PMA 2007: The HP M437 is an entry-level 5 megapixel compact digital camera with 3x optical zoom lens and 2 inch LCD screen. The electronic anti-shake feature helps to prevent blurred photos in lower light and you can tag your favourite photos on the camera. The HP M437 will cost €119 and be available in April.

The SanDisk 32Gb, 2.5 inch solid state drive is launched as a drop-in replacement for hard disk drives in laptop computers. SanDisk now offers both 1.8 and 2.5 inch drives, covering the entire notebook market. “The SanDisk 2.5-inch SSD brings the extreme durability, outstanding performance and low power consumption of solid-state flash memory to the entire notebook computer market,” said Amos Marom of SanDisk. The 32GB, 2.5-inch SanDisk SSD is available now to computer manufacturers, with initial pricing of $350 for large volume orders.

The Peli 1495 laptop case protects all laptops up to 17 inches in size. Providing peace of mind for the travelling photographer, the Peli 1495 is unbreakable, dustproof, chemical resistant and corrosion proof. To combat theft, it features a programmable combination lock and stainless-steel-reinforced padlock protectors. The The Peli 1495 laptop case costs £179.99 with foam inserts, or £163.99 without.

During a special exhibition run by HP in conjunction with the Musee D’Elysee with in Lausanne, Switzerland, anyone from anywhere in the world is invited to submit and have their photographs displayed. “We Are All Photographers Now” runs from 8 February to 20 May 2007. An attempt to “democratise photography”, the exhibition will gather all the images sent in by you via the web and project them in sequence. Each projected image will then be captured by webcam and emailed back to you. The exhibition will also be available to view online. A few weeks after opening, the exhibition already has more than 19,000 images from 109 countries!

PMA 2007: The new AGFAPHOTO DC-630i is a 6 megapixel camera equipped with face detection of 3 faces in a photo, Digital Photo Stabiliser which increases the ISO speed, and shutter and aperture priority exposure modes. Photos can be viewed in the 16:9 image format on the DC-630i’s 2.5 inch LCD screen and the camera has a 3x optical zoom lens. The recommended retail price for the AGFAPHOTO DC-630i is $169, available in April.

PMA 2007: The Medium Format Lensbaby 3G is now available for Mamiya 645 and Pentax 67 camera bodies. The Lensbaby 3G for Mamiya 645 has an 80mm fixed focal length and apertures from f/3.4 to f/39.  The Lensbaby 3G for Pentax 67 cameras has a 100 mm fixed focal length and apertures from f/4 to f/45. Lensbaby 3G medium format lenses can be ordered now (and will ship by the end of March) for $390.00.

PMA 2007: Lexar have increased the capacity of their Platinum II flash memory card line-up by introducing a 4GB CompactFlash and 2GB and 4GB Memory Stick PRO Duo cards. A free software suite comprised of Image Rescue 3, Corel Snapfire Plus SE and Backup n Sync can be downloaded by Platinum II 4GB CF owners. Lexar 4GB Platinum II CompactFlash and Lexar 2GB and 4GB Memory Stick PRO Duo cards will be available in late March.

HP has joined the Nikonians website as a corporate sponsor. “Hewlett Packard has already gained worldwide recognition as an industry leader in the photographic products that our community has been using for years, such as computers, printers and imaging software. Our corporate partnership will provide them with a direct link to their end-users” commented Joachim Feser, director of publishing and communications at Nikonians.

PMA 2007: Kodak Gold 200 is a new consumer film which provides brighter colour and deeper saturation, has an extra stop of speed and is suited to general lighting conditions. The new Kodak Gold 200 Film will be available in the UK from early April.

PMA 2007: The new HP R837 digital camera can remove blemishes from faces, such as a spot, mole or scar, and includes pet-eye fix, which removes the glowing effect caused by pets’ eyes. The R837 offers a 7.2 megapixel sensor, 3x optical zoom lens and large 3 inch LCD screen. HP’s new camera has a distinctive curved body and vertically sliding lens cover. The HP R837 has an estimated price of €229.99, availability to be confirmed.

PMA 2007: The Sigma APO 200-500mm F2.8 EX DG is the world’s first Ultra-Telephoto zoom Lens that offers a fast aperture of f2.8 at 500mm focal length. Shooting distance and focal length can be viewed on the lens’ LCD panel. A supplied 2x teleconverter turns the Sigma 200-500mm into a 400-1000mm F5.6 lens. Further details, pricing and availability are still to be announced.

