-- Top News Stories -- Agfa Recalls ePhoto CL30 AC Adapters Canon Micro Bubble Jet Camera Our Canon EOS D30 review posted Digita Powers MediaMapper GPS Epson Intros New Flatbed Scanners Epson Photo 875DCS w/Memory Stick Drive Fujifilm FinePix 4900 Zoom Ships Hoodman Hoodcap for Nikon D1 HP PhotoSmart C315 and C215 Inviso's eShades and eCase Micro-Displays Iomega FotoShow Review Posted Iomega Ships FotoShow Imaging System IrfanView 3.25 now has Luratech compression Kaidan Products for QuickTime VR Cubic Kodak DC290 Dental Kit Kodak DC3200 Affordable 1-megapixel NikonCapture / NikonView DX for Windows ME Nikon extends Coolpix 950/800 rebates Nikon MC-EU1 Remote NikonView 3.1.1 Updates Ocean Brite Imports Olympus U/W Case Sunpack Digital Flash Viking Components 256 MB CompactFlash See the September 2000 archive page for many more new camera announcements.

10-31-2000

UMAX to Photoshop 6.0 With Select Professional Scanners FREMONT, Calif., October 31, 2000 - UMAX Technologies, Inc. today reconfirmed its commitment to excellence in the graphic arts market by being the first scanner manufacturer to include Adobe Photoshop 6.0 in its Design and Pro Design software bundles for Macintosh or Windows. Purchasers of new UMAX PowerLook series professional scanners will be able to take immediate advantage of the next-generation image editing features in Photoshop 6.0. Adobe Photoshop 6.0 will be included in the following UMAX professional scanner bundle packages: PowerLook III with Design Win or Design Mac bundle - SRP $999 PowerLook III with Pro Design Win or Pro Design Mac bundle - SRP $1399 PowerLook 1100 with Design Win or Design Mac bundle - SRP $1199 PowerLook 1100 with Pro Design Win or Pro Design Mac bundle - SRP $1599 PowerLook 2100XL with Design Win or Design Mac bundle - SRP $1599 PowerLook 2100XL with Pro Design Win or Pro Design Mac bundle - SRP $1999 PowerLook 3000 with Pro Design Win or Pro Design Mac bundle - SRP $6999 Customers who purchase a UMAX PowerLook series scanner with Photoshop 5.5 between August 28, 2000 and January 31, 2001 are eligible to receive a complimentary upgrade to Adobe Photoshop 6.0.

10-31-2000

Club Photo Announces Online Photo Sharing and Finishing for APS Camera Users SAN JOSE, Calif., October 31, 2000 - Club Photo(tm) Inc. announced today that its leading film processing and sharing services are fully compatible with APS (Advanced Photographic System) film. Now photographers who prefer the convenience and flexibility of APS can combine its advanced formatting features with the simplicity of Club Photo's leading online sharing and print ordering process. With the inclusion of APS film processing, Club Photo has continued its leadership in integrated Internet sharing and prints ordering for both digital and film based photographers. APS cameras are unique because they enable photographers to choose between classic, wide-angle and panoramic formats for each picture at the time of capture. Club Photo is the first APS-friendly service that maintains the integrity of the original picture and format from capture all the way through to sharing and ordering. Once published into the user's personal site, Club Photo also allows users to not only preview the photos in the original format, but also enables them to alter the size and format of each image, in real time, prior to ordering prints or sharing them in a personal photo album. By transforming photography into a sharing-driven experience, Club Photo now enables everyday APS or 35mm film camera users to easily share and enjoy their favorite pictures with friends and family all over the world. There is no need to scan the images or upload high-resolution images over a modem line. It only takes a few clicks of the mouse to instantly preview, share and order prints. The Club Photo processing service costs only $1 per roll of film. Customers can order the mailers from www.clubphoto.com and simply send in the film for immediate processing. Club Photo uploads high-resolution pictures into a dedicated Web page where users can preview and order only the pictures they want - the negatives are automatically returned by mail. With a few simple clicks of the mouse, users select which photos they want to share in their free online photo album, and begin instantly enjoying those special moments with friends and family.

10-31-2000

Callisto Releases Photo Viewer by PhotoParade Natick, Mass., October 31, 2000 -- Callisto Corporation today announced the release of Photo Viewer by PhotoParade, an indispensable program for displaying and managing digital photos (JPEGs). The program is a useful tool for anyone who has accumulated a lot of photo files from their digital camera or scanner. Photo Viewer by PhotoParade allows users to browse all the photo files in a folder, display them full size, rotate them with no loss of information, turn any photo into their desktop wallpaper, view metadata (date and time taken, shutter speed, aperture, and resolution) if available, rename files and delete unwanted photos. "As avid digital camera users, we quickly realized how easy it is to amass thousands of photo files, and how hard it is to view and manage them," said Mike Barta, CEO of Callisto. "We developed Photo Viewer by PhotoParade because we thought consumers needed a fast and easy-to-use tool for viewing their digital photos." Photo Viewer by PhotoParade is available now for purchase and download directly from the PhotoParade web site www.PhotoParade.com for $12.99. Photo Viewer by PhotoParade runs on Microsoft® Windows® 95, Windows 98, Windows Me and Windows 2000.

10-31-2000

Canon's New Micro Bubble Jet Camera From the CanonExpo 2000 in Paris comes word (and a picture) of their new Micro Bubble Jet Camera that incorporates a miniature inkjet printer. No specifications on the camera's resolution or lens or the printer's resolution either but it looks very interesting. To quote Canon: "We asked ourselves, is there no way to build a printer into a small, lightweight digital camera?" a company statement read. "The answer was found in our Bubble Jet printing technologies, which offer low power consumption and compactness combined with our high-density packing technologies and the idea to build the printer engine into the camera and the ink in a separate Ink Paper Pack." The Ink Paper Pack houses credit card-size sheets of printing paper and Bubble Jet ink to allow photo printing immediately after a shot is taken. In addition, a microphone mounted on the digital camera picks up six seconds of sound. What's neat about the audio is that it's stored as a 2D barcode printed along the edge of the print which contains the audio data of the attached sound clip. With another device, users could scan the barcode and transfer the audio to your desktop PC. The camera features both USB connectivity, and CompactFlash storage. Interesting concept, particularly the method of reproducing the sounds. Although Canon has made it pretty clear this product is more than just a conceptual idea, the company has given no clear indication as to when it might be a reality for consumers.

10-30-2000

Iomega FotoShow Review Posted If you're looking for a special present for that digicam-loving friend of yours or yourself them maybe this is it. Check out our Iomega FotoShow review. This is a photo viewing, editing and sharing device that can operate with just a TV set, no computer required, uses standard 100MB or 250MB ZIP disks, has both a CompactFlash Type II and SmartMedia card slot and lets you copy files from these cards to the ZIP disks. When it isn't doing any of those tasks it can serve as your external ZIP drive on any USB-enabled Windows or Mac PC.

10-28-2000

Other Digicam Reviews Posted Outback Photo posted the beginnings of his Canon EOS D30 review and is also working on a Kodak DCS660 revew too. Jeff at DC Resource has posted his Panasonic PV-SD5000 review We also posted a Panasonic PV-SD5000 review this week.

10-27-2000

Canon EOS D30 Review Posted It's been a busy week but I have managed to find more than enough time to evaluate (and enjoy) the new Canon EOS D30. It's just now appearing in stores here in N. America and all I can say is if you want one for Christmas you better get on a list now, this baby is going to sell as fast as they can receive them. For all the details and a lot of sample photos check out my Canon D30 review.

