My Ticking Time Bomb: The Kodak Easy Share CX4230 Zoom Digital Camera
Written: Nov 05 '02 (Updated Nov 05 '02)
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Pros: Delicately balanced color photos, simplified picture snapping, one-touch picture downloading, handsome camera body.
Cons: Camera glitches *galore*, dummied-down controls, staggeringly brief battery life, fragile-seeming camera body.
The Bottom Line: The Kodak Easy Share CX4230 Zoom Digital Camera is a brilliant digital camera for technophobes. However, the camera is HIGHLY UNPREDICTABLE when removed from its accessorized Docking Station.
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| chipperx's Full Review: Kodak EasyShare CX4230 Digital Camera |
INTRODUCTION
I first purchased a Sony Digital Mavica digital camera in 1998. I love this camera and use it often, but since its highest picture resolution is 640x480, I am a bit at a loss when it comes to multi-person, special event photography like weddings, bar mitzvahs, and birthdays. I decided it was time to upgrade. I shopped around at my local Best Buy for an inexpensive but technically superb Megapixel digital camera.
MY PURCHASE
The Kodak Easy Share CX4230 Zoom Digital Camera is a 2.1 Megapixel camera which features a 3X optical zoom with a 2X digital zoom (6X zoom total), an onboard flash, a 1.6" LCD (liquid crystal display) picture viewscreen, an optical viewfinder, a self-timer and 16 megabytes of internal memory. In addition to its onboard memory, the Kodak accepts postage-stamp sized multi-media cards for image capture and storage. It also has a standard tripod receptacle, a red-eye reduction feature, and a spring-loaded, mechanical lens cover. The Kodak uses a battery pack which consists of 2 Nickel Metal Hydride AA batteries, and will accept 2 AA Lithium batteries.
A CD of Kodak software is provided to assist in picture downloading, development, and storage. The provided USB cable connects to either the camera or the Docking Station for quick and easy "one touch" picture retrieval. There is also an included video cable which connects your Kodak to a television or other video input source for viewing your pictures.
The Kodak Easy Share CX4230 Zoom Digital Camera does not make video MPEGs or movies.
WHAT I LIKED....
1.) Price: The camera was on sale at Best Buy for $249.99; I was lucky enough to snag a non-defective "open item" for $199.99.
2.) Modular: The Kodak's sleekly styled, matching silver Docking Station is sold separately for $89.99, which means it can be purchased at a later date or not at all. *BITTER TASTE*: The Docking Station comes with a rechargeable battery, while the camera itself comes with a one-time-use disposable battery.
3.) Portraiture: The camera and flash softly focus in on human features without washing the person out or making the face appear harshly lighted. Digital cosmetics, anyone?
4) Style: The Kodak's plastic body is painted an attractive metallic silver, and its subtle curves match the styling of its Docking Station. The two units flatter one another shamelessly. In the OFF position, the camera's lens retracts *whiiiiiiir* into the body, and a shiny metal door *tchschlick* shuts to protect it.
5) Memory: Wonder of wonders, this camera features 16 megabytes of INTERNAL memory. This is a nice feature because the industry standard is removable memory media ONLY, with little or no onboard augmentation.
EVERYTHING ELSE
Although I've been assured by store personnel that my BITTERsweet (bitingly bitter, slightly sweet) experience with the Kodak Easy Share digital camera is not typical, I cannot recommend the camera to you. Here are a few reasons why:
THE NATIVE BATTERY PACK
The one-time-use disposable battery pack (two AA batteries bundled together) that Kodak provided with my camera lasted longer than the fully-charged rechargeable battery pack that is provided with the Easy Share Docking Station. I'm not kidding. The disposable battery pack was still working when I returned the camera to Best Buy, while the rechargeable battery pack would quickly deplete itself. Sometimes the rechargeable battery only worked for 5 minutes, and other times it worked for approximately 30 minutes. Unfortunately, the charge fades quickly when transporting the camera, whether or not it is used to take photographs.
Both disposable and rechargeable battery packs were *DIFFICULT* to insert into the camera. Positive and negative positions were clearly marked in the camera bay, but both battery packs resisted being fully inserted into the camera.
HEY, WHERE ARE MY PICTURES...?
