Wednesday, February 17, 1999

Tuesday, February 16, 1999

• 2.1 million-pixel, 1/2 inch CCD sensor element


• Image sizes of 1600x1200, 1024x768, and 640x480


• Three JPEG compression levels, plus uncompressed TIFF


• 3x Optical Zoom lens, with macro focusing to 4 inches


• Multi-ratio digital zoom, magnifications of 1.25, 1.6, 2.0, and 2.5x


• 4746-step(?!) autofocus system, with continuous or single-shot focus modes


• Manual focus option, with 10 focus steps from 4 inches (10cm) to infinity


• Three-aperture lens system: f2.6/4.0, f4.4/6.8, and f7.4/11.4


• Multiple autoexposure modes: full program, aperture- and shutter-priority


• Aperture priority allows selection of any of three lens openings (see above)


• Shutter priority allows selection of shutter time in 1-stop increments from 8 seconds(!) to 1/500 of a second (1/750 in final production units?)


• 256-segment Matrix, spot, and center-weighted exposure-metering options


• "Live" feedback of current aperture, shutter speed values


• 48 megabyte RAM buffer for full-res continuous shooting at 2 frames per second


• Rapid cycle time of ~2-3 seconds in normal shooting mode


• US List price of $1199 (? - waiting confirmation on this), available in April
  
  February 16 - Now it can be told: The Olympus C-2000 Zoom!
  By Michael Tomkins, The Imaging Resource
  (Tuesday, February 16, 1999 - 0:00 EST)
  
  - Olympus announces 2.1 megapixel digicam! "First Look" review posted! I think we actually got a clean "scoop" on this one! (Except that Olympus Japan announced the product last night, US time, about 12-16 hours ahead of the US.) We were fortunate to be able to evaluate a pre-production prototype of Olympus' new 2.1 megapixel camera, the C-2000 Zoom. What a device! Probably the biggest news beyond the 2.1 megapixel CCD is the degree of control it gives you over the photographic process: It sports full program, aperture- and shutter-priority autoexposure controls, with (get this) 1/3 f-stop control over both shutter and aperture, across their entire range! Lots of other juicy stuff, too, including a really great user interface. The unit we were given to work with was an early prototype, so we can't show any pictures taken with it (the color was
  still being tweaked.) The "dreamarts" site in Japan has posted some very nice-looking images on their Japanese-language page, though, and the Japanese PC-Watch site also has a page on the camera, complete with pictures. Meanwhile, here's a brief list of its attributes. Check out our First Look for more details! (We'll have a complete review with our usual complement of test images as soon as Olympus can get us a full-production version of the camera.)
  
  
  
  
  
  • 2.1 million pixel CCD -- resolutions of 1600x1200, 1024x768, 640x480
  
  
  • 3x (35mm-105mm) optical plus 1.6/2.0/2.5x digital zoom, usable at any optical focal length
  
  
  • Fast f2.0/f2.8 lens (apertures down to f11 manually selectable)
  
  
  • Shutter speeds from 1/2 to 1/800 seconds
  
  
  • Exceptional exposure control, including full program, aperture-priority, shutter-priority. (The really big news here is that the shutter & aperture-priority adjustments are both in 1/3-stop increments across the full range!)
  
  
  • Spot and averaging metering
  
  
  • User-selectable ISO: 100, 200, 400
  
  
  • Uncompressed TIFF mode
  
  
  • SmartMedia (compatible up to 32MB, comes with 8MB)
  
  
  • Fast cycle time of 2-3 seconds (production units should be faster yet), huge RAM buffer, can take at least 5 full-res pictures without pausing,at least 45 at VGA resolution! (We got up to 10 full-res shots!)
  
  
  • (Big news) Camera stays "live" while it's processing images! - You can adjust exposure & other shooting parameters without waiting for it to finish digesting images!
  
  
  • Very useful 3x zoom on picture playback, makes it easy to see every last detail, even in full-res images.
  
  
  • Infrared remote, for remote control of most camera functions (we didn't get to try this out with our prototype unit.)
  
  
  • Compact design - see our comparison picture alongside the Oly D-600L
  
  
  • Direct printer support for Oly P-330 printer
  
  
  • Very intuitive user interface
  
  
  • 1.8" LCD, 113,000 pixel LCD.
  
  
  • US List price of $999, available in May
    
    
  
  
  
  

  We were very impressed with what we saw of the C-2000 Zoom: The smooth 1/3-stop exposure control over the full range of lens aperture and shutter speed is a big boost in creative control, that we expect will be welcomed by many. We still need to see the final version to make up our minds about image quality, but the pictures posted on the Japanese sites look very good, indeed!
  
  

  Monday, February 15, 1999

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  February 15 - Sigh... Nikon 950 & 700: The price of a promise...
  By Michael Tomkins, The Imaging Resource
  (Monday, February 15, 1999 - 0:00 EST)
  
  - Beans spilled on Nikon 950, 700! We've been working under non-disclosure with Nikon on their new products (eg, we promised Nikon we won't publish any of our info until they say we can). This means we have lots of goodies on things that we unfortunately can't tell you anything about until the 17th. Meanwhile, Nikon Japan spilled the beans on the new CoolPix 950 and 700 with an official press release in the Far East. Phil Askey picked up a packet, and even has pictures on his site of the new units. (We'll have more pictures of our own on the 17th, and LOTS of sample images.) Steve's Digicams has also picked up on this story, with their own features, specifications and sample pictures from the CoolPix 950, as well as specs for the Coolpix 700 - all linked from Steve's news page! The DCRP has taken the opportunity to share
  what they know as well, here's what they've published:
  (Oops, that's NIKON Japan! - We slightly edited this news item in the wee hours last night, to remove the suggestion that Mr. Askey had "spilled the beans" and inadvertently typed "Fuji Japan" rather than "Nikon Japan!" - Our profuse apologies to Fuji, who have never shown any sign of subterfuge relative to Nikon's plans!!)
  
  
  
  
  
  • 2.1 million pixel CCD -- resolution of 1600x1200
  
  
  • 3x optical + 2.5x digital zoom
  
  
  • manual focus, exposure/aperture controls
  
  
  • spot metering; macro mode
  
  
  • ISO of up to 320 (Correction to previous stat)
  
  
  • Very fast startup time, and quick between shots
  
  
  • Uncompressed TIFF mode
  
  
  • Ability to review a picture (and delete it!) before it's written to the CF card.
  
  
  • Light-weight magnesium body (see Phil's site for photo of it
  
  
  • 2" LCD, ships w/8MB CF card.
  
  
  • Available for ~$1100 in April
  
  
  • Sample photos from PC Watch (Japanese)
    
    
  
  
  
  

  The PC-Watch sample pictures are really incredible! - Check out those time-exposure night shots, the one with the car lights as streaks was an 8 second exposure time! We'll have more info on the 17th, so stay tuned...
  - Outpost.com has D700's! - We just got word from our advertiser Cyberian Outpost that they're about to receive their first shipment of Sony D700 digicams! They're quoting a 4-day lead time, which suggests to us that the cameras are (finally) in the US, perhaps just now clearing Customs. Click HERE to order yours! ($1699)
  - BIG surprise due tomorrow! - On the subject of things we can't talk about, check-in tomorrow (mid-day?), for some big news: We actually may have a "scoop" on this one! (Finally!)
  