10-27-2000

Kodak To Invest At Least $100 Million In Internet Startups Over Next 18 Months Even as Daniel Carp, chief executive officer of Eastman Kodak Co., insists it's the economy that has dragged his 120-year-old company into the doldrums, he still acknowledges that digital photography is quickly supplanting film, according to a report from Redherring.com. On the heels of a disappointing third quarter, Carp announced a corporate restructuring this week (reported in Tuesday's edition of Newsline International). Carp also said Kodak will beef up its nascent venture capital arm and will invest at least $100 million in various photographic-related Internet startups over the next 18 months, the report said. Soon after Carp was promoted from president to CEO in January, Kodak has bought out one company -- Picture Vision -- and made small investments in six startups: iFilm.com, Weave Innovations, Myfamily.com, Snapfish.com, eMemories.com and Photoalley.com. A Kodak spokesman wouldn't give exact numbers but said each investment is between $3 million and $10 million each. Kodak has moved online cautiously, but analysts such as Jupiter Communications's Lydia Loizides say the snail's pace may benefit Kodak in the long run. That's because with more than 100 Web companies with just as many business plans dedicated to digital photography, no winning strategy has emerged, the report said.

10-27-2000

Lexar Announces 279% Revenue Increase In First Quarter As Public Company Lexar Media Inc., Fremont, Calif., reported record financial results for its third quarter and nine-month period ended Sept. 30, 2000. Third quarter revenues totaled $31.0 million, a 279 percent increase over the $8.2 million in revenues recorded in the third quarter of last year and a 25 percent increase from $24.8 million for the second quarter of 2000. Including stock-based compensation charges and non-cash interest charges, Lexar's loss was $14.3 million. "Demand is driving digital camera sales in record numbers," said John Reimer, president and CEO of Lexar Media. "IDC estimates that more than 10 million digital cameras will ship this year and that by 2004 this number will grow to more than 42 million units," Mr. Reimer continued. "An installed base of 80 million digital cameras will drive more than 100 billion pictures to be shot each year by 2004. This represents a huge opportunity for Lexar Media."

10-27-2000

Nikon Posts Updated NikonCapture and NikonView DX for Windows ME You'll find the latest software updaters for NikonCapture 1.1.3 with Windows ME support and NikonView DX 1.2 for Windows ME / 98 SE / 2000 and Macintosh on the Nikon Tech USA web site. There are also updaters for NikonView 3.1.1 for both Windows ME and Macintosh available as well. Please note that these are updates only, you must have the full version already installed on your computer.

10-27-2000

Consumer Electronics Products Top Most Holiday Wish Lists INTERNET WIRE -- Nearly seven in ten adults, or approximately 69 million U.S. households, plan to visit an electronics retailer when shopping for gifts this holiday season. Digital electronics products, such as DVD players, digital cameras, CD recorders, wireless phones and mass storage devices are at the top of many wish lists this year, according to the results of the "7th Annual Holiday Purchase Patterns" survey, released today by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) (www.CE.org). While clothes, jewelry and cash still remain the most popular and desired gifts, many consumers recognize the value that electronics products can add to their daily lives. From entertainment to communications and safety to productivity, consumers rely on electronics to enhance their workstyles and lifestyles. It follows that a large number of consumers turn to electronics when faced with a gift-giving occasion. During the holiday shopping season this year (October to December), nearly seven in ten adults are at least somewhat likely to visit an electronics retailer. Furthermore, males expect to visit electronics retailers at slightly higher rates than females (74 percent as compared to 62 percent), while younger age segments are also more likely to visit electronics retailers than older age segments. "The incredible variety of new consumer electronics product offerings in recent years has given shoppers more gift choices than ever," said Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of CEA. "Much of that growth has been fueled by the digital revolution, and it is apparent that consumers recognize the benefits of digital products. The added convenience, speed, portability and cost-efficiency of digital products has led to positions of priority on holiday shopping lists this season." In the video arena, the DVD player reigns supreme, claiming the number one spot on both the video and overall consumer electronics product wish lists. CEA has forecast that 6.6 million DVD players will be sold during the year 2000. However, if consumer buying expectations for this holiday season hold true, retailers and manufacturers may see actual sales greatly exceed that 6.6 million unit projection. Also moving up the list for 2000 is the digital camera. Digital cameras placed second on the video wish list, up from number five in 1999. Offering the convenience of quickly and efficiently capturing and sharing experiences, digital cameras have garnered a great deal of attention from consumers. Recent developments such as improved resolution and ease of posting images to Web sites have drawn even more consumers to the product.

10-27-2000

Internet Photo Market Faces Major Shake-Out NEW YORK (Reuters) - It won't be all smiles in the Internet photo business for too much longer. Industry experts are predicting a major shake-out in the online photo market as competitors vie to snap up customers and Internet companies get their funding cropped. "There's going to be two or three winners in the online photo space," Stephen Brown, vice president of business development at Seattle-based PhotoWorks Inc. told Reuters in an interview. Online photo companies are trying to grab consumers as more and more households hook up to the Internet and the digital photo market takes off. Companies like PhotoWorks, PhotoPoint and Snapfish are all competing in offering online photo albums and e-mail pictures. Traditional film companies like Eastman Kodak Co also are trying to get a piece of action. The photography giant has been struggling to redefine itself in a digital age through major investments in digital products and Internet services. Worldwide revenues from online photofinishing are expected to grow by a compound rate of 92 percent a year, hitting $4.4 billion in 2005, according to Infotrends. As the market gets more and more crowded, industry experts say consolidation throughout the industry has to happen. "We get calls all the time from competitors trying to sniff out if we would be interested in a broader alliance," Brown said. The dot-com meltdown is likely to speed up that process.

10-25-2000

Ocean Brite Importing Olympus PT-005 U/W Housings For Sale Here In The USA The PT-005 Housing is made of Clear Polycarbonate and allows the user to see everything inside the Housing. Control buttons for ALL the functions of the Olympus C2000Z, C2020Z, C3000Z & C3030Z are part of the appeal of the Housing. Allowing the user to alter the settings of the Digicam and to review and delete pictures that are not wanted while still UNDERWATER are some of the other advantages of this Housing. While Olympus rates these housings to 30 meters (98 feet), we have successfully tested the Housings in our pressure chamber to a depth in excess of 100 feet. We have used the Housing on numerous occasions in all types of diving conditions and find that it takes a licking and keeps on ticking. The PT-005 Housing is priced at $399 making it the most AFFORDABLE high quality Housing available for these Digicams. We offer a complete Single Strobe Package for $650 and a complete Dual Strobe Package for $950. Both of the Strobe packages make use of our exclusive "Digital Automatic Light Adjustment" feature that enables the Strobes to fire at the correct instant and to adjust the light seen by the Digicam to the proper setting for the best results. We also offer a Cyan (red) Filter that is available for external use on the Housing at the price of $89. These Housings are available in limited numbers and are sold on a first come first served basis, if interested place your order at 800-549-4861. Further information is available on Ocean Brite's web site.

10-25-2000

Sony Memory Device Shipments To Top 100 Million By 2004 TOKYO, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Japan's Sony Corp said on Wednesday cumulative shipments of products using its two-year-old Memory Stick (MS) memory device worldwide are expected to surpass 100 million units by March 2004 from the current 10 million. Sony uses the chewing gum-sized device in digital cameras, camcorders, "Walkman" music players and its robotic pet "Aibo". The company has tried to popularise MS in the electronics industry by licensing other manufacturers to make video camcorders, digital cameras and personal computers using the data storage device. Sony said MS has already won more than a 20 percent share in the domestic memory card market. In doing so, the company hopes to avoid a repetition of what happened to its Betamax format, a rival to the VHS video which ultimately dominated the global market for home videotape players and cameras. Sony had failed at the time to promote the Betamax format by licensing the technology to other manufacturers, forcing it to end in extinction. The battle is already on with the Secured Digital (SD) Memory Card developed jointly by Matsushita Electric Industrial , Toshiba Corp and U.S.-based SanDisk Corp. Matsushita, the world's leader in consumer electronics whose brands include Panasonic and Technics, has recently launched a 55-gram audio player that can be worn as a watch or hung around the neck, sporting a removable stamp-sized SD Memory Card. Sony, however, remains confident. "SDs are only just starting up -- our own Memory Sticks have been around much longer, a year-and-a-half before SDs came out," said Sony's vice president Yutaka Nakagawa. "Our domestic market share is now 23 percent -- a share that is bound to grow and grow in the future as demand intensifies for copyright-protection technology," Nakagawa told a news conference.

