Eye-Fi has announces an expanded Wi-Fi hotspot plan for users of its X2 family of cards. Through a partnership with Devicescape, Eye-Fi customers in Europe will now be able to use their Explore X2 and Pro X2 cards with a personal subscription to a Wi-Fi hotspot provider, such as Boingo, BT Openzone, T-Mobile, Orange, Vodafone and SFR. For guidance on how to add personal hotspot subscription plans to your Eye-Fi card, visit the website below.

Website: Eye-Fi Blog

WD today introduced its new high performance My Book Studio LX external hard drive, which offers a high-speed FireWire 800 interface and features a sleek new, cool-to-the-touch aluminium case. In addition to FireWire, the My Book Studio LX drives also support USB 2.0. Offering automatic, continuous backup and 256-bit hardware-based encryption, the WD My Book Studio LX is available in capacities of 1TB and 2TB, with the manufacturer’s suggested retail price ranging from $199.99 to $269.99 depending on the model.

Spider Holster has announced several newly-created cross-platform adaptors. The first of these new offerings includes a collection of kits which enable photographers to quickly connect the SpiderPro holster to popular professional-grade belt systems, including Think Tank Photo’s Pro Speed Belts and Steroid Speed Belt. Current SpiderPro owners also have access to a new simple modification that facilitates use with Lowepro’s Street and Field Series. Plus, owners of Arca-Swiss-style ballheads and tripods can now purchase a new double-dovetail quick-release plate for a faster transition. The adaptors range in price from $12.99 to $39.95.

ExpoImaging today announced the release of Rogue FlashBenders, the first of several tools in a newly created Rogue Photographic Design line of light modification products. The flexible Rogue FlashBenders were created to enable photographers to direct light exactly where it’s needed or to shield it from where it’s not. The patent-pending design incorporates positionable rods that mould the reflectors to a given shape and holds them firmly in place. Currently comprising three models, FlashBenders install quickly with an easy belt attachment and are designed to work with all types of shoe mount flash. The Bounce Card/Flag, which one positionable rod to mould the product and hold it in place, is priced at $29.95. The Small Reflector, whichcan be used as a reflector, flag or snoot, sells for $34.95. The Large Reflector, which offers twice the reflective surface area of the Small Reflector, retails for $49.95. The 3-piece set is available for $104.85.

Website: ExpoImaging

LetusDirect.com has introduced a range of DSLR video accessories including the Letus Hawk viewfinder and the Letus Talon camera support rod system. The Hawk viewfinder features three lenses in two groups, housed in a CNC machined aluminium lens tube. The Letus Talon line features a quick release camera plate and an optional telescoping support rod setup that lets support rod accessories, such as a matte box or follow focus, slide in or out to accommodate different lens configurations. Additionally, the Letus Talon DSLR Cage has also been announced as part of the new product line. This cage is designed to house a HDSLR camera and provide mounting points for camera accessories such as monitors, microphones, sound recorders, hand grips, car mounts, and other products used in a production environment.

Website: Letus

Op/tech have added a Shoulder Sling to their range. Based on the original Op/tech Utility Strap, the Sling Strap comes complete with the recently announced Op/tech Sling Strap connectors instead of the standard neck-length connectors and has an RRP of £29.99. The Utility Sling Strap comes bundled with 2 quick-release Uni-Loop adapters making it suitable for use with any DSLR, most binoculars or camcorders. In the UK, the Op/tech Utility Sling Strap is distributed by Newpro.

The AC3 ZoneController is part of Pocket Wizard’s Control TL product line that gives Mini TT1 and Flex TT5 users three zones of flash control. Three clearly labelled dials allow you to increase or decrease power to three zones of flash in 1/3-stop increments, with a range of up to six stops. Three switches allow you to change zones between Manual, Auto or Off. The device currently works with Canon Speedlites, and - when matched with the new Power ST4 or AC9 AlienBees Adapter - you can also use it to control ElinchromRX, White Lightning and AlienBees flashes. The Pocket Wizard AC3 Zone Controller is available priced at £59.99 including VAT.

The Black Rapid FastenR-3 is the point of contact between your camera and your R-Strap. The R-Strap is worn diagonally across the torso from shoulder to hip and is secured to the camera via the FastenR-3 - successor to the FastenR and FastenR-2 -, which in turn screws into the tripod socket. In The UK, the Black Rapid FastenR-3 is sold by JP Distribution, at an SRP of £14.

Kingston today launched the next-generation Kingston SDXC UHS-1 Class 10 memory card, claimed to be one of the fastest cards available in the market today. The Kingston SDXC card is compliant with the SDA Memory Card Standard Version 3.01, UHS-1. UHS-1 stands for Ultra-High Speed Bus 1, which is the new architecture of SDXC cards. It is designed to reach speeds of up to a maximum transfer rate of 104MB/sec. and 300MB/sec. in the future. Kingston’s offering has read speeds of up to 60MB/sec. and write speeds of up to 35MB/sec. The Kingston SDXC UHS-1 Class 10 64GB card will be available worldwide at the end of June and has a suggested retail price of £342.

