Four months ago, the students from this school have helped us to grow trees from seeds. Currently, these seeds have grown into 1.000 young trees that are ready to be planted. We are planning to have these trees replanted around the school area. The students want to have schools that are surrounded by trees. All this activities are funded through a part of our sales income.

My production company, Piranti Works, has 30 employees. They are locals. We are in the process of extending our workshop so it is able to employ around 50 employees. They will use only around 50 to 100 trees per year. The remaining 2.200sqm lands that I own are used as a tree nursery, where I will distribute free trees to the villagers. I purposely distribute these trees freely as I want to teach the villagers that the right economy activity will give positive contribution towards sustainable environment.


There's a German website, based in Hamburg, that has the distribution rights for Europe. The German language version of the site goes into more detail, explaining that this model weighs 955 grams, and is 19.1 by 11.7 by 13.5 cm in size. It works off 4 AA penlights and the radios are made to order for the price of 149 Euros, plus 5 Euros postage in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The radios are sent sea mail via Singapore, which takes up to six weeks. A small stock is held in Germany.

There will be a slight modification to the radio sets as from mid October 2008. A DC input has been added for a external 3V DC power supply (not included. The new version of Magno radio also has a socket on the back which allows you to connect any MP3 player and listen to it via the radio's mono speaker. Since this is wood rather than plastic, it apparently sounds great (haven't heard it myself). The price then will be around 160 Euros.




Towards the end of the year, a new "Mango Cube" wooden radio is also due. This has two short-wave bands on it, as well as AM/FM and is supposed to start shipping around November 1, 2008. This one also has a dial - though we're not sure what calibration will be like. A site in the US is now taking pre-orders for this radio at US$250 excluding shipping. This looks like a work of art - and it is priced accordingly. I wonder what sales would be like if they made the price 175 Dollars?

UPDATE: Oliver Errichiello in Hamburg, who is the main driver behind the project in Indonesia sent me the following comment after this post was published. "I think it is realistic to say that we will start selling the Cube in early 2009 in Europe. The price will be about 180 Euros. This assumes that the testing and roll out in the USA and Canada late this year goes well.

Sony HDR-TG7VE - small video camera with GPS

Sony announced today a new Handycam®, the HDR-TG7VE which they claim to be the world’s smallest, lightest Full HD camcorder with GPS. I'm looking for something light with good quality to be able to capture interviews in hd quality, often at short notice. Could this be the answer? The blurb reads...

Inside there’s a 16 GB memory that stores up to 6 hours of Full HD video and stereo sound from an on-board mike positioned at the top. If you want to shoot for even longer without downloading to a laptop, you'll need to buy an optional Memory Stick™. There’s a sensitive GPS receiver inside that plots your location as you travel. After shooting, Map Index shows where clips and still photos were taken as ‘map pins’ on the LCD screen. You can also retrace your journey when you’re back home, with exciting on-line maps displayed on your PC using the supplied Picture Motion Browser software.

Shooting controls are pared down to a minimum. It’s easy to switch instantly between video or stills mode: just press REC Start/Stop for video, or touch the adjacent PHOTO button with your thumb and you’re ready to grab 4 megapixel still photos. >These days, 4 megapixels doesn't sound like much when even my cheap cybershot has 7.




The high-resolution 2.7-inch LCD touchscreen now features a 'seamless' design, with a newly-simplified menu system. The power is ON as soon as you flip open the LCD, and start-up from standby is quicker than before, so there’s less risk of missing an important moment. Just flip open the LCD touchscreen and you’re ready to start shooting in a fraction of a second. Standby power consumption is also improved to almost zero, letting you keep the TG7VE ready for action in a pocket or bag with less battery drain. Sony doesn't say how long the batteries last if you keep the GPS functionality switched on.


After shooting, connect the TG7VE to your PC, and quick uploads to image-sharing web sites are just a few mouse clicks away. Easy-to-use Picture Motion Browser software
(supplied) lets you manage and browse your clips and still shots in a calendar view. Shots and clips can also be uploaded without fuss to popular sites like YouTube™, Facebook, Flickr and Daily Motion.

