Kodak stopped making film cameras, & I can see why!
Written: Sep 13 '04 (Updated Oct 19 '04)
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Pros: Great 10X OPTICAL zoom, with 5 Megapixel resolution, made easy!
Cons: The way the camera is designed, when you hold it, your finger blocks the auto-focus!
The Bottom Line: This is a great camera with a good optical zoom and great resolution. You can over ride the auto setting and go with your own if you so desire.
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| DennisM's Full Review: Kodak EasyShare DX7590 Digital Camera |
I feel like digital cameras have become akin to my cell phone. It seems every year or two, I am looking for a new, up to date model. Well this time, I had an older Kodak 2800, which is 2 Megapixels, and cost me $625 at Buy.com a few years ago! Wow, have cameras and pricing progressed, like the digital calculators! Remember the old Bowmar's at $179 each?
Well, I was always happy with the camera, and thought, why not try another Kodak. My choices were this Kodak camera, or the Panasonic DMC-FZ20S. I like both cameras because they have great zoom lenses. The Panasonic is 12X zoom and the Kodak is 10X zoom. What this translates to in mm, is the Kodak is a 38-380mm camera, and the Panasonic is a36-432mm camera. Both are fairly close. Don't be fooled by camera talk that reads 12X or 25X zoom lens! Always read closely, because some manufacturers add the digital, or electronic zoom to the actual zoom lens, increasing the number. You may think you are getting a great zoom, but always look for OPTICAL ZOOM, not total zoom, or zoom lens alone. A digital zoom works electronically, and adds noise and distortion to the picture, while an optical zoom is strictly through the lens system itself. It all winds up on an electronic chip anyway, but a good optical zoom is worth its weight in gold, so to speak!
The Kodak has a 5 Megapixel image resolution, which should be more than adequate for any picture blown up to about 8x10 at least, and possibly more, depending on the grain and the shot itself. For most people, this is quite adequate. I blow up pictures to 8x10 on my 2 Megapixel camera and it looks decent, so imagine a 5 Megapixel resolution! A lot sharper and cleaner! There is a race on to see who gets the highest Megapixels at the lowest price. At one point, I think it will become overkill! Do you really need a 12 Megapixel camera to take pictures of your son or daughter's soccer game?
The LCD color display on the back of the camera can be used as either the main viewfinder, or you can press a button to use the built in viewfinder in the camera itself! It is about 2" in size, and is what Kodak calls a high-resolution LCD screen.
I must stop here and mention something that may or may not be important! When I opened the DX7590, and powered it up, (more about that in a second), the viewfinder in the camera would not come on. I could only use the LCD screen in back of the camera. It would not switch from one to the other. Also, the viewfinder through the LCD screen on the back, was very, very grainy, too light and the chroma, (color) looked like it was turned all the way up, like on a TV set that has too much color. Everyone's faces were red and distorted. I called Kodak on this, and they said I should be having neither problem. They exchanged the camera for me with a new one, and I am running that through its paces now! I will add a new piece to this review as soon as I have given the new camera a full workout! I will report on the replacement camera, either good or bad, as soon as I find it out myself!
Now on to the camera dock. It is simply a base that the camera sits on, like the docking base for the new Apple IPods! It charges the camera while it is sitting on it, and by pressing a button on the dock, will feed pictures from the camera into your PC or MAC! No removing the SD/MMC memory card or placing it in a card reader. This is a nice feature and seems to work very well on my G4 MAC ! That is great for me, as many camera companies ignore the Apple/MAC segment of the population, and only give you Windows software, or a pathetic attempt at MAC software without any features. In this case, it is easy works great, and goes right into my IPhoto file with no problems at all!
http://www.kodak.com/eknec/PageQuerier.jhtml?pq-path=2797&pq-locale=en_US
For very detailed information and full support on the camera, this is the Kodak web site to go to. It is pretty comprehensive and covers just about anything you want to know about the camera.
There are many more features on this camera such as red-eye flash, portrait mode, scene mode, the ability to record audio and video, high speed burst mode shooting etc. If you want to learn about more of these features, check out the web site as well.
I must admit though that one thing the Panasonic camera has that the Kodak does not, is a image stabilizer. If your hands shake when you take a picture, or you move slightly, the electronics in the camera will compensate for this, as a gyroscope does. Is this feature needed in the Kodak? As of now, I am not sure, but be assured that as I put it though its paces, and find blurry pictures, or a problem with handheld movement, I will let you know immediately. After all, that is why we do this, to disseminate the truth about these products and to make an intelligent purchasing decision! I will be back soon with an updated review and some more facts. Until then, suffice it to say that this camera takes great pictures, and thus far, am very happy with it!
UPDATE----------UPDATE----------UPDATE----------UPDATE-------
Well, it is now mid October and the leaves are starting to fall. Finally had a moment to run the replacement camera through its paces! Well, on the color screen with too much chroma issue, this camera does the same thing. When you are indoors and there is not a great deal of light, the viewfinder looks like the color is all the way up on your TV, grainy, and noisy. As far as the button that would not switch from viewfinder to LCD screen, this is no longer an issue. The "switch viewfinder" button on this camera works just like it should. This teaches us all a lesson. When you have new piece of equipment, run it though its paces before the warranty runs out, or the store refuses to take it back!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 479
This Camera is a Good Choice if You Want Something... Flexible Enough for Enthusiasts
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Epinions.com ID:
DennisM
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Member: Dennis Meyers
Location: Wayne, NJ
Reviews written: 91
Trusted by: 15 members
About Me:
Began my career in broadcasting, retired from that after 38 years!
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