10-25-2000

Inviso's eShades and eCase Micro-Displays Another Sunnyvale, Calif. firm has entered the micro-display market with a pair of products that claim to give you the equivalent of a 19-inch desktop monitor using their unique OptiScape display technology. Inviso's eShades give you the visual equivalent of a 19-inch desktop monitor viewed at 2.5 feet. With eShades you can view web pages, email, attachments, maps, and other content-rich documents formatted exactly as they would be on a desktop PC. Similar in size to a pair of sunglasses, eShades fold up and can be carried anywhere and provide a large SVGA (800x600 pixels) color display. eShades can significantly extend the battery life of your laptop as they consume less than 1/4 of the power of a typical laptop display. The eCase is a small, highly-portable device that you can store your documents in for later visual recall. Before you leave the office, simply drop the eCase into its docking cradle, the eCase Valet. The Valet automatically synchronizes the information between the eCase and your PC and packs information that you pre-select into the eCase. Your documents can be viewed with the full resolution, color, and quality that you see on your desktop monitor. Your email and the web are just a click away. Just access your wireless service by connecting a mobile phone or modem to the eCase’s available Compact Flash slot. Navigation is simple with the thumb pad and mouse click buttons. Get to the information you want fast, and view it in desktop quality. Then input via the thumb pad, the virtual keyboard, or speech. 8MB of built-in flash memory plus 2 CompactFlash slots provide ample storage for any application. OK, so now my only question is - how soon is some "smart" digicam manufacturer going to integrate this marvelous display technology into a digicam?  It's been almost two years since we first mentioned the Copin CyberDisplay and so far it's only shown up on an "el'cheapo" Mustek digicam so far.

10-24-2000

Nikon's CoolGear Store Now Open I just noticed that Nikon has opened a new online "accessory" store for Coolpix users. www.nikonscoolgear.com has currently got three items for sale, two of which we have reviewed without the Nikon logos. The CoolGear Battery Pack is a 2700mAh NiMH rechargeable external battery pack useable with Coolpix 700, 800, 900, 950 and 990 cameras. It looks suspiciously like the ProPower Pack from Unity Digital. The Photo Wallet, a battery-powered color LCD image viewer with a CompactFlash card slot. This I definitely know to be the same as the VideoChip's Wallet that we reviewed. The Nikon CoolGear Digital Backpack, a rugged, stylish, black nylon backpack. The adjustable shoulder straps are padded for extra comfort. There is plenty of room in the backpack to carry your laptop computer, Nikon cameras and accessories, along with your personal gear.

10-23-2000

Digital Imaging Products and Services in the New Post PC Era Belmont, Calif. - 10/23/00 - In mid 1999, an Imerge Consulting Group report regarding digitization, online photo sharing and fulfillment, stated that PC penetration into U.S. households had reached 50%. Recently, the research firm Odyssey forecasted the penetration percentage of PCs into U.S. homes in 2000 at 57%. There are many indications including recent negative third quarter earnings reports by PC vendors that PC growth has flattened out and is in decline. Recently, research firms such as IDC have reeled in their forecasts for PC growth in the U.S. from previous forecasts of around 15% in 2000, down to 12% for 2001. In 1996, we saw a similar trend as PC growth was expected to be only around 8% down from 13% the year before. It was thought at the time that household PC penetration had topped out around 47%. As a result, forecasters predicted that sub $500 PC’s would emerge and become ubiquitous as Internet terminals, replacing more expensive machines in homes and businesses. For the first time in nearly two decades, Moore’s Law was in question. Then in 1997 a funny thing happened. Large corporations with vested interests, such as Intel began initiatives such as Intel’s imaging platform initiative to drive MPS upward. Operating system SW delivered easier interfaces and USB connectivity to imaging devices become much easier. Sending images via email became popular and the Internet as an e-commerce and imaging platform began to arise, simultaneously driving Moore’s law and Metcalf’s Law of Connectivity.* The cost for storage drives came radically down and demand for multimedia applications and imaging went up. Suddenly, software companies that normally spent months, optimizing applications to be more memory and size efficient stopped this process. Applications ballooned and needed more MIPS, memory and storage. The adoption curve into U.S. homes began to rise again and many households began a buying binge of more powerful secondary household PC’s, which kept ASP’s (average selling prices) higher due to higher vendor margins. Forecasters scrambled to revise their estimates to account for this sudden resurrection of the PC. The question now facing vendors is whether PC growth can be sustained. I for one do not believe so for two simple reasons. Affluent adoption has maxed out. A large portion of the other 43% of non-PC households in the U.S. will most likely never become PC owners because of the lack of perceived value of the PC in their lives or cost of entry constraints. This could open the door again for low-cost PC Internet terminals. The problem for vendors is the low associated margins on these products and downstream residual membership business models won’t help this adoption situation. Let’s face it, most PC and imaging product adoption in the last three years has primarily been Internet fueled. The dot-com boom and worldwide Internet adoption was a massive technology paradigm transformation of the likes we most likely won’t see again for years. In the near term, technologies such as BlueTooth and extremely low cost storage will not provide enough of a technology transformation for consumers to replace older PCs with new PC’s. The only hope PC vendors have to stop the downward spiral is to increase broadband penetration into U.S. homes so that users can take advantage of the imaging and multimedia opportunities available and replace their legacy PCs. That is why PC vendors like Compaq are partnering with broadband providers such as ATT. This now brings us to the precipice of a new era that companies such as Wind River Systems two years ago termed the "post PC era". Clearly, growth rates for PC adoption will decline further and as a result, many "beyond the PC" vendors are looking to other areas of high potential growth. One of these sectors is interactive television and because of its 98% penetration rate in U.S. households, it’s a very attractive objective. Another is the mobile Internet connected computing sector, because of the promise of high cell phone adoption over the next few years. But where do digital imaging products and services fit into this new post PC era? Most likely, the post PC era will produce more positives than negatives for consumers of digital imaging products and services. For example, in certain sales channels such as PC superstores, digital imaging products are currently receiving increased marketing and shelve space because PCs are not moving. As digital cameras move to the upward threshold of 6.0 mega-pixels, broadband becomes essential and what we see in regard to broadband penetration, digital imaging products and the PC, is the tail waging the dog. The vast majority of people in the U.S. are still using narrowband by a 4% to 96% ratio. Often when they purchase a digital imaging product it becomes the sole reason for making the jump to broadband. Next they see the need for increased MPS, memory and storage and the associated need to abandon their legacy PCs. The post PC era does present increased challenges for digital imaging vendors and providers. In the post PC era, a premium will be placed on connecting digital imaging products to the many new mobile computing products, especially considering the lack of imaging industry driven standards. And how will future imaging devices connect to other telecommunications and mobile computing devices? For example, will smart handheld computing devices with wireless transmission and digital cameras merge into one device? Will smart cell phones and digital cameras merge? Or will users want to carry around a device for computing, a device for picture taking and another for talking? One thing we do know is this, future digital imaging products without connectivity to other products and a host data center will not meet future market requirements. The other thing we know is that in the post PC era, the entire imaging sector just got a lot more diverse and rewarding. Ron Tussy Principal Analyst Imerge Consulting Group LLC www.imergeconsulting.com We welcome comments! If you would like to comment on this analysis or any previous analysis, please email Ron Tussy

10-23-2000

DC Resource Posts Canon G1 Review Jeff has posted his Canon G1 review and had this to say about it: "the PowerShot G1 takes care of a lot of issues that I had with the Coolpix 990, such as sound with movies, CompactFlash Type II support, and a hot shoe. Plus it adds the very handy swiveling LCD!   This one [would] definitely be one of the finalists if I was camera shopping, and it's very much worth your time to consider it!

