Kodak EasyShare C340 5MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom
By: Kodak Average Rating: 3.5 Total Reviews: 61
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 On: 2008-05-14
This is an awesome camera!!! That pretty much sums everything up. Great picture quality with different settings for wherever you might be taking pictures. I would definitly recommend this camera to all.
 On: 2008-03-19
I am sooo disappointed. I loved this camera and the docking station when I first got it and actually up until recently. This camera did well for me for about two years with intermittant use. I cannott take pics with it anymore however. Unfortunately I discovered that it quit working on my daughters fourth birthday. The pictures ALL come out dark no matter what I do. The batteries do not last more than a day or two. This goes for regular AAs and rechargeable. I could go on and on. I hope the newer models of this camera are better and last longer. I am going with an entirely different camera altogether.
 On: 2008-03-03
Our family bought three Kodak C340 cameras a couple of years ago. This is a summary of our experience with them. Overall rating: Wish wed chosen something else.
Pros: Picture quality is OK for our uses.
Cons:
* While the camera has a USB interface (with cable supplied) it is NOT recognised as a standard mass storage device, so your options are to either install the horribly bloated, insultingly dumbed down and inflexible Easyshare software (which wouldnt even work on one of our older PCs), or, you can buy a flash card reader. Which is what I did.
Ill never buy another camera that requires any special software on the PCs its used with. I just want to transfer the image files to where ever I want to put them in my filesystem, on any PC, with minimum fuss.
* Astonishingly, when the camera is plugged into the USB cable, it is still running off batteries. If they go flat during image transfers, file corruption can result. Also, this means you cant use the camera to take photos while plugged in thus saving battery life and allowing lengthy use. Another reason its best to just use a flash card reader.
* Fragility, poor reliability. Of our three cameras, two are now broken and unusable. The third is still OK, due to hardly ever being used. The broken two had similar histories - minor knocks broke the miniscule plastic retaining tabs on the battery cover (causing endless nuisance improvising ways to hold the cover on), and later both cameras just suddenly stopped working. On power-up, the status LED blinks a few times (presumably some error code, no mention of which in the manual), then goes dead. Screen remains black.
* Battery life (or rather, lack of it.) As many have commented, this camera chews batteries. It takes two AAs, and with even the best non-rechargables you wont be filling up a 256MB flash card on one set of batteries. Youll be lucky to get 30 pictures. If you want to save money and use rechargables, youll get even less shots per charge, since rechargables batteries are typically 1.2V, compared to alkalines 1.5V. The camera seems to have a fairly high threshold for dead, and so on rechargables this camera conks out well before the battery is actually flat. For this factor alone, Ill never buy another cheap Kodak camera.
* However, of all the cameras features, the most infuriating and unacceptable is the selector knob. Some Kodak product designer needs to be fired for this. (Or shot.) The knob has unbelievably weak detents - it rotates between OFF and the various modes at a feather touch. Since the knob sticks up on the top of the camera, this means that no matter how careful you are when it is being carried (even in a camera bag) it will get switched on accidentally. Often. This combined with the extremely short battery life, means that if you want to be sure to get pictures, you have to carry _several_ spare sets of batteries.
Overall, our experience with these was rather disappointing. Sure, they were relatively low cost, but to have two out of three die so quickly, seems very poor. We wont be buying Kodak again.
 On: 2008-01-25
Purchased this camera for a grandchild (12 yrs old) and its perfect for him. It makes great pictures and is easy to use . However, video quality is standard and ,didnt come with a charger.. but, I would recommend this for a beginner its perfect and price is reasonable...
On: 2007-12-14
I purchased this camera a year ago. I have found more and more things wrong with the camera and am so disgusted with it that I am buying a different one. My brother and I both have the same cameras (Christmas gift from our parents) and he is experiencing the same problems. It is not just my camera that seems to have these problems!
First, the flash is VERY bright. I am constantly having to turn off the flash and turn on a room light just to get a decent picture. If I leave the flash on, his eyes are half-closed and he looks drunk. If I do not have the flash on, then the pictures are too dark. Ive tried ALL the 4 or 5 setting for the flash and none of them correct this problem! I also frequently get red-eyes in my pictures even when Im using the red eye flash!
