2005 marks the 30th anniversary of the one of the hottest consumer electronic products in the world today – the digital camera. In 1975, the world’s first digital photograph was taken at a Kodak lab in Rochester, NY, USA, in an event that preceded the Compact Disc, the Personal Computer and the Internet. Thirty years later Kodak is launching the world’s first Wi-Fi consumer digital camera into a world where digital images are ubiquitous from satellite imagery to the camera phone.

In 1974 Steven Sasson, an engineer at Kodak’s Applied Electronics Research Centre, was tasked with devising an “electronic handheld still camera”. The following year his first working prototype – weighing 8.5 pounds, powered by 16 AA batteries and recording images on a cassette – took the first ever digital still camera photograph.

“When I took the first digital image in 1975, I had no idea of the impact it would have on the world of photography,” enthuses Sasson, who still works for Kodak today. “Kodak’s flair for fostering innovation allowed us to continue developing our vision of digital imaging, which has come to fruition through the advent of the PC and the Internet. Kodak has continued to push the limits of the technology, ensuring that we stay at the cutting edge of photographic innovation.”

Sasson predicted the digital revolution more than 15 years ahead of time. He knew that digital imaging would be huge, but not until technology in the computer environment had caught up. Now that has happened, digital imaging has revolutionised photography. Digital cameras’ instant results have generated mass consumer appeal to the degree that digital images are now used in everyday communications at home and at work. In 2004, the 74 million digital cameras sold worldwide outstripped film camera sales for the first time. Forty billion digital snapshots will be taken in 2005.

Kodak has remained at the forefront of digital imaging for the past three decades and holds over 1,000 patents in the technology and many industry firsts. The latest is the EasyShare-one digital camera, the first of a new generation of wireless digital cameras that move the experience from “point-and-snap” to “snap-and-share”. Kodak’s latest functionality includes email and online picture sharing without a computer, wireless picture printing and on the spot sharing of up to 1,500 pictures. Such innovations provide users with options that will change the way we use digital photography forever.

EasyShare-one has won accolades from industry organisations and consumer electronics writers around the world for its groundbreaking design and functionality, making it one of the most talked about digital photography products in years.
EasyShare-one
Sasson’s achievements in digital technology paving the way for the development of EasyShare-one come at the pinnacle of over 100 years of Kodak innovation in imaging and technology that has established the Kodak brand as a trusted symbol for quality in every major market across the globe. The legacy of the digital camera is effortless photography that makes sharing experiences even more a central part of everyday life.

Note: Kodak’s 125th anniversary year is also a year of digital milestones. In addition to the 30th anniversary of the world’s first digital camera prototype and announcement of the world’s first wireless camera, the company is also celebrating its 15th year in digital document scanners, and the 10th anniversary of the first Kodak-branded consumer digital camera.

Visit the Kodak website