Kodak EasyShare DX7590 5MP Digital Camera with 10X Optical Zoom & Kodak EasyShare Dock 6000 Bundle

Rating:
Summary: Useless camera!
Review: Before I tell you about the problem I had with this camera, let me explain something about myself (this is important because if I was reading the review I'm about to write without knowing about the author, I'd think the author must be some kind of a nut case; this camera has been reviewed so positively that I can't believe what I'm about to tell you myself).

First, before getting involved in digital photography, I was a successful amateur photographer with an old Pentax manual SLR camera. I understand what terms like shutter-priority and aperture-priority mean. Also, after the old Pentax, I've been successfully using an Olympus C-3030 digital camera for 4 years now. This is the camera I'm trying to replace because I want a more powerful zoom. So I do have experience with digital cameras. And finally, I work in a technical field, so I'm good with computers and other technical products. OK, enough about myself. Let's discuss the camera.

I can't believe how unreliably the DX7590 achieves proper focus! The camera gives me the green bracket indicator letting me know that it thinks it has focused on the subject, but at least 50% of the time, it's wrong! Sometimes it's so far out of focus that I can see it on the display before I take the picture. Sometimes it looks in focus on the display so I'll take the picture, only to discover that the shot is out of focus when I review the picture later.

I get the same result regardless of how zoomed in/out I am; what PASM mode I use; what focus mode I use (there are three focus modes, none of which is manual focus); or what shutter speed is used.

Believing that I must have received a lemon, I returned the first DX7590 to Amazon for an exchange. After all, a camera that has received such positive reviews CAN'T have a problem with a fundamental function like focus, right?

Wrong! The second DX7590 behaved exactly the same way! So now I'm sending the camera back to Amazon for a refund, and am starting my research over again to see what I should buy instead.

Good luck to you if you buy the DX7590. No, you don't need new glasses. It's the camera that's out of focus!

NOTE on 1/19/2005: I ended up buying a Panasonic Lumix FZ20. This camera rocks! 12X optical zoom, optical image stabilization, hot shoe, and more. AND THIS CAMERA KNOWS HOW TO FOCUS!!! Check it out--much better camera for only a little more money.

Rating:
Summary: Answering 2 questions from reviewers
Review: Hi...I own the previous model (DX 6490) which I purchased in May 2004. I'm very happy with it..pity I can't replace it now with the latest model..but that's the price of 'obsolescence.' As to the two questions from recent buyers of the 7590 -
#1 - I have had no problem with the rubber covers coming off. They are well-secured and I don't see that as an issue. Thus far, I have had no need for any repairs.
#2 - on the battery charger set with the various voltages: I bought that kit and took it with me to the UK/Wales last summer. It charged my battery w/o problem. I think it was a worthwhile purchase.

Rating:
Summary: Kodak DX 7590
Review: I purchased this camera through Amazon.com and have been using it for about two weeks now. The camera is easy to operate and the pictures are excellent. The 10X zoom is one of the few zooms that remain clear and focused when at 10X. Would recommend for the new as well as the experienced photographer.

Rating:
Summary: Try Kodak...You Probably Won't be Sorry
Review: I'm having to edit this review, since the "Spotlight Review" that led me to orignally post it, seems to have disappeared, and Amazon edited my original review. My concern about the reviews of digital cameras is that some reviewers are so obviously trying to scare consumers away from a specific brand, I guess, in hopes they will then go buy another brand. I think this is unfair, and it's particularly bad when such a review ends up a "Spotlight" one, even though most of the readers found it to be unhelpful.

Here's a few facts about Kodak digital cameras, like this fabulous DX7590: 1) According to J.D. Powers and Associates, Kodak rates highest in customer satisfaction in the $200-$399 & $400-$599 price ranges. 2) Kodak is now just a little behind Sony in digital camera sales. No other digital camera company has gotten so close to Sony! Canon--a favorite of Amazon--is third. 3) Years ago, before Kodak turned all its attention to digital cameras, it's cameras were not the best. Those days are long gone, but some choose to ignore this.

The DX7590 is a combination of two other fabulous Kodak cameras--the DX7630 and the wildly popular DX6490. All three of these cameras are very "complex" cameras, as "point and shoot" ones go, but yet they are so simple to use. In my opinion, it takes high intelligence to make a complex thing, that is totally foreign to many people, easy to understand and easy to use. Kodak has done this with its digital cameras. And these cameras make beautiful prints! The EasyShare software, too, is very simple, and allows you to easily put photos in albums, print at home, or burn your pictures to CDs. You can even download your album names and e-mail addresses into the camera, and then they will automatically go into albums or be set up for e-mailing, as soon as you put the camera back on the dock.