Second, the batteries! I have the WORST time with the batteries for this camera! They die within ONE day for me! I dont even have to have the camera turned on and it is dead the next time I try to use it! I switched from using the rechargeable batteries to the regular AA batteries just so I can depend on my camera to turn on when I want a quick picture of my son. The AAs drain SO fast that I go through (literally) 3-4 sets of batteries in a given month and I do NOT take that many pictures. My brother has the same camera and he has experienced the same problems!
Third, the dock! Most of the time I have to fiddle with the dock and have the camera tilted in just the right position to get the dock to recognize that the camera is attached to it. It often turns off, even in the middle of transferring pictures. I have tried 4-5 different power outlets, and the dock acts the same way in each of them.
Fourth, the picture quality only deteriorates! When I first received the camera the pictures were of adequate/good quality. However, now ALL of them are blurry! Every single one that I take is blurry whether Im moving or not, whether the target of the picture is moving or not, and even when using the camera function (sports, I believe) that is supposed to account for movement. None of it works now and every picture is very blurry.
Today was the last straw with this camera. I put new batteries in it just yesterday since I knew that I would be taking pictures of my son today. I went to turn it on, and it did NOTHING! I tried 5 or 6 times to turn it on and it did nothing. I eventually changed the batteries, and tried to turn it on on a different setting, and it still did nothing. I finally brought the camera in to show it to my husband and it finally turned on after he tried a couple of times to turn it on.
In sum, this camera has many problems and it only gets worse as the camera gets older. I would have expected much better quality on a camera that is about $100. My camera is approximately one year old and has been performing very, very, very poorly for at least the last 6 months, starting to have problems for at least 9 months, and only worked well for about 2-3 weeks after I got it. Save yourself the time and money and dont buy this camera. I am buying a more expensive one and hoping for better luck!
On: 2007-12-13
Had this Kodak Easyshare C340 for about 1 year. I just want a camera to take pictures. It does this well. It is easy to use. I am not really experienced, this is my first digital camera. I use rechargeable batteries and they last a good amount of time, have never died in the middle of an event or anything. Overall happy with this purchase.
On: 2007-11-27
I upgraded from a 2 megapixel camera to this one, and its a great camera. Easy to use, great battery life (with rechargable) and very durable. Ive had it a couple years now and have taken tens of thousands of pics.
On: 2007-11-26
I upgraded from a 2 megapixel camera to this one, and its a great camera. Easy to use, great battery life (with rechargable) and very durable. Ive had it a couple years now and have taken tens of thousands of pics.
On: 2007-08-04
I bought this camera for my mother at Christmas. She is a person who needs something VERY simple to operate, and it worked out very well for her. The display screen is not huge, but its large enough for her average eye-sight.
Learning to take, review and delete photos was very quick for her. It took a lesson or two for her to learn how to download the images onto her computer.
Im also impressed with the quality of the images. A nice, simple camera to carry around for any ocassion.
 On: 2007-07-05
I have marginal experience with this product. Ive owned it around 18 months and had mixed results.
Overall Ease of Use:
So long as it turns on, its more or less point and shoot. No worrying about depth of field, aperture, etc, just aim and push the button.
A lot of people will talk about the different settings it has... action, close-up, etc. Its all crap. None of these exotic sounding features ever work like theyre supposed to. For example, if you ever try to take a photo of a sunset or thundercloud, you will be very upset, because this camera doesnt understand when you want it to work like a plain old normal camera and not try to bump up the exposure. So if you do try, you end up with a well exposed foreground, and a background that is pale and washed out.
Also, the cameras sensor produces drastically different pictures depending which angle you have it aimed.
If you think you see cool clouds, the cameras sensor wants to blow things out, so to get them to look good, you must hold the camera at a bizarre angle that lets the proper amount of light in.
Reliability:
Low. If your Kodak batteries arent just charged 5 minutes ago, you have about 20 shots you can take before its drained. Then again, I went to a wedding and wanted to take some snapshots. I put some relatively fresh batteries in, put it in my pocket, and then found out I had accidentally turned it on and the batteries were dead. No Auto-Off there or anything, so my girlfriend and I hope we everyone elses pictures turned out well.