10-23-2000

Agfa Recalls ePhoto CL30 AC Adapters To quote Agfa's web page: "These ePhoto AC-adapters may cause the batteries to overheat, leak acid and possibly explode. Your AGFA ePhoto CL30 digital camera is NOT being recalled, and may continue to be used without concern as long as you do not use the recalled ePhoto AC-adapter WHILE batteries are installed in the camera. If you have an Agfa ePhoto CL30 camera with the optional accessory ePhoto AC-adapter, your AC-adapter will be replaced at no cost. Customers are requested to contact the local Agfa service organisations."

10-23-2000

Recent Goings On Over at Digital Outback Photo Check out the new cover story at Digital Outback Photo: Hundertwasser House in Vienna. The newly added " Digital SLR Review Page" is concentrating on the higher end SLR market. You'll find links here to all the various reviews. They've also added an educational article about perspective correction with PhotoShop. The editor says, "It took me less than 5 minutes to perform and it is my standard for all architectural photos."

10-19-2000

NikonView 3.1.1 Update for WinMe and Macintosh OS Nikon today posted updates for NikonView to fix some compatibility problems with the USB drivers and the WinMe (Millenium Edition) and Macintosh OS. You can download the software updaters at the NikonTech-USA web site. Nikon View Ver 3.1.1 is fully compatible with Windows Millennium Edition OS. Nikon View Ver. 3.1 requires Mac OS 8.6 or later: When you use the USB port. Mac OS 8.1 or later: When you use the serial port Nikon View Ver.3.1 supported cameras: Nikon DIGITAL CAMERA E990 Nikon DIGITAL CAMERA E880 Nikon DIGITAL CAMERA E950 Nikon DIGITAL CAMERA E800 Nikon DIGITAL CAMERA E700 Nikon DIGITAL CAMERA E900/E900s

10-19-2000

Enter Red River Paper's Fall Sweepstakes Win a Free Home or Pro Photo Lab including a Nikon Coolpix 990 camera and Epson Photo printer.   Entry is simple - just become a Red River Inkjetter, receive a FREE INKJET PAPER CATALOG and you are automatically entered into the contest. Red River's 56lb Polar Gloss paper is outstanding when used in today's new photo printers. Available in standard cut sheet sizes and in 4-inch wide "snap shot" rolls. It's also available in 13" and 17" width rolls too. Premium Matte paper is available in 32, 37 or 47lb weights. Or try Red River's new Backlit Film which is front coated to eliminate the need for reverse printing. Now in stock - Lysonic's Fotonic ink jet cartridges with archival inks and a color gamut that's very close to Epson brand inks. Check out the new Red River Inkjet Photo Paks. Each Pak includes inkjet papers that maximize your printer's capabilities. See the new Holiday gift idea page that features great inkjet paper and printer accessories.

10-18-2000

ToCAD Introduces New Battery Pack System And Flash Enhancement Kit ToCAD America Inc., Parsippany, N.J., USA, distributor of Sunpak photoflashes, photo, video and digital accessories, is introducing a new battery pack system and a new digital camera flash enhancement kit. The TR-2000 Universal High Voltage Battery Pack System features both high and low voltage output ports that permits it to power a wide range of flashes. Two new plug-in connector cords make it compatible with all Sunpak flashes having either a three or two pin high voltage input socket, as well as the Sunpak 622 series flash. It weighs less than 1.5 pounds, including its NiCad battery cluster. The Digital Camera Enhancement Kit includes the Sunpak Digital Flash system to supplement the light provided by a camera’s built-in flash. According to ToCAD, the digital flash can be used with any digital or conventional film camera that has a built-in flash, hot-shoe or PC synchro contact. It features a 200 millisecond firing delay in the flash trigger circuit to insure proper flash synchronization with digital cameras.

10-17-2000

Imaging-Resource Posts Olympus E-10 First Look Report Dave over at the Imaging-Resource has posted a very thorough Olympus E-10 First Look report that should answer most of the prospective buyer's questions. Bear in mind that this was a pre-production unit and Olympus has told him that there would be at least two more firmware "tweaks" before the final version was ready to go out the door. All in all it is a very interesting and rather expensive prosumer digicam with a lot to offer. The Imaging-Resource has also posted an Olympus C-2100UZ review, the 2-megapixel camera with 10x stabilized zoom. Canon told me today that we should have our EOS D30 tomorrow so you know that I'll be busy for the next week or so. I'll let you know when we're ready to post our review so please hold off the requests -- it's coming!

10-17-2000

Fujifilm Ships New FinePix 4900 Zoom ELMSFORD, N.Y.--Oct. 17, 2000--Fuji Photo Film U.S.A., Inc. announced today that it has begun shipping the FinePix 4900 ZOOM, a feature-rich digital camera with numerous manual controls, in addition to point-and-shoot functionality. Suggested "street" price for the FinePix 4900 ZOOM is $999. Heralding a new direction for its 900 series digital cameras in terms of design, the FinePix 4900 ZOOM offers a number of distinctive features: In addition to working as a traditional point-and-shoot camera, the FinePix 4900 ZOOM can be operated manually, empowering the user to adjust shutter speeds, select aperture (13 steps) and control camera focus as well as white balance. The FinePix 4900 ZOOM has a fast, 6X Super EBC Fujinon aspherical zoom lens (f/2.8 - f/11) with a focal length equivalent to a 35-210mm on a 35mm camera, along with one of the fastest frame rates in its class at 1.03-1.36 seconds. The camera uses a 2.4 million-sensor Super CCD with ISO sensitivities of 125/200/400/800, along with an improved signal-to-noise ratio and a wider dynamic range than comparable conventional CCDs. Additional features include a built-in, miniature LCD through-the-lens viewfinder, a two-inch LCD playback monitor, an optional lens-mounting ring for use with 55mm filters or 28mm wide-angle lenses and AVI video capture/playback mode with sound. Read our complete Fuji FinePix 4900 Zoom review

10-17-2000

Targus Introduces Cases for Digital Cameras ANAHEIM, Calif.--Oct. 17, 2000--Targus Inc., today announced availability of three lines of carrying cases for digital cameras and camcorders. The functional and attractive cases are available in a variety of styles and colors. The core product design for the digital camera cases was handled by Targus' new subsidiary, Studio Roundhouse, Santa Monica, CA. The three lines of digital camera cases are known as Pro Black, Sport, and Casual. With camera protection in mind, high-density foam surrounds the main compartments, and interior walls and dividers are covered with a soft, plush lining, called Sport Prolene. In addition, the exterior of the cameras cases feature a 420 denier twill nylon to insure excellent long-term wear and use. All cases have extra storage areas for items like memory cards, and the larger camera and camcorder cases have additional accessory storage compartments for batteries, power adapters, and connector cables. The cases feature a "Neoprene Comfort Stretch Strap" which reduces shoulder and neck strain, and the smaller models include belt loop straps. The three lines (Pro Black, Sport and Casual) vary in style and design. The Pro Black Line is designed for corporate users who want professional looking cases in traditional black. The Sport Line features three colors (Charcoal, Silver, & Metallic Blue), designed to mirror trends in technology product colors from major manufacturers like Sony, Kodak and Olympus. The Casual Line comes in Khaki with subtle accent trims for a more relaxed look. The cases are designed to be compatible with virtually all digital cameras and camcorders. The Targus digital camera cases range in price from $11.99 to $49.99. The products can be purchased from the company's extensive network of resellers, by calling 877.4.TARGUS, or from the company's web site.