  

  Friday, February 12, 1999

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  February 12 - 2+ megapixel Ricoh digicam, Fuji MX-2700 review, and more!
  By Michael Tomkins, The Imaging Resource
  (Friday, February 12, 1999 - 0:00 EST)
  
  - Ricoh announces RDC-5000 2.3 Megapixel digicam! We heard this news almost simultaneously from the Future Image email newsletter (see the text box above entitled "Serious News"), and Phil Askey's excellent site - Ricoh Co. Ltd. has today announced their first 2+ megapixel digital camera. The Ricoh RDC-5000 has the following features:
  
  - 2.3 megapixel CCD (sound familiar?)
  - Glass lens assembly (9 elements in 6 groups).
  - 2.3x zoom equivalent to 38-86mm on a 35mm camera.
  - 2.5x digital zoom
  
  - Focus down to as little as 4 centimetres away
  
  - 1792 x 1200 pixel resolution.
  - 8MB of internal RAM allows up to 28 shots at 1 second intervals.
  - SmartMedia storage (in sizes up to the new 32MB cards).
  - Shutter speeds 1/500th to 1 second.
  - Built-in flash with red-eye reduction.
  - Automatic and 5-mode manual white balance.
  - Weighs 315g excluding battery.
  - Self timer (10 seconds)
  - Interval timer (30 second increments up to 3 hours)
  - Optional remote control
  
  - Video in/out connectors (NTSC/PAL switcheable)
  - Japanese or English menus
  
  - 4 AA alkaline, lithium or NICAD batteries.
  
  A nice touch is that when you power the camera off, a cover slides down to protect the 1.8 inch LCD from scratches. There is also apparently the possibility to take photos in 1792 x 1200 pixels, and then have the camera downsample them to 896 x 600 pixels using an algorithm similar to JPEG to selectively compress less important image components. The specifications also seem to note that manual focus is available on the camera. No availability is listed, but a price of 99,800 yen (approx US$875) is predicted. Thanks to the The Future Image and the Universal Currency Converter.
  - DreamArts posts Fuji MX-2700 review! The Japanese DreamArts website has posted a review of the Fuji FinePix MX-2700, with plenty of sample images. They've also done comparison photos with the Leica Digilux and the Kodak DC-260, so you can really get a feel for the performance of the new camera. Check it out!
  - HP and PhotoLoft.com expand capabilities of online photo site! Hewlett Packard and PhotoLoft.com have today announced a deal that gives PhotoLoft's digital imaging website unique new capabilities. Photoloft will use HP's OpenPix ImageIgniter and OpenPix print integrator software to allow users to print photos at the true resolution of their printer, rather than the 72dpi limit normally imposed by their browser. This means that essentially, users can print their photographs directly from their PhotoLoft album, rather than having to save the image to disk and open it in another application as has previously been the case. The new software will also enable users to zoom in on their images, and pan around them, without loss of image quality.
  - PhotoParade creates polished photo presentations! Callisto Corp. emailed us about their photo presentation program, PhotoParade. Its a little difficult to describe, but essentially PhotoParade lets you create themed presentations from your photos. One example has your photos displayed on a huge screen on the side of a building, the titles of each photo scrolling on a ticker-tape style board beneath the screen, accompanied by the sounds of the city, jazz music, pigeons flying by in the background and interesting antics in the lighted windows of the building itself. The viewer can interact with the scenes, such as in the stamp collecteor theme where you can use tweezers and a sponge to stick your "stamps" (the pieces of the photo you're viewing) together in the right places on the page of your stamp/photo album to see the full picture. The program creates compressed files that you can email to
  friends and family, or place on a floppy disk, and the files can be viewed with a free viewer application. For a limited time, the program itself is also free to download, and additional themes can be purchased on the PhotoParade website. Go take a look!
  - Sony DSC-D700 finally shipping in the USA! The Digital Camera Resource Page has heard from readers that the Sony DSC-D700 is shipping, and a quick check of CNet Shopper.Com confirms that at least one site is listing the DSC-D700 as in-stock. A lot of people will be breathing a sigh of relief at this news, I am sure... Thanks to the Digital Camera Resource Page!
  
  

  Thursday, February 11, 1999

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  February 11 - In-camera security on the way, and more!
  By Michael Tomkins, The Imaging Resource
  (Thursday, February 11, 1999 - 0:00 EST)
  
  - FotoNation patent in-camera security software! FotoNation Inc., emailed us today with news of their new in-camera security software, SecureSuite. The software consists of four elements, FotoEncrypt, FotoMark, FotoFingerprint and FotoAuthenticate, all of which run inside the camera itself ensuring that they cannot be bypassed. FotoEncrypt obviously encrypts digital images taken with the camera, FotoMark adds a visible watermark to the image that can only be removed with a given password, FotoFingerPrint allows users to view copyright information attached the to image, and FotoAuthenticate verifies whether the image has been altered or tampered with in any way, and if so identifies the affected region of the image. Two patents have been granted for the technology, although there are no specific details in the release of what the patents cover.src="/ART/SPACE.GIF" align="TOP" width="1" height="35" naturalsizeflag="0">
  - Ulead announce new panoramic image software. Ulead Systems has announced the new Cool360 program for creating 360-degree panoramic images. The software takes a three-step approach to creating the images. In the first step, the software guides you through acquiring images from a scanner or digital camera for your choice of panoramic or full 360-degree images. The second step allows you to manually or automatically stitch images together, and adjust perspective, hue, saturation, brightness and contrast between photos. Finally, the third step allows you to save the image to an executable file (for emailing), a panorama for use on the web (using the Ulead plugin), as a screensaver, a MOV video file, or printing the panorama. The software is available now on Ulead's website and most software distributors at a
  price of $39.95.
  - Duracell introduce longer-lasting lithium batteries! Duracell today announced the release of their new Duracell ULTRA photo lithium batteries. Scheduled to start shipping in April 1999, the new batteries are available in 123, 223, 245 and CR2 sizes, and should last up to 40% longer than current photo lithium batteries.
  - Alexis Gerard joins PhotoHighway.com! PhotoHighway.com today announced that digital imaging expert Alexis Gerard, executive editor and publisher of The Future Image Report, has been appointed to its Advisory Board. Gerard was previously the president and executive director of the Digital Imaging Group, a non-profit consortium formed by Adobe, Canon, Eastman Kodak, Fuji, Hewlett Packard, IBM, Intel, Live Picture and Microsoft to promote digital imaging. ixla Ltd., developer of the upcoming PhotoHighway.com website intends to unveil the site at the upcoming PMA '99 show in Las Vegas.
  - Photo Assistant '98 Light released. Steve's Digicams is carrying news that EasyTek have released the latest version of their Photo Assistant program for Windows95/98. Photo Assistant is designed to help you print your pcitures with the best quality possible, and arrange multiple pictures on one page to reduce waste. Details of the changes and additions to the latest release can be found here.Thanks to Steve's Digicams for the story!
  
