Digital-Camera Reviews

Nice quality lens, but doesn't add a huge amount of "wide angle" to your pics/videos. The best thing about it though is that it doesn't add the black edges around your footage/pics that some wide angle lens can.

This is a 2X lens that in some light conditions reflects the internal lens system in the picture...

This cable works fine: no directions needed, and it automatically alerts the computer (at least it does mine: I use Apple's iPhoto) that the camera is plugged in, which means the necessary software is launched without any effort on the part of the user. What's more, if you own any of the excellent Sony Cybershot cameras, this is the only choice available for downloading photos to your computer.

But if you do use this, be sure to unplug the cable from the camera as soon as the download is complete. If you don't, you may learn as I did that the product has one design flaw: even a moderate amount of pressure on the camera with the plug still in could tilt the camera bend the end of the cable, pulling the metal part from the plastic and rendering the whole thing useless. Which explains why I'm on this page ordering a replacement.

This camera is an ok camera. It's easy to use, though the settings seem a bit limited. This is my first camera aimed at the consumer market. My first two cameras were the Powershot G2 and the Olympus E-20N SLR, both of which blow the MX230 out of the water in terms of features.

The MX230 does have 3x optical zoom instead of the almost useless digital only zoom. The viewfinder is of ok quality, but like other point and shoots, has no diopter adjustment. I found the LCD workable, and it seems to show a good portion of the shot.

The camera takes pretty decent pictures, but suffers from severe lens glare when shot at sunlight. It also has very limited autofocusing ability, and with no manual override sometimes requires creative focusing techniques. The apertures are limited to f2.8 and f8, but the switching is completely automatic. I also found myself using the LCD more than usual because the viewfinder doesn't have ttl viewing, so you can't check the focusing is correct. This leads to a major problem: the unit uses only 2 AA batteries. The alkaline ones that came with the unit went out after 20 shots; the NiMH ones I put in seem to be working a lot better.

It has 5 preset modes, 4 preset WB modes (and an automatic mode), and 3 flash modes (auto, fill-in, red eye). It also has manual exposure override from -2 to 2 in 1/3 steps. Unfortunately that's where the customizeablility ends. I found no way of controlling the shutter speed, ISO setting (locked at 100), and autofocus override.

I might've given this camera 4 stars if the autofocus mechanism wasn't so incredibly stupid. If there was a manual override, maybe I could have let it slide, but as it stands now you need to use the LCD to make sure the lens don't suffer a severe case of myopia.

The binoculars are excellent. The camera however is a novelty. Do not expect a high-resolution close-up shot of what you are looking at. It will give you an ok 4x6 picture. It is a .3 mega pixel camera, and that is exactly what you get. The magnification of the picture looks as if you stepped forward about 5 yards and took a regular picture. I like the rubber eyecups. They make it more comfortable for extended viewing. The software is easy to download and use. I highly recommend using a tri-pod though for the best pictures. I am pleased with the binoculars and the camera is fun to use. Do not expect more though. If you want more resolution buy a set with more mega pixels. All in all I am pleased with it, and it is worth the $54.00 I paid for it.

The price may be attractive, but beware:
- This camera uses its AAA battery even when it's turned off (yes, this is documented). So if you take some pictures, and leave the camera sitting around a few days, poof, no more pictures. Even if you keep on top of this you'll be going through a lot of batteries (they tell you NOT to use rechargeables).
- The camera settings (for resolution, exposure, etc.) are lost each time you turn the camera off, so if you like a specific setting that's not standard, you have to reconfigure it each time you use the camera.
- The image quality is nothing great... colors are washed out, details are blurry, and images are out of focus around the edges (though some people might like the 'arty' effect this sometimes causes)
- The camera software is buggy... currently I have 46 pictures in the camera, but when I try to transfer them to my PC, their transfer software crashes after only transferring 8 pictures, every time.
- Their web site, though it does have some technical info and downloads, doesn't provide any email-based support.

This camera is amazing for its size and price. The pictures arent the best quality when taken inside a building with bad lights but once you go outside the pictures are pretty good. Also if you ever have any problems if you go to the main homepage of the company they will tell you exactly what to do and what they say works. This camera fits in your pocket and can take a beating and still works perfectly. File transfer to the computer is quick and it comes with lots of programs to hepl edit your photos. The video feature works well too. The bad thing is that the camera doesnt have flash but ifs there isnt enough light the camera wont let you take the picture. Great investment for fun pictures!

