PMA Sneak Peak gallery posted

18:22 EST - We've just posted our first gallery of photos in the runup to the Photo Marketing Association tradeshow, which starts tomorrow.

Photo sharing company Phanfare have made their (very slick!) technology available to us to assist in getting photos ready to be viewed as quickly as possible. The Sneak Peek gallery can be found online now in our PMA 2006 album. There's a total of 132 photos, with a great layout that lets you very quickly browse through pages of thumbnails alongside the full images, without needing to wait for pages... (More)

Sony: Two new long-zoom digicams

15:30 EST - Rounding out its digital camera announcements for the day, Sony has unveiled two new digital camera models that will compete in the increasingly competitive long-zoom segment.

The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H2 is the direct successor to the company's popular DSC-H1 model that was announced at last year's show. The DSC-H2 offers a sensor resolution of six megapixels along with a new Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar 12x optical zoom lens with 58mm threading and Super SteadyShot® optical image stabilization. Other features include ISO sensitivity to ISO 1000, a choice of both aperture-... (More)

Sony: Two new W-series Cyber-shots

15:30 EST - Sony has today announced two new digital camera models for its compact W-series.

The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W70 is seven megapixel model using a new imager with a smaller die size than the 1/1.8" imagers in existing seven megapixel cameras, helping to keep overall camera size down. The DSC-W70 offers 58MB of internal memory (and Memory Stick Duo slot for expanded storage), and couples its imager to a Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar 3x optical zoom lens that accepts 30mm threaded accessories.... (More)

Nikon: First VR macro lens

00:23 EST - Nikon Inc. has introduced a new macro lens that the company says is the first ever to offer vibration reduction for use when shooting closeups.

The Nikon 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor lens offers Nikon's VR II vibration reduction system, which Nikon claims will allow up to four shots extra latitude in shutter speeds. The function operates in either normal or active modes, with the former compensating for regular camera shake (and detecting panning or tripod use automatically), while the latter compensates for stronger or more frequent... (More)

Canon: new large-format inkjet

23:58 EST - Canon USA has revealed a new printer model that offers 17-inch wide large format prints using 12-color "Lucia" pigmented inks.

The Canon imagePROGRAF iPF5000 features dual print heads with a total of 30,720 ink nozzles (2,560 nozzles per color), and 12 separate ink tanks for Red, Blue, Green, Gray, Photo Gray, Cyan, Photo Cyan, Magenta, Photo Magenta, Yellow, Regular Black, and Matte Black inks. Resolution is a maximum of 2400 x 1200 dpi, with a four picoliter droplet size. Canon states that a new L-COA controller gives ... (More)

Canon launches new PIXMA all-in-ones

23:01 EST - Among its numerous new product launches at the 2006 Photo Marketing Association spring show, Canon has unveiled two new PIXMA multi-function printers, the PIXMA MP800R and MP830.

Both are based around a 9600 x 2400 dpi printer with five-color Canon ContrastPLUS ink set with separate ink tanks and 3,584 nozzle ink head., coupled with a dual CCD scanner. The PIXMA MP830 features a built-in fax, while he MP800R offers both wired and wireless (802.11 b/g) networking. Both printers are capable of 30 pages per minute in black and white, and 24 pages per minute in color. Pricing... (More)

Canon: New pro-oriented inkjet printers

19:32 EST - Canon USA has unveiled two new inkjet printer models that the company notes are the first to which it has applied the "Pro" designation, the Canon PIXMA Pro9000 and Pro9500.

Both of the models apparently take their styling cues from Canon's digital SLR lineup, and both create prints up to 13" x 19" with what Canon describes as "gallery quality". They also both offer PictBridge connectivity, and come bundled with Canon Easy-PhotoPrint Pro software - which includes Easy-PhotoPrint Pro (a plug-in for Adobe Photoshop CS and Photoshop CS2) and Canon Digital... (More)

Samsung announces GX-1L SLR

19:00 EST - Samsung Opto-Electronics America, Inc.has today officially announced the new GX-1L digital SLR, a camera which we reported on a few weeks ago after sites in Europe and Asia published information on the model.

