Toshiba is racing to the front of the pack with the new PDR-M11, a 1.3 megapixel digital camera ideal for entrylevel home, education or business users looking for quality digital photography at an affordable price.

Designed for fun, go anywhere shooting, the pocket-sized PDR-M11 captures images awash with vibrant color and detail at resolutions as high as 1280 x 960. The supplied 8MB SmartMedia#153; removable memory card can hold up to 97 images, providing hours of photographic enjoyment.

Incorporating the advanced imaging technology found in more expensive digital cameras - such as an all-glass lens with 2X digital zoom, a 1.8-inch LCD color monitor, and a built-in four-mode flash system - the PDR-M11 remains remarkably easy to use with its intuitive mode dial functionality and on-screen prompts. Adding to the camera's appeal is its high-speed USB-cable connectivity for "hot-swapping" and plugging directly into a PC for super-fast downloading without having to reboot.

The extra care in the design of the camera's 6-element auto focus lens (F3.0/F8.0) assures professional-level results, and enables users to print color photos up to 5 inches x 7 inches with sharper details and crisp edges. The Toshiba lens is the equivalent of a 39.18mm on a 35mm camera, making it perfect for a wide range of picture-taking situations, from portraits to landscapes.

In addition to an impressive array of automatic functions, the PDR-M11 has adjustable shutter speeds and user-selectable aperture settings. Its manual mode also allows for changes in white balance, exposure, flash brightness, and for continuous shooting of up to four shots in less than five seconds.

The camera records JPEG images at three compression levels - fine, normal and basic. Depending on the image compression selected, it can record 10, 23, or up to 49 pictures at the 1280 x 960 resolution, or 98, 202, or 408 at the 640 x 480 resolution on an 8MB SmartMedia card. In addition, there is an uncompressed TIFF mode that fits 1 shot on the 8MB card at the 1280 x 960 setting.

Sleek and compact, the PDR-M11 weighs a mere 7.8 ounces, and sports dimensions of 4.5(W) x 2.7(H) x 2.0(D) inches.