Everyone I know with a Kodak digital camera loves it. But some people will not,of course. No one camera, or one brand of camera, will appeal to everyone. I strongly suspect, however, Kodak cameras have become so popular due to word of mouth. Just don't allow any reviews at Amazon, or any other place, scare you away from getting a Kodak camera, or any other brand of camera, as it's obvious some really want to do. While some reviewers sincerely and seriously don't like the Kodak camera they bought, other reviewers have other agendas. Talk to people you know who have a camera, or brand of camera, that you're thinking of buying, and see how they like it. Try out the cameras you're thinking of buying, and see how easy or hard they are for you to use.

I personally find the Kodak cameras, particularly the more complex ones, to be terrific.

Rating:
Summary: AWESOME!!!! Great pictures!!!
Review: My husband bought me this camera for Christmas, and I though to myself I will never figure out how to use this!! Was I wrong!! It is SO easy to use! It is lightweight and compact enough to take anywhere. And not to mention, the quality of the pictures is awesome!! It takes much better pictures than my old 35mm camera. I definetly recommend this camera, it is well worth every penny.

Rating:
Summary: 2004 regrets
Review: sorry - delete this review. was supposed to be for a different model!

Rating:
Summary: a step down from the DX6490
Review: Summary: A nice camera for the price but a frustrating tease in how close it comes to being so much more.

Battery: Battery life is this camera's biggest asset. On a single charge I've taken well over a hundred pictures at highest quality (largest file size) and flash, over a period of several hours, and still had juice to spare. I bought a spare battery because of the terrible experiences I've had with previous cameras and over the course of the month I've owned the camera have not had to resort to using it once.

Features: Chock full of features. More than most will ever use. Considering some are useless (auto mode does the same or they flat out don't produce desired results) I'd suspect more than anyone would ever want to use. More detail below on some of them.

LCD Display: Very nice large LCD display and a miniature version of it when you switch to the mode that lets you use the viewfinder instead. That is to say, the viewfinder is also LCD based. Unfortunately this is definitely NOT a WYSIWYG scenario for either the large display or the viewfinder. Don't believe me? Go take a picture of the full moon at night. You'll have to set the f stop to a large number, the shutter speed to a small number, and make sure the ISO isn't set to high (or you'll get too much light). Zoom in to at least 10x. Next, focus by pressing the shutter button halfway down (use landscape or not - for this test it won't matter). You'll notice the moon appears as a bright white blur. Snap the picture and you'll see a much sharper (disatisfactorily sharp, but sharpER nonetheless) image that looks nothing like the LCD or viewfinder did when you took the shot. Many other ways to test this but this was one I just tried so it's fresh on my mind. So if you're wanting to see what you'll get - this isn't the camera for you.

Landscape/Macro modes: The landscape mode is helpful, and in many cases necessary as you can't always focus on semi-distant to distant objects of interest. I wouldn't call it great but without it the camera would be worthless for anything but closeups and objects that are bright enough (or have distinct enough outlines). Macro mode I give a plus and equate it in terms of desirability to my praise of the battery life. You can get within a inches of an object and snap some incredibly sharp images. If you're selling coins on eBay as your living and are currently using a scanner then this camera would not only replace it but it does ten times the job with ten times less cleanup. You'll also end up with images at angles that show off the height and wear features better. It's equally good with flowers and the likes. Many (if not most) such images may require some post adjustments but they're minor and easy and worth the effort.

Flash: Again this would be another plus. Works like a charm.

