Easyshare DX-6490...Go ahead, get up close...This lens was designed for digital.The DX6490 matches the precision of a SCHNEIDER-KREUZNACH VARIOGON 10X Optical Zoom Lens with the intelligence of Kodak's new Color Science Image Processing Chip. The result is pure digital bliss.A camera that delivers in-depth detail and stunning color from wide angle to true telephoto all in one compact package with its professional quality 10X Optical Zoom Lens (38-380 mm equivalent) which is precision-crafted to fulfill the finer resolution requirements of digital imaging with incredible sharpness. With clarity across the entire image and striking edge-to-edge brightness, plus a fast f/2.8 - 8.0 lens delivering sharp, bright images throughout the zoom range, even in low light situations (wide angle f/2.8 at 38 mm - telephoto f/3.7 at 380 mm).Easyshare DX-6490...with the KODAK Color Science Image Processing Chip engineered to capture the most vivid range of lifelike color imaginable. The DX6490 introduces the remarkable KODAK Color Science Image Processing Chip. 75 years of Kodak image processing intelligence are encapsulated in the chip to instantly analyze your image each time you press the shutter. The result is sharp, consistent lifelike colors that jump off the page.Bigger and brighter is always better, but the DX6490 takes digital viewing one step further. Others have tried, but Kodak delivers a high-resolution electronic viewfinder that eliminates parallax
1 Fantastic Camera
Very impressed with this awsome digital. I have a Gateway T150 which is a waste of good money. This camera is far superior. The zoom is right on, and the color saturation really comes through. My partner took his on our recent trip and got awsome great nature shots of eagles and ospreys. Good enuff that he can sell them. My gateway was left in the dust, so I went out and bought this camera and found it is worth every penny. Anyone want to buy a gateway 5 megapix???
2 I adore this camera!
I recieved this camera several months ago as a gift. I had never considered using a Kodak camera before as we were very happy with our Canon and had planned on purchasing a better model Canon Powershot. Well much to my surprise this camera is better than I could have imagined!
The macros I can get with this camera blow me away. The SLR like grip and style are VERY nice. The 10x optical zoom is amazing. I cannot be more thrilled with this camera.
My only complaint is, it does have some difficulty in low light indoor situations. This can be corrected for the most part through image manipulation software however. Outside shots are utterly amazing however.
This camera is a keeper. It is super afforable too. I highly recommend it for anyone, beginner to enthusiast!
3 Better than the newer model
ALERT: My favorite feature by far is the 6 shot burst. It lets you hold the trigger and take 6 pictures in 2 seconds. If you are trying to capture good action shots or get the perfect smile you need this. When the kids are playing or the parents are visiting I just hold the trigger. Take 20 or 30 shots and discard most of them. However, with this method you will capture photos that will make you the super-hero photographer of the family. The newer 5 megapixel camera cannot do 6 shots (only 5) because is doesn't have enough processing power to capture 6 shots at 5mp. Jumping to 5mp is only necessary if you are going to be printing poster sized pictures or if you don't like to aim. Then you can just blow up your pictures to see if you got anything good and crop out the rest.
This camera is awesome. It has terrific accessories. It is simple to use with automatic settings for your spouse who hates your tech toys.
Everybody raves over my photos. The camera gets most of the credit. It's also much cheaper than the newer kodak model.
Everybody I know who bought a camera with 3x optical is mad at themselves when they see what this 10x model can do.
4 Better Than I Expected
In short, all the reviews that I read about this camera really solidified my decision to purchase this camera and since I did I have not been disappointed in the ease of use and being that it's a digital camera if you don't like the shot just delete it and take another one. I also purchased a 512MB memory card and this has increase my memory to over 130 shots in Better quality (3-star), but that can be boosted up to over 600 shots is you go down to the lowest quality possible (1-star). I take shots using the viewfinder rather than the LCD screen because using my face as a prop for my camera gives it a more steady platform instead of trying to hold the camera steady with just my hands as I look into the LCD screen.
I have used most of the features on the camera. The most used feature is the Sport setting because I take a lot of close up shots and this allows for the involuntary shaking that most of us have, especially me. I have also used the Burst mode, which takes up to six shots in quick order. I used this when my kids were riding their bikes in the day time. Using the Video feature is just too easy. Again, like the other reviewers had mentioned, don't expect video quality from this camera because it's a Camera. Buy yourself a Video Cam if you want the features, but this camera did very well in both daylight and lowlight for me.
All in all this has to be one of the best cameras I have ever had the privaledge to own and operate. My father also loved how much this camera can zoom in and get right "in your face" shots without having to get in anybody elses way.
Don't try to use the Sport setting in lowlight events and you're zooming in. I tried to and the shots came out very dark, probably due to the fast shutter speed. You'd probably be better off using the Manual Modes to get the settings just right. That's the next feature I'll try. Good camera. Can't get disappointed even if I tried.
5 Very Good Basic Parts
I bought this camera because of the Schneider lens. Schneider usually makes lenses for view cameras and medium format cameras. My other camera is a Hasellblad. The lens is as good as I had hoped. It provides all of the crispness that can be had in a 4MP image.
