New Samsung Digicam with 3D Avatar Screen

October 2003: The Samsung Digimax U-CA3 features a 3.2-megapixel sensor and 3x optical zoom lens and is the first with a 3D Avatar (character) loading screen.
Priced at $599, it comes with bundled software that lets users create a 3D avatar and set it as the camera’s loading screen. Users can also add MP3 music clips and customise the avatar’s movements and appearance with this software. Movie clips are captured in MPEG-4 format to meet consumer demand for a long recording times and high picture quality. Samsung Techwin has also announced it will provide a content service (Movie Show) to U-CA 3 purchasers, via its website (www.samsungcamera.com) that will allow them to download movie previews and play them back on the camera.

Another novel feature is a Function Lamp (Rainbow Eye) on the U-CA 3 front panel produces up to seven coloured lights during camera operation, which indicates how shooting is progressing. In-camera white balance, colour and sharpness adjustments are also provided, along with long time exposures and voice memo recording.
An enhanced graphic user interface (GUI) allows users to navigate the menu system quickly and easily and menu displays can be coloured to suit users’ tastes. Images are recorded on Memory Stick Duo cards and the U-CA 3 is compatible with Memory Stick PRO Duo. It also supports PictBridge, a direct printing system that links to a printer in real time via a USB cable, without the need for a computer.
Details of the camera may be found at www.adeal.com.au.