M-ROCK Press Release

Biscayne Bay & Denali are Built for Ultimate in Style and Functionality

Aventura, FL, April 19, 2005, M-ROCK, the ultimate camera and accessory bag manufacturer, announced today that it is shipping the Biscayne Bay and Denali (pictured) bags made especially for detail-oriented photographers. 

Biscayne Bay - the Bag for Mini Digital Cameras
New to the M-ROCK camera bag line-up for 2005, the Biscayne Bay is the perfect little camera bag shaped to fit mini digital point n’ shoot digital cameras.  Priced at only $16, the Biscayne Bay beats the competition with loads of user-friendly features packed into a small mini-cam package.

Wacom Graphire Bluetooth pen tablet is announced. The Wacom Graphire Bluetooth is a 6” x 8” wireless pen tablet. The Wacom Graphire Bluetooth can be used up to 30 feet away from your computer and is priced at $249.99.

Wacom Press Release

First Wacom Wireless Pen Tablet for Photo Enthusiasts

The New Graphire Bluetooth, With Wacom’s Patented Cordless, Battery-Free Pen Technology, Provides up to 30 Feet of Wireless Freedom

VANCOUVER, Wash., April 15 /PRNewswire/—Wacom(R) Technology today announced the newest member of its Graphire(R) pen tablet family and the first Wacom pen tablet to incorporate Bluetooth(R) wireless technology. The new model, named Graphire Bluetooth, is expected to be warmly embraced by photo enthusiasts who seek the control and comfort of Wacom’s patented cordless, battery-free pen and the freedom of a wireless device. Mobile office workers, educators and aspiring digital artists will also appreciate the new device and the ability to work where and when they want. Available immediately, Graphire Bluetooth offers a 6” x 8” active area and is priced at $249.99.

COKIN Z-PRO Filter Holder is announced today. Retailing for £39.99 in the UK, the COKIN Z-PRO Filter Holder fits lenses up to 96mm filter diameter and eliminates vignetting over 20mm focal lengths. The COKIN Z-PRO Filter Holder is also fully reversible, which means that a filter can fit in the adaptor ring’s slot and reduce vignetting on wide-angle lenses. The COKIN Z-PRO Filter Holder is available now.

COKIN Press Release

After many years of R&D and following the success of its X-PRO Series System, COKIN is proud to introduce its new Z-PRO Filter Holder (100mm width).

Applications are FILM & DIGITAL, D-SLRs, Video & Broadcast cameras
The new Z-PRO Filter-Holder is designed to fit both FILM and DIGITAL technologies in particular D-SLRs and VIDEO/ BROADCAST cameras, either semi-professional or professional models (among them the new HD format).

Totally Modular
It is modular, it can be easily dismantled and set-up to be able to accept filters of 1.6mm thickness (which most photographers use), and 4.0mm     thickness (often used in the Broadcast segment in popular dimensions such as 100x100mm (4”x4”) and 100x150mm (4”x6”)).

ePhotoZine have reviewed the Wacom Volito 2, a new entry level A6 size pen tablet from Wacom. The Wacom Volito2 will be available from the end of March 2005 from all PC stores such as PC World and will be priced at £35.99 in the UK.

“As a first Graphic tablet, the Volito 2 is an excellent introduction. Easy to get the hang of, but still capable of quite advanced work once you have mastered the change from a mouse. As the price does not break the bank, if you have been thinking about trying one, this is the one to try.”

Website: ePhotoZine - Wacom Volito2 Review

Just bought a new Canon digital SLR camera but confused about which flashgun you should buy to go with it? Bob Atkins has a handy overview of the Canon flashguns, including the new Canon Speedlite 580EX flashgun.

“If I was a typical amateur photographer who was looking for a new speedlite to go with a new DSLR, I’d probably go for the 420EX unless I was serious about flash photography. It has most of the features that average photogrpher is likely to need for single flash work. If you want to use multiple flash units, then the wireless control features of the 580EX makes it the better buy, but you’ll still need a 420EX (or another 580EX) as your wireless slave! The 580EX is also required if you want manual control of flash power and stroboscopic operation. It’s clearly a better and more capable flash, but it’s an extra $200.”