10-16-2000

FlashPoint's Digita Operating System Powers MediaMapper Global Positioning Solution SAN JOSE, Calif., October 16, 2000 - FlashPoint Technology, Inc., the creator of the Digita digital imaging operating system (OS), today announced the release by Red Hen Systems of MediaMapper version 3.0. Developed with FlashPoint's DigitaScript programming language, MediaMapper embeds Global Positioning System (GPS) positioning data with digital images. MediaMapper uses a Digita OS enabled Kodak DC290 digital camera and a GPS receiver to embed latitude, longitude and altitude data as each image is captured. The application allows the image and associated metadata to be transferred to a personal computer, where an interactive multimedia map is automatically constructed. Applications include documenting and tracking real estate, construction projects, land management and natural disaster sites. "The flexibility of the Digita scripting environment allows us to store GPS data plus additional information that enables GPS differential post-process ing for greatly improved positional accuracy," said Ken Burgess, Vice President of Research and Development at Red Hen Systems. "We can also store information about the camera's direction of view from a digital compass, and range data from a laser rangefinder, along with each image."

10-16-2000

DC Resource Posts Sony P1 Review Jeff has just posted his Sony DSC-P1 review and had this to say about the little camera: "The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-P1 is what I'd call an "advanced point-and-shoot" camera. It's very good at the basics, and it has some features found on more "prosumer" cameras such as uncompressed TIFF mode. But it lacks the real "pro" features like full exposure control. For overall features, the DSC-P1 is the winner -- there's a few things that I don't like, but I really enjoyed using it, and would recommend it to anyone who wants a compact point-and-shoot camera."

10-16-2000

Iomega Begins Shipping New Fotoshow Digital Image Center INTERNET WIRE -- Iomega Corporation today announced the domestic release of its latest consumer electronics product, the FotoShow Digital Image Center. Developed with the digital photography enthusiast in mind, Iomega's FotoShow image center, with built-in PictureIQ software, makes it easier than ever to organize, edit, and share digital photos with family and friends without the need for a PC. the FotoShow image center, The FotoShow Digital Image Center's PictureIQ software provides easy-to-use photo- editing features via an included remote control. Red-eye removal, one-touch instant photo fixing, cropping, zooming, image rotation and the addition of artistic viewing templates are among the many built-in features, all without the complexity and expense of a computer. Digital camera owners can also use the FotoShow image center's built-in CompactFlash and SmartMedia slots for simple one-button transfer of camera images to the internal Zip® 250MB drive, freeing up expensive solid state memory cards for taking digital pictures. Iomega also offers an optional 12-volt car adaptor for use on the road. The FotoShow image center connects to a TV through composite video (RCA) or S-Video ports, or to a USB-equipped computer through the USB port. When connected to a computer, it operates as a normal Zip® drive and lets people easily transfer photos from any source - including the hard drive, scanned pictures, pictures attached to personal e-mails, or those downloaded from the Internet - for later viewing on the television. Available now from leading retailers and distributors, or directly from Iomega, the FotoShow image center has a suggested retail price of $299.95.

10-15-2000

I just posted the conclusions to the Canon PowerShot G1 review. The G1 is one of top contenders in the current battle of 3-megapixel semi-pro cameras.  It has excellent image quality with fast processing, exceptional battery life, CF2 support including the Microdrive, multitudes of exposure options and all the controls you'd ever want.

10-13-2000

d-store Pre-Launch Specials In preparation for the launch of their new Retail Store, d-store.com is having a CompactFlash and Smart Media Sale! Prices on selected Sandisk and other CompactFlash Cards have been reduced as much as 20%. Example: 48MB CF $96.50. Check here for their CompactFlash Pricing or here for SmartMedia Pricing If you have a digicam with a CompactFlash Type II slot that is Microdrive compatible, d-store has the hot, new 1 Gigabyte IBM Microdrive for only $499. Need a PCMCIA Adapter with your Microdrive?  Get the Deluxe Kit along with a free Microtech Cameramate for only $509!  Save over $75 The new Quest Q2 NiMH Battery Charger extends the life of NiMH batteries. This revolutionary charger has four microprocessor controlled circuits which regulates the charging current on each battery individually. Imation Photo Printing Paper (KK005000256 6 x 4in. 25 sheets/pack or KK005000397 8.5 x 11 in. 10 sheets/pack) trial packs only $3.99 with any order. Need a better way of displaying your favorite photos? Think DigiFrame! Visit d-store.com for Halloween specials on all your digital darkroom needs.

10-13-2000

Imaging-Resource Posts Fuji 4900 Zoom Review Dave has posted his Fuji 4900 Zoom review and seems to feel the same as I do that this is a very capable digicam with many excellent features and just a few shortcomings. Both he and I reviewed pre-production cameras so don't make too critical of a judgement about the sample images until we get a chance to use a final production camera.

10-12-2000

Sony DSC-F505V Review Posted I just posted a full review of the Sony CyberShot DSC-F505V, the updated F505 with the 3-megapixel imager and 5x Carl Zeiss zoom. The image quality has been significantly improved, they added a TIFF mode, an external flash connector, 12-bit A/D for greater dynamic range and more. Check it out.

10-12-2000

Dicom Imaging Systems To Provide Software for Kodak's New Dental Digital Photography Kit 290 BELLINGHAM, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct 11, 2000--Dicom Imaging Systems today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Eastman Kodak (NYSE: EK). According to terms of the joint marketing agreement, Kodak is granted the right to become a non-exclusive worldwide distributor of Dicom's software. Kodak will distribute the software in its Dental Digital Photography Kit 290 to its distribution network and launch a comprehensive full-scale marketing campaign. A separate agreement grants Dicom the right to purchase and resell Kodak's Dental Digital products in the U.S.A. Dr. David Gane, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, " We are proud that Kodak has chosen Dicom Imaging Systems as its 'in the box' software provider and one of its strategic partners. The dental imaging industry is growing rapidly and we feel that we are well positioned to take advantage of this opportunity. Market acceptance of our software, growing distribution channels and our proprietary software combined with the Kodak brand and their international distribution channels is sure to be an extremely successful campaign." On October 10 Eastman Kodak Company announced a turnkey digital camera, imaging software and printer bundle designed specifically for dentists. The Kodak Dental Digital Photography Kit 290 comes complete with all hardware, software and accessories that dentists need to take, produce, and manage digital pictures of their patients. The kit is designed for dentists who want to: Quickly and easily record visual records of patient teeth and gum structure and color. Create professional images to communicate information about cosmetic and restorative procedures and benefits. The Kodak digital photography kit combines state-of-the-art digital camera and inkjet printing technology with software and hardware tailored to dental imaging applications. "It's a seamless and ready-to-use solution," said Retzlaff. "Kodak has already solved all issues around lens type, filters, flash and software so dentists don't have to. It's completely tailored to meet dentists' needs." The Kodak Dental Digital Photography Kit 290 comes complete with the following components Kodak DC290 Zoom Digital Camera featuring 2 megapixel (1792 x 1200) resolution and a 3X optical/2X digital zoom; Ring Flash that connects directly to the camera for easy flash synchronizing; AC converters and other useful brackets and adapters; Kodak Personal Picture Maker PM100 printer for producing photo-quality color prints from the digital camera card or office PC; Kodak DMI Inkjet Paper Sample Pack, the highest-quality, non-light-sensitive inkjet paper optimal for printing color or radiographic images; Close-up lens kit; 16 MB Kodak Picture Card, for storing captured images and transporting them from the camera to the printer or a PC; Kodak DMI Inkjet Cartridge; USB and serial cables for fast and efficient transfer of images to a PC; Four Kodak Photolife NiMH Batteries and Kodak Photolife Battery Charger Model K200. In addition, the kit includes imagEXPLORER and imagEDITOR software from Dicom Imaging Systems Inc. This dental imaging management and enhancement software package enables dentists to perform a number of powerful operations. With this platform and other modules available for purchase, dentists can create before and after pictures of amalgam replacement, veneering and bonding, crown lengthening, orthodontics, cosmetic contouring, tooth whitening and periodontal treatments. The software also supports the organizing, cataloging and storing of images.

