Gadgets: New Pentax for outdoors

The rugged new Pentax Optio W90 looks as if it belongs on a mountainside (thanks to its included carabiner), but its most notable features can be useful to the less adventurous.

Its Digital Microscope mode enables photographers to capture images of objects that are less than an inch away. Three LED lights surround the lens to provide lighting for these extreme macro shots. It also has a new trick that several other camera makers have added this year: In addition to face-recognition technology that can register as many as 32 faces, the W90 includes pet recognition that can find and enhance images of up to three dog or cat faces. You can set the camera to automatically snap the shutter when the pet turns its face toward the camera.

The Optio W90 can snap photos in water down to 20 feet and operate in the cold to 14 degrees Fahrenheit. It has a resolution of 12.1 megapixels and a 28-to-140 mm (equivalent) lens with 5X optical zoom. It can capture 720p high-definition video at 30 frames a second. The camera ships in April.

Dying to be the first on your block (or the first in the United States) to get a new 3-D TV? Sears and Amazon.com are taking orders for two Samsung 3-D-ready LCD TVs: the $2,600 46-inch UN46C7000, and the $3,300 55-inch UN55C7000 models.

For those who predicted that 3-D TVs would cost much more than regular models, the prices may be a surprise. The new sets cost about the same as Samsung's regular LCD HDTVs of the same size.

While the TVs require active-shutter glasses to see the 3-D effect (when 3-D television becomes available at some point), neither model, at least for now, bundles glasses with the TV. So expect to shell out at least $50 more when you need the 3-D specs.

Amazon.com and Sears are charging the same price, but in most states, Amazon.com doesn't charge sales tax and is offering the sets with free shipping.