When using this camera, keep in mind that the full zoom (optical + digital) is equivalent to a 1320mm lens on a 35mm camera. This setting is not suitable for hand held photography. If you don't use a tripod or other support you shuld expect blurred images. Even the optical only max. of 380mm is not considered a good bet for hand held pictures.
The most important missing feature is a cable (or wireless remote) release. When you do use a tripod with such a light camera you don't want your hand causing it to wiggle.
6 A good camera
I have this camera for about a year. I am happy with the quality of the pictures and the controls I have, and I like the large LCD display. I would have given the DX6490 5 stars if it is easier to turn ON and OFF. The ON/OFF function is on a small dial with the rest of the controls. The tiny handle used to turn the dial is not too easy to control, especially when I am in a hurry.
7 Kodak Product and SUPPORT
I just had to write a review for this camera. Even though I have only had it for about 2 months and haven't been able to really practice with the camera as yet and I'm strictly an amateur trying to learn. I really like this camera. It takes great pictures especially on the manual settings but the Kodak product support is TRULY incredible. I read a review on Amazon.com that really influenced my purchase. The review really gave a rave for the Kodak support getting his camera back before the Christmas holidays. He was not kidding. I purchased the camera from Ebay and it still had about 2 mos left on the warranty. Well the Easyshare camera dock stopped working so I called the support line. I was advised to ship the camera and dock together even though I only had a problem with the dock and the camera worked fine. Well, not only was the camera and dock back in my hands in approx. 4 business days but they replaced the dock AND checked out and cleaned the camera. Also, I called the support line for a problem with the camera making a noise while shooting videos. It turned out to be the autofocus. The tech support told me to turn it off when shooting video and it fixed the problem immediately. How's that for great technical support. I'm telling you, you can't go wrong with a Kodak product, the service alone is worth the price, especially today with most service centers being really poorly trained and I didn't wait on hold for twenty minutes either it took approximately 5 minutes. I could make a commercial for KODAK. I love it.
8 Good for Beginning Serious Photographers
If you want to be serious in photographing, but you don't have too much professional knowledge about it, this camera is a good start for you. At least it can provide you with some basic functions of manual photography.
The functions of this unit are very user-friendly, even though it took me some time to master all the functions in the beginning. It's a bit hard to control the right amount of light entering the lens in the beginning, but after you get acquainted with all its light functions, you should not have a problem.
The price of the unit is very reasonable and the quality of the picture is no doubt. I especially like the 10x optical zoom. With such a reasonable price, you can hardly get something so elaboraed.
9 I use my camera for pics in clubs...awesome!
Ok, before I got this camera I put alot of thought in it. I had previously owned an Olympus c-720 which was dropped and broken at a club one night. This weekend was my second weekend in a row using the camera. It was great. You can view my pictures at www.lovinglynam.com/gallery and www.lovinglynam.com/concertgallery2 and view the pics from weekend 1/14/05 and above.
Naturally when buying this camera I was looking for great zoom (10X is great for optical zoom) and good in low light conditions. I have seen a couple reviews where people have said it doesnt do well, but take a look at my pics, I beg to differ. I am in no way a professional photographer, so also keep that in mind. The battery life has been exceptional, I shot over 200 pics on Saturday night and did not even have a low battery warning, yet I used the LCD and flash all night.
The only downfall I have seen to this camera is the redeye, but I have yet to find a camera that has great redeye reduction, in dark areas even more so.
If you have any questions about this camera, feel free to email me at c_lisa28@hotmail.com
I was torn between this one and the 7590 but the only difference I have seen is the 7590 is one mp higher...thats about it. For the $100 I say stay with the 6490, amazing camera!
10 Great Camera!
My husband got me this camera for Christmas with the dock/printer. I love the 10X zoom on this camera! If you're a parent, you have got to look into this camera for those plays, games and events your children are in. The camera is so easy to use, you barely need the manual. The settings range from action, night, portrait, movie etc and are very self explanatory. The shape and weight of the camera is equivalent to that of a film camera. I've had digital cameras that are just to small and too light and not comfortable to hold. The bottom line is that the pictures are clear, crisp and vivid. I've only had the camera since Christmas Day, but I've already shot, edited (software could be better), and printed many pictures. I love this camera!
11 Poor Inside Lighting Performance
The interior shots, no matter how bright it is in the room, is terrible. The quality of the image is very good, but everything around it is completely black. The sun can be pouring into the window, the flash can be on, the interior lights can be on, but everything surrounding your subject in the photo is completely black. When I contacted Kodak, they responded that I should "lighten each photo that is too dark"; like I'm going to take the time to lighten each of my photos.
Good quality if you're taking photos outside in the daytime. If you're going to take photos inside (oh, say, during Christmas), buy a disposable and you'll get better pictures. I wish I hadn't wasted my Christmas money on this. My last digital (Sony-awesome camera) was a million times better than this.
12 Excellent look, Great Quality Pictures
I think for just under $330 this is the best deal for such a high quality camera. Apart from taking still images you can also do movie recordings. We have a 512 MB SD card, which is good enough to take about 250+ pictures along with several short movie clips of 2-3 minutes (although the amount of movie you record is restricted by the size of your memory, so it could go as high as 1hr too if using a 1GB for example)
The small disadvantage, a design consideration I would say, is that flash doesn't open atuomatically in dark, so if you forget you could miss a short.