Focus: Here's my biggest gripe. In low light (as others have mentioned) and also at times when outlines aren't very distinct (clouds, for example) it can be enough to make you want to pull out your hair trying to get a proper focal lock on the object of interest. Sometimes you'll the focus pass right by the sharp point before the focus locks a hair off from it yielding a less sharp image. Obnoxious as the dickens. The DX6490 I have as well works in a similar fashion yet I have very little trouble locking right on for crystal clear images. Why is this so important? Two reasons: i.) An image that's even slightly out of focus completely destroys the point of the extra megapixal the DX7590 has over the DX6490. ii.) Because the camera won't save in raw mode and even it's finest JPEG compression is still overly lossy you won't have much luck using post processing software to sharpen such things up without a lot of artifacts left behind by the lossy JPEG compression. This is just bad and renders, in my opinion, upgrading from a DX6490 a waste of money.
As some have mentioned, this camera (and all like IMO) should come with manual focus in addition to the auto. This would have made a major difference to me. I could list reasons for days but I'll give you one that's stark: You're taking pictures of birds that are all flying overhead at roughly the same height. When zoomed in (one of the highlights of this camera is it's awsome 10x optical zoom don't forget) you can get a fairly decent shot (not perfect - I'll gripe forever about that I suppose). Trouble is, most birds don't fly in a circle above you long enough for you to get a focal lock on them because the camera's auto focus just isn't fast enough. Can't penalize for that in this price range. However, if you were able to manually focus you'd require little or no adjust once you got yourself in the right zone with the birds you're shooting, and consequently you'd get much sharper images of them. Finally, try as you might, sometimes this camera will focus on an object that's within the field of observance but nowhere near the distance as the object of interest. This happens in split to pinpoint focal mode and is another hairpuller. You can trick the camera by getting a lock on an object of similar distance that has nothing obtrusive in the field, keeping your finger on the focal lock (shutter button halfway) then moving back to your object of interest but that's a kludge and shouldn't be necessary. My DX6490 does a FAR better job at discerning things such as this and requires far less trickery.

Movie Mode: You're stuck with one option here and that's Apple Quicktime format. This should plainly be MPEG, an open platform, and not a proprietary format. Additionally, you cannot adjust the zoom once you start recording.

On/Off Button: Definitely an improvement over the DX6490's rotary on/off mechanism, but not so much so as to justify the price difference.

Zoom: Like the DX6490 the 10x optical zoom is impressive. All digital cameras that don't fall into the 'just for party photos' category should do at least a 10x optical zoom. The additional digital zoom is helpful - I have to disagree with those who think otherwise. I'll tell you why: If you use the digital zoom you're doing basically the same thing as you could do with photoshop after the image is taken (blowing up an image via software), however, being able to do so prior to the lossy JPEG compression will get you some very far off shots (I can make out the lettering on airplanes, for example) that are at least useful. If you don't use the digital zoom and then decide to zoom in later with your computer based software you'll be amplifying those nasty JPEG artifacts along with the object of interest.

Review Mode: Excellent. No complains here and I especially like the fact that you can do as much as an 8x zoom while in review mode. Very handy.

Nothing else about the camera struck me as above or below average so I'll leave it at this. The one star I give this camera is strictly based on the fact that I don't find it a total piece of junk, but it is going back to the store for a refund as my DX6490 (apparently the predecessor to the DX7590) does a better job with one less megapixal.

Good luck all.

Rating:
Summary: Great Camera
Review: This camera is a great buy.I found it very easy to use and the 10X opical zoom has been fun to use.Make sure to get 512MB storage card.

Rating:
Summary: super easy / low price, and 5 megapixels with 10x zoom
Review: this camera really outdoes most of the competition, and when you include the low price and other features, there are no real competitors. kodak offers a 10x zoom and has 5 megapixels for super sharpness, even if you decide to enlarge the picture. also, the camera can grow with you as there are wide angle, telephoto and close-up lenses available through amazon. for quick prints, there is also a nifty printer that prints a 4x6 picture in under 2 minutes (also available through amazon). the quality of the print is like a local shop, and the printing method, which uses a protective coating, makes sure the colors last forever (ink-jet printers can run/fade). as an option, local photo shops can print your pictures from the camera.
in sum:
--the price is great, especially for 5 megapixels.
--kodak is the number one brand for digital cameras. they will be around to supply the camera/your photographic needs. kodak is a trusted u.s. company while some others may not be around in ten years.
--it's easy to use (no computer necessary). but if you have a computer, the camera/printing dock can e-mail photos.
--the camera has a 10x optical zoom -- super sharp pictures with great color of the kids/nature from far away.
some others offer similar features, but nobody has the whole package at this price. a home run!

Rating:
Summary: Unbelievable Close-Ups!
Review: This camera was an early Christmas present for my husband and myself. We absolutely love it and cannot wait for our next grandbaby to be born in April because the close-ups are unbelievable! The convenience of printing our own chosen prints at home is also a great bonus! We recommend this Kodak camera to everyone!