The GX-1L is Samsung's second digital SLR outing after the GX-1S, and in much the same way as the '1S was in essence a rebadging of Pentax's existing *ist DS2 digital SLR, the '1L looks to be essentially a rebadged Pentax *ist DL2. The Samsung GX-1L features a six megapixel CCD image sensor, Pentax KAF lens mount, 2.5" LCD display with 210,000 pixels, maximum ISO sensitivity of 3200, SD / MMC... (More)

Samsung: New Digimax offers HDMI interface

19:00 EST - One of two new Digimax-branded digital cameras being announced today, the Samsung Digimax L85 is, says the company, the world's first digital camera to offer an HDMI interface.

For our readers who may not be familiar with HDMI, which stands for "High-Definition Multimedia Interface", it is used to connect digital audio/video devices to high definition televisions, and Samsung states that the interface will allow users to see images on their HD television sets "in their original quality". The L85 also offers a wealth of other features including an eight... (More)

Samsung announces Digimax L60

19:00 EST - The most basic of the models announced by Samsung today is the Digimax L60, a six megapixel camera with a 35 - 105mm equivalent 3x optical zoom lens.

As with the other Digimax, the L60 doesn't offer an optical viewfinder - instead favoring a larger than average 2.4" LCD display. ISO sensitivities range from 50 to 400, shutter speeds from 15 to 1/2000 second, images are stored on Secure Digital cards or in 32MB of internal memory, and there's both NTSC / PAL video and USB 2.0 computer connectivity. A generous selection of eleven scene modes... (More)

Pentax: 10mpix DSLR launch this autumn!

17:00 EST - Pentax Imaging Co. has today made an announcement that just might steal the thunder at this year's Photo Marketing Association tradeshow.

The company will be exhibiting three new products under glass on its booth at the show - its planned 645 medium format digital SLR, a new 21mm lens, and (drum roll, please) a ten megapixel digital SLR that should launch this fall. We don't currently have any information on the digital SLR beyond the resolution and launch time - in fact, at the current time, there's not even a product name available.... (More)

The line starts with the $89 ColorVision Spyder2express, which includes the Spyder2 colorimeter and Spyder2express monitor calibration software, suitable for calibrating CRT and LCD screens (including laptop LCDs). The $149 ColorVision Spyder2 Suite replaces the software bundle with Spyder2 Advanced and ColorVision PrintFIX PLUS, which allows users to also calibrate their printers without a third-party... (More)

Ricoh: Caplio R4 announced (UPDATED)

13:39 EST - In its second new camera announcement of the day, Japanese company Ricoh Co. Ltd. has announced an update to its popular Caplio R3, a long-zoom model with image stabilization in a surprisingly compact package.

When announced last September, Ricoh called the Caplio R3 the smallest digicam in the world with a 5x or greater optical zoom lens. The Ricoh Caplio R4 - announced simultaneously in Europe and Asia - retains this lens (and much the same camera body / feature set), but swaps in a new higher resolution image sensor. The Ricoh Caplio R3 / R4's lens spans a range from a useful 28mm wide angle to 200mm... (More)

Ricoh unveils Caplio RR630

13:12 EST - Consumer electronics and office automation company Ricoh has today announced a new digital camera model in Europe and Asia that offers a 3x optical zoom lens and six megapixel imager in a compact, affordable package.

The Ricoh Caplio RR630 features both an optical viewfinder - an increasingly rare option these days - and 2.0" LCD display for image framing and review, and accepts power from two AA batteries. There's a choice of USB 1.1 and NTSC / PAL connectivity, and images are stored on Secure Digital cards, or in 16MB of built-in memory. Four scene modes cater to beginner photographers, and while there's... (More)

Brief Q&A on Canon 30D

13:35 EST - Tuesday's launch of the Canon EOS 30D was well-received by most readers, but there are a few who were surprised that the replacement to the 20D didn't include a higher resolution sensor.

Though we've pointed out many times that the difference between a 9 or 10 megapixel sensor and an 8 megapixel sensor is negligible, it did almost seem necessary to raise the resolution from a marketing standpoint. We're all scrambling to get ready for PMA 2006, as are the folks at Canon, but I managed to get hold of Chuck Westfall, Canon USA's Director of Media and Customer Relationship, to ask him... (More)

Casio: Two new EXILIM digicams

23:36 EST - Electronics company Casio has announced two new digital camera models in Asia and Europe that extend its EXILIM lineup.

