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Epson PhotoPC 800

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PCQ Bureau
New Update

The PhotoPC 800 (Rs 85,000, Epson India, Bangalore, hari@epsonindia.com) The PhotoPC 800 is a compact CCD digital camera with a maximum resolution of 2.14 megapixels (1 megapixel is a million pixels). At this resolution, it prints 1,984x1,488 pixels, good for a print size of 11”x14”.

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The camera has a host of impressive features–a built-in 2x digital zoom, a microphone, auto-focus lens, a powerful flash, 1.8” color LCD panel, and controls for file aperture size, shutter speed, white balance, and sensitivity settings. 

The microphone allows you to record short clips of sound along with the photos you click. Most of the powerful controls such as file aperture size, white balance, etc, are found in normal SLR cameras, but are rare in compact cameras like this one. The auto-focus lens allows you to click pictures in a range of 6” to infinity. The 1.8” TFT color LCD panel is useful for instant preview, playback, and to delete pictures.



The PhotoPC 800 has a built-in 8 MB Compact Flash card, which can store 10 pictures in HyPict mode (maximum resolution) and up to 120 in lower resolutions. The pictures are stored either as a JPEG or a PCX file. 

You can take printouts of your photographs by connecting the camera to your PC’s serial or USB port (transfer rates are faster with the latter), which in turn is connected to an Epson printer. You can also take printouts directly without connecting to the PC, but for this, you’ll need to install the DirectPrint drivers from the accompanying CD-ROM. 

It uses four AA NiMH cells. These are available with the camera, along with a charger. The packed charger is a thoughtful addition, especially since a NiMH charger is a bit difficult to lay hands on in most parts of the country. Epson also sells an optional AC adapter, though I would’ve loved to have it as part of the standard package. 

With its impressive features and high resolution, the PhotoPC 800 is good for amateurs as well as professionals. 

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