  

  Wednesday, February 10, 1999

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  February 10 - 32MB SmartMedia on the market, important news for Kodak DC25, DC40, DC50 or DC120 owners, and more!
  By Michael Tomkins, The Imaging Resource
  (Wednesday, February 10, 1999 - 0:00 EST)
  
  - Olympus announces 32MB SmartMedia and FlashPath! Olympus Optical Co. Ltd. has today announced the immediate release in Japan of 32MB SmartMedia cards, as well as the planned release of the corresponding 32MB FlashPath SmartMedia reader at the beginning of March. The 32MB "M-32P" SmartMedia cards are available at a price of 15,000 yen (approx. US$130), and the 32MB-specific FlashPath reader will retail for 12,000 yen (approx. US$105). The 32MB SmartMedia can also be read using the existing MA-2 PC Card adaptor, or using the existing MAFP-1/1N FlashPath adaptors and accompanying 32MB driver update. The following equipment from Olympus can accept 32MB SmartMedia cards:
  
  Olympus Digital Cameras
  - C-1400XL, C-900ZOOM
  
  - C-1400L, C-1000L (after 8000 yen [US$70] upgrade)
  - C-840L, C-830L and D-340L (after 6000 yen [US$50] upgrade)
  Olympus Digital Color Printer
  
  - P-330 (after 1000 yen [US$10] upgrade)
  Olympus Digital Photo Editor
  
  - VS100ST, VS100MO (after 1000 yen [US$10] upgrade)
  
  There are two cautionary notes from Olympus in the press release. The first states that while C-1400L and C-1000L cameras upgraded to 16MB recently were supposed to be able to accept 32MB SmartMedia, and will work under most circumstances correctly, the cameras can occasionally encounter an error which can lose data or even destroy the 32MB SmartMedia card, and hence Olympus are recommending customers return these cameras for a second upgrade free of charge. The second note is a little odd, and I am not 100% sure of my translation of it, but it appears to warn Olympus C-1400XL users to format their 32MB SmartMedia cards in their camera rather than their PC, stating that data on the card might be lost when a PC-formatted SmartMedia card is inserted in the C-1400XL camera.
  Thanks to the Universal Currency Converter for US pricing equivalents, and to PC Watch in Japan for finding the original press release.
  - Kodak announces recall of AC Adapters for Digital Cameras! We've received a note today from Eastman Kodak Company advising of a recall for certain potentially dangerous AC Adapters:
  
  "CPSC, Kodak Announce Recall of AC Adapters for Digital Cameras.
  Kodak has found a potential problem with the IMPROPER USE of the optional AC adapters manufactured by ELPAC Electronics, Inc. that were supplied as a digital camera accessory to Kodak DC25, DC40, DC50 or DC120 Digital Cameras. These ELPAC AC adapters, if not fully plugged into the digital camera, MAY CAUSE THE BATTERIES to overheat to a high temperature. This situation can cause the batteries to leak acid and explode, possibly causing thermal and chemical burns or lacerations. We're conducting a voluntary recall in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
  If you have one of these cameras and are using an ELPAC AC adapter, model numbers 2457, 2534, M42008 or MI2008, PLEASE CONTACT US IMMEDIATELY.
  Go to http://www.kodak.com/go/acadapter right now to arrange for the return and FREE REPLACEMENT of your adapter.
  Accessories Team
  
  Kodak Digital and Applied Imaging Division"
  - Footnote to Kodak AC Adapters story: If you are not sure if your Kodak AC Adapter is one of those affected by the press release above, go to Yahoo! BW PhotoWire, which is currently carrying a photograph comparing the affected and unaffected AC adapters alongside each other.
  - Steve's Digicams soars higher! We were pleased to see that the excellent Steve's Digicams website has reached their 500,000th visitor a few days ago! If you're a website, birthdays seem to be counted in terms of visitors more often than years, and 500,000 is quite an impressive milestone to pass... If you've not tried Steve's site before, be sure and drop by later, and see if you can't get him up to his millionth visitor! Congratulations, Steve!
  - Digital Photography Review posts Dimage 1500EX review! Phil Askey's Digital Photography Review has posted a review of Minolta's Dimage 1500EX digital camera. Phil liked the speed, image quality and upgradeability of the camera, but found the zoom to be too noisy and the flash a little difficult to control. For the full story, be sure to pop over to Digital Photography Review.
  - Kodak puts snapshots on PictureCD. An article today by the Associated Press tells that in the next few weeks, Kodak will be offering PictureCDs in the first of what will become 40,000 retail outlets across America offering PictureCD capabilities by this summer. PictureCD is a format for storing photos on Compact Disk, and was developed in cooperation with Intel and Adobe. In tests, it was used by roughly 5% of customers. Stores offering PictureCD processing will include Kmart Corp., Walgreen Co., CVS Corp. and Target Stores. At least initially, customers will still be required to purchase traditional prints at the same time, and PictureCDs will take two days to process.
  - MRT micro launches Observer/Eye digital camera. MRT micro ASA of Norway has announced it's Intelligent Observer line of products, including the Observer/Eye digital camera. The Observer/Eye is designed for surveillance and similar solutions, and can capture, compress and store up to 85,000 full color images at 768 x 494 pixels (At 25 frames per second, that's about 56 hours of video). The camera contains a 10/100MB Ethernet port and can also accept an optional PC Card modem, for transmitting the images to another location. Two software packages are available, the Observer/Alert package with motion-detection for security purposes, and the Virtual Eye package which acts as a webcam, transmitting images to web servers. The Observer/DTK developer's toolkit is available for those wishing to design their own software for the camera.align="TOP" width="1" height="35" naturalsizeflag="0">
  - IXLA technology used in Polaroid photo printer. A press release from IXLA Limited of Danbury, Connecticut today reveals that Polaroid Corporation has licensed IXLA's Digital Camera Interface Technology for their Direct Camera Adapter. The Direct Camera Adapter is used to allow digital photographers to connect selected digital cameras directly to the Polaroid ColorShot Photo Printer without the need for a PC.
  - Imaging Technologies to address Color Symposium. Imaging Technologies Corp. has announced that they will be addressing the Color Symposium for Printer Manufacturers in Tokyo today. They also intend to demonstrate their latest technology, ColorBlind Color Management software, which allows users to profile all of their peripherals such as scanners, digital cameras, printers and monitors to ensure consistent reproduction of colors. The symposium is being sponsered by Agfa-Gevaert. Also to be shown is Xionics' CopyColor, a software application designed to allow OEMs to link a color scanner and printer, allowing them to be used as a color copier.
  - Microsoft to highlight digital imaging at WinHEC. There is little information given to support the notion, nor is the exhibitors list a who's who of digital imaging, but Microsoft has stated in a press release today that the eighth annual Windows Hardware Engineering Conference and Exhibition (WinHEC) will "address key hardware technologies ... such as digital imaging". We wait with interest...
  - Roland Hi-Fi JET wins Cool2 award. Roland's Hi-Fi JET printer has been selected for a Cool2 award by PEI (Photo Electronic Imaging) Magazine. The printer is the world's first wide-format 1440 dpi (dots per inch) printer, and won the award for best large-format color printer under $20,000. The award is based on quality, innovation, improvement, ease of use, and broadness of scope.
  - Photodex joins with Digital Greetings. Photodex Corporation, the Texas-based creator of CompuPic (the image viewing/editing program) and GraphicsWiz (a website with information on graphics storage and editing, along with a picture gallery), has announced a partnership with Digital Greetings, an online greeting-card company also based in Texas. Digital Greetings has been contracted by Photodex to create a variety of online greetings cards for CompuPic users, accessible from Photodex's "GraphicsWiz" website, including Valentine's Day cards - so go send one to your loved one!
  