Plans for the Casio EXILIM EX-Z60 and EX-Z850 in other markets haven't been announced at this time. The EX-Z60 is a six megapixel camera with a 3x optical zoom lens and 2.5" LCD display, and offers USB 2.0 High-Speed and NTSC/PAL video connectivity. The Z60 stores images on SD / MMC cards and 8.3MB of built-in memory, and draws power from an NP-20 lithium ion rechargeable battery. The EX-Z850... (More)

Canon refreshes the EOS 20D

06:00 EST - Camera giant Canon Inc. has today announced the much-rumored EOS 30D digital camera, a closely related sibling of the existing EOS 20D model, but with a number of notable changes.

The most outwardly notable change is the replacement of the 20D's 1.8" LCD display with a 2.5" LCD that offers double the resolution, and is said to offer a wide angle of view and improved visibility. Canon has also added its Picture Style controls as previously seen on the EOS-1D Mark IIN and the EOS 5D, which aim to tweak the camera's sharpness, contrast, saturation, and tone to match... (More)

Canon: Image-stabilized PowerShot S3 IS launched

06:00 EST - One of a whopping eight PowerShot digital cameras unveiled by Canon today, the PowerShot S3 IS won't fit in a pocket - but it will most certainly help get you close to your subject.

The largest of the PowerShots in this ramp of announcements, the S3 IS is still fairly compact by long-zoom camera standards, with dimensions of 4.5 x 3.1 x 3.0" - the same size as the S2 IS model in whose footsteps the new camera follows. Sensor resolution has taken a boost to six megapixels, and coupled with the Digic II processor, a maximum ISO sensitivity of 800 is now available. The Canon-branded... (More)

Canon announced PowerShot SD700 IS

06:00 EST - Canon has today unveiled its new PowerShot SD700 IS Digital ELPH digicam, a compact six megapixel model with an image stabilized 4x optical zoom lens.

Image stabilizers are still far from commonplace in compact cameras, but they undoubtedly add greatly to the versatility in difficult shooting situations. The PowerShot SD700 IS marks the first use of a stabilizer in a Digital ELPH series camera. Coupled with an ISO sensitivity range that goes a bit higher than average to a maximum sensitivity of ISO 800, the SD700 IS will doubtless prove an attractive... (More)

Canon SD630 unveiled

06:00 EST - One of three SD-series Digital ELPH cameras announced by Canon today, the Canon PowerShot SD630 offers a 3x optical zoom lens and six megapixel imager.

With compact dimensions of just 3.5 x 2.2 x 0.8", the SD630 features the attractive styling that is a hallmark of the series, along with a spacious 3.0-inch LCD display but forgoes any form of optical viewfinder. The 3x optical zoom offers an equivalent range of 35 - 105mm, and images are stored on Secure Digital or MultiMediaCards. A 30 frames-per-second movie mode at VGA resolution will prove... (More)

Canon details the PowerShot SD600

06:00 EST - One of a mass of digital camera announcements in the runup to this year's Photo Marketing Association tradeshow is the Canon PowerShot SD600 Digital ELPH.

Featuring clean lines and the familiar beveled detailing around the lens, the SD600 is one of three Digital ELPH models revealed today, and as with its new sibling the SD630, it offers a six megapixel imager and 3x optical zoom lens. Where the SD630 packs in a giant LCD at the expense of an optical viewfinder, the SD600 retains both a viewfinder and an LCD that, at 2.5" diagonal, is only... (More)

Canon: New PowerShot A700 digicam

06:00 EST - Canon is continually expanding its PowerShot A-series cameras, even as they reduce some of their other lines. The new A700, announced just before Spring PMA 2005, is the first step in yet another expansion of the A-series to a new level. This time the expansion is more than about pixels, but includes a longer lens than any A-series previously, reaching to 6x, or an equivalent of 35 to 210mm, making the PowerShot A700 excellent for all-purpose photography.

The Canon A700 also includes a respectable 6.0 megapixel sensor, more than enough for tack-sharp 11x14 inch prints. Like most of the other cameras announced at the same time, the A700 also includes an ISO range from 80 to 800. ISO 800 should be very good for indoor low-light shots. Like nearly every other Canon A-series camera, the PowerShot A700 is replete with features to make the camera easier... (More)

Canon PowerShot A540 revealed

06:00 EST - One up from the low end of the camera models announced by Canon prior to the Spring 2006 PMA show, the PowerShot A540 comes in just above the A530 model. The extra money you'll spend on the Canon A540 over its lower-end sibling will likely be well-spent though: While keeping the same 4x zoom lens (35-140mm equivalent) used across much of the PowerShot A-series, the Canon A540 boosts resolution to 6 megapixels, and increases the maximum movie frame rate to a full 30 frames/second, even at 640x480 resolution.

