Rating: 
Summary: A great bargain for some people.
Review: If you use Windows 98 or 95 and mostly want pictures to share on the internet or to put on internet auctions, this camera is the best bargain around. It does make nice 640 x 480 pictures and is quite easy to use. It's sharpness is good and so is the color. It will focus up to 6 inches from the subject so is good for taking shots very close. It will make close-up pictures of objects 1 inch square. The focus is divided into zones like many vintage cameras ("Close" - "Medium Distance" - and "Far Distance", but it autofocuses within each zone and focuses exactly on the subject. Automatic exposure without flash is good, as is the automatic flash exposure. The Flash Path device is really "the thing" for older computers with no USB ports. Just take the card out of the camera, slide it into a diskette shaped device and put it in the disk drive. From there you can save the pictures to anywhere on your computer. The Polaroid software is ok but really basic. Another picture editing program is needed for much work on editing the pictures. This camera is a nice, handy size and the case slides on a belt to be carried around very easily and handily. It would be a good idea to buy a spare, larger card to go along with the standard one if you plan to take the camera very far from home. Batteries don't last very long but they do last a lot longer than most of the more expensive cameras. It uses 4 standard AA batteries. A set is included in the kit. The kit also comes standard with an AC adapter, which if used around the house, will extend the battery life a lot. There is also a serial connector cable, cable for Mac computers and a cable to connect the camera to a tv set, as well as a little hand carrying strap. Overall, this most certainly is a lot of camera for the money.
Rating: 
Summary: slow and downright terrible
Review: just let me name four things that make this camera the WORST in the world: 1.you would miss most of the great photographic opportunities because the flash has to recharge, and it takes FOREVER!!!! 2.how do you get, say, a natural history photograph at the zoo if it doesn't have a zoom lens!? don't be fooled by what ebay says about the lens, they are just trying to make money off you! 3.the SUPER fast shutter speed doesn't allow ANY dim light, whatsoever into the camera, if you even tried to take a picture in dim light the picture would just turn out BLACK! 4.the software is totally screwy (with some things) like the brightness system, you set it to a certain brightness, but you dont like it, so you keep tweaking the brightness and before long it is all white!that is the end, but just remember one thing, this is the one camera that you don't want to buy!
Rating:
Summary: Made me want to rip my hair out
Review: Ok, the camera takes great pictures. However, they're absolutely useless because the software that comes with the camera is terrible. Now I have a load of pictures that are just stuck in my camera. I cannot get them to come up on the PC no matter what I do, and I can't seem to figure out why. If you use anything other than windows 95, the Photomax software won't even work. Buying this camera was probably the biggest waste of money I've ever done.
Rating:
Summary: Made me want to rip my hair out
Review: Ok, the camera takes great pictures. However, they're absolutely useless because the software that comes with the camera is terrible. Now I have a load of pictures that are just stuck in my camera. I cannot get them to come up on the PC no matter what I do, and I can't seem to figure out why. If you use anything other than windows 95, the Photomax software won't even work. Buying this camera was probably the biggest waste of money I've ever done.
Rating:
Summary: Beware with this camera or buy insurance
Review: Since they were introduced, I have bought FOUR of these PDC 640's!!! I am still using #2 and #3 but they are developing the inevitable problems of age. I have taken probably 5,000 pictures with them (no exaggeration). They are great. If you need a great low cost digital, this is THE ONE!!! I bought this latest one simply because Amazon was the only place I could find it. Wal Mart has been "out of stock" for weeks. These cameras are actually selling for MORE on Ebay than they are at Amazon!
Anyway, Amazon's service was superb as usual. I love Amazon.
Ok, not to the point. If you have PhotoMax software 2.0, already installed on your computer, you will have afew minor problems getting this model to work. Your old cameras will not (as far as I can tell) work with the Version 2.3 of the software.
Normally, the old cameras will download with the lens cover closed. You will need to open the lens cover on the new one to get it to power up and download. It's serial download seems considerably slower than the older cameras. Also, BE CERTAIN to pick and choose which portions of Version 2.3 you install. Polaroid has gunked up the new version with even more worthles options than on Version 2.0. Just stick to the basic PhotoMax software. Everthing else is irrelevant if you are an "old hand" with PDC's. I will not beusing the floppy downloader. I believe that repeated removal and insertion of the memory will cause it to degrade faster over the long term. Since I desire to get at least two-three years of usable life out of this latest purchase and will undoubtedly take thousands of pictures with it, this IS an issue. For the casual user, it is not an issue.
I HIGHLY recommend this camera. You simply can't beat it for the price. You should realize that once the inventories of this camera are gone, Polaroid probably won't be mass producing many more of them. They are retrenching like most of the tech companies. You really ought to consider buying TWO of them because you will want to use this little beauty FOREVER. ood luck!
Rating:
Summary: Great camera for the money--2nd time buyers beware
Review: Since they were introduced, I have bought FOUR of these PDC 640's!!! I am still using #2 and #3 but they are developing the inevitable problems of age. I have taken probably 5,000 pictures with them (no exaggeration). They are great. If you need a great low cost digital, this is THE ONE!!! I bought this latest one simply because Amazon was the only place I could find it. Wal Mart has been "out of stock" for weeks. These cameras are actually selling for MORE on Ebay than they are at Amazon!
Anyway, Amazon's service was superb as usual. I love Amazon.