General Picture Quality:
Depends... mediocre to bad. As everyone says, if youre in a low lighted room, youre screwed... unless you use flash, when you can be screwed because the camera loves to overexpose when you use flash. Ive noticed if you go into the menu and manually turn down the low light compensation you can get your pictures to look better. Even in this situation, the flash has a tendency to give everything in the room the same amount of light, annoyingly flattening the image.
If youre lucky enough to be in a bright situation, you STILL have to be careful, as the camera seems to have a nack for picking up a lot of UV haze. Youll take a picture and then wonder why everything is so friggin foggy. Additionally, you will also remark aloud of this when you try to view a picture at its full 5 megapixel resolution.
I still have to experiment a bit with the ISO adjustments that can be made to the camera (which sounds like a pretty good amount of control to have for such a dinky camera), but almost all pictures taken with this camera have a ridiculous amount of grain and fog. It just looks like youve zoomed in 200% on a 2.1 mp photo. Its my opinion that the cameras CCD provides its best output when you save your pictures at 2.1mp.
As a matter of fact, one of the best pictures Ive ever taken in my life is the result of this camera at 2.1mp. Lit from the side with ambient light, it was perfect.
Video Function:
Like gritty 8mm footage, but not so smooth. My cameras mic distorts on high frequencies too now, so that anytime I record voice, it makes me sound like I have a lisp. This is fun for birthday cake blowing out footage, but I cant imagine ever wanting to record anything important with it.
Included Software:
Installed it once and regretted the hassle it made every time I wanted to look at my photos. With my new computer, I just use the Windows software.
Included Printer:
Never used it. It makes a lovely charger though.
Overall Opinion:
This camera, if youre looking for snapshots and willing to sift through to find the goodies is good. Its not consistent, but if youre lucky and careful, you CAN make some gems with it. Those looking for crystal clear resolution, spend more money, maybe get a Canon or a Nikon... youll be happier in the end.
For more artistic control for less money, go out and buy a film SLR for 50 bucks at a pawn shop. Get a photo CD made when you develop your film.
On: 2007-05-27
This product is wonderful, wonderful..So easy to use, dont need a computer, portable, so handy for vacation use,
The price was very resonable, and the quality excellent.. I will be purchasing another one very soon..
On: 2007-05-25
I bought my Kodak Easyshare C340 a little over a year ago, and have been using it primarily as a tool for photos I upload to my website (see link in my Amazon profile for photos taken with this camera).
For an occasional user like me (1 - 2 photo sessions a month), Ive found the C340 to be a great choice. It is easy to use, and the supplied software works well. It takes great quality photos with good detail and color. Ive found it works well indoors and outdoors, in both low light and bright light situations. It is adequate for close-up work and works very well for family gatherings and landscape shots.
The 1GB SD card supplied with the camera is good for my particular needs, and the cameras optical + digital zoom works well.
My two complaints about the camera are:
First, the batteries seem to go dead rapidly, even if the camera is turned off and not being used. I can count on needing new batteries with almost every photo session. It uses up batteries much faster than competng units Ive seen in the same price range, or in higher price ranges.
Second, in high-light or low-light situations, it is almost impossible to see anything useful in the digital viewer: the viewer is very washed out or very dark (even though you can be reasonably certain the final image will turn out well).
At the time I bought this unit, I felt it was the best quality unit available in its price range. Overall, I have been very satisfied with it and have no problems recommending it to others looking for a good, inexpensive and easy to use camera. 4 stars!
On: 2007-02-22
Have had the camera about 1 year now & I LOVE it. It takes every good pictures. Bought the camera dock later but I LOVE that to. The printer dock prints out the pictures every good.
Going to Vegas this year so I will be taking alot of pictures with the camera
On: 2007-01-11
I purchased this for my daughter since I had already had purchased one for myself. The pictures are clear and crisp. If I had to buy another I would purchase the same.
On: 2007-01-10
This camera is really simple to use and takes great quality pictures (considering the low price).
Compared to other digitals though, it is rather bulky.
I HATE the Kodak easyshare software. It is huge and always is always popping up and trying to force extra features on me. And it is sooooo slow. I just bypassed all that and simply drag and drop the photos from my computer to the Cdrive. Simple.
Its a good buy for casual photographers who happen to carry large bags.
On: 2007-01-10
The is a good product for the price. As a first time purchaser of digital cameras or any camera for that matter, I found this product extremely easy to use. Any questions or concerns that I had was answered in the manual that came with the product. Assembling the printer dock was also easy and the quality of the printed pictures is extremely good.