I bought myself this tiny little digital camera... And I do mean tiny. It's about three inches by two inches, less than an ounce without its battery, and it cost about $35.00 (at discount price). It came in a horrible, terrible, ugly box that made it look like complete trash. But it's a nice little thing. It's brushed titanium and light blue brushed aluminum. Gives it a posh/stylish/modern look. It can take 300 pictures at 320x240 or 70 pictures at 640x480. No flash, no focus, no nothing. Just good for LiveJournal snaps and scrapbooking, and silly spontaneous email pics. Gotta have good light, too, if you want crisp pictures. Luckily, it has a clever little light sensor that triple-beeps and refuses to take the shot if it's too dark. If it's too dark, you can take grainy pictures, but they're good enough as mementos and Kodak moments. Useless as prints, great for online stuff. Gotta use this camera for what it's good for... don't try to treat it like an inexpensive "real" camera, because it ain't that!

The so-called "big downside" is that it runs on a single AAA battery and a RAM memory chip, which constantly drains the battery, even when the camera's powered off. It will only run about 5-7 hours on the battery and then, if you haven't downloaded them already, you lose all your pictures. Poof. It has a snazzy little USB interface that zips the pictures onto your hard drive automagically once you plug it in. Then you can start over. But I can imagine one day I'll forget to promptly offload, and be completely upset at it for eating the snapshots. I chose this camera because it was steeply discounted due to its unpopularity. The critics said, "Great camera, but I have to be around a computer ALL DAY or I lose my pictures!" And I thought myself, "Self - you ARE around a computer all day." And so I think it'll be a fun little toy.

The others who said great for kids where right. This camera sucks. It was cool at first, I was excited about having a webcam/digital camera. Well, the webcam is better than the camera. Though it shows the video way too close up, and there is nothing to mount it to. And the usb link cord is way too short. The digital camera, oh my, that't not good at all. There is no flash, even in light, it's still dark. It takes tiny pictures. After a little while, the only way you can use the camera is to keep it hooked to the computer, which means you can't go far. I thought my batteries were dead, but that wasn't it, it just doesn't work. The webcam still works but it sucks.
So I don't even recommend spending $20 on it. Save your money and get something better.

I just purchased the camera from Office Max in Ann Arbor MI for about $26.00. I bought the camera for my 4 and 2 year old daughters, since we are going to Disney World this coming weekend. It is perfect for my 4 year old daughter and she is very excited about it. The quality of the pictures, of course, is not the best, but for the price I was expecting worse. The camera description on the outside of the package it came in does not say for outdoor use only. You quickly discover that it cannot take pictures inside unless you have a lot of light. It works perfectly with Windows 98 or 98 Sec. Ed.. I was surprised to see that it came with a 9 pin serial connection , which is used on the 95 and NT OS, and a USB connection. It is very easy to use and my 4 year old can use it without any problems. This will save us a lot of money instead of her using or 35 mm camera and then paying for the film developing and purchasing more film so she can take more pictures. It is a great way for her to learn about the digital cameras and more on the computer. It is a great camera for your kids and if they break it you are only out the 26 dollars or so. Well worth the money if you have kids that like to take pictures outside. This will save you a lot of money on film processing. Hope you find this useful.

I bought this for my son last year. Its a great "toy"! The quality of the pictures are not very good. But try telling that
to a six year old who is in awe looking at the pictures he captured. Its affordable and durable. He once left it in the yard
and because it rained I was certain It was a goner. Once it dried. It still works! So for that I give it 5 stars!!

Despite complaints that this camera is a trap because it uses a storage medium that is unavailable(MMC cards), I specifically bought this camera because it uses MMC cards. While MMC cards are not the primary medium of storage in this country, they are the primary source of storage for these devices in Europe. In fact, most high end European devices using digital storage mediums use MMC cards. Yes, they are currently more expensive byte per byte than some other storage mediums but they are also significantly smaller.
They are also the fastest growing storage medium in this market.
I currently have a mp3 player, a digital camera and a motion activated security device that all use the same MMC storage technology. Figure about a buck per megabyte.
Kodak made a savvy move using the MMC storage medium. They are hoping to challenge current European/Japanese offerings by using a storage medium currently popular in Europe combined with a camera that takes superb pictures.
The "kicker" is the Kodak docking station. No matter how inept the computerphobe, once installed to a USB port, photo manipulation becomes as simple as dropping off 35mm film to a one hour developer. The docking station charges the battery while a single push of the button downloads the photos to the computer for manipulation, printing, emailing or whatever.
Kodak offers some truly impressive printing technology whether or not you use their cameras.
Controls are easy to use but like most digital technology, the number of control decisions offered are overwhelming unless one has a week or two to spend learning all of the potential permutations.
Unlike film formats, bad pictures from digital cameras can be erased by the push of a button with no more expense than the cost of the electricity to record. Why digital cameras (Including this Kodak) offer so many different photo modes when it is just as easy to take a ton of pictures that can be later manipulated on a computer still confuses me
Bottom line, the camera fits nicely into most hands- neither too big or too small, the controls are easy to understand and use, the camera takes great pictures and computer manipultation using the docking station is a breeze.
Downsides are the Kodak name which is typically connected with low end(read quality) camera products (unless one is in the medical industry where their products have no peers), the use of MMC cards which are more expensive than than comparable storage mediums, and the ever present debate that compares digital to 35mm film cameras.
If you get past these issues, you still might find that this is not a great but a pretty good camera for the money. The docking station pushes it over the edge for the computer challenged.

