BIOS Magazine have posted a review of the new pocket-sized Amacom Flip2disk portable hard drive:

“Amacom’s Flip2disk is an extremely portable and robust external hard disk that will suit frequent business travellers. Not only is the drive pocket-size and attractive in terms of design, it’s also relatively light and sturdy and has a disk protection mechanism mounted internally on a rubber skeleton called a Shoc Bloc. This technology, along with additional rubber bumpers on two sides of the unit, helps to stop the hard disk mechanism from being damaged by everyday bumps and bangs, which should help to minimise data loss as a result of physical damage. Flip2disk also provides a fully-bootable means of disaster recovery when used in conjunction with the supplied FlipBack software, and comes with a choice of self-powered connection options. However, you can only get a FireWire or USB cable as standard, so you’ll have to further budget if you want to connect the drive to a Type II Card slot or parallel port. Nevertheless, it’s great to have the flexibility on the move - as long as you don’t forget to pack the wrong cable. We’ve encountered many hard disk failures over the years, mainly from transporting data from one office to another. With the Flip2disk, our confidence is a little restored knowing that our data is pretty much as safe as it can be from physical damage. It’s a real shame Amacom hasn’t bundled any data privacy and encryption tools, because the Flip2disk would then be a complete solution. Nevertheless, it’s still an excellent drive that comes highly recommended - regardless of the I/O connection or capacity you choose.”

Website: BIOS Magazine - Amacom Flip2disk Review

CameraTown have posted a review of the new Mirra Digital Shoebox Personal Server:

“The Digital Shoebox was designed for those looking for a better, more convenient way to backup their photographs—and for those who share photos by attaching them to emails, mailing CDs, or by creating special web sites for viewing.  Unfortunately, the time when most people give thought to backing up their photographs, or any data for that matter, is after their PC crashes. For most of us, time is a precious commodity.  Making backups, whether to a CD, DVD, or external hard drive takes time, and while we all know how important it is, most usually do not get around to it until it is too late.  Unlike most documents and music files that can be re-created or downloaded again, photographs of a birth, wedding, anniversary, confirmation, graduation, Bat Mitzvah, vacation, or the winning touchdown are memories that we cannot go back and recreate.  The Digital Shoebox from Mirra was designed to solve this problem, and at the same time, provide solutions we didn’t even realize were possible, at least not for most home users.”

Website: CameraTown - Mirra Digital Shoebox Personal Server

There’s another techy article over at Photo.net - this time all about a camera that takes images that look like line drawings!

“The multi-flash camera captures real life images and renders them in a non-photorealistic line-form. Ramesh Raskar describes this process as computational photography. Raskar modestly insists that while “it’s something you can’t do with film, it certainly is not a replacement for photography, or Photoshop for that matter”. Non-photorealistic imaging is an easy way to convey ideas/images and has myriad applications for technical and medical imaging.”

Website: Photo.net - Non-photorealistic Camera

ATP Electronics Inc. Press Release 01/12/04

Ready for Mass Production
Highest Capacity SD card for Data Storage Intensive Applications in GPS mapping, Healthcare, Professional Grade Photography and music players

Sunnyvale, CA (Dec. 1, 2004) - ATP Electronics Inc., a leading manufacturer of high capacity, high performance digital flash media products, announced today that its 2GB SD flash cards are ready for mass production for its OEM customers, distributors and retailers.  The 2GB cards, in addition to offering a superior level of performance (60x or up to 10MB/s), are designed to meet the specific demand for higher capacity, highly durable flash cards set forth by GPS navigation units, high end digital photography, medical record keeping, and the ever-popular portable music-players.

The ATP 2GB cards, like its smaller SD siblings, are intended to withstand any harsh environment, offering ample protection from water, dust, electrostatic discharge, and
extreme temperatures.  This superior versatility and reliability makes the new ATP cards ideal for any indoor or outdoor portable electronic application.

Luminous Landscape have just reviewed the new Epson P-2000 Multimedia Storage Viewer.