This new camera is in a different price league to its competitors from Kodak and Flip. I had hoped Sony would be different by offering an option to connect an external microphone. That option does not seem to be there, yet it would cost only a few pennies to implement.

So this camera, coming to stores in Europe for 900 Euro sometime in May 2009, whilst it has a very useful GPS facility, more and more important in many of my location based projects. However, I have my concerns about the sound quality. Since you can always shoot less than perfect video with great sound, (but never the other way round), I am curious to see and hear what recordings look like when they have been made on a city street. I will reserve full judgement until we're able to test a sample.



Handycam® HDR-TG7VE Manufacturers Specification table
Movie format HD: AVCHD, SD: MPEG2
Recording media 16 GB internal memory (increased with optional Memory Stick™)
Image Device 1/5” Exmor CMOS Sensor with ClearVid Array
Number of Megapixels (Gross) 2.3 Megapixels
Number of Megapixels (Photo) 4 Megapixels
Image Processor BIONZ
Lens Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar
Zoom 10x Optical, 120x Digital
SteadyShot Yes
Audio System Dolby Digital Stereo with Zoom Microphone
Automatic Geotagging by GPS Yes
Face Detection / Smile Shutter Yes / Yes
Highlight Playback Yes
LCD Type 2.7” Wide Clear Photo LCD plus
Body Size/ Weight *without Memory Stick™/Battery (g) 62(D) x 117(H) x 30(W) / 230g

Rose Schuman's Question Box

The Question Box - Rose Schuman from Jonathan Marks on Vimeo.

I was delighted to meet Rose Schuman, a young graduate of Brown University of Rhode Island, and now travelling the world from her base in California. You don't have to travel far in India or Africa to find places where Internet access is out of the question, especially in villages where mains electricity and ADSL are in short supply. Now there's a series of practical trials to try to change that.

Rose has called it the Question Box. In the Indian villages of Ethida and Poolpur, a few hours from New Delhi, they have installed a simple system for getting information online. Now this trial is to be adapted and expanded in Uganda.

Rose explains in this interview at SxSW how they have tackled the problem of access to relevant information. As community radio starts to become more widespread in India, I can see the radio station providing the portal in local languages, and broadcasting the answers to FAQ's over the radio.

Kids Podcasting Kit for Africa?

I plan to test one of these to see whether it (or something like it) could be useful for a community radio station project in Africa. The kids are looking for something cheap and easy to use in interviewing their parents. The so called "Easi-Speak" lets you record directly into the microphone. The same device can be used to playback remotely or you can download your files straight to your PC through the attached USB. I think the 128MB memory is on the small size, especially if you pick WAV rather than the MP3 format. At the same time, having a limited memory does encourage you to get to the point, rather than trying to save an interview in post-production.

The microphone (retailing in the UK for 25 quid) comes with a copy of the Audacity Music Editing Software (this is open source) and it doesn't need a battery, since that is charged through the USB.The good news is that it will record directly into the MP3 format without the need for conversion software and it would appear the buttons are large enough for young children to use.

This microphone has been around for a few months, but I see the 128MB version is only just appearing (was 64MB).

Thanks to the ever resourceful Podcast Princess, Karin Hogh, in Denmark for the tip.

HP Mini HP-2133 for the mobile audio reporter

I am currently very interested in what's happening in the low-cost, light mini-laptop market. If you're reporting from the field, every gram counts against you. This useful review by Shawn Powers of the Linux Journal persuaded me to wait. The HP-2133 has now arrived in Europe priced in Holland at €465,- ex VAT including Vista Business (other configurations available, including Linux). Compared to the Eee-PC, I think HP has come up with a better built device, as well as a larger screen.

The laptop comes with a standard battery which works for around 2.25 hours. There's an extended battery as an optional extra.

The 92% key-pad means the keypad is only slightly smaller than a full-size keyboard. This is a GREAT keyboard if you write a lot. The on-board speakers are loud - useful if you're doing some sound editing and don't want to use headphones. Skype audio seems to work fine. The screen has full resolution too - better than the Eee-PC.

