Kodak has introduced a new "ultra zoom" camera -- their first. Here's the details:

EasyShare DX6490

• 4.0 effective Megapixel CCD
• F2.8-3.7, 10X optical zoom Schneider-Kreuznach Variogon lens, equivalent to 38 - 380 mm
• Uses new Kodak image processor for better performance and image quality
• Full manual controls; shutter speed range of 16 - 1/1700 sec
• Hybrid low light focusing system
• Equipped with external flash sync; can sync at any shutter speed
• 320 x 240 movies (with sound) until memory card is full
• 2.2" LCD display + electronic viewfinder
• 16MB on-board memory + SD/MMC slot
• USB 2.0 compatible
• Uses proprietary lithium-ion battery
• Supports EasyShare 6000 camera dock ($80 option)
• Ships in September for $499
  

Sony today introduced two new digital cameras, including a replacement of the venerable DSC-F717 with a whopping 8 Megapixel CCD. And we've already got a full preview of it! Read on:

Cyber-shot DSC-F828
>> Read our preview << [updated 6pm]

• 8.0 effective Megapixel CCD (!); produces images at a resolution of 3264 x 2448
• Uses new Sony 4-color filter and Real Imaging Processor, which were described last month. Bottom line: more accurate color, better performance.
• F2.0-2.8, 7X optical zoom Carl Zeiss T* lens, equivalent to 28 - 200 mm. Lens is threaded for 58 mm filters and conversion lenses.
• Lens rotates in the same way as the F7x7 cameras: up 70°, down 30°
• Real mechanical zoom ring + manual focus ring (which is electronic)
• 40% reduction in processing time means faster startup time, less lag and delay between shots
• High resolution LCD and electronic viewfinder (EVF)
• Memory Stick / Memory Stick Pro and CompactFlash Type II slots (!)
• Full manual controls
• Hologram AF laser focusing system
• New MPEG Movie VX Fine mode gives you VGA quality video at 30 frames/sec (with sound). Requires a fast memory card like Microdrive or Memory Stick Pro.
• JPEG, RAW, and TIFF formats supported
• Hot shoe for external flash
• New LED info display on top of camera
• Visual aids shown on LCD/EVF let you change mode/settings without looking at buttons (makes more sense when you try it)
• Nightshot and Nightframing for taking photos in total darkness
• Uses same NP-FM50 battery as DSC-F7x7 series; Expect nearly 4 hours of battery life.
• USB 2.0 supported
• Shipping in mid-November for $1199. Does not include a memory card!

For much more about the F828, read our hands-on preview!

Cyber-shot DSC-U50

• 2.0 effective Megapixel CCD
• Rotating, F2.8 fixed focal length lens, equivalent to 35 mm
• Point-and-shoot
• 1.0" LCD display
• First camera to use small Memory Stick Duo cards, which are 1/3 the size of a regular Memory Stick. Camera includes Duo --> Memory Stick adapter
• Can capture up to 15 secs of 160 x 112 video
• Comes in black, silver, and metallic orange colors
• Uses two AAA batteries
• Ships with 8MB MS Duo card in October for $250

Added 9:30am: To go along with the U50, Sony introduced two Memory Stick Pro Duo cards. These new cards have a 20MB/sec transfer rate, and come in 256 and 512 MB capacities. They are priced at $125 and $300, respectively.

I've posted my review of the Samsung Digimax V4 -- a decent, compact 4 Megapixel camera.

HP today introduced over 100 new products, most of which are related to digital imaging. Three of those new products are digital cameras:

Photosmart 945 - updated version of the Photosmart 850 (see our review). I believe this is the highest resolution ultra zoom model out there.

• 5.08 effective Megapixel CCD
• F2.8-3.1, 8X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 37 - 300 mm. Thumbs down to HP for putting a "56x zoom" label on this camera.
• New automatic contrast system known as "HP Adaptive Lighting Technology"
• Full manual controls; shutter speed range of 16 - 1/2000 sec
• 2" LCD display plus electronic viewfinder
• SD/MMC memory card slot (32MB card included)
• Supports Photosmart 8881 camera dock
• HP Instant Share System lets you tag photos for printing and e-mailing
• Uses four AA batteries
• Priced at $549

Photosmart 635 - same as the 735, but with lower resolution CCD

• 2.0 effective Megapixel CCD
• F2.9-5.0, 3X optical zoom lens
• 16MB on-board memory + SD/MMC card slot
• 1.6" LCD display
• USB 2.0 support
• Supports Photosmart 8886 dock and Instant Share system
• Priced at $179

Photosmart 435

• 3.1 effective Megapixel CCD
• 5x digital zoom; Again, HP has a "5x zoom" label on the front. I find this misleading.
• 16MB on-board memory + SD/MMC card slot
• 1.5" LCD
• USB 2.0 support
• Supports Photosmart 8886 dock and Instant Share system
• Priced at $149

In other news, Panasonic Japan introduced the new Lumix DMC-FZ2 camera. This model offers minor improvements over the DMC-FZ1 (see our review), including aperture and shutter priority modes, fine-tunable white balance, and color saturation controls. There may be a few other differences, but the press release is in Japanese, and machine translation isn't great. Hopefully we'll learn more if and when it's announced in the U.S.