I see there are high praises for their newer version DX7590, so with the dropping prices, that seems to be a better deal.
Just like to say that don't think a lot if you are researching to buy a camera, go for either a DX6490 or the DX7590, both are excellent.
13 Great SERVICE in addition to a great product
I got a DX6490 in June for a trip to Scotland in July. I love the camera and the excellent picture quality. I took over 300 pictures and a few videos on my trip and have really enjoyed sharing them with family and friends since then.
There are plenty of reviews here about the camera and its features and I won't repeat any of them. But I do want to add comments about the excellent service I have recieved from Kodak.
The camera came with a battery charger for the Li-On battery, but it did not include the adaptors for non-US electric outlets. (The charger, when purchased as a separate item, comes with 6 adaptors). I called Kodak to see if I could get *just* the adaptors without buying another entire charger. At first they said that was not possible, but we continued to talk and I explained that I would be going overseas and already had the charger, just missing the overseas adaptors. After awhile I was put on hold and soon the service rep came back and said they were sending me the adaptors, no charge!! GREAT.
This Fall my camera started giving me problems turning on. It got to the point that most of the time it would not turn on at all; the screen displayed "B03" error and said to refer to the manual. I changed the battery, I cleaned the battery compartment, I wiggled the lens barrel; sometimes it would come on but usually not. So in late November I called Kodak again. They ran me through a few things to try (most of which I had already done) and finally said I would have to ship the camera to Rochester for repair. I packed it up and sent it in on December 1; I figured there was no way it would be back before Christmas. Well, much to my surprise they checked it into their system on December 7, fixed it and shipped it back to me on December 10!! It arrived on December 15 and works like new. The repair slip says they replaced the "MCU PCB" whatever that is; plus they did a complete cleaning and restored it to it original condition.
So this is twice I've been pleasantly surprised and delighted with Kodak's customer service. This makes an EXCELLENT product all that much better!
14 2004 regrets
Buying this camera has taught me a very valuable lesson...NEVER buy an expensive camera unless you have used a friend's in a few different conditions! I am hugely disappointed with this camera. Unless you are in bright light and not using the zoom, it is virtually impossible to get a crisply in focus best resolution shot. Although I love the feel of the thing and the large view screen, I would not recommend it to anyone.
15 A Camera even for Non Camera People
This is a camera for everyone. It's easy to use- non techies can get. It has amazing quality for it's range, and options and zoom for price- good for photographers as well.
But what makes this camera so good? Is it possible that it is cheap (for it's type)? How about the 10x optical zoom? Great color? Great focus? All of the above, and more. The first thing you notice is the size. Not exactly very small, but nothing too big. Turn it around. HUGE display- better then on most cameras.
Turn it on. It's no speed demon, but it gets the job done fast enough for most people. When you take a picture, you'll notice the amazing focusing power this has, from 1x zoom to 10x zoom, from day to night. Next you'll notice superier quality and color. The colors on tihs camera, I kidd you not, blow away many cameras, including all competitors. When taking pictures, even on regular/auto mode, the camera picks the best settings for your picture to give you optimum quality, color, and focus. I can go on talking about it, but it still easily beats competitors in that area.
Next, you download the pictures onto a PC. A quick breeze, even if you have only USB1, and don't use Kodak's Easyshare. There's rarly a need to edit pictures, because more often then not, they come out amazing, even for an amatuer photographer.
The bottom line: I highly recommend this camera. It's easy to use, has great quality, and is an all around great camera. After using it, you will be comvinced in it. All the people so far who have used mine were very impressed, and went out and got it. I've had many cameras before this, yet this is my favorite by far. The only setback is the speed, although it's still pretty fast (against speed demon Konica Minolta Z3, it destroys it on everything except speed).
16 Kodak DX-6490
Before I bought this camera "refurbished" (slightly used but in appearance like new), I did quite a bit of research, including reading all the customer reviews on the Amazon website.
There are features to like about this camera. One is the large, easy-to-see LCD display. The second is the excellent layout of the controls, particularly the review and delete buttons.
The test of a good camera, though, is whether it accurately exposes in a variety of lighting conditions, and the DX-6490 does not. You can get excellent pictures with this camera some of the time if you are willing to make the effort to learn to use it, but I think it is flawed in two ways. First, it tends to overexpose in bright light and underexpose in dim light. Second, the image you see in the LCD display is not necessarily the image you get when you make the exposure.
It's true that you can dial in exposure compensation, but this is a nuisance if you have to do it often. Worse is that an image that in dim light appears correctly exposed on the LCD display will turn out to be dark or even invisible. You can use the flash, but I feel that what you see on the LCD display is what you ought to see when the exposure is made.
My first digital camera is a two-megpixel Olympus D-380. The exposures are excellent in virtually any kind of lighting. White balance is superior to that in the DX-6490, and I feel that color rendition is better too. I wanted a zoom lens, and I wanted higher resolution, but the various exposure flaws in the DX-6490 are a major disappointment to me.