I was pleased to see that the 16 megs of onboard memory saved my digital images perfectly for subsequent download. When it functioned correctly, downloads from the camera to the computer were quick and painless. I next tested the Kodak by inserting a SanDisk Secure Digital Media Card into the appropriate slot and saving some pictures to it. While I was able to clearly see the pictures on the Kodak's 1.6" LCD screen during "playback" mode, the pictures saved to the SanDisk media card would NOT download to my computer. Instead, I got the dreaded "file type unknown" prompt. I was never able to successfully save a picture to a removable digital media card in the Kodak.
The Easy Share camera menu allows one to toggle between a default save to the onboard memory, a default save to the removable media card, or the "automatic" setting which allows the camera to choose the best way to save pictures. The factory setting saves to the onboard memory by default. When the removable media didn't work, I switched back to the onboard memory -- or so I thought: The Kodak tried to save to the removable media several times of its own accord. Finally, I removed the SanDisk digital media card, and that solved the problem.
SIMPLE SIMON
The Kodak does not provide many options for customization of your pictures. The menu is short and sweet with an emphasis on the KISS (keep it simple, stupid) rule. Some people enjoy their options being taken from them, while others do not. In case you like it *REAL* simple, the Kodak boasts a specific button which marks photographs you would like to email to others.
ERGONOMICS
The Kodak’s on/off switch is a tiny, plastic, chrome silver slide button that is positioned just below the camera’s lens. To turn the camera on or off, you slide the switch to the left or right instead of simply depressing it. The on position on the slide on/off button has a slight detent or catch when pushed away from its rest position. The on/off switch fails the “people test” because you’re almost guaranteed to brush against the lens as you turn the unit off. Also, it’s a small button, and if you have sweaty fingers, fumble fingers, or are wearing gloves, the button may prove to be a challenge.
As with many compact digital cameras, the Kodak’s lens extends from its body when you switch it on. This may be “nit-picking,” but I do not think an extending lens is best, because the motors and gears which extend the lens can become easily damaged if there is any resistance, such as a hand being in the way.
I didn’t like the fact that the camera will not take a picture while resting in the Docking Station. Since the Docking Station is so expensive, I expected it to bring more functionality to the Kodak. If you take a few pictures around the house for approximately ten minutes on a fully charged battery, the Docking Station will indicate that you’ve used a full two-thirds of the battery power when you put the Kodak back on its charger.
The Kodak will only charge the batteries within the camera; there is no way to charge an extra set of Kodak batteries with this charging system. You’ll simply have to purchase a separate charger or extra alkaline batteries (which Kodak does NOT recommend using).
SOFTWARE
The included software is a bit bloated in size with extra features that I felt I didn’t need. My true problem was that there was no way to manually activate the transfer feature within the software; you must use the transfer button on the Docking Station. This becomes problematic if your pictures don’t seem to be downloading correctly – which happened to me twice.
MY ABBREVIATED TALE OF WOE
After three days of ownership and experimentation, I returned the Kodak Easy Share to Best Buy and exchanged it for a Sony Cyber-Shot DSC P51. I returned the Kodak for the following reasons:
1.) The Docking Station: Sometimes the one-touch picture downloading feature worked, and sometimes it didn’t. The last set of pictures I shot would not download to my computer, no matter how I tried.
2.) The Software: The software was infinitely more complicated than the camera and a bit more confusing to operate. Due to a mysterious photo album feature, deleted pictures would consistently re-appear when I attempted to download new pictures.
3.) The Battery Pack: I did not feel that I could safely take the camera away from its Docking Station for more than an hour; the Kodak would abruptly cut off without warning once its power source was depleted. As an aside, I felt as though I was breaking the camera when I tried to insert the battery pack.
CONCLUSION
After a few days of dealing with the Kodak Easy Share CX4230, it rather resembled a ticking time bomb of inept performance. If my experience with the Kodak was not typical, and if my unit was merely defective, then the camera is best suited to those who have $250.00 to spend and are not interested in manipulating settings and experimenting with exposure times. When the camera worked properly, I was pleased with it. However, its many shortcomings eclipsed its otherwise acceptable performance.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 199.99
This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Easy Enough for Anyone to Use
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Epinions.com ID:
chipperx
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Location: New York, USA
Reviews written: 7
Trusted by: 6 members
About Me:
I'm an honest person who loves to talk about my experiences with gadgets.
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