The Canon A540 also boosts performance in some other areas as well, sporting a huge 2.5" rear-panel LCD in addition to its real-image optical viewfinder, and adding aperture-priority and shutter-priority exposure modes, welcome options for more sophisticated users. ISO light-sensitivity ranges from 80 to 800. Other exposure modes include fully automatic and fully manual, plus a wide range of... (More)

Canon unveils PowerShot A530

06:00 EST - At the low end of the camera models announced by Canon prior to the Spring 2006 PMA show, the PowerShot A530 comes in just above the entry-level A410 model. Despite it's low-end positioning though, the Canon A530 packs a lot of capability, with resolution and features that would have counted as a high end model just a couple of years ago.

The Canon A530 combines a five-megapixel sensor with a 4x (35-140mm equivalent) optical zoom lens to deliver plenty of resolution and detail, with an ISO light-sensitivity range from 80 to 800. A 1.8" rear-panel LCD is smaller than those found in higher-end cameras these days, but nonetheless has enough resolution to offer a clear view of your images. A real-image optical viewfinder helps conserve... (More)

Canon PowerShot A430 announced

06:00 EST - There was a time when the low end of the PowerShot A-series really defined the word "low-end." That's no longer true with the latest low-cost Canon PowerShots. We were fairly blown away by the quality and utility of the PowerShot A410, and the A430 looks like an incremental upgrade that will follow in its footsteps.

With a 4x optical zoom, a 4 megapixel sensor, and the lightest weight of the A-series lineup, the Canon PowerShot A430 is ready to go wherever you like. Though it doesn't quite have the manual control that some of the other A-series cameras do, there are fourteen modes to get creative with, as well as stitch-assist mode for capturing panoramas, a movie mode, and a continuous mode for capturing up... (More)

Nikon: New S-series digicams

02:00 EST - Among seven digital camera announcements today in three different Nikon Coolpix model lines, the Nikon Coolpix S5 and S6 offer the sleek designs you'd expect of the line whose S- prefix stands for "style".

The two cameras are closely related, sharing near-identical bodies with gently curved front panels and a newly designed Rotary Multi Selector that may remind users of similar controls seen on personal audio players and the like. Both cameras offer a resolution of six megapixels and a 3x zoom Nikkor lens with extra-low dispersion (ED) glass. Other features include Face Priority autofocus technology... (More)

Nikon announces two P-series Coolpix cameras

02:00 EST - Two new digital camera models today add to Nikon's P-series lineup of digital cameras, the P- designation apparently standing for "performance".

Aimed at photographers who want more control than is offered by many digital cameras, the Coolpix P3 and P4 both offer a sensor resolution of eight megapixels coupled to a 3.5x optical zoom lens with vibration reduction - a useful addition that will make the cameras more versatile in difficult shooting conditions. There's also a sizeable 2.5" LCD display, aperture priority auto mode to help... (More)

Nikon: Three new L-series digicams

02:00 EST - Nikon USA has today revealed three new digital cameras in its Coolpix L-series in the runup to this year's Photo Marketing Association tradeshow.

The three cameras, all closely related, share a number of features including Nikon's in-camera red-eye fix and D-Lighting (under-exposure correction) technologies, plus a 3x optical zoom lens and 2" LCD display. There's also a wide range of exposure modes offering approachability for beginners, and a QuickTime movie mode at VGA resolution (with sound in the Coolpix L3 and L2, but silent in the... (More)

Kodak: Four new digicams (UPDATED)

08:00 EST - Eastman Kodak Co. has today announced four new digital camera models for its EasyShare series.

The cameras all feature five or six megapixel imagers, coupled with a 3x optical zoom lens in three of the models, and a 12x stabilized zoom lens in the fourth model. Pricing ranges from $199 to a high of $399, and the cameras will go on sale from April through to June 2006. Full product specifications courtesy of Kodak follow below, along with product photos and the combined press release covering... (More)

Pentax: Three new Optio digicams

17:00 EST - Pentax Imaging Co. has today announced three new additions to its Optio line of digital cameras.

