Sony is to introduce two new dye-sublimation printers in April that use the same Bionz processing engine as the company?s Alpha 100 digital SLR camera.
The DPP-FP90 (pictured) and DPP-FP70 will both be able to produce a 6x4in print in just 45 seconds, according to Sony, and will be capable of handling ?48 million pixel images?.
Sony claims the Bionz engine allows very large image files to be processed quickly, and for the printers to apply automatic image corrections to files before they are printed.
A Dynamic Range Optimiser – similar to that seen in the Alpha 100 – aims to correct underexposed images and backlit subjects, while Auto Fine Print 4 is said to deal with ?automatic white balance corrections, as well as optimising overall brightness, hue, contrast, gradation and sharpness?for natural looking textures and colours?.
These printers also interpret data embedded in images shot on Cyber-shot and Alpha products to help them understand the conditions in which each image was taken.
Sony also claims these printers ?can even correct intelligently for incorrect focus?, while face detection technology identifies people in pictures and ensures print brightness is tailored accordingly.
The DPP-FP90 and DPP-FP70 are PictBridge compatible and both have slots for a wide range of memory cards, including Memory Stick, CompactFlash and SD.
Both are also able to print directly from USB flash memory devices and external hard drives, as well as via a Bluetooth adapter for mobile phone printing.
The DPP-FP90 has a 3.6in tilting LCD screen and the DPP-FP70 has a fixed angle 2.5in monitor both of which can be used for selecting, cropping and rotating images, as well as adding effects such as sepia, b&w and colour filters.
The DPP-FP90 is set to be priced at £150 ($200) and the DPP-FP70 £120 ($150). They are due to be available in the UK from April.
For more details visit www.sony.co.uk