10-11-2000

Full Fuji FinePix 4900 Zoom Review Posted For those of you who have been waiting (hounding me) for the final review of the Fuji 4900 Zoom will be happy to know that it has now been posted. If I didn't cover what you needed to know in the conclusion then feel free to email me and I'll append the text.

10-10-2000

Nikon MC-EU1 Remote for Coolpix 990 or 880 The Nikon MC-EU1 remote cord is finally now shipping, I got mine today and it works great. For more information see page one of my recently updated Nikon 990 review. Scroll down a bit until you see the same picture as above. Since I got so many emails asking me where I got it ... it came from Henry's Camera in Canada.

10-10-2000

Phil Posts Full Canon EOS D30 Review That lucky dog Phil has gotten his hands on a full production model of the Canon EOS D30 as well as an arm load of lenses and has posted a full and exhaustive 20-page review. We are expecting both a Canon D30 and an Olympus E-10 in the next week or so and are currently working on finishing up the Canon G1 and Fuji 4900 Zoom reviews and just received a Sony DSC-F505V today. Going to be busy, busy, busy.

10-10-2000

Kodak Announces Agreement with and Equity Investment in PhotoAlley.com ROCHESTER, N.Y., and SAN FRANCISCO, October 10-Eastman Kodak Company today announced an agreement with and equity investment in PhotoAlley.com, a unique photo enthusiast web site. In addition to Kodak's equity investment, the two companies will collaborate on joint initiatives to drive sales of conventional and digital photography products and services among the photo enthusiast community. Under the terms of the agreement, Kodak will be the exclusive provider of digital print fulfillment through Print@Kodak, Kodak's new Internet photofinishing service, for PhotoAlley.com customers. Kodak will also provide PhotoAlley with photoprocessing, scanning and uploading services through Qualex, Kodak's photofinishing subsidiary. PhotoAlley.com plans to offer online amateur photo galleries and photo-sharing functionality in conjunction with these new services. Kodak will help drive traffic to the PhotoAlley web site and offer PhotoAlley customers access to high-quality Internet photofinishing services. Additionally, PhotoAlley will be an official "e-dealer" of Kodak products, granting the company the right to sell Kodak digital products in an e-retail store on the PhotoAlley site. Kodak will receive a board observer seat as a result of its investment.

10-10-2000

Kaidan Announces New Products and Options for QuickTime® VR Cubic Panoramic Technologies LOS ANGELES, California ­ QuickTime Live! - October 10, 2000 - Kaidan Incorporated, the leading manufacturer of Photographic VR hardware, announced today two new KiWi panoramic tripod heads designed to support the next generation of QuickTime VR (QTVR) from Apple Computer, Inc. According to Kaidan President, Jim Anders, "We're very excited to be a part of QuickTime Live and to participate in Apple's introduction of the next version of QuickTime VR. The new cubic technology expands QuickTime VR to provide users a full look straight up and down viewing experience." The KiWi-VL is a new panoramic tripod head that is designed around the Voigtlander Bessa-L camera. This 35mm rangefinder camera supports Voigtlander's newly announced ultra-wide 12mm lens, which offers the widest field of view of any rectilinear wide-angle lens in the world. The KiWi-VL is used to create single-row cylindrical panoramas, which can be created with only five shots in order to achieve stunning 120-degree vertical fields of view. The entire KiWi-VL system, consisting of the tripod head, camera and lens provides a compact, lightweight solution that weighs less than 2.5 pounds. The KiWi-VL comes with the click-stop enabled tripod head, a 2-axis bubble level, a camera slider/positioner, a captive attachment knob and four (5, 6, 7, 8) detent discs. Additional detent discs (2 through 22) are available. The KiWi-VL uses an indexed mounting slot that will let you position the camera anywhere along the bracket. You simply position the camera to the appropriate mark for either the 12mm or 15mm lens. The KiWi-VL tripod head, Voigtlander Bessa-L camera, 12mm or 15mm lens, optional Pelican transport case and other accessories are available from Kaidan and Kaidan resellers. The suggested retail prices are: Panoramic Tripod Head, KiWi-VL - $219.95 Camera Body, Voigtlander Bessa-L, Black - $329.95 Lens, Wide-Angle, 15mm, Black - $569.95 Lens, Ultra-Wide-Angle, 12mm, Black - $999.95 KiWi 990 Panoramic Tripod Head The KiWi 990 is a new panoramic tripod head designed expressly for the Nikon Coolpix 990 digital camera. The new design of the bracket supports the standard, 24mm wide-angle lens and the Nikon fisheye lens. When used with the fisheye lens, the only part of the head that appears in the shot is a portion of the small circular base, which attaches to the tripod. The KiWi 990 is particularly useful for those photographers who shoot their Coolpix 990 with a variety of lenses and panoramic software tools, such as QuickTime VR, MGI Photovista and iPIX photography. The KiWi 990 comes with the click-stop enabled tripod head, a 2-axis bubble level, a camera slider/positioner, a captive attachment knob and four (2, 5, 14, 18) detent discs. The KiWi 990 has three mounting locations to accommodate the Nikon standard lens, 24mm wide-angle, and 8mm fisheye lenses. There is no need to figure out the nodal point as we¹ve done that for you. There is also a slot that will let you position the camera anywhere along the bracket to support any other lenses you desire. Additional detent discs (2 through 22) are available. The KiWi 990 is available immediately from Kaidan and Kaidan resellers. The suggested retail prices are: KiWi 990 - $199.95 (includes 4 discs) KiWi 990 w/QuickTilt Leveler - $319.95 (includes KiWi 990 and QuickTilt Leveler) KiWi 990 Camera Kit - $449.95 (includes KiWi 990, QuickTilt Leveler, Pelican Transport Case)

10-9-2000

Reviews, Reviews, Reviews Our friends at Imaging-Resource just posted two new camera reviews, one for the Kodak DC3800 a simple, easy to use point-n-shoot and the more advanced Kodak DC3400 which is the successor to the popular DC280. Jeff at the DC Resource has also posted two new reviews. One for the Fuji FinePix 1300, he tested a pre-production version. And he also reviewed the multi-purpose Fuji FinePix 40i which is a combination digicam and MP3 player. Our bilingual colleagues at the megapixel.net have just posted their October 2000 issue online and have reviews of: Olympus D-460 Zoom, Kodak DC4800, Nikon Coolpix 880 and the Sony MVC-CD1000 cameras. I've posted some new accessory reviews: Maha's C2000 Lithium, NiMH, NiCD charger designed for camcorder users basically but it also charges 4-AA size batteries and several of the Sony lithium batteries used by Mavica still cameras. Lightning Pack 2000 NiMH/NiCD charger which is an intelligent and compact rapid charger for AA and AAA batteries. It's inexpensive and this review also uncovers the Sanyo 1600mAh "industrial grade" AA cells which could just be the most powerful NiMH batteries we've used yet and reasonably priced too!

10-8-2000

A-Digital-Eye Posts Kodak DC3800 Review Our friends over at A-Digital-Eye have just posted their Kodak DC3800 review. This is Kodak's newest super-compact 2.1-megapixel digicam. Dave had this to say about it: "The Kodak DC3800 is a high quality 2 Megapixel CCD digital camera that is also very compact, portable and lightweight. Although one gives up exposure controls and other fancy features, the camera does an excellent job on its own using auto settings, making it a great choice for those who want a simple, easy to use, point and shoot camera. The picture results (both on screen and on glossy photo paper) of the DC3800 compare very favourably to other 2 Megapixel cameras and the $499 price range."