  

  Tuesday, February 9, 1999

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  February 9 - New Sanyo camera, new Sony digital camcorder, and more!
  By Michael Tomkins, The Imaging Resource
  (Tuesday, February 9, 1999 - 0:00 EST)
  
  - Sanyo announces new DSC-X110 digital camera! Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd. has today announced a new digital camera, the DSC-X110. The excellent PC Watch website in Japan noted that the new camera is essentially a DSC-X100 camera with updated firmware, the hardware being identical. The DSC-X100 and DSC-X110 digital cameras have the ability to record video clips (with sound), and it is here that the largest improvement has been made, with the DSC-X110 camera now able to record twice as much as the previous model (up to 120 seconds of 15 frames per second video, using a 16MB SmartMedia card, at a resolution of 160 x 120 pixels.) Improvements have also been made to the speed of the camera overall. The camera has an 850,000 pixel (1024 x 768 pixel image) CCD, and offers software
  interpolation up to 1.3 megapixel (1280 x 960 pixels). The camera also features a 3.2x digital zoom, and a 2-inch, 110,000 pixel LCD display with a weight of 200 grams (including battery). Availability is scheduled for February 20th, and existing DSC-X100 cameras can be upgraded for an unannounced fee. Sample photos are also online at PC Watch, and there is also an official press release (in Japanese) from Sanyo.
  - Sony announces digital camcorder with MemoryStick slot! PC Watch in Japan also is carrying a story today regarding the new DCR-TRV10 digital camcorder from Sony, sporting not just a DV Tape for recording video, but also a MemoryStick slot for capturing still images in JPEG format at a resoltuion of 640 x 480 pixels.A maximum of 246 photos can be captured in standard mode and 164 photos in fine mode, using a 16MB MemoryStick. The DCR-TRV10 is about 17% lighter (650 grams without battery) and 33% smaller (67.5 x 157.5 x 89 millimeters) than the previous model, the DCR-TRV9, and features a 10x optical zoom (as compared to the 12x optical zoom in the previous model). The camera also features Sony's famous NightShot capability, which hit the headlines last year for it's reported ability to "see through" clothing, a popular feature that
  Sony has since removed. :) Sony's webpage contains more in-depth specifications (in Japanese only).
  - Computer Shopper announces top-selling products of 1998! Computer Shopper.com, part of Ziff Davis' ZDNet website, has announced the top 10 products of 1998 in terms of online and phone orders, and requests for contact from vendors. Products related to Digital Imaging were the Epson Stylus Color 800 (1st place), Epson Stylus Color 600 printer (2nd), HP DeskJet 722C printer (4th), Visioneer PaperPort 6000 scanner (7th) and the Kodak DC210 digital camera (8th).
  - Club Photo's new Living Album '99 now official! We've mentioned Club Photo's new Living Album '99 several times recently, however we thought it was worth noting that Club Photo has put out their official press release on Yahoo! Business Wire today...
  
  

  Monday, February 8, 1999

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  February 8 - Agfa introduces camera, and quite a bit more!
  By Michael Tomkins, The Imaging Resource
  (Monday, February 8, 1999 - 0:00 EST)
  
  - Agfa introduces ePhoto CL50 digital camera! Agfa Desktop Products Group has today announced the release of the Agfa ePhoto CL50 digital camera. The camera has a resolution of 1280 x 960, which is software-interpolated up to a maximum of 1600 x 1200, as well as burst-mode capability (10 continuous pictures at 0.5 second intervals, however only if the pictures are taken at a resolution of 640 x 480). The camera also has sound capability, SmartMedia storage, and "panorama" software for stitching multiple photos into panoramic shots. Probably the most notable feature of the camera is a prism to direct sunlight into the LCD, allowing the backlight to be turned down and consume less battery power. Availability is set for March at a price of $799.
  - Digital Origin's EditDV bundled with Canon EluraDV. A press release today states that Digital Origin's EditDV Unplugged! software will be bundled with the upcoming Canon EluraDV digital camcorder. The software will be bundled as a preview version only, and enables the user to add effects, transitions, titling and more to their video. Somewhat amusingly, a CD-ROM of video pre-recorded on a Canon EluraDV is included to enable "consumers using computers not yet outfitted with IEEE 1394 (Firewire) [interfaces] the ability to begin editing immediately."
  - Inmedia announces PhotoChannel. Inmedia Presentations, Inc. of Vancouver has announced that they are developing PhotoChannel, a new Internet portal for conventional and digital photographers. PhotoChannel will include a "photography information resource center", an online photofinishing service and an online camera store offering camera equipment, accessories, supplies, reprints, enlargements and photo merchandise.
  - Digital Intelligence unveil PictureIQ. Digital Intelligence, a Seattle-based company previously part of Adobe Systems Incorporated, has announced their new embedded software for use in a variety of devices such as set-top boxes, photo appliances, game consoles, handhelds, and printers. PictureIQ has been designed to allow users to create, store, organize, enhance, and print digital photos without a PC. Examples of features in PictureIQ are image rotation, cropping, retouching, red-eye removal, and more.
  - IPIX promotes users' creations. Interactive Pictures has posted two press releases/adverts today, promoting their technology for creating navigable, 360-degree panoramic photographs. The technology is certainly nice, and according to the first press release has been used by CNN for an interactive tour of the space shuttles' cockpit, the Nobel prize ceremony, and the church where Martin Luther King spoke, as well as by ESPN to allow users to join ESPN on the fairways at the President's Cup golf tournament in Australia. The second press release concentrates on how IPIX's software is superior to that from other companies, because it allows not just a 360-degree panoramic photograph, but a photograph that is 360-degree panoramic in both horizontal and vertical planes. IPIX state that this puts their
  software above the rest helping them "dominate the real-estate market".
  - CDT has breakthrough in LEP technology. Cambridge Display Technology, a British company leading worldwide development of Light Emitting Polymer displays, has announced a breakthrough in LEP chemistry. Until now, Cambridge has had difficulty creating an LEP that creates blue light, but they have announced that they have now succeeded in doing this, and have demonstrated a single-pixel white LEP (which requires a careful combination of red, green and blue LEPs to create.) Cambridge is working in cooperation with Seiko Epson of Japan to create a full-color LEP display, and believe that it will be ready sooner rather than later. They point to the fact that it took more than a decade to create the first blue LEDs, whereas Cambridge has created the first blue LEP in only 18 months. (Dave's note: This could be really big news, indeed, for digicamowners,
  although it won't likely hit digicam production for at least another 18-24 months, even if all goes well. - Once the displays are created, they'll have to be designed into a new crop of digicams, which will take time to happen. The reason it's such big news though, is that the LEPs could be a lot more efficient than the current LCD-with-backlight. LCDs work by passing light through polarizers, which cuts at least 50% of the backlight brightness right there. Also, their optical structure means that viewing angles are pretty narrow. With LEPs, because the panel itself is the light-emitting element, there should be no viewing-angle restrictions whatever! (Well, you DO still have to be in front of the thing...)
  - DigitalFocus attracts top companies at PMA '99. Digital Focus, a leading Digital Imaging newsletter, has announced that leading companies will debut their latest products at DigitalFocus '99 @ PMA. The DigitalFocus event takes place from 6 to 9pm on the eve of the PMA show, February 17, 1999 in Las Vegas. Companies to show products at DigitalFocus include 3COM, Adobe, Agfa, Canon, Digital Imaging Group, Duracell, Energizer, Enroute Imaging, Epson, Flashpoint, Fuji, Intel, IOMega, IPIX, Jasc Software, Kodak, Lexar Media, Lexmark, MGI Software, Minolta, Nikon, Olympus, Philips, Picture CD,Sandisk, Toshiba Imaging Systems and Ulead.
  
