Cameras
Fast forward
Casio is introducing a new range of digital cameras, the Exilim Pro, aimed at photographers who want the enhanced functionality of high-end models yet prefer the Exilim's compact design. The first model in the series, the EX-P600, which debuts next month, is capable of taking six-megapixel images, features a 4x optical zoom lens, a 2in TFT LCD screen and has ultra-fast start-up, picture capture and autofocus times. A new feature is high-speed playback that enables users to scroll through up to 100 images in less than 10 seconds. There are no details on prices yet. www.casio.co.uk
Camera phones
Flash feature
Siemens has unveiled one of the first camera phones to be accompanied by a detachable flash for shooting images in low-light conditions. Aimed at the top end of the handset market, the chocolate bar style CX-65 is also unusual for the size of its 132 x 176 pixel, 65k colour screen, which is much larger than many of its rivals. In addition to the camera, which can take both VGA still and moving images, the phone sports Java for games/ringtones downloads and a POP3 email client. It also features 1MB of storage and has a talk time of five hours and standby of 250 hours. It will go on sale in April. www.my-siemens.com
Mobile phones
Walkie-talkie
Motorola has become the second manufacturer to announce a Push-to-Talk (PTT) mobile phone for the UK market. Similar to Nokia's 5140, which was announced several weeks ago, the V400p features a PTT button that enables the handset to communicate like a walkie-talkie with other similarly specified handsets. At present only Orange has confirmed the launch of a PTT service in Europe although other networks are expected to announce similar programmes soon. The phone itself is a clamshell model, not unlike Motorola's recently launched V500 model, featuring a 65k colour screen, VGA camera, Java, POP3 email compatibility and MP3 polyphonic ringtones. Both the V400p and the 5140 go on sale in the UK in April/May. www.motorola.com/uk
Internet
Formats for all
Compared with words on paper, software file formats have the lifespan of a fruit fly. So the National Archives at Kew has opened a website aimed at preserving digitally held data, by providing information on supporting, and transferring data between, such formats. Pronom contains information on more than 250 software products and 550 file formats. It was built to help the National Archives deal with government data, but "we realised it was of use to other people, so we made it freely available," says Adrian Brown, services manager for digital preservation. Expansion plans include tools to extract file format and metadata from a document, and a reminder service to warn when support for a format is ending.
Mobile operators
Seat at the catwalk
Subscribers to O2's Active - the mobile operator's multimedia portal - can now stream highlights from London Fashion Week on their mobiles. After successfully introducing highlights of the Rugby World Cup, O2 swaps muddy boots for stilettos by streaming Sunday's catwalk show by UK designers FrostFrench, the label set up by actress Sadie Frost and her best friend Jemima French. The 15-minute show is streamed over the GPRS network. The service is free except for the cost of the data transfer and you will need a video-enabled handset, like an XDA II or Nokia's 6600. The actual video quality is a little darker than equivalent TV pictures, but then again you can't usually fit a TV into your handbag.
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PDA
Sony's new Palm
Sony has announced a new high-end Palm-based PDA for the UK - the Clie PEG-TH55. It features the upright form factor of Sony's Palm OS based models (there's no keyboard as on the PEG-UX50) and boasts a 320 x 480 pixel, 65k colour screen. The TH55 uses the Palm OS 5.2 operating system and has 32MB of ROM and 32MB of RAM for storage. Connectivity options include integrated Wi-Fi (802.11b) and Bluetooth. Entertainment facilities include a built-in camera, video and image viewing software and an MP3/Atrac music player. Sony has also upgraded the organiser's interface, which it claims makes it easier to access the PDA's applications. It goes on sale now for around £300.
www.sony.co.uk
Broadband
Channel shopping
Discovery, which produces documentary channels for satellite and cable television, has started selling its material through broadband. A programme can be purchased for 24 hours for between 99p and £1.99, using BT's Click & Buy service. For £5.99 you get one month's access to either Discovery Select, which covers science, history and nature and Discovery Home & Leisure, with lifestyle programming. More are planned. The site works on recent Windows and Mac computers running a range of browsers.
www.discoverybroadband.co.uk
Stat of the week: Britain's net population grows
The Office of National Statistics found a 6.5% increase in internet subscriptions last year in the UK. 22.5% of all subs are for "always-on" connections, including broadband, while only 6% are for pay-by-the-minute links.