Would I choose this camera again if I could choose? No. From now on I will buy a camera only if I have the option of returning or exchanging it if I do not like its performance.
17 This camera is incredible!!!
This is my third digital camera in five years. I take a lot of pictures, and this camera is the best I have ever used. I have owned this one for about four months and have used it in every lighting condition capturing great photos each time. The 10X optical zoom is wonderful. In good light with a steady hand even the 40X (10X optical by 4X digital) takes high-quality photos.
In low-light (without the flash), you will want to use a tripod or set the camera on a steady surface because the slow shutter speed will give result in a blurry picture. The manual settings give you the freedom and versatility to take pictures in all conditions.
If there is one thing that I would change it is the amount of time that it takes between pictures. It is better than most cameras, but the Kodak DX6490 is such a top-performer you will expect more.
It did not take me long to decide to purchase a 256 MB memory card for the camera. Without it, the camera holds about 15 pictures. With the card I have taken close to 200 pictures over a three-day outting and did not run out of memory or battery power.
The video mode is great too. It is much higher quality than I was able to capture with my Sony Mavica.
This camera takes great pictures, is easy to use, and will allow you to take professional quality photos with minimal effort. I highly recommend it!!!
18 THE best.
I've had several digital cameras over the past few years and this one is by far the best. I did lots of research before selecting the DX. I was looking through Consumer Reports magazine and noticed that this particular model is the best they tested in the 4MP group. The zoom is great, I took it to a basketball game and was able to take pictures of my friends way on the other side of the court.
19 Easily the best for the money.
First let me say that I'm an experienced 35mm photographer. Having used everything from an Exakta VX to Nikon N90s, and using a Canon EOS Elan IIe for the last several years, I didn't expect to find a digital that I could afford that I would be happy with. I saw this camera a while back at Wal-Mart, and looked at it because I thought it was an SLR. I was impressed by the price and the Schneider-Kreuznach lens, but a little disappointed that it wasn't really an SLR.
Last week, I found it on clearance at Staples for $100US less than it usually sells for elsewhere and bought it. I'm not sorry at all. In everything from convenience features to quality, I'm still thrilled. Pictures are sharp, properly-exposed, and colorful, just like they should be. The preview screen is the largest available, and excellent. The electronic viewfinder works well and is nearly as sharp as the screen on back. It's easy to use, takes great pictures, and is essentially silent if you turn off the ersatz "motor drive" sound.
Let me address the shortcomings mentioned by other reviewers.
1. Blur. Many people mention blurry pictures as a criticism of this camera. They probably don't mention that they were trying to handhold shots at full zoom. The lens is 38-380 equiv. in 35mm terms. I always used 1/focal length as a shutter speed guide. It would be bright conditions indeed for the camera to select 1/380 sec. The camera can shoot from ISO 80 to 400 with acceptable results, but 80 is by far the best and the camera does default to 80 if it possibly can make the shot that way. This might sometimes mean that you have a vivid picture that's motion-blurred. If you can keep a reign on trying to use more zoom than you have the hands for, you won't encounter blur. Also remember that focus precision is more important at longer focal lengths. It takes longer to focus when it's zoomed all the way out.
2. Bad night pictures. I've not encountered a camera that has a night mode that's better than I am. If you take over control of this camera, you can get great night pictures. I shot pictures of the stars last night, and they came out perfect. Most of that was because I knew to shoot on manual, bracket exposures, and have realistic expectations. No camera's automatic modes will let you shoot pictures like in National Geographic or the Neiman Marcus catalog.
3. Rechargable battery. Many people wish it used AA batteries so you won't be tied to a charger. Don't worry about it. It will shoot hundreds of pictures on one charge, so just remember to charge the battery after a long day of shooting. Big deal. I like that I won't have to buy AA batteries for it. The cost would add up.
4. Lack of "raw" image format. I havn't had a problem with this, and noone short of a real pro is likely to. It does store pictures only as JPG, but I havn't seen any problems one would normally associate with that. YMMV.
5. Slow movie framerate/noisy movies/no zoom in movie mode, etc. This is not a camcorder. The movie mode is like a freebie for me, and I recognize the reasons for these weaknesses. If you really want to shoot movies, buy a MiniDV camcorder instead. You'll be a lot happier with it.
6. Non-pocketable size. How could you possibly expect it to be much smaller?
7. Uncomfortable grip. I've got bear-paw hands, so it's not as comfortable as the meaty contour grip of my EOS. It's not the worst I've felt, but they could've gotten this a little better by adding a little more size to that end of the camera. I don't think that it would hurt anyone's feelings if that end were just a smidge larger. See #6
8. Controls. These are some of the best and most intuitive controls I've seen in a long time. However, it seems that way to me because they so closely mimic the controls on my EOS. I especially like the fact that the control dial is lighted. Expect to stumble through it a little if you aren't generally used to using versatile cameras, but you'll quickly find that it can do most of what you'd expect from a 35mm SLR and then some.
And now my own criticisms:
1. Software. Once I got it installed, it works flawlessly and easily. However, it required a service pack update to my Windows 2000 that gave me a BSOD and required a full reinstall. Ouch. That upset me a little, but I did fix it. That wasn't really Kodak's fault, but just be warned.