  

  Sunday, February 7, 1999

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  February 7 - Nikon Coolscan III mini-review and image samples on-line!
  By Michael Tomkins, The Imaging Resource
  (Sunday, February 7, 1999 - 0:00 EST)
  
  -Nikon Coolscan III (LS-30) mini-review and sample images posted!. At long last, we've completed our testing of the "little brother" to the Nikon SuperCoolscan 2000 (LS-2000). This scanner is a virtual clone of the higher-end Super Coolscan, but with lower bit-depth digitization, and a few other features left out to bring the list price down to under a thousand dollars (and "street" prices of course much lower.) Our testing supported the fact of this close relationship, with the LS-30 performing as well as the LS-2000 in most areas. We refer readers to our earlier review of the LS-2000 for a full description of the control software and user interface, and for examples of the amazing "Digital ICE" dust & scratch-removal technology. If you're already familiar with the Nikon Scan application from the earlier review, you can just go directly to the "PRODS/LS30/LS30PICS.HTM">Pictures Page for the Coolscan III. Check it out!
  
  

  Friday, February 5, 1999

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  February 5 - Sample images from Sony DSC-F55K and Fuji MX-2700 online, new version of FlashPath on the way, and more!
  By Michael Tomkins, The Imaging Resource
  (Friday, February 5, 1999 - 0:00 EST)
  
  - Sony DSC-F55K sample photos online! The PC Watch website in Japan has posted sample images from Sony's upcoming DSC-F55K, the first 2-megapixel digital camera to be announced just a few days ago. The pictures are pretty impressive, and led the reviewer to comment that the Zeiss lens looked much sharper than previous 1.3 and 1.6 megapixel units that he had tested. The pictures did display a tendency to have a reddish cast, however the review noted that the camera used was a beta version and that this issue would likely be fixed before release date.
  - Fuji FinePix MX-2700 sample photos online! The PC Watch website has also managed to get a preview and sample images of the Fuji MX-2700 digital camera online, only two days after first news of the camera came out. The preview mentions two things of note - firstly that the camera has a six-step manual white balance, secondly that the time between shots is approximately 6 seconds. The pictures pretty much speak for themselves, but note that according to the page these photos are all from a beta version of the camera, and hence will probably differ from the final version. According to the page, the camera takes about twice as long (2 seconds) to start up as the Sony DSC-F55K, can take several seconds after taking a shot to display it on the LCD, and the reviewer
  seems slightly disappointed by the sharpness of the images considering the resolution of the camera. On the upside though, the reviewer was impressed with the night-shooting capabilities of the camera, and the automatic white balance feature (despite a slightly greenish cast under fluorescent lighting). (Note: If you have already seen these photos, you might want to look again, as there is a note on the PC Watch webpage that further photos have been added).
  - Fuji make new version of FlashPath. The Fuji MX-2700 preview mentioned in the previous article also mentions the FlashPath adapter. Apparently, a new version of the adapter is to be released, called the FD-A2B. The site doesn't specify what the differences are from the original FD-A1 adapter, but does note that both adapters will be able to accept 32MB SmartMedia - although the FD-A1 adapters will require a new driver to be able to do this. The Japanese language drivers are available on Fuji's Japanese website, so look for English-language drivers soon!
  - Fuji to introduce three new cameras at PMA! In a press release, Fuji has announced that the theme of their stand at the PMA '99 show will be "The Bigger Picture", and that they will be introducing the following new cameras:
  Fuji MX-2700, as mentioned previously.
  Fuji MX-600 Zoom, 1.5 megapixel, 3x optical and 2x digital zoom, 1.8 inch LCD.
  Fuji DX-10 XGA, 850,000 pixel resolution, 1.8-inch LCD, and "digital processing effects ... at a [surprising] price".
  - Digital Camera prices take a plunge in Japan! PC Watch also has a story regarding a recent drop in Japanese digicam prices. Current prices in Japan for the affected cameras are below, and Currency conversions are from the Universal Currency Converter, comparison prices from CNET Shopper.
  Nikon CoolPix 910, a Japanese version of the Coolpix 900 - $618, previously $706. No longer available in the US.
  Olympus C-830L, Japanese version of the D-400Z without the zoom lens and with a slightly smaller LCD - $352, previously $440. Not available in the US.
  Toshiba PDR-M1 - $352, previously $432. US price approx. $370.
  Konica Q-M100V, not available in the US, but very similar to the Q-M100 except a better CCD, better white balance, revised front-panel and differnt color case. $352, previously $440. US price for Q-M100 approx. $350.
  Sony MVC-FD51 - ($378, previously $485). US price approx. $400.
  - Nikon CoolPix 910 still selling in Japan! The previous article has an interesting footnote. Regular readers may remember that we reported on January 31st that sales of the Nikon CoolPix 900 had ceased in the USA, due to stocks running out thanks to the popularity of the camera. The sharp-eyed amongst you will have noticed in the list above that the CoolPix 910 (the Japanese version of the CoolPix 900) is still selling in Japan. IR's sources confirm that there are still CoolPix 900s in the Japanese channel, but that since they were packed up for the Japanese market, it simply wasn't practical to consider re-packing them to fill the US void.
  - Kodak and Sanyo announce Organic EL display tie-up. Electronics giant Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd. and the Eastman Kodak Company have announced a comprehensive alliance agreement to jointly develop Organic EL displays. The displays are comprised of self-luminous pixels, and hence require no backlight. They have an unlimited viewing angle, and are faster to respond than traditional LCD displays, as well as being thinner, brighter, and requiring less energy. All in all, they sound perfect for digital cameras! Passive displays should be in production by mid-2000, and active displays requiring still less power, yet providing even more brightness in more compact packaging should be in production by 2001.
  - Canon introduces Elura digital camcorder. Although camcorders are really outside the scope of this site, the Elura camcorder announced yesterday by Canon is worthy of a brief mention simply because it can also be used to take digital still images. More than 500 images can be stored on one 60-minute MiniDV cassette tape, however with a CCD of only 380K pixels, the resulting images would only be around 640 x 480 pixels.
  - Xerox drops large-format printer prices! Xerox Corporation has announced a price drop on their large-format ColorgrafX printers by up to 35%, bringing US prices down to between $22,995 and $64,900. The Xpress 36 inkjet printer will be reduced by 24%, the Xpress 54 by 16%, whilst the 44-inch 8900 series will come down 28% and the 54-inch 8900 will come down the most of all, by 35%.
  - d-store drops prices! Be sure and visit the Deals page for information of some price changes at d-store on SmartMedia, UBS-SCSI converters and Olympus Digicams.
  - Hemara to bundle software with HP scanners. Hemara Technologies Inc. has announced that their "Netgraphics Optimizer" and "Photo-Objects Gallery" software is to be bundled with HP's new ScanJet 5200C scanners. Netgraphics Optimizer is an award-winning program for optimizing graphics for display on the web, and Photo-Objects Gallery is an image cataloguing program.
  - PMAI announces "World's Funniest Photo Contest". The Photo Marketing Association International, hosts of the upcoming PMA '99 show, has announced the "World's Funniest Photo" contest. Entries are due by April 1st, 1999 (April Fool's Day), and will be accepted in two categories, traditional photography and digital imaging. First prize in each category is $1000, and five runners up in each category will receive $100. Full details are at: http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/990205/mi_pmai_ph_2.html
  
  

  Wednesday, February 3, 1999

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  February 3 - Fuji MX-2700 official, rumors of Kodak cameras, Minolta signs for MetaFlash, and quite a bit more!
  By Michael Tomkins, The Imaging Resource
  (Wednesday, February 3, 1999 - 0:00 EST)
  
