Minolta introduce entry level DiMAGE E223 digital camera

The new DiMAGE E223 is an entry level digital camera, and according to Minolta is capable of offering high quality images and carefree operation.

The DiMAGE E223’s precision electro-optical system is built around a 2.1 megapixel 1/2.7-type interline primary colour CCD with 2.0 million effective pixels for high resolution images. This pixel resolution will produce A4 size 150dpi prints or postcard size photo quality prints. The DiMAGE E223’s lens is a 3x optical zoom. The resolution of the nine element, six-group design will guarantee the best results from the 2.1 megapixel CCD. The maximum aperture of ƒ/2.9 – 3.0 allows the camera to be used in less than ideal lighting conditions without the need of the flash. With a focal range of 6.2mm to 18.6mm, the 3x optical zoom is equivalent to a 38 - 114mm lens on a 35mm camera. It can range from wide angle for landscapes to telephoto for intimate portraits. This range of focal lengths is the most commonly used today.

DiMAGE E223’s digital zoom can extend the optical zoom’s performance by three times in 0.2x increments giving the E223 an equivalent to a 342mm lens on a 35mm camera. The combined optical and digital zooms give this compact digital camera an amazing 9x zoom range. The camera’s macro mode allows small objects and details to be captured. The lens can focus down to 8cm for close-up images. Exposure, focus, white balance and flash are all controlled automatically for beautiful colour pictures. Just simply point and shoot; the camera will do the rest.

Images can be saved to a tiny, removable SD Memory card or Multi MediaCard, or to the camera’s built-in 8MB memory. Images can also be copied between the memory card and camera memory. To transfer the data from the camera, simply connect the USB cable, and drag and drop the images into a computer.

The DiMAGE E223 is not limited to recording still images. Movie clips up to 60 seconds in length with audio can be captured. The 320 x 240 size (QVGA) images can be played back with the camera’s colour monitor and built-in speaker.