The Dance Powered Phone, Radio & Battery Charger

The UK branch of the French mobile phone company Orange has announced the launch of a mobile phone charger prototype that is powered by dance energy! Working with renewable energy specialists, GotWind, who were also responsible for last year’s Orange Wind Charge and this year’s Orange ReCharge Pod, Orange also commissioned research into a kinetic energy portable phone charger that would harness the energy created by festival revellers dancing to their favourite bands to ensure a clean and renewable energy source.

Whilst the research of the Orange and GotWind team is still in its infancy and continues to be developed, Orange has already built fully functioning prototype models of the Dance Charge that were tested at this year’s Glastonbury Festival, taking place at Worthy Farm in Pilton, Somerset last week.

The Dance Charge prototype weighs in at only 180 grams. It is approximately the same size as a pack of cards and the same weight as a mobile phone. The Dance Charge unit comes encased in an elasticated, black, neoprene strap with Velcro attachments which is attached over the wearer’s bicep in a similar fashion to a runner’s arm-mounted mp3 player.

As the user moves their arms along to the music – a specially designed system of weights and magnets, similar to that found in kinetic energy watches, creates an electrical current which provides a top-up of charge to a storage battery. So whilst festival goers are out dancing to their favourite bands, the charger stores dance generated power in the reservoir battery, ready for when they return to their tent each night to recharge their phone.

Ben Jandrell from Shropshire, UK founded Gotwind in 2006 with the purpose of sharing his 25 years experience in the design and making of small scale renewable energy projects, focusing in particularly on wind and solar power.

Ben launched his website http://www.gotwind.org initially as a hobby to share his passion with the world, as renewable energy has become more and more prevalent, Gotwind and its unique DIY approach has received a lot of interest worldwide.

Personally I see an application in Africa, not only for dancers but simply for people who walk a lot as part of their trade and have a need to be connected - either through a mobile phone or the FM radio inside around 25% of all mobile phones sold in that region of the world. No word on the cost.

All this reminds me that in 2001 the inventor of the wind-up radio, Trevor Baylis completed a 100 mile walk across the Namibian Desert demonstrating some electric Shoes and raising money for the Mines Advisory Group. The "electric shoes" used piezoelectric contacts in the heels to charge a small battery that can be used to operate a radio transceiver or cellular telephone. The shoes were invented by Dr Jim Gilbert, a lecturer in engineering at Hull University, who was asked to develop an idea by Trevor Baylis, But I don't think the Electric Shoe Company managed to make the idea into a commercial product.

When the Going Gets Tough, the Sansa Clip

This is a small multifunction recorder/player that fits in the palm of a small child's hand! It comes with 1 GB, 2GB, 4GB, 8GB and 32GB Flash memory. Initially, the 2 GB version was priced at around 60 Euros, but as the new 8 and 32GB versions have come out, so the 2GB version has been dumped into special offer already for around 20 Euros. This would make an idea second or emergency voice recorder for use in the field, especially for recording long events like press conferences. You can also imagine it being used in more clandestine settings for investigative reporting. The audio quality of music playback is superb as well. It also features:

* 4-line, 2-colour OLED screen
* FM tuner with 40 channels (you can make presets or scan. There is frequency readout so you are not tuning in the blind.
* Voice recording with built-in microphone - excellent fidelity, better than you'd expect.
* 92dB signal-to-noise ratio
* Formats: MP3, WMA (including protected), Audible
* Battery life of the internal rechargeable battery: 15 hours
* Dimensions: 2.2" x 1.4" x 0.5"

Despite its small size SanDisk has included a number of extra features that distinguish it from its main competition, the iPod Shuffle and Creative Zen Stone. Most notably is the inclusion of the 4-line OLED screen that lets you browse through your audio collection and toggle settings from the player itself. Alongside the radio functionality is the ability to record FM broadcasts off the internal FM radio, and record interviews through the integrated microphone. All recordings are saved in the WAV file format.

On the format side the standard formats are supported, but no support in some of the older versions for some of the less popular audio formats such as Ogg Vorbis. The Sansa Clip was released on October 9, 2007. The player has a similar design to the second-generation iPod shuffle, but the clip is removable and a 4-line OLED screen is built-in (one line orange-ish yellow, three blue.) The Clip has an FM tuner/recorder (optional in Europe) and a built-in microphone. The flash-based player ships in capacities of 1 GB (available only in black), 2 GB (available in black, blue, red and pink), and 4 GB, 8 and 32 GB (available in reflective silver).