2. Power up takes a little longer than I would like, mostly because the lens folds itself into the body when the camera is powered down. It takes it about a second to reach shooting position. Once there, focusing and zooming do not change the length of the lens barrell.
3. Using "speeds" higher than ISO 140 gets grainy in a hurry. It looks remarkably like enlarging old high-speed film. Dark areas get a random blotchiness that averages to the right color, just like the Konica 3200 color print film used to. If you can stick to bright lights or the tiny flash. An external flash can be used for better range. Vivitar 283 fans, rejoice! It doesn't require a dedicated flash.
20 Great Camera!
I just upgraded to this camera and I have been very pleased with it's performance. I like the DX6490 because it is a nice even balance between "point & shoot" capability and added functionality for more adventurous photography. I also picked up a lens adapter which allows me to utilize filters and different types of lens. If you want a great camera that takes crisp, clean shots and has a variety of functionality, this camera is for you!
The only downside is that it is somewhat bulky but, it's very lightweight which makes up for it. I find it to be a nice compromise between a point & shoot and the large, very expensive digital slrs
21 The worst digital camera I have ever owened for this price
I had lots of problem with this digital camera. I am not new to digital camera so looks like I am not doing anything wrong. I owned my older kodak camera for about 4 years and that is much better than this one. Mainly the indoor picture quality is the worst. I called Kodak support and the answer was "that is the quality" that is it !! If you want little camera for the worth of the price $400, try something else
22 Excellent Digital Choice
I have owned this camera for almost 1 year. I love it! The picture quality is phenomenal. The pictures I print far surpass any I get from negatives at a store. It is very easy to use, but you can customize some of the settings to allow more flexibility, and the zoom is awesome. The only problem is the flash is not bright enough indoors with zoom feature. So you will need to invest in an external flash and as of yet kodak does not make one; so you must go with another brand. The lithium ion batteries hold a charge for a very long time. Lets just say I have never needed to use the 2 back up batteries I bought and I have used my camera for 200 pictures at a time and used many of the advanced features. You can't go wrong with this camera. It is larger than most cameras, so if you want a small, compact camera, find another one. Happy shopping and enjoy!
23 This review is VERY long and detailed.
My fiance and I are getting married in June and we wanted to make sure that we had a nice digital camera before the wedding so that we can document stuff leading up to the big day and honeymoon. We had seriously considered getting a less flashy camera and then save up for a nicer one for later on (with a big zoom etc...). We got this one for several reasons. If you are just interested in a "is it good or not?", my short answer is yes and it will be worth your money spent. If you would like a more detailed analysis, read on.
We were looking for a digital camera with lots of automatic functions, the ability to do things manually if we choose, and a nice zoom. We wanted four megapixels, not really more or less. It will be really rare for us to print any pictures larger than 4X6, but we wanted to be sure that we had the option of 8X10 (hence higher than 3.2 megapixel). The difference between a 4 MP and a 5MP camera as of 9/04 is about a hundred USD, so we decided that we didn't need to spend an extra hundred for one more megapixel. We are both biologists (me a teacher, she in environmental biology). It is really important for us to be able to zoom in when at a zoo or in natural areas. We ARE NOT professional photographers and are just getting into understanding manually setting the shutter speed, ISO etc.
We looked at the Canon S1 IS, the Panasonic FZ15 or FZ20, the Minolta Z series, and the Fuji E550. All of these, PLUS this camera (the KODAK DX6490) had cons that we didn't like. It really frustrates us that the current state of the digi cam market within our price range ($400 USD) does not have a combination of all the features we want. So, if you are shopping around, don't necessarily expect to find a camera that has all the features you want.
A brief list of the cons of the cameras above: Canon: only 3.2 megapixel and confusing menus, Panasonic: most of the features really great, but not available at any of the retail stores where we could get the no interest financing that we really needed, Minolta Z series: very small (1.5") LCD screens, Fuji E550: only 3X optical zoom, expensive picture cards, movie format is AVI, not quicktime. I'll give a detailed discussion of the pros and cons of the Kodak 6490 below.
Now, all of those cameras above are really nice cameras within that price range. The Panasonic and the Fuji E550 were top choices for a while. We did a lot of internet research into a lot of different cameras, some lacking zoom, some with, some in a much lower or higher price range. So, our choice was a choice of what we considered to be the best combination of what we wanted, not because the Kodak was unbelievably better than any of the others.
We have now had the camera for about a week and are very pleased with it. The camera is very easy to use in many ways. The buttons on the actual camera are obvious in terms of their use. It takes a very short read of a few pages of the manual to understand what the very few "not so obvious" buttons do. The menu navigation is incredibly simple. Every option selected has a message in the upper right hand corner of the screen telling you what that menu selection does. The screen has the capability of showing you a lot of info about your settings, or you can turn it off. The choice is nice. The software is also really easy to use. Its not like high quality software that you buy, but it does its job. The software is very similar to iPhoto, and unlike my version of iPhoto (which is very new), the Kodak software will find and catalog every picture on your computer. The other nice thing about the Easyshare system is that you can upload picture directory names (called albums) to your camera and then tag pictures with those album names so that your pictures will automatically be sorted to the directory you want. Today I noticed that the Easyshare software will "auto-detect" other digital cameras and download the pictures for you. This is a great aspect to those that have another digital camera with bad software. Olympus' software is horrible and it took me one tenth of the time to download my last pics from the old camera before I sold it to someone!