10-5-2000

Hoodman Hoodcap for Nikon D1 Looking for a useful and inexpensive accessory for your Nikon D1?  It will also make a great gift for that special somebody on your holiday list if he or she happens to own or use a D1. Check it out on our Holiday Wish List in the $50 and under category and while you're there check out our other great gift ideas -- the holidays are coming up fast!

10-5-2000

Wilhelm Imaging Research Modifies Test Procedures Wilhelm Imaging Research (WIR), a small, Grinnell, Ia., lab that tests the permanence of ink-jet prints for Epson and other manufacturers, is modifying its testing methodology to account for recent findings about the factors that contribute to fading inks. Henry Wilhelm, director of research for the independent testing facility, told MacWEEK that in addition to testing ink-jet prints for lightfastness, WIR will evaluate their susceptibility to ozone and other airborne contaminants. WIR also plans new tests to more-precisely determine the long-term effects of light on various combinations of ink and paper. The flap over ink longevity arose when users of Epson's Photo Stylus 870 and 1270 printers reported color shifts when using Premium Glossy Photo Paper. As MacWEEK contributor Bruce Fraser reported in his Color Geek column (see " Ozone alert!" " An open letter to Seiko-Epson" and " The readers speak: Epson's fading inks"), the culprit turned out to be air pollution--a factor that WIR missed in part because it tests prints under glass filters designed to simulate the effect of placing the photos in a picture frame. "It's a perplexing problem that varies according to the location," Wilhelm said. "In our laboratory and offices in central Iowa, the outdoor ozone content is extremely low, and there's no pollution. So we have not seen the orange-shift of inkjet prints from gas fading, even in prints tested for over a year." Read the whole story here.

10-5-2000

Luratech Compression Technology Integrated Into Freeware LuraTech Inc., Menlo Park, Calif., USA, announced the integration of its wavelet compression technology into IrfanView version 3.25, a freeware for viewing digital graphics for Windows. The 32-bit graphic viewer can now display and edit LuraTech's wavelet compression file formats LuraWave and LuraDocument. IrfanView 3.25 can be downloaded at: www.softwarecenter.net/irfanview/english.htm. The plug-ins folder for IrfanView can be downloaded at: www.softwarecenter.net/irfanview/plugins.html. IrfanView is one of the first freeware applications to integrate LuraTech's compression technology into their image management software.

10-5-2000

Epson Introduces New Flatbed Scanners Epson America Inc., Long Beach, Calif., USA, unveiled six new flatbed scanners. The Epson Perfection 1640SU series provides 42-bit scanning and 1,600-by-3,200 dpi hardware resolution. The three models in this series range in price from $299 to $499. Epson claims its Perfection 1240U scanners are ideal for small office/home office and advanced home environments with the option of transparency unit (TPU) in addition to 42-bit scanning and 1,200-by-2,400 dpi maximum hardware resolution. The models in this series range in price from $199 to $299. The Epson Perfection 640U scanner is an entry-level scanner featuring plug-and-play USB installation. It delivers 36-bit scanning and 600-by-2,400 dpi maximum hardware resolution. This scanner will be available for an estimated price of $149. All of the scanner models feature Epson's ColorTrue II Imaging System. All models also feature fully automatic, one-touch scanning and an improved, intelligent scanner driver to automatically color correct and crop images.

10-5-2000

HP's New Point-and-shoot Digital Cameras Offer Quality and Simplicity at an Affordable Price PALO ALTO, Calif.--Oct. 2, 2000--Hewlett-Packard Company today announced two point-and- shoot digital cameras that are ideal for first-time buyers who want to easily capture and share crisp, clear images. The HP PhotoSmart 315 digital camera delivers photo-quality results with 2.1-megapixel resolution, and the fully automatic HP PhotoSmart 215 digital camera is packed with great features at an outstanding value -- $199. The HP PhotoSmart 315 digital camera, priced at $299, is a fully automatic point-and- shoot digital camera that features 2.1-megapixel resolution for excellent photo-quality results. Users can also take advantage of the camera's 2.5x digital zoom for close-up photos and 1.8-inch high-resolution color LCD for instant preview and postview of photos. With just the touch of a button, the HP PhotoSmart 315 digital camera allows for quick and simple wireless printing via HP JetSend infrared technology. The camera ships with an 8MB CompactFlash card, allowing users to store up to 80 photos, and features HP photo imaging software, making it quick and easy to download, manage, print and e-mail photos. The new camera is compatible with both PC and USB-connect Macintosh systems. First-time digital-camera buyers will appreciate the extensive features included with the affordable HP PhotoSmart 215 digital camera, such as 1.3-megapixel resolution for high-quality photos, 2x digital zoom to capture close-up photos and a 1.8-inch color LCD for preview and postview of photos. Additional ease-of-use features offered with the new camera are auto flash, auto focus and exposure, and a self timer. The HP PhotoSmart 215 digital camera ships with a 4MB CompactFlash memory card, which can store up to 40 photos, and a USB cable for fast downloading of images. ArcSoft Photo Impression and ArcSoft Photo Montage software are bundled with the new camera, making it easy to edit and share photos. HP PhotoSmart 912 and 618 Digital Cameras Now Shipping Today, HP also began shipping the HP PhotoSmart 912 and 618 digital cameras, rounding out the company's line of digital cameras. Designed with the photo enthusiast in mind, the HP PhotoSmart 912 digital camera ($799) delivers the control, performance and flexibility of an SLR camera. The HP PhotoSmart 618 digital camera ($599) is ideal for experienced photographers and PC technologists, offering automatic functionality as well as manual control in a portable, point-and-shoot camera.

10-4-2000

Epson Reduces the Price of Stylus Photo 870 and 875DC Printers LONG BEACH, Calif.--Oct. 4, 2000--Epson America Inc. today announced that it has lowered the price of the EPSON Stylus® Photo 870 and EPSON Stylus Photo 875DC printers. Priced at $249 and $299 respectively, the EPSON Stylus Photo 870 and 875DC produce unrivaled photo quality output at remarkably fast speeds, and now at an even more attractive price. The EPSON Stylus Photo 870 and 875DC feature 1440 x 720 dpi true hardware resolution and Epson's Advanced Micro Piezo ink jet technology, a six-color photo ink system creating incredible detail, beautiful skin tones, sharper contrast and an ultra-wide color range designed ideally for photography. The EPSON Stylus Photo 870 offers the most flexible and easy-to-use solution for home and business users as well as remarkable photo quality output. With a maximum printable area of 8.26" x 43.76", the printer can handle a variety of paper sizes, including: letter, legal and panoramic sizes up to 8.5" x 44". The EPSON Stylus Photo 870 is both Windows and Macintosh compatible, featuring USB, parallel and optional network connectivity. Included with the printer is the EPSON Digital PhotoLab Starter Kit containing a roll paper holder, EPSON Film Factory photo management software and Adobe Photo Deluxe. Ideal for digital camera users, the EPSON Stylus Photo 875DC includes a built-in PCMCIA digital film reader making the printer compatible with virtually any digital camera by using the appropriate adapter. Compatible digital film types include CompactFlash I and II, CompactFlash USB, SmartMedia and Sony Memory Stick. The PCMCIA card slot allows users to view, edit and print images or use pass-through file transferring to save the images directly to their computers. Acting as a hard drive, the film card launches Sierra Imaging's Image Expert photo editing software for immediate access to digital images. The EPSON Stylus Photo 875DC starter kit includes a CompactFlash Type II Adapter, a roll paper holder, plus Sierra Imaging Image Expert and Adobe Photo Deluxe software. This printer is Windows and Macintosh compatible and supports USB connectivity, making it the first printer to offer a built-in card slot compatible for Macintosh. Through a promotion running until December 31, 2000, Epson is offering customers up to $100 off any brand digital camera with the purchase of the EPSON Stylus Photo 870 ($50 rebate) or the EPSON Stylus Photo 875DC ($100 rebate). This offer applies to digital cameras purchased between August 1 and December 31, and printers purchased between October 1 and December 31, 2000, making the effective price of either photo printer only $199. According to the same information posted on MacCentral's web site these printers have been discontinued? Epson Introduces 875DCS With Memory Stick Drive Epson America Inc., Long Beach, Calif., USA, is introducing a printer that enables PC and Macintosh owners to use Memory Stick products. The new Epson Stylus Photo 875DCS is a six-color 1,440 dpi printer with a built-in digital PCMCIA card reader and included Memory Stick adapter. According to Epson, it is compatible with and meets the printing needs of most Memory Stick digital imaging product on the market, including PCs, cameras and camcorders. Once connected to the computer, the Epson Stylus Photo 875DCS acts as the Memory Stick drive for a PC or Macintosh. The printer also features auto-launching of Sierra Imaging's Image Expert photo editing software that enables users to transfer digital files from a Memory Stick card. In addition, customers get a copy of Adobe PhotoDeluxe 4.0 (version 2.0 for Macintosh) for custom editing and enhancing of photos. The printer also enables users to create 4-by-6-inch snapshots in 48 seconds and individual 8-by-10-inch images in 110 seconds. The Epson Stylus Photo 875DCS will be available for an estimated price of $349.