Three photo gallery updates today:

Fuji FinePix F700 - I tried to find scenes that would test the SuperCCD SR sensor
Fuji FinePix S5000
Samsung Digimax V4

Kyocera (Japan) introduced a new camera with an impressive continuous shooting mode:

Finecam S5R

• 5.0 effective Megapixel CCD
• F2.8-4.8, 3X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 35 - 105 mm
• RTUNE image processor lets camera take shots at 3 frames/sec until the memory card is full; fast SD card required (10MB/sec transfer rate)
• Shutter lag of just 0.07 sec
• 16-bit A/D conversion for better dynamic range and less noise
• VGA movie mode: 30 frames/sec, with sound, until memory card is full
• 1.6" LCD display
• SD/MMC card slot
• Uses BP-1000S li-ion battery
• Sells in Japan for 75,000 yen (about $630); No word on U.S. availability

Added 11:20am: I've posted my review of the Kyocera Finecam L3v. This is a 3.2 Megapixel camera with a large 2.5" LCD display.

Updated 11:50pm: I've posted two new photo galleries:

Fuji FinePix F700 (first impression: very responsive, great user interface)
Fuji FinePix S5000 (nice looking, but plastic body feels cheap)
>> S5000 photo gallery updated with photos from Giants game <<

Also, on Monday I will be getting an Olympus E-1 that I can post pictures from. So look for that next week.

I need a vacation!

Pentax has finally released details about their upcoming *ist D digital SLR camera, which was first announced back at PMA earlier this year. Here are the details:

• 6.1 effective Megapixel CCD (same size as APS film)
• Pentax KAF lens mount; focal length conversion of 1.5x
• ISO range of 200 - 1600
• 11-point AF sensor & 16-segment metering system
• Shutter speeds of 30 - 1/4000 sec
• Saves files in JPEG, TIFF, and RAW formats
• Large optical viewfinder shows 95% of the frame
• Burst mode takes up to 9 images at 2.6 frames/sec
• Built-in flash + hot shoe
• CompactFlash Type II slot
• 1.8" LCD display
• USB 1.1 support (no Firewire or USB 2.0, to my surprise)
• Uses four AA or two CR-V3 batteries
• Body weighs just 550 g
• Ships in September. Price not available yet.

Along with the camera body, Pentax is releasing two new lenses designed for the *ist D:

• F4 - F5.6, 18 - 35 mm Pentax-FA J lens (equivalent to 27.5 - 53.5 mm)
• F4, 16 - 45 mm Pentax-DA ED AL lens (equivalent to 24.5 - 69 mm)

No prices were available for the lenses either.

Pour another cup of coffee, I've got four new Minolta cameras to tell you about today. One of them may look familiar. Let's go:

DiMAGE A1 - replaces DiMAGE 7Hi

• 5.0 effective Megapixel CCD with anti-shake system, which helps reduce the effects of "camera shake"
• F2.8-3.5, 7X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 28 - 200 mm
• Lens uses anomalous dispersion (AD) glass to reduce chromatic aberrations (purple fringing)
• Minolta claims the world's fastest AF performance for a "5MP SLR-type cameras"
• Dual-focal macro system for close-ups at wide and telephoto
• Tiltable 1.8" LCD display, plus high resolution electronic viewfinder
• Shutter speed range of 30 - 1/16000 sec
• New 3-D Predictive Focus Control "tracks the subject from when the shutter release button is pressed all the way down until the exposure is made ensuring optimum focus"
• Flex Focus Point system lets you use the four-way controller to select a focus point anywhere in the frame
• Direct Manual Focus (DMF) lets you fine tune the autofocus manually
• New CxProcess II technology "controls the essential image qualities of color, contrast, and sharpness while minimizing noise"
• Supports TIFF and RAW formats
• Burst mode takes up to 3 JPEG or 5 RAW images at 2 frames/sec
• Hot shoe for external flash
• CompactFlash Type II slot; 16MB card (!) included.
• 320 x 240 movies, with sound, for as long as 15 minutes
• Uses NP-400 lithium-ion battery
• Priced at $1199. No word on availability yet.
  >> Read First Look at Steve's Digicams <<