Feel free to read other reviews about the "share" button. It is a nice feature, but since I don't have an internet ready computer at home (only at work) and since I can't afford a nice photo printer (or even the Dock after buying this : ) ), the feature is kind of useless to me. It doesn't surprise me that Kodak has developed features to streamline photo printing, but you have to have the equipment to email, photo print, etc, and on my salary and with a wedding coming up I just can't afford those accessories.
This camera has an awesome zoom. I'll discuss more of the cons of a zoom this big later on during the "cons" section. The 10X is really nice and you can and should turn off the digital zoom as it reduces picture quality.
I really like that the camera allows you to select picture quality settings. You can save pictures as 4MP, 3.5MP, 2 MP or 1.1 MP. Each is good for different applications and is nice to be able to choose. A real bonus is that if you KNOW that a picture you are taking will only ever be printed in 4X6, you can reduce the quality to 3.5MP, still get photo quality printing, but save space on the memory card.
The movie mode with sound is great. It takes movies at 320X240 at 24 FPS (movie theatre frame rate is EXCELLENT), which is not big enough for a TV screen, but a great size for the computer. Honestly, if you want to take video and project it on your TV screen, I recommend just buying a digital camcorder. Movies are saved as Quicktimes. With my 512 MB card that I stuck in it, I can get 30 minutes. The movies are ultra smooth and the microphone picks up sound at a decent range. It's nice to be able to take some nice quality video, even if that is not the point of a digital camera.
This camera has the largest LCD currently available on the market at 2.2". Its great to have a big picture of what you just captured. On a quick side note, the camera does have an electronic viewfinder that you can look through and conserve battery power while still reviewing.
We have had the camera for a while and the picture quality looks good to me. I haven't printed anything yet so I can't really comment on that yet.
Probably one of the best features is the rechargeable Li battery. My previous camera (an Olympus D-380) had great battery life with CRV3 lithiums, but those batteries are $20 USD a piece! It is awesome to not have to buy separate batteries and will practically pay off the camera over the years. We have taken over 60 pictures so far with LCD on and with the flash and so far the battery is still going. The manual says to expect to get 160-210 pictures before you need a charge. I assume the 160 is if you use the LCD and flash every time. That's pretty good! I know spare batteries are available, but I have no idea what they cost. The battery charged up in just over 2.5 hours.
The camera has 16 MB of internal memory. Many people would say "Foul, it should have more memory than that!" I sympathize with this viewpoint but I think it is important to remember that most cameras don't even come with ANY internal memory. Having the internal memory allowed me to still play with the camera while saving money by buying a separate card online. SD/MMC memory are the more affordable memory types as well. CompactFlash and xD-picture cards are retail almost double the price at Best Buy. The manual only gives storage estimates up to 256 MB, but you can put any size card in it you want. My 512 MB card holds 384 pictures on highest quality. I plan to always split that between pictures and video.
The negatives of this camera are few. My first problem is that the images can look really blurry at 10X zoom. I haven't had many problems with taking pictures at 10X so far but they looked horrible when I tried it at Best Buy. I plan on getting a tripod. I hear this is a standard way of going about things for large zoom on ANY camera. The image stabilization that Canon and Panasonic have on the cameras mentioned above would make this one near perfect.
My fiancˇ does not like the "color enhancement" feature that is on the camera. Basically, the chip enhances all of the colors so they look really bright. My fiancˇ thinks that sometimes the pictures look unnaturally colorful as a result of this. You CAN turn this feature off by setting it to "neutral color", but you have to do this every time you turn on the camera. The manual claims there is a way that you can set it to PASM mode and always keep the "neutral color", but this is one of the very few things I haven't been able to figure out how to do. I personally don't think the color enhancement looks unnatural, but I also have really poor vision. I did a test with "saturated" and "neutral" color of my fiancˇ, and her lips look rosier with the color enhancement. I don't think they look freakishly rosy.
One minor gripe that could be fixed is that while in movie mode, you cannot use the zoom feature. You can set the zoom ahead of time and then capture the video, but some cameras (like the Canon S1 IS) allow you to zoom while shooting video.
I want to echo the reviewer above that the plastic door to the USB port looks like it will eventually break. Not a big deal, but worth noting.
One thing to note about digital cameras in general, is that different cameras have different chips that convert the optical image in the lens to digital pixels in a file. They are called CCDs (Charge Coupled Device) and have ratings of 1/some number. Basically, the lower the number, the smaller the pixels put in the file. The smaller the pixels, the more crisp the image. Most digital cameras on the market have a rating of 1/2.5. The DX6490 has that rating. Fuji has just finished some "super" chip that has a CCD of 1/1.7. That is the best we have been able to find in the $400 USD price range. So, the CCD on this Kodak camera isn't the best, but it is no different than most other cameras, and the pictures look fine.
