Digital cameras
Quick on the draw
Casio is claiming its latest four-mega-pixel digital camera is the quickest around. The £350 QV-R40, which goes on sale in the UK next month, apparently powers up in less than one second. The QV-R40 is also said to have an industry-fastest release time (the lapse between pressing the button and the image being taken) of 0.01 second. The aluminium-finished compact camera features 3x optical and 3.2x digital zooms, 30-second movie capture, 10MB of internal memory and a Secure Digital (SD) card slot for adding extra storage. www.casio.co.uk
Throw it away
US company Pure Digital Technologies has won the race to be first to market with a digital version of a disposable camera. Due in US stores very shortly is its $9.99 Dakota Digital, a 2.5 megapixel camera that can take and store up to 25 images - although like traditional digital cameras, you can delete shots you don't want. Perhaps not surprisingly, this cheap digital has no zoom or LCD screen. Users take the camera to a retailer where they receive prints and a photo CD in exchange. No news yet on a UK launch, but it can't be too far away. www.puredigitalinc.com
4GB to go
In spite of all the high-profile launches of large storage capacity Memory Sticks and Secure Digital (SD) cards, original flash memory card, CompactFlash, continues to thrive. This week, Lexar announced it would offer a 4GB CompactFlash card (four times as much storage as the top-end MS and SD cards) aimed at enthusiasts and professionals. The type II CompactFlash card will store 600 six megapixel images, but is only compatible with a small range of cameras, like the Canon EOS-10D. The card is expected to cost around £1,300. www.lexar.com
Gadgets
Cheap digital radio
Perstel is hoping to bring portable digital radios to the mass market with its BlueNote model, which will retail for just under £100, when it launches this week. Previous digital radios of its size have cost up to twice as much. The ra dio, available from Dixons and Currys, is slightly smaller than an audio cassette, comes with a telescopic aerial and features a four line LED display that delivers station and artist information. Finished in blue, the BlueNote features control buttons on its body and is accompanied by a pair of earphones. www.dixons.co.uk
www.currys.co.uk
Pics of your fridge
If, when out shopping, you can never remember exactly what's in the fridge, Electrolux may have the answer. It has developed a system that lets people use a mobile phone to see what is inside their cool box. It features an internet-connected digital camera inside the fridge that can be activated remotely by a mobile. The user then visits a Wap or web site to view a snap of the food they left at home. Although it is only a prototype, Electrolux is confident a commercial product could be available next year. How it will take an image of a very crowded fridge remains to be seen. www.electrolux.co.uk
Mobile gaming
Bust your mobile
Pop punk outfit Busted is to get its own Java mobile game. Busted Manager is a Tamagotchi-style game in which you must cater for the needs of the teen rockers, feeding them, letting them play videogames and ensuring they get to bed on time. It's launched on Monday and will cost £4.50 from Busted.com.
Meanwhile French developer Gameloft is bringing its forthcoming PS2 first-person shooter, XIII, to Java phones. The mobile version retains its big brother's "cell-shaded" visuals and boasts 10 stealth missions and several weapons. It will be available later this month for £4.50 from Gameloft.com
News
Sign in
A researcher at George Washington University has developed a computerised glove that can turn American Sign Language into text or speech. Jose Hernandez-Rebollar's AcceleGlove can recognise the signing alphabet and some phrases. The glove covers the user's hand and arm, and translates finger and arm movements into a data stream that a computer can convert into text or speech. This can enable profoundly deaf people to communicate with those who cannot read sign language, and to write documents using sign rather than a keyboard. http://home.gwu.edu/~jreboll/sketches_0192.doc
Wrng msg
The Malaysian cabinet last week said it may ban declarations of divorce through electronic media, following an Islamic court's decision that a text message was valid notification. The message in question translated as: "If you do not leave your parents' house, you'll be divorced." The decision relied on Islamic law, which says a man can divorce a woman by saying "I divorce you" three times. However, an editorial in Malaysia's New Straits Times said such action is merely the trigger for divorce proceedings under the country's Islamic family law. "SMS divorces send the wrong messages about Islam and the institution of marriage." http://www.emedia.com.my
MEP challenge
Dutch MEP Johanna Boogerd may take the European Commission to court for breaking European data protection laws. In March, the commission agreed to give US Customs access to passenger name record (PNR) data without travellers' permission, in the face of possible fines and removal of landing rights from the US. PRN data can include credit card numbers, addresses and dietary requirements.
Boogerd said : "We need to have a common policy on this issue. We need to do it Europe-wide, and we need it in agreement with our standards."
www.rnw.nl/hotspots/html/eu030724.html
Stat of the week: How we navigate the web
These WebSideStory.com stats show net users are getting a better feel for their favourite places online. Most sites are now found directly - by typing in an address or using a bookmark - than by using a search engine or link.
