August 31, 2000

FMD-250W Face-Mounted Display Eye-Trek Series

Wide-screen capability Ultra-compact 38g control unit Direct portable DVD player connectivity

Eye-Trek FMD-250W + PDV-20

* This news release is only for Japanese market.

Summary

Olympus Optical Co., Ltd. (President: Masatoshi Kishimoto) is pleased to announce the latest model in the face-mounted display (FMD) Eye-Trek series, the FMD-250W. It features 62-inch television wide-screen capability and a lightweight, ultra-compact control unit that provides greater portability. Jointly developed with Pioneer Corporation (President: Kaneo Ito) ("Pioneer" below), the FMD-250W also boasts direct connectivity with Pioneer's portable DVD player. The FMD-250W will go on sale on November 18.

Maximum Realism at a Minimum Size and Weight

The Eye-Trek FMD-250W is the successor to the FMD-150W, which is currently the only wide-screen-capable FMD/HMD (head-mounted display) in the market. The FMD-250W enables maximum enjoyment of the sense of realism that can only be provided by this FMD equivalent to a 62-inch wide-screen television with a 16:9 aspect ratio. It also uses SRS (Sound Retrieval System) HEADPHONE technology*1 that produces three-dimensional sound, from the U.S. company, SRS Labs, Inc. The unit also features a variety of adjustment functions, including high and low frequency adjustment, allowing the enhanced sense of realism to be enjoyed in both vision and sound. Moreover, the reduction in weight of the display unit section to 95g (86% of the FMD-150W) shows the unit's focus on functionality and design, with a lightweight, 38g control unit (21% of the FMD-150W) compact enough to fit in your hand. While featuring SRS HEADPHONE technology and making the FMD-250W lighter and more compact, Olympus has achieved a reasonable price compared to conventional models.

Direct Connectivity with Pioneer Portable DVD Player

Olympus will simultaneously release the ET-MC02P, a dedicated direct-connection cable for Pioneer's portable DVD player, PDV-20, as an optional accessory for the Eye-Trek FMD-250W. The PDV-20 is the world's most compact portable DVD player*2, and it will be launched by Pioneer in late September. For this time, Olympus and Pioneer stepped in a product-planning partnership which began with the joint development of the connection kit that went on sale in May last year. The portable DVD player is equipped with a dedicated DC-out connector for Eye-Trek and can output power and transmit video and audio signals to Eye-Trek using the ET-MC02P direct-connection cable. Thus, this cable enables FMD-250W to connect directly without an AC-adapter power supply. Eye-Trek can be connected and used in the same way even when running the DVD player on batteries, so it allows easy, large-screen enjoyment, even in transition such as on a train. Olympus will also release the ET-CK20P. This is a PDV-20 dedicated direct-connection adapter accessory that will enable direct connection of Eye-Trek products other than the FMD-250W to the portable DVD player. Using these adapters, it will be possible to connect all models in the Eye-Trek series to the PDV-20 portable DVD player simply and smoothly. In today's ever-expanding DVD market, a high percentage of Eye-Trek users own a portable DVD player, and there have been calls for direct Eye-Trek connectivity. With the direct connectivity using the connection adapters, Olympus has achieved mobile theater that allows handy home theater anywhere. Video can now be enjoyed naturally in the mobile environment, and also in rooms at home which have no television. Olympus and Pioneer are aiming for further expansion of the mobile theater market.

*1	SRS HEADPHONE technology achieves extremely natural three-dimensional sound by faithfully reproducing the stereo component of the original sound (direct sound) in its natural state while reproducing indirect sound (environmental sound) with a correction transfer function that appears audible from beside the ears.
*2	According to Pioneer Corporation as of August 31, 2000.

Eye-Trek FMD-250W

Main Features

Wide Screen Equivalent to a 62-inch TV The FMD-250W produces the effect of a wide screen equivalent to a 62-inch television viewed from two meters simply by wearing a device similar to a pair of sunglasses. The wide screen with a 16:9 aspect ratio can be enjoyed using either of two modes, normal or wide display. Improved Portability with Reduced Weight and Size The display unit section has been made compact and lightweight at 95g (86% of the FMD-150W) by a reduction in the number of components due to a new circuit design. Focusing on functionality and design, it also features an ultra-compact, lightweight control unit of 38g (21% of the FMD-150W) that fits in your hand. Ultra-realism with Intense, High-quality Sound 1) Use of SRS (Sound Retrieval System) HEADPHONE technology: The adoption of SRS HEADPHONE technology from U.S. company, SRS Labs, Inc., enables ultra-realistic three-dimensional sound to be enjoyed with built-in stereo earphones. 2) Low and high frequency adjustment function: Allows realism by producing a more powerful sound with the stress on the low frequency range or a sharper sound with the stress on the high frequency range. Optical Technology - produces sharp bright -images all the way to the corners of the screen 1) High accuracy free-shaped prism: A special prism developed by Olympus that achieves clear images with few distortions as well as being small and light by using "asymmetric optics " and "free curve optics ", two cutting edge optical technologies. 2) High performance optical filter: A filter produces an even smoother image and makes the pixels invisible.

Main Features of Optional Accessories

Eye-Trek FMD-250W optional accessory: ET-MC02P   Pioneer portable DVD player PDV-20 dedicated direct-connection cable The portable DVD player comes equipped with a dedicated DC-out connector (a connector for supplying power) for connection with Eye-Trek, and using the ET-MC02P direct connection cable enables power output and transmission of video and audio signals to Eye-Trek. As a result, the FMD-250W Eye-Trek does not require an AC adapter and can be directly connected simply and smoothly. ET-MC02P Eye-Trek series optional accessory: ET-CK20P   Pioneer portable DVD player PDV-20 dedicated direct connection adapter With a power supply through the Eye-Trek dedicated connector from the portable DVD player, the Eye-Trek series other than the FMD-250W do not require an AC adapter and can be directly connected simply and smoothly. ET-CK02P

Warnings

(1) Please read the user's instruction. (2) Not for use by children under 16. (3) Consult a physician before use if you have a heart disorder, high blood pressure, visual field impairment, or an eye movement or alignment disorder.

Specifications

FMD-250W

Key functions Viewing angle 37.5 degrees horizontal, 21.7 degrees vertical. Equivalent to a standard 62-inch screen at a distance of 2m No. of pixels 0.7-inch TFT liquid crystal delta array of 240,000 pixels x 2 Video signal format AV video signal (NTSC Japanese and U.S. standard formats) Built-in stereo earphones Image adjustment functions Contrast, Brightness, Color Balance, Color Depth Audio adjustment functions SRS HEADPHONE, Low/High Frequency Adjustment Weight: Display unit: Approx. 95g (excluding cable) Control unit: Approx. 38 g (excluding battery) Dimensions: Display unit: Approx. 161 (W) x 63.5(H) x 50 (D) mm (excluding cable, with frames folded) Control unit: Approx. 39 (W) x 19.5 (H) x 100 (D) mm excluding cable and protrusions) Input terminals: Video/audio/power input terminal dedicated multi-connector Composite video signal: 1Vp-p/75 Ohm (unbalanced) Separate Y video signal: 0.75Vp-p/75 Ohm (unbalanced) Separate C video signal: 300mVp-p/75 Ohm (unbalanced) Stereo audio signal: 200mVrms Power: Standard DC7.5V