I think that this is a great camera and a great product. The cons that I have mentioned are more annoyances than real problems. Kodak has just come out with a 5.0 MP version of this camera that may be worth checking out if you want higher resolution pictures. I would buy this camera again.
24 not the best digital camera I have used
Extreamly slow shutter speed, even on sports setting, hard to get a clear picture of active children, which was the point of buying it in the first place. thank God circuit city was kind and allowed me to exchange it.
25 I love my camera
I love my DX6490, I did so much research before buying it to go on holiday a few months ago. I am a rubbish photographer, but get great shots, my brother-in-law is a good one and gets awesome shots. It took a couple of days of slightly blurred pictures before I got a handle on how to use the camera, so I'd reccommend buying it a week or so before the big event! I also struggle with the zoom when it is right out, but am stunned by the results when I manage to get past the shake. I think that next time I'll go for a smaller zoom. The macro is fantastic. My inside shots became really good once I got into the habit of putting up the flash! I get frustrated by the fact that the manual is on disk, as I usually need to read it when I am away from my computer, but this would be my biggest gripe.
I now have hundreds of photos on my computer and can never decide which to use on my desktop, they all look really good.
26 solid digital camera at a great price
I truly loved my digital Elph. While this Kodak can't match the Elph's convenient size, our new Kodak EasyShare is awesome! My wife and I love the 10x zoom which blows away any comparably priced cameras. The viewer is huge. If you turn off the "preview" option, the camera can snap photos in pretty rapid succession. We bought the camera mainly to get better quality photos of our newborn baby, and its been more than adequate for that. Our camera came with the docking station too, but I don't really see that as any big asset. We would like the camera with or without the dock.
Complaints? The only real problem I've had with the camera is taking photos outdoors in bright sunlight. I've had a tough time seeing through the viewer (but I am probably doing something wrong in all honesty). I'm not a huge fan of the wheel that turns the camera on and changes modes, just a minor complaint. And, again, I wish the camera was a little bit smaller.
27 The best 4 MP digital Camera.
I have read everyone's review before writing mine.
Plus Points
1. Price is good considering 10X OPTICAL zoom.
2. Quality of Close up pictures under bright/low light are EXCELLENT in Color and detail.
3. Video capability is very good and useful.
4. Great LCD. I always love bigger LCD. (Luck me, I have Samsung Camcorder with very large LCD)
5. Compact and looks good
6. Very user friendly.
Minus Points
1. Does't capture good photos in dark. May be that's the case with other cameras too.
2. Hand-shake during photo spoils the photo.
Before buying this camera on Amazon checkout if they provide the docking station that's useful for recharging and transfering photos to your computer with one touch.
- regards
Rajesh Kamisetty
28 Great Mid-Priced Digital Powerhouse
The Kodak DX6490 is an amazing camera to use. For the price, far below other hi-end digital cameras such as Nikon and Canon, you get fine pictures, excellent control, features that allow you to treat the DX6490 like an old-fashioned SLR, and an effective lens whose clarity astonished me.
From the hugh LCD readout, the the pop-up flash, I found the DX6490 easy to use. Unlike older digital cameras, the DX6490 has little lag time between the shutter button and the exposure.
I found that when I set my ISO manually to 400, I could take pictures I only dreamed about with my older DC3400, capturing watersplashes, tightly focused portraits, and usable digital video.
I bought a Kodak SD 256 card to go with the camera, having learned my lesson with my old 8 card for my DC3400. Of course, the DX6490 has an interal drive so you could use the camera without a card if need be.
I was shocked pleasantly when I got home after a day of shooting and plugged my card into my computer and opened the pictures in Photoshop CS. I was thrilled by the detail, the range of lighting, the excellent contrast, and the work of the manual mode which froze motion like the best old Nikon.
Some weak points: I am now tied to the Li-On battery instead of easily availible and cheap AA batteries. Expect to use a tripod to get a sharp picture using the portrait mode and the 10X zoom together (but any serious photographer would expect the same from any camera). The Camera is consumer oriented, with built in album naming and email capability which I know people might use. I would have prefered more battery power for extended use.
On the whole, this is fine camera for a great price. I bought mine at Wal-Mart and I paid less for the DX6490 than any of the advertised prices on Amazon. Anyone interested in a controllable digital camera without taking out a second mortgage will find themselves more than pleased with the DX6490. How good is this camera? My wife forgave me for buying it when she saw the pictures.
29 A must for sport fans.
I purchased this camera as an upgrade to another digital Kodak I picked up about 2 years ago. I loved the idea of the zoom & sports setting, because I attend many professional wrestling events a year. It's nice to be able to snap photos of my wrestling heroes in action & this camera allows it w/no blurring. Lighting @ the events is minimal, but every shot came out perfect when I used the flash setting. It is *so* simple to use it's unreal.
I recommend picking up the largest SD capture card you can find. I use a 512mb SD card & it holds around 350 photos in the highest quality. I'm waiting for the SanDisk Ultra II 1GB card to come out, that'll be my next "upgrade". Ultra has one of the fastest write speeds available & my dad has a Ultra CF for his Canon camera, it makes the unbearable "pause" time between photos vanish, so I look forward to buying that when it comes out in a few months.