Website: Bob Atkins -  Canon Speedlites - 580EX, 420EX, 220EX

Wacom Intuos3 Art Marker is announced. The Wacom Intuos3 Art Marker is compatible with the Intuos3 pen tablet Cintiq 21UX display. The Art Marker employs rotation sensing technology - by rotating the pen at different angles through 360 degrees, a drawn line becomes narrow or broad. will cost £49.99 in the UK. The new Intuos3 Art Marker comes with one standard plastic nib and two felt nibs and is available in mid-April.

Wacom Europe Press Release

Wacom Intuos3 Art Marker enhances digital image creation with new rotation sensing technology

Produce virtually any type of brush effect or marker stroke, including calligraphy

WACOM Europe GbmH launches the new Intuos3 Art Marker for use with its successful Intuos3 pen tablet system and Cintiq 21UX Interactive Pen Display. The Intuos3 Art Marker is the first Wacom pen of its kind, encompassing not only the Intuos3′s features of pressure and tilt, but also rotation sensing technology. With a new chisel-shaped nib, the Intuos3 Art Marker is a versatile tool, enabling digital media professionals, including artists, illustrators, graphics and industrial designers to create virtually any type of brush effect or marker stroke and emulate calligraphic pens. The pen will be available in the UK from mid-April, priced at £49.99 (excl VAT).

Wacom Press Release

Artists and Designers Get Exciting New Artistic Controls through the Combined Efforts of Wacom and Corel

Vancouver, WA, April 4, 2005 - Wacom® Technology Corporation, with the support of Corel®, has successfully developed a 6D Art Pen that gives artists and designers six dimensions of pen control in Corel Painter™ IX. Available immediately, the 6D Art Pen is supported on Wacom’s Intuos3 pen tablets and new Cintiq 21UX interactive pen display. The pen has a suggested retail price of $69.95.

State-of-the-Art Pen The 6D Art Pen builds on Wacom’s patented cordless, battery-free technology to offer artists and designers six dimensions of creative control:

1. X-axis (left and right)
2. Y-axis (up and down)
3. Pressure (force with which pen is applied to tablet)
4. Tilt (angle at which pen is tilted)
5. Bearing (direction in which pen is tilted)
6. Barrel Rotation (orientation of the pen around its long axis)

Samsonite Trekking Pro and Trekking Premium camera bags are unveiled. The Samsonite Trekking Pro and Trekking Premium have both been redesigned. The Samsonite Trekking Pro comes in 13 different sizes with new colours available. The Samsonite Trekking Premium is also available in 13 sizes, all in black.

Samsonite Press Release

Samsonite expands its trekking range

Three – in One

Hama designed both the new Samsonite Trekking Pro and Trekking Premium camera case according to their expanding upon success principle. Those features that made the Samsonite Trekking series a bestseller, such as the covers for the equipment cases that open away from the body, still remain.

Trekking Pro
The thirteen most popular sizes of the original series were adopted for the Trekking Pro and the colour variations black, black and blue and black and grey were added. The durable nylon material was given a new trendy look and even the design was slightly changed. The new series has a soft fleece lining, an ultra flat front compartment and practical net pockets on the side.

MediaGear XtraDrive is lauched today. The MediaGear XtraDrive allows you to turn memory cards into USB devices. The XtraDrive supports Secure Digital (SD), MultiMediaCard, Sony Memory Stick, Compact Flash Types I and II, MicroDrives, SmartMedia and xD card formats. The The MediaGear XtraDrive will cost $14.95 MSRP and be available this month.

MediaGear Press Release

MediaGear Launches New See-Through XtraDrives That Turn Your Unused Flash Memory Cards into Convenient USB Drives

April 4, 2005 – Santa Ana, CA –MediaGear announced the next generation of its popular Keychain drives called “XtraDrive”, to help satisfy the growing consumer demand for convenient extra USB flash drives created from unused memory cards.

XtraDrives have a colored, transparent cap that allows the user to see if a media card is installed. Also, to eliminate crowding of several drives together on a PC or notebook, the XtraDrive package also includes a USB adapter cable.

“Photographers have an abundance of old memory cards that are no longer used because of their low megabyte storage. The new XtraDrive gives these outdated memory cards a brand new life,” noted Terry Smith, VP of Marketing at MediaGear.