Ok, not to the point. If you have PhotoMax software 2.0, already installed on your computer, you will have afew minor problems getting this model to work. Your old cameras will not (as far as I can tell) work with the Version 2.3 of the software.
Normally, the old cameras will download with the lens cover closed. You will need to open the lens cover on the new one to get it to power up and download. It's serial download seems considerably slower than the older cameras. Also, BE CERTAIN to pick and choose which portions of Version 2.3 you install. Polaroid has gunked up the new version with even more worthles options than on Version 2.0. Just stick to the basic PhotoMax software. Everthing else is irrelevant if you are an "old hand" with PDC's. I will not beusing the floppy downloader. I believe that repeated removal and insertion of the memory will cause it to degrade faster over the long term. Since I desire to get at least two-three years of usable life out of this latest purchase and will undoubtedly take thousands of pictures with it, this IS an issue. For the casual user, it is not an issue.
I HIGHLY recommend this camera. You simply can't beat it for the price. You should realize that once the inventories of this camera are gone, Polaroid probably won't be mass producing many more of them. They are retrenching like most of the tech companies. You really ought to consider buying TWO of them because you will want to use this little beauty FOREVER. ood luck!
Rating:
Summary: A Great Little Camera!
Review: This camera is identical to the 640 Plus except it comes with a 2MB card (instead of an 8MB card) and it comes with the floppy adaptor. This is a great little camera. First, to address some of the negative reviews. The camera is not a battery hog. It does, however, give that illusion since the battery metter reads empty well before the batteries are actually drained. If you use the batteries with the built in tester the batteries still register a near full charge even though the meter reads low. Just keep using the camera until it doesn't flash and only then change the batteries. Picture quality is very good. When printing, as with any photo, be sure to use photographic paper and use the settings the paper recommends. If you don't use a good paper and the correct settings (the printer won't set itself) the picture will look grainy. But that goes for any photo from any camera. Plus, what kind of printer are you using? If it only prints at 720 DPI or less then the picture is going to look grainy no matter what camera you use. You need at least 1200 DPI for crisp looking photos. Also, take the pictures with the camera set to the highest resolution setting, not the default setting. The pluses for this camera when compared to others in this class are the macro settings, the large number of photos that will fit on the SmartMedia, the four mode flash, the four resolution settings, the optical and LCD view finders, the second LCD screen for settings, the video cord for displaying your pictures on a TV, the included photo software and, of course, the floppy adaptor. That's worth half the price of the camera all by it self. I think some of the negative reviews come from people that expect this camera to compare to a [$] camera. Well, it's not a [$] camera but, compared to cameras in this price range, it's a champ.
Rating:
Summary: Polaroid PhotoMax PDC-640 FL Kit is a GREAT VALUE!
Review: This is a lot of camera for small bucks! If I had an internet business or was a professional photographer, I would go for more camera, but for family fun, hobby photos, sharing with friends and first cameras for beginners, this is just a super little camera. It is easy to use and a very complete kit. Since the flashpath floppy adaptor is included, that in itself is a great value (...). It is also lightweight and compact which makes it a perfect traveling camera.
Rating:
Summary: Polaroid PhotoMax PDC-640 FL Kit is a GREAT VALUE!
Review: This is a lot of camera for small bucks! If I had an internet business or was a professional photographer, I would go for more camera, but for family fun, hobby photos, sharing with friends and first cameras for beginners, this is just a super little camera. It is easy to use and a very complete kit. Since the flashpath floppy adaptor is included, that in itself is a great value (...). It is also lightweight and compact which makes it a perfect traveling camera.
Rating:
Summary: updated: quick and easy
Review: Updates to the below: After several weeks and taking shots both inside and out, I'm finding that my inside shots *sometimes* (maybe 1 in 5) come out too dark. It seems that the automatic setting for the flash sometimes incorrectly adjusts the flash to the light level. I might need to set the flash to "on" instead of "auto". Otherwise, the camera is doing great. I got this camera yesterday so this review will be my first impressions. 1. I was a little confused by the description on Amazon as to whether I would get a 2 MB or 8 MB SmartMedia card. I still don't know but the product description is correct in saying that in the highest resolution you can get 12 pictures. Due to the compression used, I'm just not sure what amount of space that means I have. 2. This package (PDC-640 FL Digital Camera Kit) has everything you might need - AC adapter, TV cable, serial cable, batteries, FlashPath reader, case, wrist strap, PhotoMAX software. It would make a great gift for anyone not a photo expert. 3. The FlashPath reader and PhotoMAX software in particular make it very easy to move your pictures from the camera to a PC. The PhotoMAX software is not a full-fledged image editing application but it can add text, rotate, change contrast or brightness or hue, and organize into photo albums. The software seems to be designed for non-experts. 4. The camera is mostly automatic. Just point and shoot. My first few attempts inside came out very dark but it is possible I didn't have the flash set correctly. After some tinkering of the settings, the pictures came out fine. So it does take a little getting used to all the buttons and settings and how you maneuver through the menus. Still, I hardly looked at the quick start card and after a bit I was doing fine. 5. I got this camera partly because I don't really need anything fancy or with super high resolution. I will mainly take shots and send them to my relatives via email. And for email you don't want to send a really big file like you get with the megapixel cameras. This camera's resolution is plenty fine for my purposes. So my first impression is... this is great! Just what I need. Quick and easy to use! And at a good price!
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