DiMAGE Z1 - all new "ultra zoom" model

• 3.2 effective Megapixel CCD
• F2.8-3.5, 10X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 38 - 380 mm
• Again, Minolta claims fastest AF performance of any camera in its class, thanks to passive AF sensor
• Unique "Switch Finder" -- basically a trick that lets you look at the LCD through the viewfinder (it's not a dedicated EVF, nor is it an optical viewfinder). The 1.5" LCD's frame rate is an impressive 60 frames/sec
• Minolta's most powerful flash ever: working range of 0.23 – 6.1 m (wide) and 1.2 – 4.8 m (tele)
• Full manual controls; shutter speed range of 15 - 1/1000 sec
• Can record VGA-sized (640 x 480) movies at 30 frames/sec, until memory card is full. Smaller resolutions and slower frame rates also available.
• 1.5 frame/sec burst mode (up to 5 shots at highest quality)
• Lacks the RAW/TIFF modes of the A1
• Hot shoe for external flash
• Uses SD/MMC memory cards. 16MB SD card included.
• 0.75x wide-angle conversion lens available
• Uses four AA batteries
• Priced at $399
  >> Read First Look at Steve's Digicams <<

DiMAGE G500 - this is the Konica KD-510Z. Remember that Minolta and Konica recently merged

• 5.0 effective Megapixel CCD
• F2.8-4.9, 3X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 39 - 117 mm
• Fast 1.3 sec startup time
• Manual exposure mode; shutter speed range of 15 - 1/1000 sec
• Memory Stick and SD memory card slots. Does not support Memory Stick Pro. 16MB SD card included.
• 1.5" LCD display
• Small metal body weighs only 200 g
• Movie clips up to 30 seconds, with sound (320 x 240)
• Uses NP-500 lithium-ion battery
• Priced at $499

DiMAGE E323

• 3.2 effective Megapixel CCD
• F2.8-4.9, 3X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 36 - 108 mm
• Point-and-shoot
• 1.6" LCD display
• Can record 320 x 240 movies until memory card is full (no sound)
• SD/MMC card slot; 16MB SD card included.
• Uses two AA batteries
• Priced at $299

Kodak today introduced two new digital cameras and a photo printer. We mentioned one of the cameras, the DX4530, last week. Here are the specs on the two new cameras:

EasyShare DX4530

• 5.0 Megapixel CCD
• F2.8-4.8, 3X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 38 - 114 mm
• Slow shutter speed mode lets you select 0.7 - 4 sec shutter speeds
• 32MB on-board memory + SD/MMC card slot
• USB 2.0 support
• Share button allows you to tag photos for e-mailing and printing
• 1.8" LCD display
• Movie mode (320 x 240) limited only by memory capacity
• Uses two AA batteries
• Supports Kodak's camera and printer docks
• Ships this month for $399

EasyShare CX6230

• 2.0 Megapixel CCD
• F2.8-4.7, 3X optical zoom, equivalent to 36 - 108 mm
• 16MB on-board memory + SD/MMC card slot
• 1.5" LCD display
• Up to 30 seconds of movies, with sound
• Same USB 2.0, sharing, dock, and battery features as DX4530
• Ships next month for $199

I've posted my final review of the Nikon Coolpix 5400. Though not without its faults, the 5400 is still a very nice 5MP camera.

Along with that review, I've got two photo galleries for you:

Kyocera Finecam L3v
Nikon Coolpix SQ

The DCRP was mentioned in the August issue of Money magazine. Once I heard about this last week, I ran out to grab a copy for my archives. This site was mentioned, along with DP Review, as a great place to search for a digicam. And I quote:

You can find help with comparison shopping at two Web sites obsessively devoted to digital cameras, Digital Photography Review and Digital Camera Resource. Pick the features you want, and they will offer a list of current cameras that fit the bill.

If you hear about the DCRP in the media, please drop me a line!

Casio USA today introduced the new QV-R40 camera, a compact 4 Megapixel camera. Here are the specs:

QV-R40 - replaces the QV-R4

• 4.0 Megapixel CCD
• F2.8, 3X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 39 - 117 mm
• Ultra fast: claimed 1 second startup, 0.01 second shutter lag times
• 10MB on-board memory + SD/MMC card slot
• 5-point autofocus system
• 21 Best Shot (scene) modes
• Unique calendar system for navigating through photos by date
• Can make HTML photo albums automatically
• Records up to 30 seconds of 320 x 240 video, without sound
• Uses two AA batteries
• Compact aluminum body weighs just 160 g
• Ships in September for $299

A reader in the UK reports seeing a new 5 Megapixel Kodak camera, known as the EasyShare DX4530, at a Dixons store. The camera has a 3X optical zoom, manual controls, SD/MMC card slot, and a 1.8" LCD display. The camera has a dark grey plastic body, and uses two AA batteries. This camera, which is being sold for £399, has not been announced by Kodak.
Quick Saturday update: The camera is already listed on Amazon.com.