Olympus announces two new dSLRS and a pancake lens

All this time that Olympus was lying low, it was probably developing the E-420--the world's smallest and thinnest dSLR. Measuring just 53mm thick and 380g, the Japanese company touts this camera as "ideal for traveling or just walking around town". It will ship with a 10-megapixel sensor and 2.7-inch HyperCrystal III LCD display with Live View.
To complement the size of the E-420, Olympus has also released the 25mm F2.8 lens in the traditional pancake form of 23.5mm thin and 95g light. While you may be scratching your head and wondering what "pancake" means, it is a term of endearment that photographers give to small and thin lenses usually found on rangefinders. The lens offers a view of 50mm (35mm equivalent) when used with Olympus 4/3 systems.

Alongside, we see the E-520. Although it is chunkier than the E-420, we attribute this to the built-in image stabilizer (IS) mechanism that is not present in its smaller sibling. The IS system is driven by Olympus' proprietary Sonic Wave Drive, and shutterbugs can expect to shoot at lower shutter speeds without using a tripod. Other than the IS, the E-520 specifications remain pretty much the same as the E-420.

The shooters and lens will be available in Asia from June. However, pricing was unavailable at press time but we will update once we have the information.

(Photo credits: Olympus)

Digital frame has a secret to pull out

We know, it's just what the world needs--another digital photo frame. But this one's different, honest. At least a little bit.

Kenko's KDF-07 may look like an ordinary 7-inch screen, as seen on Fareastgizmos, but it hides a secret control panel that slides out from the side then retracts when not in use to maintain the sleek look of the frame in silver, black matte, and wood grain finishes. That's hardly enough reason to charge US$160 on the Japanese market for a product that has comparable competition for less money and more features from other other manufacturers. We do appreciate the size, however, because in digital photo frames we think smaller is better.

Via Crave CNET

GP's new mini charger taps on USB

While GP has had USB chargers in the past, its latest offering was designed with portability in mind. Possibly one of the company's smallest AA/AAA-sized battery chargers to date, the Power Bank M530 is no larger than a small clamshell phone, which makes it really easy to carry around. An onboard foldable USB plug also means there's no need to bring along any messy cables and makes for easy storage while traveling.

According to GP, the M530 takes 1-2 hours to charge an AA/AAA (NiMH) battery and can handle up to two batteries at a go. A quick glance of the instruction manual, however, shows that the estimation is based mainly on a 1,300mAh and the lower-capacity AAA cells. To charge one 2,500mAh AA battery takes approximately 212 minutes (3.5 hours), which is pretty long. But that's to be expected of most USB-powered chargers.

The M530 also features several nifty onboard functions such as alerts to warn users of damaged or wrong batteries being inserted, an automatic cutoff feature to prevent overheating, and self-termination of the charging process (once the battery is fully charged). It comes bundled with two pieces of 2,500mAh rechargeable AA batteries and is expected to retail in Singapore from early June at about S$26.90 (US$17.70). GP currently has no fixed dates on the launch of the M530 in other Asian countries.

Eye-Fi's Wi-Fi answers 'Where was I?'

When we reviewed Eye-Fi's Wi-Fi card for digital cameras back in November, it was but a lonely single child in the company's product portfolio. Today, Eye-Fi announced the birth of siblings, creating a tiered product line of SD add-in cards that deliver Wi-Fi connectivity--and now more--to digital cameras.

The kid bound to get the most attention is the Eye-Fi Explore, a US$129 card with two notable features. First, the company has teamed up with Skyhook Wireless to provide geotagging for your photos; Skyhook's Wi-Fi positioning system essentially triangulates your location via queries to local wireless access points. Second, when you purchase the Explore card, you get a free year of Wayport hotspot access--just for your photo uploads, of course. (I won't be able to resist sticking the card in my laptop to see what happens, though.) While an interesting, novel approach to geotagging that I look forward to trying, it's clearly a solution for those who stick to urban areas. But given Skyhook's claimed accuracy of 20m you could probably reconstruct a night of drinking that ended badly even if you can't quite make out the photos.

With Eye-Fi Share, the company simply rebrands the existing product at the current price of US$99. Both Share and Explore allow you to upload your photos to most of the popular photo-sharing services and Facebook.
Read more »

Jade camera case for mummy

Asian mums like jade, or at least I think my mom does. She owns a digital camera but the case looks crappy.

While shopping in Hong Kong, I chanced upon this unique camera case that looks like it's made of jade. Upon closer inspection, it turned out that it was made of acrylic instead and a jade-like finish was applied to give it a more authentic feel. A green strap is attached to both sides of the case to let users sling this over their shoulder.

Last year, Canon Hong Kong organized a project where it got six designers to come up with cases that exude the spirit of the Canon IXUS lineup. Douglas Young was one of them and the mastermind behind the jade IXUS case.

For Young, Chinese have a habit of carrying jade, and it is pretty much as indispensable as watches or gadgets are to metropolitans. Thus, he conceptualized the jade case by blending a touch of east (jade) and a dash of west (gadgets).

Sadly for those who are interested, the case is no longer available online. However if you happen to be in Hong Kong, drop by G.O.D. at Causeway Bay where I spotted it for US$49. It's a small price to pay to please mummy dearest.

Crave is...

The name says it all. Crave is our new blog about cool gadgets and other crushworthy stuff.

Drop us an email if you have tips or suggestions.

Crave for...

» Mobile Phones (569)

» Digital Cameras (352)

» Notebooks (361)

» PC & Peripherals (370)

» Handhelds (210)

» Printers (35)

» Home AV (387)

» Music & Play (353)

» Gadgets (837)

» Future Tech (122)

Previously...

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

Subscribe to
Crave

Today on CNET |  Reviews |  Crave |  Blogs |  CNET TV |  Digital Living |  Downloads