PMA 2007: The Sigma 18-200mm F3.5-6.3 DC OS is the second Sigma lens to feature an Optical Stabiliser to compensate for camera shake. Two sensors inside the Sigma 18-200mm lens detect vertical and horizontal movement of the camera and move the optical image stabilizing lens group. The Sigma 18-200mm F3.5-6.3 DC OS will cost £439.99, launch date to be announced.

PMA 2007: The 8Gb SanDisk Ultra II SDHC card features write speeds of 9 MB per second and read speeds of 10MB and can store over 4,000 high-resolution pictures. The SanDisk MicroMate USB 2.0 reader is included for free, which works with both SDHC and SD cards. The $239.99 8Gb SanDisk Ultra II SDHC Card bundle will cost $239.99 / €121 and be available in June.

PMA 2007: The 4Gb SanDisk Extreme III SDHC Class 6 card has a read/write speed of 20MBs per second and can store more than 2,000 high-resolution pictures. A free SanDisk MicroMate USB 2.0 Reader is included. The SanDisk Extreme III SDHC Bundle 4GB + MicroMate USB 2.0 Reader will cost $179.99 and be available in April 2007. SanDisk are also introducing a 4Gb Memory Stick PRO Duo card.

PMA 2007: Adobe Photoshop CS3 Extended is a completely new edition of Photoshop which adds integration of 3-D and motion graphics, image measurement and analysis. Photoshop CS3 Extended also enables users to extract valuable quantitative and qualitative data from images. Both Photoshop CS3 and Photoshop CS3 Extended will be launched on March 27th 2007.

Nikon have cancelled the release of Nikon View Pro, an image management software application first announced in February 2006. Nikon “felt that the new software’s performance would not be optimal within… the environment surrounding image handling”. Which sounds very much like Nikon View Pro not being able to compete with the likes of Apple Aperture and Adobe Lightroom. Instead of Nikon View Pro, a new product is in the pipeline, scheduled for release before the end of 2007.

PMA 2007: The Tokina 16-50mm f/2.8 lens was the single new lens on offer at Tokina’s US distributor booth, and it isn’t actually that new, being first announced in mid-2006. Still, that didn’t stop the US distributors from promoting it as a new product. This is a digital lens for APS-C size sensors only. The 16-50mm f/2.8 has the usual solid Tokina build quality, feeling well-balanced on the Nikon D80 body. Price and availabilty of the Tokina 16-50mm f/2.8 Lens are both to be confirmed.

PMA 2007: Further details of the Sigma DP1, 28mm fixed lens compact digital camera have been announced, and the camera was on display at PMA. Apparently the DP1 has a tentative launch date of Spring 2007, or May/June this year. I’ve published 9 Sigma DP1 photos from the show, which will feature an ISO range of 100-1600 and has an innovative thumb-operated dial for quick manual focusing (shown in the pictures). The matt black buttons of the original DP1 prototype have been replaced by shiny silver versions - I preferred the more sober originals.

Update: I’ve added some photos of the Sigma DP1 with the optional viewfinder attachment, which fits into the flash hotshoe on top of the camera. There’s also a dedicated flashgun with a guide number of 16 (the built-in unit is 6), and apparently you could fit the much larger SD14 flashgun onto the DP1 if you so wished. Availability will be the end of May, with price to be confirmed.

PMA 2007: Panasonic were prominently showcasing 2 new Four Thirds lenses on their booth, in addition to the raft of new digital compacts that were announced in January. Made for Panasonic by Leica, first up is the new Leica 25mm (LEICA D SUMMILUX 25mm/F1.4 ASPH) which is due to ship by April for £749.99 in the UK. Next is the Leica 14-150mm (LEICA D VARIO-ELMAR 14-150mm/F3.5-5.6 ASPH./ MEGA O.I.S.) which is the equivalent of 28-300mm on a 35mm camera. Panasonic and Leica have only started the development of this lens, with an early prototype displayed behind glass. The new lens is also the first Leica D lens to incorporate Extra Silent Motor (XSM) technology.

PMA 2007: As well as the 645 Digital, Pentax had three prototype Star lenses under glass at PMA. These are the 60-250mm f/4, 300mm f/4 and 200mm f/2.8 models. No release dates or pricing are available yet, but “sometime in 2007” (one of the buzz phrases of the show) is probably safe to assume.