“One of the problems with portable card storage devices till now has been battery life. Copy one or two cards, and the battery is dead. The P-2000 breaks that mold. I copied a 1GB card to the Epson, waited 20 minutes, and then copied it again. This simulates a typical worst-case field use situation where cards are being filled quickly, and it also gives the battery a reasonable time to “recover” between copies.

I was able to copy thirteen 1GB cards to the P2000 before the low battery warning light came on. At this point, though the device continued to function for quite a while, it warned that there might not be enough juice to complete a copy. Very intelligent.

This is superb performance, especially considering that I had the power settings such that the LCD was illuminated the whole time, and I also did a moderate amount of file browsing inbetween card copying sessions.”

Website: Luminous Landscape - Epson P-2000 Multimedia Storage Viewer Review

Apacer Press Release 22/11/04

22 NOVEMBER 2004 - NEW HIGH SPEED CARDS FROM APACER

After launching a new range of RS-MMC and mini-SD cards for the mobile phone market last month, Apacer (www.apacer-uk.com / 0870 900 6055) blitzes the memory market with further proof of the company’s quest for quality and speed. Apacer further enhances its solid reputation in Single-Layer Memory cards with the addition of a range of new 66X-speed Compact Flash and Secure Digital cards. Further news is that competitive 2GB and 4GB cards have been launched in both the existing CF 20X and the new CF 66X range.

Retail pricing: CF256-66X £30, CF2GB-20X £115, SD256-66X £27 (www.davoom.com). A range of high Speed MultiMedia cards will be announced shortly.

Sony Electronics Press Release 22/11/04

SONY INTRODUCES ONE-INCH REMOVABLE HARD DISK DRIVE, AVAILABLE IN 2 GB AND 4 GB CAPACITIES

PARK RIDGE, N.J., Nov. 22, 2004—Rounding out its line of removable media, Sony Electronics is introducing the Sony Microdrive, a one-inch removable hard disk drive that will meet the increasing storage needs of many portable digital devices such as digital cameras and PDAs.

Designed to fit the Compact Flash+ Type II interface, Sony Microdrive offers a cost-effective solution for expanding consumer storage needs such as high-resolution digital photos and MPEG video. Microdrive also features a high-performance 97.9 Mbps data transfer rate to accommodate rapid shooting and moving picture data.

Bad news for Leica fans - the long-awaited Leica Digital-Modul-R has been delayed until April 2005.

Leica Newsletter 22/11/04

We would like to remind you again on the internet chat on November 23rd, 2004 in which we will inform you on the recent developments and the beginning of the first deliveries of the LEICA DIGITAL-MODUL-R. Starting at 5 pm local time, a competent Leica team will answer your
questions on the LEICA DIGITAL-MODUL-R.

At product introduction we announced that a serial production was planned for December 2004. We regretfully must inform you that we will not be able to adhere to this plan. We now assume that the first deliveries will be in April 2005.

Lecia Press Release 19/11/04

Internet chat on November 23rd, 2004 informs on the recent developments LEICA DIGITAL-MODUL-R

The LEICA DIGITAL-MODUL-R, which was presented at the photokina 2004, is being anxiously awaited by a great number of customers. We are pleased over the positive resonance that we have received and are working diligently with our partners in order to get serial production underway. The photographic results have exceeded our expectations. We are sure that with the DIGITAL-MODUL-R we have achieved a high quality and long lasting solution for our
customers.

On November 23rd, 2004 we will hold an internet chat in which we will inform you on the recent developments and the beginning of the first deliveries. Starting at 5 pm local time, a competent Leica team will answer your questions on the LEICA DIGITAL-R. We would be pleased to welcome you at the Leica internet chat.

To participate in the Leica chat all users have to be registered. Further information on the registration to the Leica chat are available http://www.leica-camera.com/markt/forum/chat/index_e.html

Several PhotographyBLOG readers have let me know about a 1 Gigapixel picture created by Dutch research and technology laboratory TNO, which is made up of 600 component images. The giant-sized image is available on their website, where you can zoom in to see how much detail the image contains.