Firmware version 01.01.29, released in May 2008, enables Ogg Vorbis compatibility for the Sansa Clip. However, OGG comment (the counterpoint of MP3's ID3-tags) support is still buggy.

Support for Audible audio books, and protected WMA support are both notable features of the Clip. It also integrates with Rhapsody's subscription service available in the USA and lets you mark songs so they are automatically purchased next time you sync the player with your computer.

One con: The internal battery can only be charged through a USB port, or from a separate USB charger. No quick battery changes here, so keep it charged.

The new firmware is free and has various bug fixes, including key fixes listed below, as well as enhancements. Upon completion of the firmware upgrade, the device will turn off. Power on the device to complete the upgrade process. If the device does not initiate or complete, press & hold the Power switch for 6 seconds to reset the device and then release and press again to restart.

Bugs Fixed:

Rhapsody Licenses
· Rhapsody licenses expire early.

Battery Indicator
· Battery indicator is not linear with respect to the play time remaining.

Fast Forward / Rewind Long MP3
· Device will skip to next song if fast forward past halfway through a long vbr mp3 file.

Genre (Tag Encoding)

· Same file with same genre appears twice regardless of the format (mp3 or wma).

FM Autoscan
· Device does not return to FM tuner display after scanning for stations.

Custom EQ Settings· Custom EQ settings get cleared after power cycle.

Miscellaneous Deleting files on the device is not stable.

Enhancements:

* Device highlights “Play Previous” after returning to Music from FM playback
* Increased Brightness for 4 GB devices for better reading under the sun.
* Added OGG-Vorbis (*.ogg) Decoder Support in MTP and MSC mode:
• Note: PC with WMP10 will not be able to drag and drop OGG files to device under MTP mode
• Workaround: Install WMP11 to PC or use MSC mode instead.
* Audiobooks and Podcasts sorting and resume features:
• Content placed in Audiobook or Podcast Folders are now accessed separately from Music.
• Content with Genre tags of "Audiobook" or "Podcast" are now handled from any location and sorted by the UI.
• PodCasts and Audiobooks are now organized by 2 level hierarchies.
• Podcast content is sorted with newest episode first.
• Auto Bookmark: will prompt the user with "Resume?" or "Restart" option when restarted.
* Much better shuffle algorithm to maintain the sequence of up to 2000 songs. User can skip to the previously played songs without reshuffling. Sequence is preserved after power off and on.
* Handle playlists up to 1000 songs. Fixed playlists with large count taking long time to load.
• Note: Playlist limited to 1000 songs only applied to .pla playlist. For .m3u playlist, there is no limitation.
* Battery power percentage is now displayed on the “Settings > System Info” screen.
* Device auto powers off if the radio is paused / muted.
* Add support for Melon SKT (South Korea Telecom) MusicDRM v1.4 (For Korea market).
* Performs faster, more complete MTP Format operation.

Sanyo Xacti HD1000 & HD1100

Jancam in action with Sanyo Xacti HD1000 from Jan van der Meer on Vimeo.

There is an even better handheld HD Camera coming out next month, the Sanyo HD1010. The new camera also has slow-motion capabilities. But these guys on the Dutch North Sea coast are doing great work for videographers.



I like the Sanyo HD cameras because they have an input for an external microphone (unlike some Sony HD handhelds for around the same price. Why don't manufacturer's understand the necessity of good sound? I understand that by using a wifi-enabled memory card, you can quickly and easily download files from the camera. No tapes needed, just a large memory card.

Boomstick 360

Now this is interesting for some video reportage experiments

The Boomstick360 costs 169 dollars in its standard version (sports version slightly cheaper). It claims to be a safe, secure way to capture unique, intense and memorable video moments. Made with High Grade Anodized Aluminum with Stainless Steel Lock Pins, and flexible composite shims, Boomstick360 attaches to any round tube or shaft with a diameter of up to 2 inches. They include shims to help you attach to smaller diameters. Boomstick products will attach to any camera with a tripod inlet on the bottom. At only 2.2 lbs., this light weight durable mounting system will provide you with unlimited possibilities.

