Blubox 4 claims to be the world’s most advanced software compression application for digital images. It can apparently compress photos by up to 95% without sacrificing picture quality. Blubox 4 can also encrypt and protect pictures using 256-bit AES encryption technology. Blubox V4 is available now for £19.99.

DxO Optics Pro v5 (Standard and Elite Editions) now supports the Nikon D300. Support for the Nikon D3 and the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III will be added in early February in the Elite edition.

At first glance the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200 looks like a fairly run-of-the mill compact camera, with an understated, compact silver body, 3x zoom lens (35-105mm) and 2.5 inch LCD screen. Look a little closer though, and you’ll find that there are some more impressive stand-out features. Most obvious is the headline-grabbing 12 megapixel resolution, now the standard for any self-respecting top-of-the range compact like the W200. Next up is true optical image stabilisation via Sony’s Super SteadyShot technology, which combined with the extensive ISO range of 100-3200 promises to make blurry photos a thing of the past. The Sony W200 also offers a true Manual shooting mode which allows you to set both the shutter speed and aperture, and there’s also an optical viewfinder for ease-of-use in bright sunlight. The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200 is therefore a mix of humdrum and rather more exciting features, on paper at least. Mark Goldstein tested the W200 in the short, dark days of an English winter to find out how it coped out in the real world.

Website: Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W200 Review

The new Hydrophobia 300-600 rain cover from Think Tank Photo is the first rain cover specifically designed to be pre-mounted for quick deployment. When the weather threatens, simply unroll the rain cover over the rest of the lens and body, securely protecting both. The Hydrophobia rain cover fits onto a 300 f2.8, 400 f2.8, 500 f4, and 600 f4 lens. The fabric used on the Hydrophobia is ten times as waterproof as normal fabric.

The new ClickFree HD 700 device and DVD Photo Backup disc backup all your photographs and images automatically. Plugged in via USB port, the ClickFree HD 700 automatically launches, searches and backs up all pictures and photographs. Weighing no more than a Blackberry, the ClickFree HD 700 costs $169. The ClickFree DVD Photo Backup disc disc holds up to 2,000 pictures in over 70 different file formats.

Nikon have just released a firmware update for the 10 megapixel Nikon D80 DSLR camera. The following improvements have been made with firmware version 1.10.

- The D80 is “Certified for Windows Vista”
- Support for the new USB Media Transfer Protocol (MTP) has beenadded. The PTP option in the setup menu’s USB item will be modified to MTP/PTP.  The icon will also be modified.
- The effects of noise reduction processing performed at shutter speeds of 1 - 8 s with shutter speed set to “bulb”, when On is selected for Long exp. NR in the shooting menu, have been improved.

Website: Nikon D80 Firmware Update 1.10 (Windows)
Website: Nikon D80 Firmware Update 1.10 (Mac)

Colour Confidence has launched a new monitor calibration and colour correction software package, the PANTONE huey and PhotoTune Bundle. “The PANTONE huey and PhotoTune Bundle has been created with accuracy and usability very much in mind”, comments Geoffrey Clements, Managing Director of Colour Confidence. “The combination of the two products makes perfect sense; any image adjustments, no matter how carefully made, can be rendered useless if you are working with an uncalibrated monitor. ” The PANTONE huey and PhotoTune Bundle is priced at £77 / €115 ex. VAT.

PNY will be showcasing three different 32Gb products next week at PMA - the PNY 32GB SDHC Memory Card, PNY Optima Pro™ UDMA 32Gb CompactFlash, and the PNY 32GB Attaché USB Flash Drive. “The expansion of PNY’s photography solutions continues to build upon the need for bigger, faster storage devices to capture, store and display images and video, including High-Definition content,” said Tony Gomez, vice president of sales and marketing, PNY Technologies.  “The new lineup includes several, removable storage formats that meet the most demanding speed and capacity requirements for today’s newest digital cameras and camcorders.”

Olympus has released three new types of compact lens elements to improve image quality and zoom power. They are the DSA (Dual Super Aspherical lens), EDA (Extra-low Dispersion Aspherical lens) and SHR (Super High Refractive index lens). Each element represents a breakthrough to ensure picture-perfect results and imaging flexibility. These new types of lens elements are incorporated in the latest Olympus compact cameras, announced this week.

Travel Photographer of the Year are running a range of photography courses this year in the UK and internationally. TPOTY can help photographers strengthen their compositional and editing skills, get the most out of their camera, or really get to grips with Photoshop. To give a taste of what’s offer on TPOTY courses, TPOTY founder Chris Coe is giving free image critiques at Intrepid Travel’s London Store on Sunday, February 17th.

Crumpler is launching a new line of photo bags at the PMA show in Las Vegas next week. They are:

The Industry Disgrace - designed for professional photographers carrying heavy camera equipment. It features a breathable air mesh base strap, ergonomic neoprene neck pad with grip print, double length adjustment feature on neck strap and an extra strength attachment strap.
The Cork & Fork - a new protective photo equipment bag - spacious, padded photo backpack designed to slot inside Crumpler’s brand new carry-on roller luggage piece, The Period Charmer, making it an easy travel companion. It also works as a highly functional stand alone piece.
The Rufous Whistler - a limited edition version of Crumpler’s most popular photo bag model, The 5 Million Dollar Home. It features an external pocket, two hidden internal side pockets, a padded and brushed nylon-lined main compartment, configurable dividers, etc.