  - The Fuji MX-2700 - it's official! We carried a story yesterday caught by Steve's Digicams regarding a rumored new camera from Fuji, and 24 hours later rumor becomes fact! Fuji Photo Film USA has officially announced the new Fuji MX-2700 digital camera, with a 2.3 million pixel CCD producing photos at a resolution of 1800 x 1200 pixels. The camera is an impressively small 3.1 x 3.8 x 1.3 inches, and thanks to its small size and aluminum alloy body, weighs just 8.5 ounces. Other features include a 2-inch 130,000 pixel polysilicon LCD display, optical viewfinder, built-in flash, 2.5x digital zoom, user-adjustable white balance and exposure compensation, video out and serial port. The camera uses a rechargeable lithium ion battery (charger included, quick-charger available) to provide up to 250 shots with the LCD
  display off, or 80 shots when using the LCD display. The storage medium is SmartMedia, which will allow a maximum of 142 shots on the upcoming 32MB SmartMedia cards. A photograph of the camera is available on BusinessWire. (Dave's note: This is very interesting, looks like there *is* a 2.3 megapixel CCD out there from a chip maker we didn't know about. (Fuji themselves?) We're itching to try this out, along with the rash of coming 2 megapixel cameras we'll be reviewing (a pretty broad hint). - Hope we can get one from Fuji to work with!)
  - New Kodak digital cameras on the way? Steve's Digicams has posted rumours of two new digital cameras from Kodak. First off is a rumor of an uprated version of the popular Kodak DC260, called the DC265. The camera is rumored to be essentially a DC260 with a RAM buffer that will allow for 7 images to be shot continuously at maximum size, high resolution, and in fine mode. The second rumor is of a modified Kodak DC210, called the DC240, and containing features such as black & white and sepia modes, with a resolution of 1280 x 960. Steve stresses that these rumors are as yet unconfirmed by Kodak, however he scored a pretty much direct hit with yesterday's rumor on the Fuji MX-2700, so let's cross our fingers and hope! Thanks, Steve's Digicams! (Dave's Note: Our lips are sealed by non-disclosures on this one, but the timing would certainly
  fit past Kodak product-release schedules, given when the DC260 first appeared...)
  - Kodak DSC 620 on the way? Steve's Digicams has spotted an article on Rob Galbraith Online regarding a new camera from Kodak, the DSC 620, and a companion flash, the SB-28D. Rob, in turn, received the information in an email from Jeff Snyder of Penn Camera, quoting Kodak as the original source. (Oh, what a tangled web... - Mike) The specifications are very detailed, but to summarise, the basics are: based on the Nikon F5, 2-megapixel, 200-1600 ISO, 0.5 fps (frames per second) continuous with up to 3.5 fps burst for up to 12 images, dual type II/single type III PC-card, auto white balance with 4 manual settings and custom white balance, calibrated exposure, color and flash, sound annotation, and a whole lot more... Thanks to Steve's Digicams and
  Rob Galbraith Online for this story! (Dave's note: This will definitely be a megabuck-level camera, probably in the ~$25,000 range. If you have the money though, the nice thing about the highest-end Kodaks is that the sensor fills the 35mm frame, meaning you can shoot true wide-angle with them. Also, the larger sensor means bigger CCD pixels, and therefore much better low-light performance. I don't know anything about this specific camera though, so it's possible the sensor is smaller. If not though, this is probably the closest you'll find to a "true film" experience with a changeable-lens SLR digicam...albeit for a price!)
  - Minolta and MetaCreations sign deal on MetaFlash! Regular IR readers may remember that we broke a story on January 21st titled "MetaCreations, Kodak, Intel let you take pictures in 3D!". A related press release today reveals that Minolta has signed a deal with MetaCreations to produce a new digital camera utilizing MetaFlash technology. MetaFlash 3D files can be streamed over the Internet using another MetaCreations technology, MetaStream - which Microsoft has agreed to include as a component of both Windows98 and Windows2000. This is bound to create a large user base able to view MetaFlash files, which in turn will make the technology extremely attractive to companies wishing to display their products over
  the Internet - and thus far, the Minolta deal is the only one announced which will enable companies to take advantage of the new technology. Of note, however, is the fact that the press release does not say the deal is exclusive - so look out for other manufacturers to realise the potential value of MetaFlash and sign deals of their own.
  - More than $231 million of DRAM and Flash to sell by 2002 to Digital Camera market! A report just out from the Cahners In-Stat Group predicts that sales of flash-based digital film will grow by an average of 110% (presumably per year) until 2002, thanks to the digital camera industry. Cahners believes that by 2002, sales will have reached an impressive 797 gigabytes per year, due to growth in image complexity (and hence file size) necessitating larger flash cards, larger buffers in cameras, and also due to increased sales of the digital cameras themselves.
  - Pixology helps you try before you buy! Pixology Software & Systems of Surrey, England has announced plans to launch a software package designed to enable users to try out digital cameras in the store before buying them, and compare ready-made sample images. The software will be launched at the upcoming PMA show, and lets users browse sample images and specifications unassisted. With the help of a sales assistant, users can take a sample image with the camera of their choice, and view it on the PC, zooming in or out and comparing images as they please. Updated CD-ROMs containing current cameras will be released every 4 months.
  - SmartDisk gets investment from Rohm and Yamaichi. SmartDisk has announced today that two Japanese electronics manufacturers have invested in the company. Yamaichi Electronics Company Ltd. manufactures sockets and connectors, and has over 2000 employees, whilst Rohm Company Ltd. manufactures ICs (Integrated Circuits), CMOS chips (Complimentary Metal Oxide Semiconductors), and EEPROM chips (Electronically Eraseable Programmable Read Only Memory). (Dave's note: A big part of the digicam business is about packaging - We expect to see more partnerships between people with packaging expertise and people making other components for this market. This of course is good news for digicam buyers, as it will help drive total costs down.)
  - More details on Olympus D-400Z waterproof case. Having just translated the Japanese Olympus web-page in our January 31st article "Olympus lets you get wet taking photos!", we can now add a little more information regarding the Olympus D-400Z case currently in development. The case is currently scheduled to be released in mid-February in Japan, and weighs only 413g excluding the strap. It has been designed for a maximum depth of 30 meters, and so should even be suitable for scuba-diving up to that depth! The only real limitation of the design is that you are unable to use the optical viewfinder at the same time as the case - instead, you have to use the LCD viewfinder which obviously reduces battery life. This is a small price to pay, however, for the ability to take your digital camera to places that you'd never have dreamed possible! The planned retail
  price for the case is 18,500 yen (about $160). (Dave's Note: Did you catch that? Translated the Japanese! Readers: If you've seen a Japanese web page with what looks like an interesting item on it, email us! We'll check it out, and post the results as news, if it actually is something new & relevant.)
  - February issue of megapixel.net is now online. megapixel.net has released their February issue, with reviews of the Fujix DS-300, Kodak DC-260, Ricoh RDC-4200 and Toshiba PDR-M1, plus a revamped navigation system, an article on how megapixel.net create their reviews, and one on why reader David Lau wants to buy a digicam!
  
