motion sensors

Professional thieves beware! In addition to motion sensors, security cameras, flood lights, rent-a-cops and Doberman pinchers, there’s a new piece of technology designed specifically to ruin your day. And to make matters worse, it’s invisible. Well, not exactly invisible, but stare right at it and you won’t realize it’s there. Worried? Thanks to a novel new motion sensor developed by the Fraunhofer Institutes for Applied Polymer Research IAP in Potsdam-Golm, Germany, you should be.

The smaller your camera, the more susceptible it is to even the slightest tremble, which can leave your photos looking like Impressionist paintings. Fortunately, optical image stabilization has trickled down from pro cams to the shake-prone pocket models. The cameras use motion sensors to detect any quiver and move a piece of the lens to compensate for it. I tested three in the most blur-inducing scenarios: in low light without a flash-the slow shutter speed gives you more time to twitch-and at full zoom, which magnifies shake.