The Pentax Optio M10, T10 and W10 will all ship this March, aimed at three different segments of the market. The entry-level M10 offers a six megapixel imager, 3x optical zoom lens and 2.5" LCD display in a compact, affordable package priced at $229.95. The Optio W10 offers a waterproof, dustproof body that will attract fans of the great outdoors. The W10 is rated JIS Class 8 Waterproof and JIS... (More)

Panasonic presents Lumix DMC-TZ1

03:26 EST - The second announcement of the day from Panasonic is the new Lumix DMC-TZ1, featuring a stabilized 10x optical zoom lens in an unusually compact body.

The Leica DC Vario-Elmarit 10x optical zoom offers a range from 35 - 350mm equivalent, coupled with a CCD imager offering an effective resolution of five megapixels. A prism-folded optical path allows the thickness of the camera to be kept down to just 1.6", even with an optical image stabilizer. ISO sensitivity ranges up to 800, or 1600 in high sensitivity mode - and coupled with the stabilizer... (More)

Panasonic announces Lumix DMC-FX01

03:12 EST - Panasonic Consumer Electronics Co. has today announced its new Lumix DMC-FX01 digital camera, a compact six megapixel model with image stabilized 3.6x optical zoom lens.

The DMC-FX01's lens is branded as a Leica DC Vario-Elmarit, and offers a useful 28mm wide angle to 102mm telephoto. There's no optical viewfinder, with a large 2.5" 207k pixel LCD display being provided as the sole method of framing and reviewing images instead. ISO sensitivity ranges from 80 to 400, with the ability to extend to a maximum of ISO 1600 in high sensitivity mode. Other features... (More)

Fujifilm FinePix F30 unveiled

00:01 EST - Wrapping up its digital camera announcements for the day, Fuji Photo Film U.S.A. Inc. has released details on its new FinePix F30 digital camera.

The F30 takes the company's Real Photo technology a step further with sensitivities as high as ISO 3200 equivalent - higher than any compact camera to date, although obviously we can't comment on noise levels at this time. The high sensitivity comes courtesy of a sixth generation, six megapixel SuperCCD HR imager said to offer an improved signal to noise ratio, and a two-stage noise reduction system... (More)

Fujifilm: Finepix F650 launched

00:01 EST - For its second announcement of the day, Fujifilm has revealed the new FinePix F650, a camera whose rear panel is dominated by a larger than average 3.0-inch LCD display.

The camera's sensor and lens combination sees a six megapixel, 1/2.5" CCD imager coupled with a Fujinon 5x optical zoom lens that offers a 36 - 180mm equivalent range. The F650 stores images on xD-Picture cards or built-in memory (the exact size of which we're currently awaiting confirmation on). Power comes from a proprietary NP-40N Lithium Ion rechargeable battery, and images are transferred... (More)

Fujifilm announces FinePix A600

00:01 EST - Kicking off its announcements in the runup to this year's Photo Marketing Tradeshow, Fuji Photo Film U.S.A., Inc. has unveiled its new FinePix A600 digital camera.

The latest addition to the A-series of entry-level digital cameras, the A600 features a six megapixel SuperCCD HR imager coupled to a Fujinon 3x optical zoom lens. Where the current A-series lineup all offer optical viewfinders, the A600 eschews one in favor of a larger 2.4" LCD display. Other features include ISO sensitivities ranging from 100 to 400, shutter speeds from 1/1600 to 2 seconds,... (More)

Sony launches new compact W-series digicams

01:00 EST - Sony Electronics Inc. has today unveiled two new digital cameras that place the traditional point-and-shoot styling of its past W-series digital cameras into a significantly more compact body.

The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W30 and DSC-W50 are closely related, with a feature set differentiated by LCD display size. The metal-bodied, 23mm-thick cameras both feature an effective resolution of six megapixels courtesy of a 1/2.5" CCD imager, coupled with a Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar 3x optical zoom lens. Where the DSC-W30 includes a two inch LCD display with 85,000 pixels, the W50 boosts the size... (More)

New digital photo album with raw / recording support

14:48 EST - An announcement from California-based Digital Foci Inc. unveils the latest addition to its lineup of digital imaging accessories in the run up to this year's Photo Marketing Association tradeshow.

