Tethered Photography with the SP3

[slothead]

I notice that in one of the SP4 commercials there is is a woman using the SP4 tethered to her camera (I didn't notice the camera brand). Is there any special capability for the SP3 for tethered photography?

Thanks,

 

[MikeB]

I was just doing this yesterday. I've got an Olympus camera, and Olympus has a tethered photography program that connects via the USB port. You might want a USB extension cable, depending on how far from the camera you will place the PC. I assume that Nikon and Canon have similar capabilities, at least for their higher-end DSLRs. But there's nothing special about the Surface for that, most any laptop that runs Windows and has a USB port would work.

 

[slothead]

Thanks Mike. I guess I'll have to look around for the Nikon application, but I don't know of any right off hand that doesn't cost a few hundred bucks. What is the Olympus application?

 

[romhey]

Nikon application is called "Camera Control Pro". It is commercial and quite expensive but excellent software.

 

[slothead]

I'm very aware of Camera Control Pro and that can be used on any laptop (as far as I know). Personally I use CamRanger with my iPad and it works just fine (so I'm not at all inclined to spend the $$$$ on Camera Control Pro just to make use of another laptop).

So let me rephrase my question: Is there any special capabilities of the SP4 (and SP3) that allows tethering? Or was that Microsoft's false advertising approach (implying that the SP4 could do things other laptops/tablets couldn't)?

 

[jnjroach]

Or was that Microsoft's false advertising approach (implying that the SP4 could do things other laptops/tablets couldn't)?

Microsoft's Ad campaign never states that, it does state that the SP4 is a tablet that can replace your laptop and does state that it is the best tablet for productivity...

 

[slothead]

Microsoft's Ad campaign never states that, it does state that the SP4 is a tablet that can replace your laptop and does state that it is the best tablet for productivity...

Have you seen the ad? They may not state it, but it sure hits home without them saying anything!

 

[jnjroach]

Have you seen the ad? They may not state it, but it sure hits home without them saying anything!

This One?

 

[slothead]

That's the one. It was motivating enough that it made me want one... And then I wondered - why is this any different than what I already have (SP3). So now I'm asking. And so far it sounds like it's not.

 

[jnjroach]

That's the one. It was motivating enough that it made me want one... And then I wondered - why is this any different than what I already have (SP3). So now I'm asking. And so far it sounds like it's not.

It is an evolutionary upgrade, SP3 is a 4th Gen SoC and the SP4 is a 6th Gen SoC, the SP4 has a higher resolution screen, faster SSD, faster RAM, better speakers and better optics. Only you can say if those are worth the price of admission...

 

[slothead]

OK, I think that answers my question. It is not so much some special camera interface feature, but just a collection of reso, RAM, and SSD improvements that MS is touting to claim its better photographic use (and I don't blame them). As for the price of admission, for me, it's not, because I have all that stuff separately. Thanks for the explanation Jeff.

 

[hughlle]

When ms make an advert for the sp4, sp3 owners are not the primary target audience.. I find nothing misleading or deceptive about the ad. It is highlighting that even as a tablet it is fully functional and capable.