Epson PhotoPC 550 (1997)

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The Epson PhotoPC 550 was the third Epson digital camera and actually the first Epson to feature an external memory slot for SmartMedia cards. It was showcased at Comdex Fall 1997. This is the most peculiar of all Epson digital cameras because it simply didn't fit anywhere in the PhotoPC series, was marketed in the US only and featured a built-in microphone!

The on-board microphone allowed to record a 6 seconds message for every picture. It was basically a simple point-and-shoot digital camera with SmartMedia card slot but no display though. Macro mode, three compression levels, 1MB of internal memory (just enough for 12 pictures), status LCD and lens cover. This Epson model is pretty rare and really hard to find. I assume not to many of them were sold because other Epson models frequently surface every now then but not this one. For the first Epson to sport an external memory slot I would have expected a worldwide sale.