SMaL Camera Technologies Announces Release Of Its World's Thinnest Digital Camera By Fujifilm Axia

CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, USA - March 14, 2002 - SMaL Camera Technologies, Inc. announced today that FUJIFILM AXIA CO., LTD, a subsidiary of Fuji Photo Film Co., Ltd. of Tokyo (Nasdaq: FUJIY), will release the world's thinnest digital camera -- the 6mm thin eyeplate? -- based on SMaL's Ultra-Pocket? digital camera design and technology.

World's thinnest digital camera: the 6mm thin eyeplate by FUJIFILM AXIA, utilizing the award-winning Ultra-Pocket digital camera design and technology from SMaL Camera Technologies, Cambridge, MA. The eyeplate is the size of a credit card (85.6mm x 54mm), a mere 6mm thin (0.2 inches), and weighs only 35 grams. The camera's integrated battery re-charges while pictures download to Mac or PC. Users can take hundreds of images between charges. The eyeplate is scheduled for release in Japan on April 1, 2002.

SMaL introduced the credit card-sized Ultra-Pocket? at the 2001 International Consumer Electronics Show, where it was awarded "Best of Show" in the digital imaging category. With the launch of its new eyeplate?, FUJIFILM AXIA is the first OEM to bring a version of the Ultra-Pocket? to market. It is scheduled for release first in Japan on April 1, 2002.

In the OEM partnership between the two companies, SMaL supplies FUJIFILM AXIA with the reference design and major components, including SMaL's proprietary CMOS image sensor and ASIC. FUJIFILM AXIA manufactures, markets, and distributes the eyeplate?.

"No other camera on the market comes close to offering such a unique combination of size, affordability, and quality," says Maurizio Arienzo, President and CEO, SMaL Camera Technologies. "In order to meet the global demand for this sleek product, we were interested in OEM partners with a strong brand, a proven track record for quality, and solid distribution channels who could move very quickly. Partnering with FUJIFILM AXIA on this project made perfect sense for SMaL." Yutaka Kuroki, Manager of Hardware Marketing Division, FUJIFILM AXIA CO., LTD. adds, "We found SMaL's innovative technology very interesting and we believe the eyeplate? can create new demand in the digital camera market."

Thanks to SMaL's ultra-low power imager chip set, its optics, and its 0.8mm thin, USB-rechargeable, lithium polymer battery, the eyeplate? boasts an amazingly thin 6mm (0.2 inches) credit card size. SMaL's color CMOS image sensor has VGA resolution and consumes six times less power than typical VGA imagers. The chip set also features SMaL's proprietary Autobrite? technology, which greatly enhances the dynamic range and automatically adjusts the exposure so that details in both bright and dim areas of a picture are clear.