“The largest digital panoramic photo in the world has been created by researchers in the Netherlands. The finished image is 2.5 billion pixels in size - making it about 500 times the resolution of images produced by good consumer digital cameras.”

Website: BBC - How to make a gigapixel picture

Website: Gigapxl Project

Transcend Press Release 16/11/04

Enjoy Your Digital Life With Transcend’s 1 GB High-Capacity MMC

Taipei, Taiwan, November 16, 2004 /Various Agencies—- High-resolution digital cameras and growing multimedia appliances have catapulted flash memory cards to a much higher capacity than before. Transcend Information Inc., a world leader in flash memory devices, recommends the 1GB Multimedia Card, the highest capacity of any MMC card in the world. 

The card measures 32x24x1.4mm and only weighs 2g. Multimedia Cards are easy to transport and use in modern-day devices. More than thirteen thousand JPEG photos with 640x480 pixel-resolution can be stored with this high-capacity MMC card. Now you can save pictures, MP3?s, or MPEG 4 video clips to one MMC card and utilize these files through digital audio players, digital cameras, and PDA?s. Thru the testing of many digital cameras and cell phones that have a SD/MMC slot, Transcend?s 1GB MMC has the best compatibility and durability.

MAC DVD Pro have published a review of the Power Mac G5 and 23-inch Cinema HD Display from a digital photographer’s point of view.

“The Power Mac G5 and Adobe Photoshop is an awesome combination for editing high resolution images. Couple these two tools with an Apple Cinema Display and you’ve got one heck of a digital darkroom. Anyone who is even considering setting up a digital imaging workstation to run Photoshop must seriously check out the Power Mac dual G5 combined with the Cinema Display. Bring your high resolution digital images down to an Apple store and check out how your images look on a Cinema Display powered by a 2GHz Power Mac. You won’t be disappointed.”

Website: MAC DVD Pro - Power Mac G5 + 23-inch Cinema HD Display

HP are set to support the Blu-ray Disc format in some desktops and notebooks in late 2005. Blu-ray Discs technology enables storage of up to 50GB on a dual-layer disc, 10x the capacity of DVDs.

“Our decision to back Blu-ray was largely because of its capacity advantage (over HD DVD), as well as the interactive features being built into the specification,” said Maureen Weber, general manager of optical storage at HP. “We will help with economies of scale….We’ll drive down prices as we push volumes.”

Website: CNET News - HP strikes Blu note for DVDs, talks of fat storage

PCWorld have just reviewed one of the more unusual digital/video cameras that you will ever see, the Camwear 100, which attaches to your sungalsses and automatically records everything that it sees (found via Engadget).

“A company called Deja View has introduced a tiny $400 wearable video camera called the Camwear 100 that clips to the bill of a baseball cap or the side of a pair of eyeglasses and captures everything in its line of sight.

The camera is about the size of a pair of dice with a cord coming out its back that attaches to a paperback-book-size base unit that clips to a belt. The system records constantly, but caches only about 30 seconds worth of video and audio. Deja View designed the Camwear 100 to act as a kind of replay device that lets you capture the previous 30 seconds of what the camera records.”

Website: PCWorld - Wearable Camera Debuts

Have you made the switch to digital, sellling all your film equipment including your trust slide projector? Still interested in projecting slideshows of your images digitally? Then Popular Photograph’s round-up of digital projectors is just for you.

“For years, traveling sales people have been putting their clients to sleep by digitally projecting their PowerPoint presentations. Along the way, some of them realized that they could just as easily show off their digital photos on the same machines. Now that digital projectors have come down to below $1,000, they’re catching the eyes of photographers who want to create and project slide shows at home. So, is it time to toss your old Carousel projector? We thought we’d find out by taking a look at some of the least expensive (sub-$1,000) digital projectors on the market.”