Charging $30 for something that should have been in the original design seems more than a little unreasonable to me, but if you own an iPOD Photo then you’ll naturally be interested in finding out if the new iPod Camera Connector actually works. Playlist have a review for you…

“A question on the minds of many of those with more expensive digital cameras is whether the iPod Camera Connector supports RAW images. The answer is “not exactly.” Although the device will download RAW images to the iPod, those images can’t be displayed on the iPod. In the thumbnail display you’ll see RAW images represented by the word RAW surrounded by a gray circle. When you select one of these images and press the Select button, you see this message: “This photo format cannot be viewed on iPod. Transfer imported photos to your computer and synchronize through iTunes to display them on iPod.” For professional photographers, this limitation may queer the deal.”

Website: Playlist - iPod Camera Connector Review

Create-A-Gift Press ReleaseCrumpler announces Bens Glamour Digi-photobag, a new limited edition range of bags in the typically bright Crumpler colours.

Crumpler Press Release

Snap stack and pack your Bens Glamour Digi-photobag from Crumpler

It’s time to grab attention, time to be the mirror ball, time to snap your way out of the monochrome mould with the new Ben’s Glamour bags from Crumpler.

These bags are the lip-gloss coated, booty assed, fully optioned digi-photobag. And without Ben – your bum will look big!

Ben’s Glamour bags are made of flexy lusious material (1000d Chicken Tex™), and feature easy adjusting compartments, waterproof ripstop lining, a mesh lined accessory pocket and an adjustable strap. Best of all, Ben’s Glamour bags are unique – in limited edition colours – once they are gone, they’re gone! Remember, black is for darkrooms – express yourself, be unique with CRUMPLER!

Olympus PT-E01 underwater case for the Olympus E-300 DSLR is announced by Olympus Japan. The The PT-E01 will be available in Japan in June.

Olympus Japan Press Release

This news release is only for the Japanese Market.

Olympus Imaging Corporation is pleased to announce the PT-E01 underwater case for the E-300 interchangeable lens single-lens reflex camera. The PT-E01 is a genuine Olympus accessory for use with the E-300 and can be combined with Olympus brand underwater lens ports for various ZUIKO DIGITAL lenses to create a system suitable for professional underwater photography. The PT-E01 will go on sale in June 2005, together with the PPO-E01, PPO-E02 and PPO-E03 underwater lens ports for use with ZUIKO DIGITAL lenses and the PFL-E01 underwater case for the FL-36 external flash unit.

These underwater cases for the E-300 and the FL-36 and underwater lens ports for ZUIKO DIGITAL lenses together form an underwater digital SLR camera system capable of withstanding the water pressure at a depth of 60m. The professional-class specifications of these products make them ideal for professional underwater photography.

Toshiba Press Release

Toshiba’s new Lithium-Ion battery recharges in only one minute

New battery offers unsurpassed recharge performance and high energy density

TOKYO—Toshiba Corporation today announced a breakthrough in lithium-ion batteries that makes long recharge times a thing of the past. The company’s new battery can recharge 80% of a battery’s energy capacity in only one minute, approximately 60 times faster than the typical lithium-ion batteries in wide use today, and combines this fast recharge time with performance-boosting improvements in energy density.

The new battery fuses Toshiba’s latest advances in nano-material technology for the electric devices sector with cumulative know-how in manufacturing lithium-ion battery cells. A breakthrough technology applied to the negative electrode uses new nano-particles to prevent organic liquid electrolytes from reducing during battery recharging. The nano-particles quickly absorb and store vast amount of lithium ions, without causing any deterioration in the electrode.

FotoTech Press Release

Introducing the first British digital photo frame

FotoTech is proud to launch the first British-made digital photo frame; the 15” Brilliance Digital Picture Player. This cool new electronic product is designed to resemble a picture frame in appearance, yet houses a built-in media card reader which plays all your digital images, movies and digital art on a bright 15” TFT/LCD high resolution display - the intelligent solution to displaying all your favourite images without covering walls and surfaces in traditional picture frames.

Lifestyle technology such as the digital photo frame will change the way we view our happiest memories.  No more struggling with the photo-printer or putting aside a day to file photos in an album.  The DPP-15 will display your photos for you in a continuous slideshow of vibrant, high resolution images on its LCD screen.  And when you get tired of a particular selection you simply change the slideshow to suit your mood.

The Wacom Favo Bluetooth has been announced by Wacom Japan. A translation via Google reveals that the Wacom Favo Bluetooth will be available from March 25th and cost 19,824 Yen. The Wacom Favo Bluetooth is an A5 sized tablet and will ship with the same software as the normal wired version of the Favo. The Favo Bluetooth has a 10m working distance and a charge time of 25 hours before needing to be recharged. There is no word yet on price and availability outside of Japan.

