The US$699 Camedia C-2040 ZOOM offers the world’s first super bright F1.8 high-performance digital zoom lens, according to Olympus. The large aperture extends the camera flash’s working range and is better for low-light photography, said Olympus. The C-2040 features 2.11 megapixel (1600 x 1200) resolution and a 3X zoom.
The C-2040 ZOOM, which connects to your Mac via USB, offers an improved 1/2-inch RGB CCD that provides better resolution and image quality for the highest level of picture quality available in a 2 megapixel camera, Olympus said in a press announcement. The camera features extended automatic shutter speeds of 1/800th-4 seconds. The new aspherical zoom lens extends between 7.1-21.3mm for a 40-120mm equivalency in 35mm format with an increased telephoto range.
The C-2040 ZOOM is similar in design and features as Olympus’ C-3030 ZOOM model. It sports features like auto and manual white balance and improved Wide-View LCD display, sequence shooting, QuickTime movie recording capability, B&W shooting modes, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, Programmed Automatic or Manual Exposure. Other advanced features include Auto Exposure Bracketing (AEB), White Balance adjustment +/- 3 steps, built-in flash or TTL flash with the optional FL-40 Flash, and many more compression settings.
The digital camera is also expandable via additional accessories for both telephoto and wide-angle photography, flash cords for studio flash connectivity, macro and close-up adapters, and cases. And it offers a variety of metering systems.
Due this month, the C-2040 ZOOM ships with an 8 MB Olympus SmartMedia memory card, two LB-01 3V lithium batteries (CR-3V), Olympus Camedia Master 2.5 Utility Software for editing images from the camera, USB cable, video cable, instruction manual, QuickStart Guide, lens cap, and strap.
The second new camera is the C-3040 ZOOM. The new model is based on the Olympus C-3030 digital camera, and features the same “super bright” digital zoom lens as the less expensive C-2040 model, according to Olympus. The C-3040 sports 3.34 megapixel (2048 x 1536) resolution and a 3X zoom. It has USB connectivity and has a price tag of $999.
The digital camera offers Auto and Manual White balance and exposure for many light sources or conditions. For easy viewing, the improved Wide-View LCD display and the optical viewfinder are available. Other features include 3.3 frame per second sequence shooting, QuickTime movie recording, black and white or sepia shooting modes, Auto Exposure Bracketing (AEB), and more compression settings. It also incorporates such photographic technologies such as Aperture-Priority and Shutter-Priority modes, manual exposure, auto bracketing and Slow Synchro flash, as well as a range of quality modes and ISO sensitivity settings.
The C-3040 ZOOM will be available in March. It ships with a 16 MB Olympus SmartMedia memory card, USB cable, AV cable, two 3V lithium battery packs (CR-3V), Olympus Camedia Master 2.5 Utility Software for image manipulation and creation, instruction manual, QuickStart Guide, lens cap and strap.