Website: Popular Photography - The New Digital Slide Show

“Digital Directions: To Tell The Truth” is an interesting article from Popular Phootgraphy that considers the issue of photo manipulation and what can be done to combat it.

“Even if you are an upstanding photographer who never manipulates an image, you still have to worry about what happens to your digital file after you submit it. For example: you shoot a great celebrity portrait and e-mail the original JPEG file to the National Inkliar. It turns up in print showing that celebrity in a compromising position. How do you prove that your original was altered after you submitted it? Hint: Do high lawyer fees, FBI crime lab analysis, and months of damage control sound reasonable?”

Website: Popular Photography - Digital Directions: To Tell The Truth

Tom’s Hardware Guide have taken a look into their crystal ball to look at the possible successors to flash memory, which apparently is something of a dying technology (found via DigiCamera.net).

“The opinion is spreading that Flash will be “just good enough” in the near future, but in the medium term will have to be replaced. At least, that is the industry line. Possible weak points of Flash memory are a natural limitation of scalability (where any further reduction of cell size would no longer pay off); write speeds that are too low; and a limited number of write cycles.

Let’s take a look at the state of development of the hottest new technologies - magneto-resistive RAM (MRAM), ovonics unified memory (OUM) and nanocrystals - and make a forecast for the future of memory from now until the end of the decade.”

Website: Tom’s Hardware Guide - Is Flash Heading for Retirement?

Northlight Images have just reviewed the recently-announced Spyder2 Pro monitor calibration device.

“A solid, easy to use bit of kit. Just when advances in monitor technology were beginning to show up some of the deficiencies in my old Spyder, along comes one that is both easier to use and more accurate. The grey scale improvements are particularly welcome, given the amount of black and white photography I do.

As ever, I’d advise you to do some research of your own before making buying decisions, but I’m more than happy with the results I get with the new Spyder. It never was difficult to use, but the attention paid to interface design in the new software is welcome.”

Website: Northlight Images - Spyder2 Pro Review

Iomega Press Release 09/11/04

Ideal Storage: Big Capacity In a Tiny Package Without the Power Cord

SAN DIEGO, November 09, 2004 - Iomega Corporation (NYSE: IOM), a global leader in data storage, today announced a slick little external hard drive in 20 GB and 40 GB capacities that is small enough for the shirt pocket and weighs just 3.5 ounces. The new Iomega USB 2.0 Mini Hard Drive is the first Iomega hard drive to receive 100 percent of its power from a standard USB data port, allowing mobile professionals to travel lighter and still have plenty of storage capacity for all their important files.

“The Iomega Mini Hard Drive is host-powered, small, and weighs next to nothing, so it is a great choice for mobile professionals and students,” said Brad Nelson, general manager, consumer products, Iomega Corporation. “Using a Mini Hard Drive is extremely simple: just connect it to your computer’s USB port and you’re ready to take your files anywhere. Other external hard drives require an external power source, tethering you to the nearest available AC wall outlet. The Iomega Mini Hard Drive gives the user more freedom and flexibility. You won’t find a simpler product on the market.”

Sony Press Release 09/11/04

Sony VAIO U-Series Notebook Combines Power of Full-size PC with Portability of PDA

SAN DIEGO, Nov. 9, 2004 - At a shade over 1 pound, Sony’s new VAIO- U Ultra Portable PC, announced today, has the heart of a PC but the soul of an entertainer.

Doubling as a portable media player, this “pocketable” PC allows you to download entertainment content and enjoy it virtually anywhere you go. Integrated 802.11 b/g wireless LAN connects you to thousands of hotspots across the country and helps you stay in touch with the Internet, email and your favorite digital content download services.

Multiple input modes contribute to the PC’s extreme versatility. Using the stylus and virtual keyboard on the unit’s touch panel screen, you can compose email messages or navigate files even while standing up. Handwriting recognition software simplifies note-taking or annotating documents. Users can also quickly launch programs or execute common commands with thumb-controlled action buttons, or draft longer text files with the included foldout keyboard.