The Digital Foci Picture Porter Elite is a digital photo album with a 3.6" QVGA screen and native support for CompactFlash Type-I or II (including microdrives), as well as MultiMedia Card, Secure Digital, and Memory Stick media. Two variants are accessible, containing either 40 or 80 gigabyte 2.5" hard drives, and the device is powered by a rechargeable, replaceable Lithium Ion battery.... (More)

The Samsung GX-1S was in essence a rebadging of Pentax's existing *ist DS2 digital SLR, presumably to get Samsung's name established in the market at the earliest opportunity. Earlier today, Pentax announced a new digital SLR, the *ist DL2 - and it looks like Samsung will be rebadging that camera as well. Sites around the web have recently published rumors of a digital SLR called the Samsung GX-1L,... (More)

Pentax announces new DSLR

11:45 EST - Pentax Japan has today unveiled its new *ist DL2 digital SLR, an update to the existing *ist DL model.

Changes in the new camera are few (at least, in terms of the specifications - it is quite possible that there are more changes under the skin that don't show up in a spec table). There's also a little confusion as to what exact changes have been made, since Pentax Japan's press release and specifications contradict each other - for example the press release touting a five-point AF function, while... (More)

Olympus DSLR offers live LCD preview

00:43 EST - Among Olympus' large group of announcements today, there is one that will almost certainly provoke the most discussion in online forums.

The Olympus EVOLT E-330, the latest in the EVOLT line of consumer-oriented digital SLR models, offers something a lot of people have been hoping for. Taking advantage of how far the price of image sensors has fallen, the E-330 features not one, but two sensors. The first is an nMOS sensor with a resolution of 7.5 megapixels, which is used for image capture. The second sensor is a CCD of unknown resolution,... (More)

Olympus announces Stylus 810

00:35 EST - Topping out the line for Olympus's Stylus-series announcements today is the new Olympus Stylus 810.

Planned for a March shipping date, the Stylus 810 will cost $429.99, and offers the weather-sealing you'd expect to find on an Olympus Stylus camera. Resolution is eight megapixels from a CCD imager, and this is coupled to a 3x optical zoom lens and generous 2.5" LCD display. There's also a good selection of scene modes, USB and video connectivity, xD-Picture card and 28.4MB of built-in memory,... (More)

Olympus: New shock-proof, water-proof digicam

00:29 EST - One of three Stylus digital camera announcements today, the Olympus Stylus 720 SW sits in the middle of the group price-wise, but offers something its siblings don't - a shock-absorbing design rated to the MIL-STD-810F standard.

As well as the shock-absorption, the Stylus 720 SW is designed with weather-proof sealing that make the camera waterproof to the JIS Level 8 standard. The combination of the weather and shock proofing should make this quite an attractive option for outdoor types. Other features of the camera, which will cost $399.99 when it ships this March, include a 7.1 megapixel CCD imager, 2.5" LCD display,... (More)

Olympus: New 7mpix Stylus digicam

00:23 EST - Among its announcements in the runup to this year's Photo Marketing Association (PMA) tradeshow, Olympus America has unveiled three new Stylus digital cameras.

The Olympus Stylus 710, priced at $349.99, marks the lowest price point among the three - but still offers the all-weather sealing for which Olympus' Stylus models have become known. As might be expected from the model name, the Stylus 710 offers a resolution of 7.1 megapixels, and this is coupled to a 3x optical zoom lens. Other specifications include USB and video connectivity, xD-Picture card and... (More)

Olympus announces SP-320

00:19 EST - One of a number of models unveiled by Olympus today is the new SP-320 digital camera, offering a resolution of seven megapixels and a 3x optical zoom lens.

Scheduled to ship this March, the Olympus SP-320 also features a large 2.5" LCD display, ISO sensitivity to a maximum of 800 (when in "Digital Image Stabilization" mode), and a wide range of scene modes. There's also USB 2.0 High Speed and video connectivity, and the camera stores images on xD-Picture cards or 25MB of built-in memory. Power is supplied by two AA batteries. A threaded... (More)

Olympus: Two new FE-series digicams

00:15 EST - Olympus Imaging America Inc. has today unveiled two new digital cameras that are closely related and offer affordable pricing in the neighborhood of $200.

