Eye-Fi in Beta, Gets Money

Did you forget all about Eye-Fi? We almost did. The company announced plans last year to put out memory card slot Wi-Fi adapters for digital cameras that would instantly connect just about any camera to a wireless network. The goal is to enhance picture sharing — Eye-Fi claims 80% of digital pictures taken don’t get shared at all. (Which might not be a bad thing, but that’s not the point.)

It’s been very quiet since late 2006, but today the Mountain View, California-based company announced it has secured its first round of venture capital funding, to the tune of $5.5 million.

The company was founded almost two years ago, but won’t have its first product — previously mentioned as Eye-Film — out until later this year. Its Web site has a log-on for “Eye-Fi Beta Users,” indicating that the hardware will be coupled with an online service — perhaps its own version of Flickr? Time will tell.