Website: Wacom Japan - Wacom Favo Bluetooth

Website: Google Translation

Intemos Press Release

INTEMOS ANNOUNCES ICLOTH - THE ONLY LENS CLOTH YOU WILL EVER NEED

Following the successful launch in December 2004 of DSLRClean™ – a revolutionary cleaning stick for removing dust from digital SLR camera sensors which has already been sold to digital photographers in over 25 countries, Intemos have now released ICloth.

“ICloth’s special fibres and construction mean that it removes all dust, without scratch or smear.” said Intemos’s managing director Andrew Stagg. “Washable at 90˚ the ICloth will last for over 500 washes and so represents great value for money.”

Wacom Volito2 is announced. The Wacom Volito 2 is a new entry level A6 size pen tablet from Wacom. The Volito 2 includes a textured grip area for added comfort and optimal grip, and a hand rest on the tablet itself. The Wacom Volito2 will be available from the end of March 2005 from all PC stores such as PC World and will be priced at £35.99 in the UK.

Wacom Europe Press Release

The Pen for your PC – The new Wacom Volito2

Pen tablet specialist launches new consumer tablet to enrich a PCs capabilities

Wacom Europe today launches its new consumer pen tablet, Volito2. Expanding and enriching the capabilities of a PC, the stylish, entry-level Volito2 is targeted at a wide range of consumers. With added enhancements including improved ergonomics, an updated, modern design, and an interactive tutorial, Volito2 is perfect for painting, writing and editing photos.

The Volito2 now comes in a dark grey, metallic colour that will look stylish in any home. The surface of the active area on the tablet has been specially treated to enhance the feeling of pen on paper and it also indicates in which area the pen can be activated.

Sanyo Press Release

SANYO Develops and will Start Mass Production of the Industry’s Smallest “Pin Type Lithium ion Batteries”!

This new thin design will contribute to even smaller mobile devices

Tokyo, March 16, 2005—-SANYO Electric Co., Ltd. (SANYO), the world’s leader of small-sized rechargeable batteries, announced the development and the start of mass production of “pin type Lithium ion batteries”, a thinly shaped rechargeable battery.

Following the recent advancement of mobile devices, the demands for batteries which enable design flexibility and further compactness of mobile devices, while maintaining the excellent features of
Lithium ion batteries such as “high energy density”, “high safety” and “high voltage”, have increased year after year. To meet these market needs, SANYO has developed the industry’s smallest*1 “pin type Lithium ion batteries (UR655)” and will start mass production.

Konica Minolta USA Press Release

KONICA MINOLTA ANNOUNCES FREE “MY VACATION PHOTO BOOK” INKJET PAPER CONSUMER PROMOTION

Mahwah, NJ (March 14, 2005) – Konica Minolta Photo Imaging U.S.A., Inc. announces that from May 2, 2005 until July 29, 2005 consumers that purchase various popular Konica Minolta inkjet paper packs will immediately receive a free “My Vacation Photo Book”.

“Targeting households with young children, this promotion offers the highest quality inkjet photo paper available on the market, and a fun way for families to showcase and share their great summer vacation photos that they printed in the comfort of their own home,” said Todd Schrader, vice president of marketing for Konica Minolta Photo Imaging U.S.A., Inc.

Available for free to consumers is the “My Vacation Photo Book” individually shrink-wrapped with Konica Minolta photo inkjet paper products (a $5.99 retail value). This photo book is a keepsake featuring pages that help build a child’s vacation story with a pre-printed rhyme and room for personally inserted pictures ending with a “My Favorite Photo” page.

Wacom Intuos3 pen tablets are now shipping with Adobe Photoshop Elements 3 software. The Wacom Intuos3 tablet comes in three sizes and is priced from $219.

Wacom Press Release

Adobe Photoshop Elements 3 now included with every Wacom Intuos3 pen tablet

Photoshop Elements 3, a $100 Value, is the Leading Editing Software for Photo and Art Enthusiasts

Vancouver, Wash., March 8, 2005 - Wacom® Technology Corporation today announced that Adobe® (Nasdaq: ADBE) Photoshop® Elements 3 is now included with all sizes of its Intuos®3 pen tablets. This software offers photo enthusiasts powerful tools that are designed to be used with a Wacom pen to quickly and easily edit digital photos and create original artwork.