I bought the Kodak DX 3700 a few days ago for vacation. A few KMarts in our area are closing their doors, and all of their digital cameras, docks, and supplies were 40% off! I snapped up the camera and dock as quickly as I could. This being my first digital camera, I have to say I'm satisfied overall. The only thing I'll be using the camera for is basic point and shoot photography and maybe a little bit of photo manipulation and maybe a little emailing. The 3700 meets all of my needs, so I'm happy.

I was dissapointed though with a few things... first the memory card. KMart was out of cards so I went to circuit city instead to buy one. I told the salesperson what model camera I had and he sold me the Compact Flash card instead of the MMC card. I arrived home excited to play with my new toy, and I had to drive 25 minutes back to the store to get a new memory card that was $25.00 more expensive! Annoying to say the least. Also, the dock I purchased was missing the rechargable batteries. That kind of [angered] me... But I figured since I got the dock for 40% off that I could spend the $$ I saved on batteries anyway. I called Kodak to inform them of the missing product and there was nothing they could do to help me. Some customer service they have! Also, the dock was the last one KMart had in stock and it was being sold as is simply because they were going out of buisness. So, I was kind of up a creek with this battery situation. In defense of the dock, however, I have to say that the one touch downloading is GREAT! I love the convenience. The software is decent... after working with programs like Photoshop, the Kodak software pales in comparison as far as options go. But for basic manipulation, it's not bad.

Overall, I'm liking my new digital camera. At 40% off, it wasn't a bad deal at all considering I purchased the dock and camera for the total of the regularly priced camera itself. If I were to buy again, I might consider the 3900 to have the convenience of more options.

I purchased a Kodak dx3700 camera for Xmas for my extremely non-technical wife (no docking station). After reading countless reviews and visiting manufacturer websites, I decided on a Kodak Easyshare Camera. I originally wanted the dx3600 because it had an optical zoom lens. Unfortunately, due to lack of supply and time frame, I had to get to the dx3700 in order to have a gift under the tree. This was my 1st digital purchase. Ease of use and picture quality were my main concerns because we will primarily print the photos.
To my surprise, the ease of taking photos and downloading photos was EXCEPTIONAL!!! I was even surprised that the photos had a date/time stamp and downloaded pictures were automatically categorized into new folders by date (GREAT FEATURE!). In regards to ease of use, THERE IS NOTHING BETTER! Literally, after 10 minutes, we were taking photos and making prints. We were all impressed. However, we had nothing to compare the picture quality to. My wife was also hesitant to let me know that she would have liked a zoom lens.
I began to research "comparable" cameras with zoom lenses. After thinking about upgrading to a dx3900, I decided to try another brand. I already knew Kodak's picture quality because the dx3900 is basically a dx3700 with 2x zoom.
After reading many more reviews and evaluating pros & cons, I decided to try the Canon A20. It was "only" 2.1 Megapixels, but it had a 3x zoom and looked like a Point & Shoot. Unfortunately, it did not have a date/time stamp. I purchased one from a retail store knowing that I would return it and buy it much cheaper online. I unpacked it. I immediately noticed that it required 4 AA batteries. The Kodak required only 1 Lithium or 2 AA Ni-MH. The Canon was MUCH more difficult to set up. Kodak had spoiled me. Canon's camera interface and software installation were MUCH more complex. I became nervous because I thought it would be to complicated for my wife to enjoy. I completed all setups. I had her hold the Canon and Kodak, then take some identical pictures with both cameras using the zoom and different settings indoors (where most of her pictures would be taken anyway). I printed them, then gave her a "Pepsi Challenge".
All of the pictures that she preferred were from the 2.1MP Canon, not the 3.1MP Kodak. The Kodak's were not bad. The Canon's were just better. Contrary to what I would have thought (being a digital novice), she was right. Although Canon's "ease of use" was definitely inferior to Kodak's, it had superior picture quality and a 3x optical zoom (remember: the dx3900 only had a 2x zoom). Although we LOVED Kodak's simplicity, we had to opt for picture quality. Although there will be a greater learning curve, picture quality lasts forever (If I can only get her to truly believe that).
I returned the Kodak, and ordered the Canon A20 online. I was even able to get the Canon for less than a dx3900. Although I will really miss Kodak's simplicity, every time I look at a printed photo, I will know that I made the right decision. I only hope that battery drain will not be too much of a nuisance.

