Kodak packs digital video, pics, MP3s into the mc3

Eastman Kodak Co. combined digital video, digital still images and an MP3 player and released what the company is calling the industry’s first all-in-one handheld device — the mc3.

At US$229 and available next month, The Kodak mc3 with a 16MB Type I Compact Flash memory card is a fully functional MP3 player with USB connectivity (though you’ll have to purchase a $24.95 USB dock separately). With MusicMatch jukebox software, Mac users can extract songs from a CD, convert them to the MP3 format, and play them up to 1.5 hours with a 64MB memory card.

With Arcsoft Video Impression software for video editing and albuming, users can combine their video, pictures and music to create multimedia movies or music videos. The mc3 can record more than 20 minutes of non-stop video in QuickTime format on a 64MB CompactFlash card — or 20 seconds of video for each MB of removable memory recording at 10 fps. At a higher frame rate (20 fps), it can record 4 seconds of video for each MB of memory.

Arcsoft Photo Impression software is a full-featured photo image editing system that lets users organize pictures into albums, enhance photos or create special effects, and easily print or e-mail them.

The portable device is Kodak’s first product to incorporate its CMOS image sensor technology that captures images under all lighting conditions with excellent color quality, Willy Shih, president of Kodak’s Digital and Applied Imaging group, said in a company statement. Kodak’s CMOS sensor also offers very low power consumption that greatly extends usable battery life. The sensor captures full-color still pictures in VGA resolution, producing modest file sizes, maximizing image storage, and minimizing upload and transmission time of pictures via the Internet, Shih said.

The device also has a built-in microphone and speaker for capturing and playing back video. The unit also has an audio/video-out port for playing music on a home or car stereo or through headphones, or to play back video with audio on a TV or VCR.

Weighing 5.5 ounces (without batteries) and measuring 2.6 x 4.1 inches, the mc3 fits easily into a small pocket or backpack. It was designed for single hand operation and is powered by three AAA batteries.

To promote the mc3, Kodak has set up a special site to demonstrate its capabilities and examples of creative projects made possible by the device.

The Kodak mc3 comes in a number of configurations, based on the size of its replaceable memory. With 16MB memory, the unit’s suggested retail price is $229; with 64MB memory, $299.