My only concern with this camera is that is does not take good pictures inside after hours. The pictures tend to come out dark and with lots of red eye. More than likely, there is a way to fix this, but I just have not figured it out yet. The package did not include a battery charger, so you may want to purchase that separately as well as additional chargeable batteries. Adapters can be purchased directly from Kodak. There was none at Wallmart when I checked. In fact, they referred to me Kodak.
If you are a first time camera user like myself, this is a good product to buy. As you grow in this skill, you may want to buy something else. There are several features on this camera that I have not yet examined. Who knows, it may very well be useful for professionals as well.
Overall, this is a good product. The software that comes with the package is easy to install and makes sharing pics and composing albums fun. Kodak also provides support for problems.
On: 2007-01-03
Loved this camera the first month or so that I owned it. Two years later my feelings are very different. Batteries need to be recharged constantly. Camera rarely turns on after being off its dock for more than an hour. All I can get is a flashing red light signifying that the batteries are dying. Zoom is worthless, pictures turn out very blurry and pixelated. Flash is also way too bright, half of my pictures are annoyingly "white" looking because of this. Definitely going with Canon on my next purchase.
On: 2007-01-02
I bought my Kodak C340 after dropping my previous Kodak in the ocean, buying an Olympus, and then coming back to Kodak. My previous Kodak was a great camera and perfect for my needs - family photos, eBay, and an occasional creative endeavor like a greeting card. I have had this camera for around a year and a half and have been really disappointed. The photos are generally good quality, but there are several major drawbacks. First, the camera eats batteries like crazy. Be prepared to change batteries constantly. Second, the printer dock works sporadically - sometimes it will not recognize the computer and everything needs to be shut down and restarted. The printer dock is also very "plastically" feeling - insubstantial - and the ink and printer paper are pricey. I have gone back to getting my photos through an online retailer. Last, the camera can take awhile to power up - and sometimes wont power up at all, even if the batteries are relatively fresh. The warning light just flashes red then shuts down. This has cost me more than a couple great pictures. This is an okay camera - not great - I am currently online looking for a replacement camera and would not buy this model again.
On: 2006-12-21
Ive had this camera for almost a year. Its a good camera as far as picture quality is concerned. Its also very basic; no real features other than multiple scenes (beach, night, party, etc). This camera also eats batteries like they are going out of style. I have never gone through so many. It seems like every time I turn around, whether Ive been using the camera or its been sitting in the case, Im changing the batteries. My co-worker has the same problem with his Kodak. My next camera is going to be a Canon Powershot.
If youre looking for a basic camera to use occasionally then this is a good piece of equipment. But if you are always taking pictures then I suggest you keep looking because you dont want your camera to die right in the middle of a shot.
On: 2006-11-06
The camera is nice and the features are quite user friendly, but the camera chews through batteries like theres no tomorrow. Id recommend perhaps a Canon or a Sony.
by: Anonymous On: 2006-11-02
I bought the camera and picture printer for my 9-year old grandson. He quickly mastered it and is taking beautiful pictures with minimal supervision. The only problem is that the paper and ink kits are expensive,
On: 2006-10-03
This camera is fantastic! When I compare printed photos from this camera with other 5MP cameras, I find the quality superior. The battery lasted for a week in the Bahamas with no recharge and several hundred pictures taken (just follow the directions and use the proper batteries!!) The printer dock is easy to use and prints very nice quality pictures fairly quickly. The cost is about $0.30 per print, but a great deal if your looking for high quality prints immediately! I think this camera is great!!
On: 2006-09-04
This camera is fine for simple outdoor photography, but anything overcast, in motion or requiring any variation of focus will yield a disappointing outcome. This camera is all but useless indoors--I certainly regret having taken it with me to Europe this summer, it was not worth its weight in luggage.
On: 2006-08-19
This camera is very easy to use and the printing dock is also easy to use. The color and clarity of the pictures is very good. I like the idea of having my picture right away and not have to use the computer.
