Casio Announces a New EXILIM ZOOM Digital Camera With Long Battery Life

Feb. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Casio, Inc., in conjunction with its parent company, Casio Computer Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan, today announced the 4-megapixel EX-Z40, a new model in the EXILIM ZOOM line of digital cameras with long battery life and 3X optical zoom. The camera will be available at retail the end of April, with an MSRP of $399.99.

Over the last few years the digital camera market has undergone rapid change. Not only have there been improvements in picture quality because of higher resolution, the great usability of digital cameras has also been the focus of attention as they became more compact with faster response and larger LCD monitors. One area of particular concern has been the battery life of these cameras per charge, with many users asking for digital cameras offering longer operation times.

"Casio's new EXILIM ZOOM EX-Z40 incorporates an EXILIM Engine, a newly developed compact image processing module with a 3 layer stack LSI that achieves high picture quality and speedy response using a 1.8V low-power system and makes the cameras' compact dimensions possible," said John Clough, president of Casio, Inc.

This new camera has a battery life of 2.5 times that of previous models (comparison between the EX-Z4U and EX-Z40), allowing up to 360 photos to be taken on a single charge (based on CIPA standard battery life measurement*).

* CIPA standard "Standard Procedure for Measuring Digital Still Camera Battery Consumption":
Until recently there has been no standard measurement for battery life. This has resulted in inconsistencies between camera products and their catalogs and instruction manuals. As of December 2003, CIPA (Camera & Imaging Products Association) established the Standard Procedure for Measuring Digital Still Camera Battery Consumption, and hopes to reduce confusion among consumers by having this adopted by the world's digital camera manufacturers and retailers.

"This means that the camera is not only handy for travel and work applications," said Clough, "but it is ideal for any occasion when a lot of photos must be taken," he added. Another handy feature is Auto Pan Focus. When photos need to be taken in a hurry, one rapid push of the shutter button will make the camera use pan focus, thus removing the need to wait for auto focus. "In combination with the approximate 1.6-second high-speed start up time and approximate 0.01-second release time lag, the features of this camera allows for even faster, more satisfying photography," Clough concluded.

Other impressive features of the EX-Z40 include the large 2.0-inch TFT LCD screen and the Direct On function for one-touch record and play modes. In addition to being USB DIRECT-PRINT compliant for direct connection to printers, the EX-Z40 is also compatible with the PictBridge standard.

For more information visit Casio’s web site at www.casio.com.

Source: Casio, Inc.