FoneCam 1.0, the first remote digital camera with its own integrated modem

San Diego, Calif., September 28, 1998 - Moonlight Products, Inc. has announced immediate availability of FoneCam 1.0, the first remote digital camera with its own integrated modem, that can be easily installed and accessed anywhere a standard phone line is available. FoneCam is a sophisticated, yet simple device that opens the door for a wide range of remote image-capture applications - from checking on highway traffic before heading home from work, monitoring a house or business while away, checking on a loved one from another location, viewing lines at popular nightclubs, or seeing the latest conditions at your favorite beach or ski area.

Since FoneCam's "untethered" operation eliminates the costly requirements for a remote PC or complex network connection, it can be cost-effectively used in many different commercial and business applications such as remote diagnostics, security monitoring, quality assurance inspections, or productivity monitoring. Leveraging FoneCam's inherent portability, sales organizations and service centers can also implement mobile remote imaging to support field staff, solve problems and increase responsiveness while reducing follow-up travel expenses. Trade show images can be immediately displayed to remotely monitor booth traffic at a company's trade show while in the office.

Another significant area in which FoneCam will have a dramatic impact is the expansion of Internet image acquisition well beyond the limitations of current Web cam technologies. Because FoneCam requires nothing more than a standard telephone connection to set-up remote image capture, it offers new opportunities for portable and low-cost remote image capture that a network-centric Web camera or tethered camera cannot match. For example, several FoneCams could be easily deployed and continuously re-located to monitor a dynamically changing event such as a marathon race, whereas a typical network-tethered Web cam would likely have to be constrained to a single static location.

"FoneCam gives computer users and business owners access to a cost-justified and simple digital camera that just makes sense, without any unnecessary technological overkill," said Dave Knight, president of Moonlight Products. "FoneCam will also revolutionize the Internet by making live digital imagery easy to obtain from remote places. Anywhere you have dial tone you can get live pictures, which will give a tremendous boost to dynamically changing Web sites."

Unlike conventional and tethered digital cameras, FoneCam does not need to be connected directly to a dedicated PC at the remote site. The lightweight and compact self-contained unit, including the digital camera and built-in modem, can be installed anywhere a standard telephone line exists. It can be easily accessed by modem from any PC running FoneCam's software; no additional components, network connections or Internet service fees are required. The camera contains a 3.6mm lens with a field of view similar to a 35mm camera lens, at 52 degrees horizontal, 37 degrees vertical and 68 degrees diagonal. Images are captured at a resolution of Texas Instruments 320 x 240 pixels and are transmitted from an internal 14.4Kbps Rockwell modem. FoneCam retrieves pictures manually or can be scheduled to transmit automatically without user intervention. In addition, it can display images individually or in an animated sequence.

The FoneCam software is capable of saving images in common image file formats such as tiff, bitmap, GIF (as .png) & JPEG, plus users can automatically save images to designated paths for easy uploading to a Web page. The viewing software also enables a user to adjust the image's color, hue, exposure settings, etc. Each image downloads to the software log file appended with all relevant information, such as camera name, date, time, camera phone number, file name, size, etc. FoneCam ships with a bonus bundle of applications, control software and free FoneCam client software to anyone wanting access to friends cameras or any cameras in a growing network of public cameras.

Additional Features of Moonlight Products' FoneCam:

• Secure access feature offers ability to create password    access to
  remote cameras.
• Additional "image collection functions" such as time lapse    animation
  function, automatic image collection, and Web   image collection.
• Incorporates a Remote Event Trigger (RET) function that    automatically
  downloads an image when a specified event,   such as a security device is
  triggered.
• Less expensive "ExtensionCam" cameras can be connected to    the FoneCam
  utilizing its modem to provide multiple shots   at one remote location.
• Includes a "Bonus Bundle" of companion software to make    interesting and
  efficient use of FoneCam imagery:
    - Paint Shop Pro - image editing and manipulating software
    - FileDog FTP - Easy-to-use FTP utility for uploading images   to web pages
    - Screensaverz - transforms FoneCam images into screensavers and wallpaper

Pricing and Availability
Moonlight's FoneCam suggested list price is $399 and ExtensionCams suggested list price is $299. FoneCam software is compatible with Windows, Windows 95 & 98/NT, and Apple/Macintosh systems running a Windows emulation such as SoftWindows.

Moonlight Products was founded in 1992 by executives from a successful San Diego printer peripherals start-up. The Company used its sales and marketing expertise to become a leading provider of specialty optical products to the retail market. Moonlight distributes its product line worldwide. The main office is located in San Diego. European operations are located near London and Cologne. For more information about FoneCam, please visit http://www.fonecam.com .

FoneCam is a registered trademark of Moonlight Products.