Olympus has announced a joint promotion with Novoflex, a maker of lens adapters for Micro Four Thirds (MFT) cameras. Those who have bought an Olympus PEN since 15 April 2010 or are buying one until the end of this month get a 20% discount on one Novoflex MFT lens adapter purchased at one of the participating dealers. To be eligible, register your Olympus PEN online until 30 June 2010 at the website below, print out the voucher, cut out the serial number from your camera box, then present the receipt for your PEN and hand over the printed voucher including attached serial number to the dealer when buying the adapter.

Website: Olympus

Sony has developed a super-flexible 80 ?m-thick 4.1” 121ppi OTFT-driven full colour OLED display which can be wrapped around a thin cylinder. This display can reproduce moving images while rolled-up and stretched over a thousand times. The main benefit of a rollable screen is improved portability - but it will take some time until the technology becomes commercially available.

Hama has announced the retail availability of the new “Varadero” camera bags from Samsonite. The collection comprises seven models, which feature clearly labelled compartments for empty and full batteries and memory cards. Padded handles, removable shoulder straps and a pleasantly soft fleece interior lining are the hallmarks of the new bags, which are priced from €39.99 to €59.99 depending on model.

Website: Hama

LaCie has announced its newest product - the LaCie Rugged Safe, billed as “the safest mobile hard drive on the market”. Featuring unbreakable government-grade 128-bit AES hardware encryption, the safest biometric authentication technology, and a military-grade shock-proof enclosure, the Rugged Safe is bus-powered through USB or FireWire and is compatible with Mac or PC. The LaCie Rugged Safe comes with a three-year limited warranty and includes the LaCie Backup Assistant software. Available in 500GB and 1TB, the new Rugged Safe mobile hard drive starts at an SRP of £169.

Lexar has just announced that it is shipping Lexar Professional 133x SDHC memory cards in 16GB and 32GB capacities to retail outlets. The Lexar Professional SDHC cards offer the maximum Class 10 speed rating, providing a minimum sustained write speed capability of 20MB per second. All Lexar Professional memory cards include a limited lifetime warranty, a free downloadable copy of Image Rescue 4 software, and exclusive, money-saving promotions from Adobe on popular photo and video editing products, including the latest versions of Adobe Photoshop Lightroom, Adobe Photoshop Elements, and Adobe Premiere Elements software.

The Mini Bounce is designed to fit onto the pop-up flash built into Nikon and Canon Digital SLR cameras, giving a boost to flash output and softening the light at the same time to give better results. The Mini Bounce sells for £12.99 including postage and is available from www.speedlightprokit.co.uk and stockists.

PocketWizards have unveiled the PowerST4 receiver and the AC9 AlienBees adapter, which bring the benefits of their ControlTL system to studio photographers. The PowerST4 receiver (pictured) is designed specifically for Elinchrom RX series lights, and provides remote power control capabilities when paired with an on-camera MiniTT1 Transmitter or FlexTT5 Transceiver. The AC9 AlienBees adapter slides into the top shoe of a FlexTT5 Transceiver and then attaches to an AlienBees or White Lighting studio light via the remote jack on the light. Both products are in final firmware testing now. According to PocketWizard, production of the PowerST4 is almost complete and will be shipping in June. The AC9 AlienBees adapter is scheduled for production in June and should be available in July.

Digital Foci is now shipping the Pearl White version of its Photo Book, a portable digital photo album with an 8-inch 800x600-pixel colour screen and a 4GB of internal memory. Announced in March, this “Wedding” version is billed as an elegant photo album that makes an attractive first impression, matching perfectly with wedding themes. Built-in memory card slots provide native support for CF, SD/SDHC/MMC, xD, MS and MS PRO memory cards. Available today, Photo Book Pearl White “Wedding” Version is priced at $189 SRP through Digital Foci and major retailers such as Amazon, B&H and Adorama.

Website: Digital Foci

ViewSonic has introduced the world’s first 27” Full HD monitor with a 1ms response time. The viewSonic VX2739wm packages a 1080p Full HD panel and 100,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio into a sleek design. Although primarily targeted at gamers, the new monitor could be potentially interesting to photographers and videographers as well. The VX2739wm comes with ViewSonic’s strongest pixel performance guarantee as well as a three-year limited warranty, and is offered at a special introductory price of $349 at Amazon.com, Newegg.com and PCMall.com.

Induro has announced a new series of panheads that provide photographers “with freedom for camera positioning never before available in a single product”. Offering dual tilt, base and top plate rotation and an Arca-Swiss style quick release system, these panheads allow photographers to have full repeatable indexing on five axes for maximum control and flexibility. Available in two sizes, the new PHQ panheads have load capacities of 11.5kg and 16kg. In Europe, the two versions are priced at €379 and €479, respectively. For more details or to find a dealer, visit the website below.

Website: Induro

The LaCie Network Space MAX is a dual-disk Gigabit network storage and media server. It includes two large-capacity hard drives that can be configured for maximum security (RAID 1) or maximum capacity (RAID 0). LaCie Network Assistant software helps you set up the product within a few minutes. Additionally, with the LaCie Network Space MAX, the files stored on the hard drive are fully accessible outside your home from any connected computer using the remote access service. Available through the LaCie Online Store, LaCie Corner, and LaCie Reseller+ starting at £249.