So you're thinking about buying a new digital camera, something to take pictures of the family and friends...maybe print them out to look at later...well then the Logitech Pocket Digital is NOT for you! It really is a pretty cool little camera (emphysis on little...2"x3.25"x0.4" or 5.7x8.8x 1.2cm for you metric folks). It's a great little camera for taking pictures of all those wacky things you just wish you had a camera for...however, don't expect it to be taking award-winning pictures for the family photo album. It may have a small and large picture setting, but the camera really only takes pics in 640x480 format (the larger setting only expands the 640x480 into a larger, blurrier picture). One hint: get it on sale (like I did), its not worth the $99 Logitech would have you pay.

Let's face it, mini cameras like the Logitech Pocket Digital are not intended to give you top quality pictures. They are intended to be small enough (and cheap enough) to be taken to places where full size cameras would not normally be taken. People need to stop comparing them to cameras that cost hundreds of dollars more or cameras thatare 3 times its' size! That said, this a good mini camera, compared to other cams I've used- I compare the Logitech Pocket Digital to the Sipix Blink, and Spypen Luxo. Under day light conditions-- Colour balance: a little off, slightly worse than Spypen Luxo, much better than Sipix Blink; visual lens distortion - slightly better than the Luxo, much better than the Blink (bad distortion); White balance - same as Luxo, better than Blink; battery life/ battery circuitry- far better than either the Luxo or Blink. The The Pocket digital does lack the Web cam and contiuous mode that the Luxo and Blink both have, and has a slower shutter, but more than makes up for it with a solid housing, twice the memory, flawless WinXP connectivity and Big name support. Ranking low light performance from best to worst: Blink, Spypen, Logitech Pocket Digital. The Pocket digital is the worst performing low light camera with the most underexposed and dark shots. Under poor lighting conditions- all the cameras perform exhibit chromatic aberration, colour balance, exposure and white balance problems. Just make sure there is plenty of ambient light if you want your pictures to turn out. Especially in lower light you need to be very STEADY as you press the shutter, otherwise you'll have a blurry picture. Go [online] to check out sample pics.

This camera is all about portability. Don't expect much more than a cool little camera you can slip into a shirt pocket & you won't be disappointed.

Installation is easy and the camera is a snap (no pun intended) to use.

Great gift for a kid....

The PDC1300 software does notwork with Windows XP and I cannot find an update.

I have used this camera for a while and it takes a real nice pictures. ...The freezing up problem is caused by a corrupt picture (called Polaroid) and is an easy fix. As for short battery life all cameras have this problem. I've been in the tech field for about 10 years and know how these things work and why they don't. ...If you format the card through Windows (as someone did) don't expect the card to work in the camera. Windows formats cards using FAT32. Digital cameras use FAT16. Guess why it doesn't work. Overall the camera is not perfect but if you are willing to take 2 seconds to do it correctly ...you may have a little better luck. A good deal for under [the money].

Well, I too have faced some of the challenges that you have all mentioned and once I worked them out, I have been very pleased with this camera.

I received it as a gift and found immediately that it wouldn't load on XP - quick trip to Polaroid.com and I found easy instructions on how to install it on XP - now it works - I agree about the Win2000 issues though - what's up with that?

Then I had the issues with the camera freezing up, weird pictures, stopped working, etc - then a guy at Circuit City suggested I buy a new memory card - I did and was able to take 100 pictures in a row without error. Haven't had problems with that since.

I have also encountered the battery issues - however, I found that if I keep the LCD off (which I prefer anyway) and, this is the key, use RECHARGEABLE batteries specifically for electronic devices - I've had much better luck with the battery - again, took over 100 pictures with flash.

Is this a lot of work - sure, but it was a gift and was better than nothing so I tried to figure it out. Now that I have, I really like it and have some pretty good pictures as a result.