  

  Tuesday, February 2, 1999

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  February 2 - Epson pushes the limits, and rumors abound!
  By Michael Tomkins, The Imaging Resource
  (Tuesday, February 2, 1999 - 0:00 EST)
  
  - Epson announces world's fastest color inkjet printer! Epson America Inc. has today announced the release of a record-breaking new printer. Epson states that the independent "National Software Testing Laboratory" has found the new Stylus Color 900 is the fastest color inkjet printer in the world in their tests, with a speed of 12 PPM (pages per minute) in greyscale, and 10 PPM in color! The printer also boasts variable droplet sizes right down to 3 picoliters, another record as the industry's smallest ink droplet! The printer has a resolution of 720 x 1440 dpi (dots per inch), USB connectivity, and uses standard Epson inks to provide instant-drying, waterfast and smudge-resistant copy. Interestingly, Epson also allows users to choose their own two-item software bundle from a list including such titles as
  Corel Ventura Publisher, Lotus Freelance, Lotus Mail, McAfee VirusScan, Warcraft II, You Don't Know Jack, and more. The printer is scheduled to be available in mid-February at an estimated street price of $449. (Dave's note: 3 picoliter drops are really small. This printer could have capabilities for subtle color gradations very close to those of 6-color "true photo-quality" printers.)
  - ALPS discontinues European printer sales? The digitalkamera.de website in Germany has posted news that ALPS is to discontinue their European sales of ALPS printers. I've been unable thus far to find anything confirming this on ALPS website or my usual sources, so if anyone finds confirmation of this, I'd love to hear from you at [email protected]!Thanks to digitalkamera.de for the story!
  - Fuji to announce new camera? Steve's Digicams has posted an article yesterday with a rumor of a new camera from Fuji to be announced at Cebit '99. Steve stresses that this is completely unconfirmed, but lists the camera as being called the Fuji MX 2700. The camera is rumored to have a resolution of 1800 x 1200 pixels (although this could be interpolated), 7.6mm F3.2-8 Fukinon fixed focal length lens, 1/2" 2.4-million pixel CCD, 2" TFT LCD screen, shutter speeds from 1/4 to 1/1000th of a second, and able to save both JPEG and uncompressed TIFF files to a SmartMedia card. Thanks to Steve's Digicams, and remember folks, this is a rumor thus far... (Dave's Note: If true, this would be the biggest CCD in a consumer digicam. We know of at least three chip makers
  all producing 2.1 megapixel CCDs, but this is the first we've heard of a 2.4 megapixel chip. If it comes out, we expect it to be pricey, as chip yield goes down pretty fast as chip sizes increase. If the rest of the world is at 2.1 MP, 2.4 MP is likely to cost a fair bit more.)
  - Epson almost ready to ship PhotoPC 750Z? The Digital Camera Resource Page has noticed that NECX is listing the Epson PhotoPC 750Z as due in stock on the 9th of February. If this is so, then 750Zs should be shipping by the start of next week!Thanks to the DCRP for spotting this!
  - PictureVision uses Sun for image storage. Sun Microsystems Inc. has today announced that PictureVision Inc. of Herndon, Virginia has selected the Sun Ultra 60 server and dual-array Sun StorEdge A1000 for storage of digital photos on PictureVision's Kodak PhotoNet online photography service. PictureVision has purchased 90 of the StorEdge A1000's, each of which can be expanded up to a maximum of 144 gigabytes (that's over 12.5 terabytes!) which will be connected to Sun Ultra 60 servers in Online Photo Centers located in the US, France, Germany, the UK and Japan. PictureVision is a subsidiary of Eastman Kodak, and runs
  Kodak's PhotoNet, Sony's ImageStation, and AOL's upcoming "You've Got Pictures!". (Dave's note: This is a big shift, indeed, and *could* mean a significant charge to Kodak's bottom line. Why? A few years back, Kodak reportedly made a HUGE investment in IBM storage hardware for the original Kodak Picture Network. - A Kodak insider once told me the system was large enough to store an appreciable percentage of Kodak's entire wholesale photofinishing output for months. Pundits had speculated that the presence of this enormous storage facility and the need to depreciate it over an extended period would stifle any potential for lower scanning fees in the PhotoNet pricing model. The new Sun hardware suggests that Kodak *may* have decided to bite the bullet on the writeoff of the old IBM storage system... This
  is all mere idle speculation on my part, but it's nonetheless a surprising development. One other note: I wonder how much PictureVision paid for this hardware? These days, 100 Gigabytes really isn't all that big, when you can buy an off-the-shelf Seagate hard drive with 50 gigabytes of capacity for under $3,000!)
  
  

  Monday, February 1, 1999

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  February 1 - Two new Canon printers, 80MB CompactFlash ships, and much, much, MUCH more! ;)
  By Michael Tomkins, The Imaging Resource
  (Monday, February 1, 1999 - 0:00 EST)
  