10-4-2000

Viking Components to Offer 256 MB CompactFlash RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, Calif.--Oct. 3, 2000-- Viking Components on Tuesday announced the expansion of its flash memory line with the addition of the industry's highest capacity CompactFlash cards available. Viking's new 192 MB and 256 MB CompactFlash cards will ship to resellers nationwide in the fourth quarter of 2000. "The 256 MB CompactFlash card is the highest capacity currently available," said Laura Bonomo, Viking product marketing manager. "Viking will continue to expand its high- density flash memory line to support the storage needs of today's high-resolution megapixel digital cameras as well as the increased number of MP3 players and personal digital devices in the market." Viking CompactFlash cards come with a five-year warranty and are available through resellers/retailers nationwide in capacities ranging from 8 MB to 128 MB. The 192 MB and 256 MB capacity cards will ship in the fourth quarter of 2000. CompactFlash cards require an adapter, also available from Viking, to fit into a PC Card Type II or Type III slot. Viking's extensive flash memory product line also includes SmartMedia(TM) in capacities up to 64 MB, Type II PC Cards in capacities up to 1 GB as well as the Viking IntelliFlash(TM) USB flash memory reader which supports CompactFlash, SmartMedia and Type I and Type II PC Cards.

10-4-2000

The "Ask Fuji" Forums are Open We have begun a new forum at the request of the Fujifilm folks called "Ask Fuji" where you can get answers to all your technical questions from the head tech guru Darin Pepple. You need to join our public discussion forum to gain access to this and our other forums. Here's your chance to find out what's really behind the SuperCCD technology or any little tidbits you need to know about the new 4900 Zoom or any Fuji camera. There is also a new Ask Fuji forum over at the Imaging-Resource too. Get there by clicking here.

10-3-2000

MGI Announces VideoWave 4 DV Expo, Booth #928, LONG BEACH, CA - October 3, 2000 - MGI today introduced MGI VideoWave 4, the latest version of the industry's best-selling PC video software for Windows, at DVExpo. VideoWave 4 continues to expand on its already robust mix of powerful features, providing a comprehensive suite to capture, edit, produce and share video. Version 4 sports a new user interface, and includes additional Web publishing capabilities with a backend Internet video site where users can share videos with family, friends, business associates, and the online community. Additional new features include automatic scene detection for video capture, and TimeWarp, which creates fast or slow- motion video. The software also comes with two CDs of media content that can be applied by users to create more interesting business presentations and enliven home movies for publishing to the Web, CD ROM, or tape. MGI VideoWave 4's sleek new look makes more efficient use of the screen real estate and is better organized for an improved workflow. For example, the Library, which keeps track of a user's content and customized options for Special Effects, Titles, video composites, and Dark Room filters, has been expanded and offers various organizational views. The editing function selector and tool bar have been overhauled and merged to provide better access to the most commonly used functions, and the console area, which provides the specific tools for a particular function, has also been widened to accommodate new features. In recognition of the growing popularity and interest in Web video, MGI VideoWave 4 includes support for RealNetworks streaming format, and continued support of Microsoft Windows Media, allowing users to create movies in the two most popular Web video formats. A single click "Publish-to-Web" feature has also been added, which automatically posts a user's Web video to a portal community that MGI has established with POPCast, an industry leader in Web video hosting services. Through VideoWave 4 users will have up to 10MB of free space for sharing videos with family, friends, and business associates. MGI VideoWave 4 also includes cool new features and effects. The scene detection feature scans video as part of the capture process to automatically find scene changes -- points at which the camera was stopped and restarted -- saving each scene as a separate video clip for easier editing. A manual setting is also provided, which eases the tedious process of rewinding and fast-forwarding through long scenes, to split them into smaller more manageable clips. The TimeWarp effect can magically speed up or create slow-motion video. MGI VideoWave 4 software will be generally available in early November through major computer distributors and retail stores including Best Buy, Circuit City, CompUSA, Fry's, J&R, Nationwide, RCS, and Staples, as well as online e-tailers such as Onsale.com. The software typically sells for about $99. In addition, a $35 mail-in rebate coupon is in included in the box for users upgrading from previous versions or competitive products.

10-3-2000

DC Resource Posts Nikon 880 Review Jeff over at the DC Resource has just posted his Nikon Coolpix 880 review and had this to say about it: "The Nikon Coolpix 880 is often referred to as the "baby" Coolpix 990. After all, it does have the same 3.34 Mpixel CCD and almost the exact same functionality, but for less money ($799, street priced under $700). The Coolpix 880 may be the baby in the family, but it's got lots of grownup features. ...if you're looking for a camera with all the manual controls you desire, but don't want to break the bank, then the Coolpix 880 is for you! "

10-2-2000

Kodak's New DC3200 $250 One-Megapixel Digital Camera ROCHESTER, N.Y., October 2 -- The newest digital camera from Eastman Kodak Company puts digital imaging within the budget of more Americans, just in time for the holiday picture-taking season. The new Kodak DC3200 combines 1-megapixel resolution and a 2X digital zoom in an easy-to-use package, all for less than $250. The images it captures are perfect for e-mailing or printing at sizes up to 5 x 7 inches. "The Kodak DC3200 digital camera will put digital picture-making into the hands of many more people this holiday season," said Philip Gerskovich, Kodak vice president, Digital & Applied Imaging. "It brings the most popular benefits of digital cameras - instant image viewing, simple operation and easy transfer - at a very affordable price point." Designed with unintimidating ease-of-use, the DC3200 digital camera will appeal especially to picture-takers buying their first digital camera. Its 1.6-inch LCD screen allows users to review their pictures as soon as they have taken them, and 2 MB of internal memory stores up to 22. The camera is compatible with optional CompactFlash memory cards that can be inserted for additional picture storage. A 2X digital zoom helps focus on the main subject, improving picture composition. The DC3200 digital camera ships with a serial cable for connecting to a PC, four AA alkaline batteries (rechargeable Ni-MH batteries and charger are available as options), wrist strap, instructions and a CD with Kodak Picture Transfer and Kodak Pictures Now photo enhancement software. A Kodak Digital Camera Bonus Kit comprising an AC adapter, 4MB CompactFlash memory card, accent bag and micro-fiber, lens-cleaning cloth is available separately for a suggested retail price of $59.95. The new camera is available now at selected retailers and has a suggested retail price of $249.

Sep 2000 News

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