Crumpler is an Australian designer of specialty bags that are trendy, fun and stylish.

The new SpheroCam HDR Camera System records 26 f-stops of exposure data, capturing a 360 x 180 degree full spherical image and a resolution of up to 50 mega pixels. This unique 32-bit HDR capturing device is the first camera able to measure real-world luminosity values. “The SpheroCam HDR system helps bridge the gap between real world photography and computer graphics modelling.” Peter Taylor, SpheronVR’s CGI Business Manager. SpheronVR will be exhibiting the SpheroCam HDR at the Focus on Imaging show in Birmingham, UK, on 24-27th February.

Light Crafts has today released version 3.4 of LightZone, plus an updated beta version LightZone 3.4B. LightZone 3.4 features seven style families and an impressive 38 pre-defined styles that can be both viewed and applied with one click of your mouse. In addition LightZone 3.4 instantly displays a real-time visual thumbnail preview of the picture with the applied chosen style. LightZone 3.4 is available through February 15, 2008 at a $50 discount for either the ‘full’ or ‘basic’ editions bringing the purchase price to $199.95 and $99.95 respectively.

Transcend has released a new 32GB, 133x speed CompactFlash card. Transcend’s 133x CF cards achieve fast read/write speeds of up to 45MB/16MB per second on average. They also feature built-in ECC (Error Correction Code) to automatically detect and correct errors during data transfer, which prevents data corruption and missing files. The Transcend 32GB 133X CompactFlash Card will cost €169.

In a special exhibit at PMA, Fujifilm will feature a prototype of a new portable medium-format film camera. Even as the company innovates in digital imaging technology, Fujifilm remains true to its heritage and to the acknowledged superior image quality delivered by professional photographic film products.  Fujifilm is committed to further expanding the world of imaging whether in digital or analog technologies. Details about the Fujifilm medium-format film camera are scarce at the moment, so we’ll try and get more info for you next week at PMA.

The new Quick Pod DSLR is the the world’s first handheld extendable tripod for DSLR cameras. The DSLR version extends to 53” and converts to a monopod to hold camera equipment weighing up to 6 lbs. “Families on vacation and You Tubers will all benefit by making picture taking and movie making easier”.  “Professionals are using the Quik Pod® for photo and lighting solutions.” commented inventor Wayne Fromm. Prices for the various versions of the Quik Pod start at $24.95.

Canon UK held a glitzy event for their new Spring collection of products this morning at the Science Museum in Central London. Against a somewhat ironic backdrop of Euro 2008 (well, at least for us England supporters), which Canon are sponsoring, no less than 36 new products were shown off to over 200 members of the press and trade. In a somewhat low-key line-up from the camera side of things, the new Canon EOS 450D / Digital Rebel XSi stood out as the main draw - unless you can afford several thousand pounds for the new 800mm and 200mm lenses, that is. We managed to make our way through the throng and literally grab a couple of minutes with the Canon 450D, plus get hands-on with the new Digital IXUS 80 IS and A-series Powershot compacts. Click the link below to view a selection of “live” product shots…

We have a selection of 40 photos taken with a pre-production version of the new Pentax K20D DSLR canera and new smc PENTAX-DA 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 AL II zoom lens on a recent press trip to Dubai, UAE. Please note that as the K20D that I used was a pre-production version, therefore these images do not represent the quality of the final production camera.

Website: Pentax K20D Photos

The Samsung GX-20 is a new 14.6 megapixel digital SLR camera. The GX-20 builds on the previous GX-10 model, offering more megapixels, a larger 2.7 inch LCD monitor, Live View mode, ISO 100-6400, Dust Alert System and an X-sync socket for studio flash systems. Other standout features offered by the Samsung GX-20 include a built-in Shake Reduction system, 11-point AF, and Enhanced Digital Filter which allows a greater dynamic range of exposures. The 14.6 megapixel sensor inside the GX-20 has been developed in a joint-venture with Pentax, with Samsung responsible for the fabrication. The new Samsung GX-20 will be available from March 2008, for £699 / $1399.95 with the 18-55mm kit lens. Samsung are also launching a 18-250mm f/3.5-6.3 super-zoom lens, which will cost around £449 and be available in March 2008.

Samsung has launched two new DSLR lenses, the D-XENON 18-250mm F3.5-F6.3 and 18-55mm II F3.5-F5.6. Robert King, Commercial Director of Samsung Cameras commented “These two new lenses form part of the next step in Samsung’s continued growth in the SLR market – the lenses used together with the new GX-20 offer superb quality and cutting-edge functionality.” Available from March 2008, the price for the GX-20 with 18-55mm lens is £699. The price and release date for the Samsung 18-250mm superzoom lens is still to be confirmed.