  - Canon releases two new printers! Canon has today announced the release of two new printers, the BJC-1000 and BJC-2000. The BJC-1000 is a replacement for the existing BJC-250, can print 4 ppm (pages per minute) in monochrome, supports CMY color printing, and can use Canon's BC-06 "Photo Ink" cartridges for photorealistic printing. The BJC-2000 can handle 5 ppm in monochrome, supports CMYK color printing, accepts Canon's BC-22e "Photo Ink" cartridges, features a new "drop-in" cartridge loading system for ease of use, and uses "drop modulation technology" (ie. variable-sized dots) to increase print quality. The BJC-2000 also has a rather interesting (and very unusual) feature - a special cartridge called the IS-22 Color Image Scanner Cartridge turns the printer into a 360dpi (dots
  per inch) color sheetfed scanner! Both printers have a resolution of 720 x 360 dpi , and are up to 20% smaller than Canon's previous smallest desktop bubble jet printers.
  - Olympus wins 1998 MacWorld Editor's Choice Award! Olympus America Inc. today announced that their D-620L camera has won the award for "Best Digital Camera for 1998" in the 14th annual "Eddy" Editor's Choice Awards at MacWorld Expo 98. The award marks the third win for Olympus in the Eddy's in the last three years. In last year's awards, the Olympus D-600L took first place, and in the previous year's awards, the winner was the Olympus D-200L. The D-620L is a ZLR (zoom-lens reflex) camera with 1.4 megapixel (1280 x 1024) resolution, 3x zoom lens, external flash sync, and TTL viewfinder. When we recently reviewed this camera, we found it to be
  as close to using a conventional camera as we have yet seen!
  - ImageExpertCE ready for new Color WindowsCE for Palm-Size PC! Sierra Imaging, Inc., makers of the excellent "ImageExpertCE" imaging program for Microsoft's WindowsCE operating system has announced that the program is ready for the latest WindowsCE form factor. The latest WindowsCE release for Palm-Size PC was announced separately by Microsoft, with the biggest difference over previous versions being the addition of support for color displays. (Note
  from Mike: I have used a previous version of ImageExpertCE on my handheld PC, and found it to be one of the most useful and best-made WindowsCE programs on the market.)
  - Lexar ships first 80MB CompactFlash card! Lexar Media has today announced that they have commenced shipping the Lexar Media Pro series 80MB CompactFlash card. The card marks a new high as both the largest and fastest CompactFlash card currently available. One rather confusing point from the Lexar press release is that they state the card "offers 8X performance-up to three times as fast as the generic digital film" - but even if you don't understand Lexar's math, there is no question that if your camera supports CompactFlash, you should add one of these cards at the very top of your wish-list! The 80MB CF card is available immediately at a price of approximately $329.
  - CompactFlash to be $0.50/MB in 2 years? Reader Louis J. Brazil contacted us with a very interesting link indeed: "Michael Murie has posted some interesting info from the recent Kodak Developer Conference.
  A couple of interesting notes include a GPS link via the Digita OS (someonerecently posted this as a wishlist item on RPD) and SanDisk reporting that CF memory will be $1/mb. by Q1 2000 and .50 by the end of 2000." Thanks, Louis!
  - ScanSoft and Hanes create software bundle! Hanes, makers of the Hanes T-ShirtMaker program that allows users to design and print their own T-shirts and other customizable items, and ScanSoft, a subsidiary of the Xerox Corporation, have announced that they have created a bundle of their software. The special offer, priced at $69.95, bundles both Hanes' T-ShirtMaker and Pagis ScanWorks, a photo-editing and management program designed for home users, which allows users to edit, organize, and shair their photos via fax, email and the Web.
  - Signature Color signs deal with The Learning Company. A press release today from Signature Color, a direct mail company that offers digital and conventional film services, announced a deal to sell software from The Learning Company. Signature Color will be selling software including Print Shop, Family Tree Maker, and Announcements, which they feel will "[enable] consumers to do more with [their] digital images". The Learning Company has recently announced plans for a $3.8 billion merger with toymaker Mattel.
  - North Plains creates I-Piece plugin. Iterated Systems, Inc., a leading developer of next generation digital imaging systems, and North Plains Systems, Inc., a media asset management systems provider, announced today that North Plains is creating an I-Piece plug-in to enable its users to view STiNG(TM) files within its TeleScope media management product. TeleScope manages images, illustrations, digital sounds and movies, page layouts and World Wide Web files.
  - HP introduces new laser printer! Hewlett Packard has today announced a new family of laser printers to replace the extremely popular LaserJet 6P and 6MP. The LaserJet 2100 printers provide true 1200 x 1200dpi resolution, 10 ppm (pages per minute), an instant-on capability to avoid the usual delay whilst the printer "warms up", and are designed to handle 15,000 pages per month.
  - CMP.Net previews PMA Show. In an article on the CMP.Net website, columnist Steve Koenig previews this year's PMA Show and mentions the cameras that are likely to debut there. To summarise, Steve mentions the new Agfa CL50 (see yesterday's news from the Digital Camera Resource Page), an unnamed Sony camera (presumably the Sony DSC-F55K we mentioned in yesterday's news), Toshiba's PDR-M4 (aluminum body, 2-megapixel CCD, 1.8" LCD, and rumored to have 3x optical zoom, 5-mode flash, and accept SmartMedia cards.) Last to be mentioned was Epson's PhotoPC 750Z, with a 1.25 megapixel CCD which is software-interpolated to about 1.8 megapixels.
  - Nikon CoolPix 900 upgrade - where is it? Steve's Digicams has a story currently regarding the status of the CoolPix 900 upgrade in Japan, which may explain why the upgrade hasn't made it out to the rest of the world. According to the information, which was sent to Steve by TsuruZoh Tachibanaya (author of the popular CAME program), shortly after the update came out, Nikon found a bug which sometimes prevented the camera from starting up. Nikon fixed this bug and released another update, however this was found to have another bug which prevents the camera taking pictures under certain conditions. Thanks to Steve and TsuruZoh for the information!
  - US products top in China! A survey of 300,000 Chinese consumers, distributors, vendors and resellers conducted by "Advanced Forecasting-HuiCong" has found that overall, American computer products are the top choice in the Chinese market. Of particular interest to Imaging Resource readers, the top 5 brands of scanners in the Chinese marketplace (in descending order of preference) are: MicroTek (Taiwan), HP (California, USA), Uniscan (Ohio, USA), Agfa (Belgium) and Sharp (Japan).
  - Agfa ePhoto 1680 goes up, up and away! The Agfa homepage currently has an item mentioning that the Agfa ePhoto 1680 camera will be being used on Cable & Wireless' attempt at the first round-the-world balloon flight. Pilots Colin Prescot and Andy Elson will be taking digital photos with the camera and uploading them via satellite to the Cable & Wireless website, sharing the trip with those of us who don't have the money or the bravery to attempt to set the record ourselves.
  - Club Photo announce "Best of Valentine Photos" contest. Andy Parng from Club Photo dropped us a line to mention Club Photos newest contest, the "Best of Valentine Photos". Prizes include CompactFlash or SmartMedia cards, and "Photo Cookies" with your winning photo printed on them fedex'ed to your loved one on Valentine's Day! There's more prizes still to come, so if you want to be sure to get into your loved one's good books, be sure and drop by Club Photo for the full details!Thanks, Andy!
  - Club Photo releases Living Album '99! Club Photo Inc. also sent us the following press release today:
  "San Jose, Calif., Feb. 2, 1999 - Club Photo Inc., the first Internet-based digital photo sharing and finishing network, today released its latest digital photo sharing album software, Living Album 99 for Windows 95/98/NT. Living Album is a comprehensive and engaging photo album that enables users to manage, organize and electronically share their images on the Internet or the desktop with a few clicks of the mouse. The package also includes a free photo Web site that houses completed albums for customers to share their memories and special occasions with friends and family around the world.
  
  The complete solution includes everything users need to share their images immediately. With Living Album 99, users can create albums using any number of electronic or print photos, from any source, in seconds. The created album can then be easily organized, annotated and enjoyed at the desktop or shared with friends, families, and associates instantly over the Internet.
  
  "The Club Photo network and Living Album software were created because we couldn't easily share images with our friends and family. To send pictures, we'd first develop our film, reprint the desired photos and then mail duplicates around the world. With digital, we'd scan the images, or import them from a digital camera and then e-mail each picture because we didn't have the time or skill-set to build HTML Web pages," said Andrew Wei, president of Club Photo Inc. "Living Album 99 solves these fundamental issues associated with photography and image sharing today, by combining image management software and Web publishing all in one complimentary package. For the first time, we're enabling world-wide communities to exchange their precious memories, quickly and easily."
  
  Image Sharing in a Few Easy Steps
  
  The Living Album wizard walks customers through the photo gathering and sharing process. Once the user imports the pictures and organizes into their desired layout, Living Album instantly uploads the photo album via the Club Photo Network. The entire process can literally take just minutes with no special technical knowledge, HTML programming or home page service needed. Friends, families, and associates can then view and enjoy the entire photo stories instantly and purchase reprints and personalized finished products while online.
  
  Living Album features creative templates to instantly organize each album. The software also offers desktop presentation and slide show capabilities that transform the computer into an engaging and interactive e-photo album. In addition, the album can be archived on the desktop, modified, reorganized and shared again and again."
  
  (Note from Dave: Club Photo's approach to photo sharing looks to be one of the strongest out there: The combination of a photo-organizer with one-button web-posting and free web albums looks like an absolutely winning combination! Definitely check out ClubPhoto and their Living Album software!)
  
  

   

  
  
  

   

  AOL Alert: Several readers connecting via AOL have complained of poor image quality when using the AOL web browser. This is caused by a setting called "compress images" in the browser that causes it to completely mangle images in the interest of faster transmission. You should turn this setting OFF before viewing any of the comparison images on this site.

  • FLASH: Thanks to reader Lynn Mannan, here's an explanation of how to make the correct settings adjustments (at least in AOL 4.0 for PCs):
    • I opened the "My AOL" preferences screen in the toolbar across the top. Then I clicked on WWW icon and selected the "web graphics" tab where I unchecked the "compressed graphics" choice and clicked on the Apply button at the bottom. Now the scanner test pictures are gorgeous. The pictures take a long time to load. But they are worth waiting for. Thank you, Lynn!