<s>
The	O
Minolta	B-Device
Dimâge	I-Device
EX	I-Device
(	O
also	O
sold	O
as	O
EX	O
1500	O
)	O
is	O
a	O
digital	B-Device
camera	I-Device
,	O
first	O
marketed	O
in	O
1998	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Similar	O
to	O
the	O
earlier	O
Minolta	O
Dimâge	O
V	O
of	O
1996	O
,	O
the	O
Dimâge	B-Device
EX	I-Device
line	O
was	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
first	O
consumer	O
point-and-shoot	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
released	O
in	O
the	O
American	O
market	O
and	O
featured	O
an	O
unusual	O
interchangeable	O
lens	O
system	O
not	O
normally	O
found	O
in	O
point-and-shoot	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Dimâge	B-Device
EX	I-Device
line	O
was	O
originally	O
intended	O
to	O
be	O
"	O
obsolescence-proof	O
,	O
"	O
in	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
designed	O
with	O
internal	O
software	O
that	O
would	O
be	O
upgradable	O
through	O
downloads	B-Application
or	O
patches	O
based	O
on	O
FlashPoint	O
Technology	O
's	O
Digita	B-Operating_System
camera	O
operating	O
system	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
its	O
lens	O
interface	O
would	O
support	O
future	O
lens	O
configurations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
this	O
concept	O
was	O
abandoned	O
as	O
Minolta	O
continued	O
on	O
redesigning	O
the	O
Dimage	O
line	O
,	O
eventually	O
merging	O
more	O
SLR-style	O
features	O
into	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Dimâge	B-Device
EX	I-Device
features	O
a	O
maximum	O
resolution	O
of	O
1344×1008	O
pixels	O
and	O
stores	O
files	O
in	O
JPEG	O
format	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Though	O
the	O
term	O
"	O
megapixel	O
"	O
was	O
not	O
widely	O
used	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
of	O
its	O
manufacture	O
,	O
it	O
operates	O
at	O
1.5	O
megapixels	O
,	O
a	O
large	O
file-size	O
for	O
non-SLR	O
digital	B-Device
cameras	I-Device
of	O
its	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
utilizes	O
Compact	B-Device
Flash	I-Device
cards	O
and	O
initially	O
shipped	O
with	O
a	O
single	O
8	O
MB	O
card	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Dimâge	B-Device
EX	I-Device
's	O
interchangeable	O
lens	O
assemblies	O
set	O
it	O
apart	O
from	O
most	O
point-and-shoot	B-Algorithm
cameras	I-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
initially	O
shipped	O
with	O
a	O
3×	O
zoom	O
lens	O
(	O
the	O
equivalent	O
of	O
38-115mm	O
focal	O
length	O
)	O
,	O
named	O
Dimâge	B-Device
EX	I-Device
1500	I-Device
Zoom	I-Device
,	O
but	O
Minolta	O
also	O
introduced	O
a	O
wide	O
angle	O
lens	O
as	O
Dimâge	B-Device
EX	I-Device
1500	I-Device
Wide	I-Device
that	O
could	O
replace	O
the	O
standard	O
lens	O
unit	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1999	O
,	O
Minolta	O
also	O
marketed	O
the	O
Dimâge	B-Device
3D	I-Device
1500	I-Device
,	O
incorporating	O
MetaCreations	O
 '	O
MetaFlash	O
technology	O
in	O
a	O
special	O
flash	O
accessory	O
module	O
to	O
be	O
mounted	O
between	O
the	O
camera	O
base	O
and	O
its	O
lens	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
achieve	O
stereoscopic	O
photographs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
port	O
for	O
the	O
removable	O
lens	O
units	O
also	O
doubles	O
as	O
a	O
port	O
for	O
a	O
serial	O
cable	O
connection	O
to	O
a	O
computer	O
for	O
direct	O
downloading	B-Application
of	O
photographs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
downloading	B-Application
process	O
is	O
handled	O
via	O
a	O
packaged	O
software	O
interface	O
called	O
'	O
Digita	B-Operating_System
Desktop	O
 '	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Dimâge	B-Device
EX	I-Device
uses	O
four	O
standard	O
AA	B-Algorithm
batteries	I-Algorithm
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
the	O
many	O
features	O
of	O
the	O
Dimage	O
causes	O
relatively	O
fast	O
draining	O
of	O
batteries	O
,	O
compared	O
to	O
other	O
digital	B-Device
cameras	I-Device
of	O
its	O
time	O
.	O
</s>