The Olympus FE-130 and FE-140 ($179.99 and $229.99 respectively) both offer a 3x optical zoom lens. The FE-130 couples this with a 5.1 megapixel imager and 2.0" LCD display with 85,000 pixels. The FE-140 upgrades the specification with a 6.0 megapixel imager and 2.5", 110,000 pixel LCD display. The new cameras both store images on either xD-Picture cards or 22MB of built-in memory, and both... (More)

Casio announces EXILIM EX-Z600

15:14 EST - Casio Computer Co. Ltd. has today announced a new digicam model destined for sale in much of Asia, Europe, Oceania, the Middle East and Africa - but not scheduled for the American market at the current time.

The Casio EXILIM ZOOM EX-Z600 is a six megapixel ultracompact model with a 3x optical zoom lens, and a large 2.7" LCD display. The camera offers a generous helping of scene modes (dubbed "Best Shot" modes in Casio parlance), including the unusual "Angle Correction" and "Color Restoration" modes we've seen in certain past Casio models. (Angle Correction mode corrects... (More)

Panasonic announces DMC-FZ7: 6mpix, 12x zoom

02:00 EST - A press release today from Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company has unveiled the Lumix DMC-FZ7 digital camera, an update of the existing DMC-FZ5 model with increased resolution.

Sporting a new six megapixel imager, the FZ7's body looks largely similar to its predecessor, with perhaps some reprofiling of the handgrip. Coupled to a 12x optical zoom lens with image stabilisation, this yields effective focal lengths from 36 - 432mm, just slightly more telephoto than the 35-420mm range of the previous model. Maximum ISO sensitivity with the new imager ranges as high as ISO 1600,... (More)

Konica Minolta folds consumer business

10:46 EST - Konica Minolta today announced their withdrawal from the consumer imaging market, citing difficulty in keeping up with advancing technologies.

According to three documents now available online, the company will withdraw from the entire digital and film camera market, end color film and paper production by March 2007, cease production of minilab machines by March 2006, and reduce the number of employees by 3,700 by September 2007. What is left of the company will focus on "business resources and non-consumer businesses, such as the core... (More)

Sigma: new macro zoom lens

10:47 EST - A press release from Sigma Japan has announced a new zoom lens that focuses to just 20cm across its entire zoom range of 17 - 70mm, promising handy macro capabilities with a maximum magnification of 1:2.3.

The Sigma 17-70mm F2.8-4.5 DC MACRO will be offered in Canon, Nikon, Konica Minolta, Pentax and Sigma AF lens mount versions. Size is a compact 3.2" long and 3.1" diameter, and the lens weighs just 16 ounces. Maximum aperture across the zoom range varies from F2.8 to F4.5, with a minimum aperture of F22. Pricing and availability haven't been announced at this time. Courtesy of Sigma, specifications... (More)

The company has now released a second teaser to follow up, and we've got both of them here for your viewing pleasure. What they mean - well, you'll have to use your own judgement. Suffice to say that they're likely to get the rumor mills ticking over nicely... Since both images are rather weighty (300KB+) GIF files, we've resized the teasers to 1/4 their original size to help keep page loading... (More)

Samsung rebadges Pentax DSLR (UPDATED)

11:15 EST - A news item published on the website of Norwegian-language website digit.no reports that Samsung is to offer one of Pentax's digital SLR models under the Korean company's brand name.

The news follows in the footsteps of an announcement late last year that Samsung and Pentax would "combine their unique technologies to develop lens-interchangeable digital SLR cameras". The Samsung GX-1S is apparently the first fruit of this cooperation, and looks to be Pentax's *ist DS2 digital SLR under a different name. The only difference we could see between the specifications of... (More)

Ricoh announces Caplio R30

14:06 EST - Ricoh Japan has today unveiled a new digital camera model that is closely based on its existing Caplio R3 model, but with a couple of changes that are likely intended to allow reduced pricing.

Ricoh dubbed the original Caplio R3 the "smallest digicam in the world with a 5x or greater optical zoom lens" when it was announced last September. The Ricoh Caplio R30 offers the exact same dimensions and weight as the original R3 model, but with a slightly reduced lens range at the telephoto end. Where the original R3 offered a range of 28 - 200mm, the R30 provides a range of 28 - 160mm. As with... (More)