Richo camera tracks location with GPS

Ricoh’s new digital camera with GPS compatibility – the Ricoh Caplio 500SE – lets outdoor adventurers, lifestyle extremists and workers in demanding environments identify the exact location where a photo was taken.

“Now a ranger in a national park will be able to identify exactly where a rare species of flower was growing, or a rock climber can detect his final destination in unknown territory,” said Stewart Pickersgill, Ricoh Photographics National Sales Manager. “They simply take a photo with the new Caplio 500SE and the software embeds the location data onto the image. When downloaded to their computer back at base it will show them the exact location on a map.”

The Caplio 500SE houses a Bluetooth 2.0 module and EDR interface which allows interaction with GPS technology. To arrange pictures geographically, users import the logged GPS data and digital images from the Caplio 500SE to their computer, and the supplied Ricoh mapping software synchronises the images with the latitude and longitude to give the location the photo was taken in.

The Bluetooth connectivity also means that other technology can be harnessed, including barcode applications, and wireless links to PDAs, printers and other Bluetooth connected devices.

The Caplio 500SE is a high quality compact digital camera which is water, dust and shock resistant. The wide angle camera shoots impressive 8-megapixel images even in the most challenging of photographic locations.

With a shock resistant structure and stronger camera cone the Caplio 500SE creates a hardy body capable of withstanding falls from up to one metre.

A dust resistance grading of JIS 6 means it can endure challenging sandy or dusty environments, and the JIS 7 water resistance protection means rain and snow are never a drama, in fact it is capable of capturing underwater images in depths of up to one metre.

In low visibility surroundings, the new high-capacity flash has an effective luminosity range of 10 metres for wide-angle images and 6.5 metres in telephoto mode. This can be increased further with the addition of an external flash gun. Coupled with a high sensitivity mode, subjects can be monitored clearly in the darkest of locations.

The anti-blur mode increases the ISO sensitivity, enabling the camera to shoot at faster shutter speeds. This reduces the camera movement particularly in low light situations.

The Caplio 500SE has a 3x wide-zoom optical lens (28-85mm equivalent) which easily takes the widest of shots, perfect for capturing landscapes. The zoom does not extend out of the Caplio 500SE’s sealed housing so it remains protected from any dust or dirt. This also reduces the risk of accidental damage to the lens when fully extended. For even wider shots, an optional wide conversion lens increases the focal range to 22mm.

Reliable photography is guaranteed with both a high resolution 2.5 inch LCD monitor and optical viewfinder. The Caplio 500SE is designed to capture all the high-speed action of outdoor pursuits, as it focuses and shoots in a fast 0.10 seconds. With a 1.2 second startup time, it’s quickly ready to snap even the most fleeting of thrill-seeking moments.

The included lithium–ion battery, capable of shooting 400 continuous shots (CIPA standard). It is also compatible with conventional or rechargeable AA batteries and an AC adapter.

The Caplio 500SE also offers 1cm macro mode, skew correction mode to straighten images shot from off centre positions, PictBridge for the printing of pictures directly from the camera via a USB connector to the printer.

The Ricoh Caplio 500SE is available from October 2006 for $1,399 inc GST RRP. Contact: 1300 363 741 for stockists or visit www.ricoh.com.au