I picked up the EasyShare Printer along w/the camera & have already printed 50+ photos. The photos print crisp, clear, & look like they came from a professional lab. I highly recommend it along w/the camera, you'll love it. The prints come out *beautiful* when printed @ any size.
My only worry was that the Printer refill packages would cost a lot more than taking the photos to the store for printing, but they cost around 30 cents a photo which is even better than most online printing sources.
Just as I thought I couldn't live w/out my other Kodak, I have no idea how I'll live w/out this one.
30 good quality
I am happy with my camera. However, I was VERY disappointed and surprised that the ad claimed to have a dock included in the box, which was one of the reasons I bought this item. That claim has since been removed.
31 Great Camera
Bought this camera a month ago, and it is definately one of the best digital cameras, especially for its price. The quality of the pictures that this camera takes really pushes the limit of a 4 megapixel camera, and takes analog quality pictures.
32 Blur pictures in low light and full zoom
You like the LCD size and res. , It uses SD which is great, but a camera is judged based on its picture quality according to its features, every camera is good in good light and low zoom (like up to 4X) but this one fails to perform at its 10X zoom unless a tripod is used.
I would not recommend it, currently there are a number of good zoom cameras with added features to compensate for long zoom, hand shake and low light conditions.
33 Wonderful Camera
This camera has almost all the features someone would need in a camera. Where to start...okay lets start with the aesthetics. I chose this camera for its size, looks, and the way it felt in my hands. The camera looks like its ready to work and its size is big enough not to misplace but not too big that I wouldn't want to carry it. I also bought it for the different shooting modes (including the manual modes). There's the auto mode where the camera does all the work, the sport modes for action shots (I needed that for I have a 2 yr old), the portrait mode, the night mode and last but not least the P.A.S.M (manual) modes. There are three other features that can be used with each mode: close up, landscape, and burst. The Easyshare feature makes it easy to get the pictures from the camera to computer at the touch of a button. You can also designate what pictures you want to send in e-mail before you even transfer them to your computer. The LCD screen was the biggest and best on the market at that time (2.2 inch, high def). You can view your pics no matter what kind of light you're in. The pictures come out great if you let the camera do its job. Most of my pictures are frame-worthy and the colors are great. You can also set the color mode too. Plus the electronic viewfinder eliminates the image parallax problems, what you see is what you get...no chopped off heads!!! There are so many other features that I won't mention because this review is getting too long.
As wonderful as this camera is, it is not without its flaws. The 4 megapixels can limit the size you can enlarge your pictures. There is no image stabilization at max zoom (not a major flaw as long as you let the camera focus on the subject). You can't adjust the JPEG compression (the new DX series camera have that option). Slow auto-focus in low light (sometimes has trouble focusing in very low light even with the flash operating if subject is a good distance away). All the flaws are defeatable if you take the time and learn the camera. Practice...Practice...Practice!!!
All-in-all a wonderful product. If Kodak goes back and addresses the flaws AND contain the price point it would definately have the camera to beat. Put it like this...I would buy the new version in a heart beat.
34 case for the DX 6490
There is a Kodak case made for the 6490. You can see it, under 'accessories' on the Kodak website. Cost is around $23 and it fits the camera perfectly (you remove the insert...it even has a little padded back to protect the viewing screen!). The case also has a special space for BOTH addtl. battery and SD card. Recommend getting the case. Very nicely made. Gives peace- of-mind to have it fit perfectly.
35 Exceeded my expectations. EASY!
OK, I've had the camera for a week, but took it to an important family party last weekend and shot about 80 photos--different modes, light, etc. Then took it to WalMart Kodak Picture Maker machine and got 2 CDs made, some enlargements and lots of 4x6s. This camera is wonderful. I did a lot of research before buying. It's true, you can use this camera "out of the box." The clarity (resolution) is so good, it's almost too good. With the 10x optical zoom, I'm seeing (in the prints) veins on flowers, imperfections on human skin, every last detail! I didn't even realize it also gives you the option of "dialing down" to lower megapixels if you want to save space, and the lower resolution also produced beautiful pictures. I bought a 256 MB memory card so don't have to worry about running out of room. The "burst" mode worked great for action shots. The video mode worked great. I haven't had a chance yet to try the manual mode, but it's nice to have that option. Check out the other features I'm not even mentioning here (slide show on TV, for example). Some reviews on other web sites voiced concerns about battery life. I shot pictures over several hours, with the LCD viewfinder on, plus shot a short video clip with the camera, and never ran out of battery power. I've shown the results to people who know a lot more about photography than I and they were impressed. I even enlarged one photo to 8x10 to be hung on the wall, it is so clear, light-balanced, artistic (I didn't even try that hard!) etc. And remember, this was my first time out with this camera! I've already sold two other people on this camera, after seeing my pictures. I can't think of any negatives (no pun intended), other than I am still trying to find the right camera case for this. I had used my daughter's Easyshare on a previous vacation, and was impressed with the ease of use. I upgraded to this camera specifically for the 10x optical zoom, it was worth the extra money. Did I mention this is a great camera?? Buy, and enjoy!
