Rollei adds an ultra-flat model with 5 megapixels to its line of digital cameras

The Rollei dr5 redefines the concept of the "go-everywhere camera". At 25 mm, it will fit any shirt pocket. Its metal body makes it an attractive camera, which also offers Instant readiness and minimal shutter lag.

While the Rollei dr5 is thrifty when it comes to size, its technical features are impressive: It comes with a high-performance D-VarioApogon HFT zoom lens with focal lengths from 4.6 to 22.2 mm (equivalent to 28-135mm in 35mm photography). The Rollei dr5 has a powerful 5-megapixel CCD. Its 4.8x optical and 3.6x digital zoom will capture even far-away subjects in impressive size. An optical viewfinder allows rapid framing. Alternatively, a brilliant 1.8" LCD monitor may be used for both framing and displaying subjects.

The camera takes excellent close-ups, allowing photographers to take close-ups from as close as 1 cm to 13 cm from the lens. Focusing may be either manual or automatic, with the additional option of varying the focus zone.

Thanks to its instant readiness, the Rollei dr5 is ideal for spontaneous candid shooting and capturing elusive subjects: It is ready to shoot in just 0.8 of a second. The camera’s shutter lag is no more than 0.10 second. In addition to single frames, it also allows continuous shooting to capture complex motion sequences. A self-timer mode with either 2s or 10s delay gives additional creative freedom.

Manual control options on the Rollei dr5 include exposure control either by programmed AE or compensated manually over +/- 2.0 EV in 1/3 increments. The camera offers evaluative 256-zone metering plus center-weighted average and spot metering. In addition to automatic white balance, there are manual presets for sunlight, cloudy, tungsten and fluorescent. The built-in flash will automatically compensate output at close range and has red-eye-reduction auto and fill-flash modes as well as slow sync, leaving photographers ample choices in low light.

The Rollei dr5 will also record brief video clips, complete with sound. Video clips in QuickTime Motion format can be recorded with two different quality levels: with 320 x 240 pixels or 160 x 120 pixels. Video and photos are stored either in the internal 12MB memory or on an SD or MultiMedia card. Since the camera also supports PictBridge, pictures can be directly printed on a suitable printer. And if you just wish to view your pictures or edit them at a later date, simply connect the camera via its USB or video port (NTSC, PAL) to a computer or TV set.

The power supply of the Rollei dr5 also is very flexible. The camera will operate on either two NiMH or nicad batteries (size AA, 1.2V), two alkaline batteries (size AA, 1.5V) or a lithium-ion block (3.7V/1,800 Ah).