For what I hear you cry? Attaching a video camera to a bike, hang-glider, motorbike. Once positioned, the Boomstick 360 allows the camera to record angles previously impossible while riding. Perhaps the most impressive is the “handlebar looking back at rider” view. Due to the flexibility in the system, expect footage to roll smoothly even over terrain that would normally appear shaky or downright jarring. The video below comes from the manufacturer

Tascam DR1

Tascam in the US have just released an interesting little portable flash recorder that uses SD-cards (1 GB included in the price). I guess designed for the music industry, but we're interested to see how it will fair for journalists and podcasters. Costs US$299 in the US, which is rather cheap in Euro land. Cannot imagine importers will sell it for that in the Netherlands. But we shall see. Below is the manufacturer's blurb...have not yet tested it independently. Thanks to Pierre-Yves Mutrux in Austria for the tip.

* Portable, Handheld Recording
* Built-in High-quality Stereo Condenser Microphone
* Variable Angle Microphone Mechanism with A/B Configuration
* 48 or 44.1kHz 24-bit Recording Resolution
* MP3 and WAVE file Recording and Playback
* Switchable Low Cut Filter
* Analog Auto Gain Control
* Analog Limiter
* Rechargeable/Replaceable Lithium-Ion Battery
* USB 2.0 Connection to Computer
* Built-in Tuner and Vocal Cancel Features
* Overdub Feature to record narration, singing or instruments over an existing recording
* 1/8" stereo microphone input with 2.3V power
* 1/8" stereo line input
* 1/4" stereo microphone input
* 1/8" stereo headphone output
* WAV recording resolution: 44.1kHz/48kHz, 16-bit or 24-bit
* MP3 recording rate: 32-320 kbps
* Battery life: About 7 hours when recording MP3 format with the built- in mic (varies with operating conditions)
* Dimensions (not including protrusions):
o 70 (W) x 27 (H) x 135.3 (D) (mm)
o 2.8 (W) x 1.1 (H) x 5.3 (D) (inches)
* Weight: 208 g (7.34 ounces) including battery

Panasonic Toughbook

Its been some time since I have seen the Panasonic Toughbook range, but the latest versions have got the point that they are ideal for (photo) journalists operating in tough terrain. They are in the 3000 Euro range, which is a lot for a laptop these days, but then you can continue writing out in the rain. I once saw someone who tried to test such a computer by throwing into a swimming pool. Bit like putting it in a blender - not a good idea. It's shower proof and the various outlets are protected against moisture - but not designed to be submerged. The spec for the hard-drive is on the slow side for fast video editing, erring on the side of robustness rather than speed. The screen can be swivelled around and is bright enough to be usable in quite bright sunlight. Options exist to remove the hard-drive easily, so that different users can swap disks, complete with the Windows Vista operating system.

Edirol R-09HR Spotted

The new Edirol is out but apparently heavily back ordered. Spotted this at a call-centre exhibition last week in Utrecht. This recorder was being used to record conversations between stockbrokers using mobiles - as a record in case of later disputes.

Snapper Audio Tool Updated

If you edit audio on the Mac, with something like Pro-Tools then the latest version of Snapper is worth getting. It allows you to manipulate audio very quickly and send off entire files (or bits of them) as MP3 files to e-mails. A new version was released today and I like the fact that they offer a 100 day trial so you can really test it out before you part with your hard-earned cash. I'm guessing a Dutch connection from the name "Peter Bakker", though I guess they're on the West Coast of the US rather than the West Coast of Europe. Check out the 100 second demo.

Packshot Creator

A French company makes this photo-studio in a box, selling it as a complete solution for people who run shops from their home (e.g. selling on E-Bay). It is a fast way to make a product shot that give enough detail and which looks professional. There's a version which has what looks like a microwave turntable inside to made 360 shots. You can't buy the light-box on its own - you have to buy the camera and the software as well....at least that's what the Dutch dealership told me. I was impressed by the quality and the compactness of the studio. Would be interested myself (to be able to photo equipment I have tested) but don't need the camera. I can imagine this might be useful for broadcasters making websites who want to photograph small objects to illustrate articles, perhaps avoiding high copyright charges on agency material.