On: 2006-08-03
I love the compact camera and printer. We just returned from a trip to canada. Took 1300+ pictures all were great. The zoom is super and the printer doc works great. We also bought the camera bag for this too. This is a must have if you travel alot. The only thing I can say on the down side is... we had to buy a memory card...one didnt come with the camera. But hey...we cant have everything can we. I purchased a 2gig card and have enough room for 4000 pictures. GREAT CAMERA & PRINTER DOCK!!!
On: 2006-07-25
I really dont understand all the negative reviews on this camera. I got it mainly to use for EBAY and it is working just fine. As for the battery door issue, its not a problem since I have the dock to charge the battery pack and it stays in the camera.I was able to take nice pictures right out of the box and have already posted several on EBAY. All in all, Im pleased with my Kodak C340.
On: 2006-07-25
I got this set-up for my mom and sister to use. they are not too technical, but Kodak knows how to design an easy camera system with no computer even required. easyshare is a perfect for the non-techie. for regular sized prints, just touch a button. the printer charges the battery, too. if you hook the printer to a computer, you can even send e-mail with a few clicks. take the camera to any photo store for larger prints. the colors are great (kodaks strong point) and the little printer is lots of fun. unlike an inkjet, the prints come out dry and because a clear coat is put on them, they do not smear or fade.
a great simple system.
**i own the Kodak P880--currently Kodaks top of the line model--and like the products they put out. i truly believe this is a great system for the person who wants quality snapshots and an easy way to print. The V570 is also good for someone who likes panoramics--it stitches together up to three shots in camera. the V610 is the smallest 10x zoom and also does in-camera panoramics. best of luck!
On: 2006-06-06
I like the c340 for its user friendliness. It has a slight problem with the control knob rotating too easy which results in the turning on in the case or when taking in or out.
The real problem is that camera died 1/2 year after the purchase (used just slightly ~100 shots). Though it wasnt that easy to find the phone number, Kodak service line was quite friendly so far. Camera was mailed for service. I will update!
Update: Kodaks warranty turn-around was great! Camera was repaired and DHLed to me in 4 days. All took less than 10 days.
They have a nice service-tracking site too.
On: 2006-06-05
I like the c340 for its user friendliness. It has a slight problem with the control knob rotating too easy which results in the turning on in the case or when taking in or out.
The real problem is that camera died 1/2 year after the purchase (used just slightly ~100 shots). Though it wasnt that easy to find the phone number, Kodak service line was quite friendly so far. Camera was mailed for service. I will update!
Update: Kodaks warranty turn-around was great! Camera was repaired and DHLed to me in 4 days. All took less than 10 days.
They have a nice service-tracking site too.
On: 2006-05-29
I purchased my Koday digital camera and it was fine - until it stopped working while I was at a quilt show. The lens stuck in the on position and nothing I tried would retract the lens. After a few minutes it turned off and now it cant be turned back on. I had pictures in the memory and there was no way to retrieve them.
I called customer service and all they were interested in was selling me another camera at around half the original price. They also wanted me to pay shipping to and from their office at around [...] each way.
Buy the camera if you feel adventurous but beware that you probably will not be able to get service when you need it most.
Also forget about buying the docking port - it is very expensive to print from it... both the paper and the ink cartridges. Its way cheaper to use your color printer and buy photo paper.
On: 2006-05-02
I maintain a car dealerships website so having a good, dependable camera is very important. This camera was purchased by someone who is no longer here. If you want a reliable camera that takes decent shots, dont buy this camera. I carry this camera in a bag and it always turns itself on so the batteries get wasted. It doesnt always turn on the first time you switch it on. You have to switch to a special mode to get a decent close-up shot. It cant handle shots in dim lighting so unless its really sunny out or a really well-lit room, forget about using this camera. Colors dont always appear right. Bright reds sometimes turn out looking orange which isnt good if youre selling a bright red car. In my humble opinion, Canon is the way to go.
On: 2006-04-26
I am very happy with this purchase in basically every respect. Pictures are of very good quality, the screen, buttons, battery door and memory chip door are fine (the latter of which is of a bad design on the C330), although this is not of the build quality of my old $600 SLR camera, if you are taking 100 shots a day you wont be spending only $155 on a camera will you? Another $100 gets you better build quality but not necessarily a better, easier to use camera. This camera has a decent sized glass lens and enough zoom to cover the 3 lenses I had with my SLR, 35mm to 102mm. The lens has a built in auto lens cover. 2 Ni-metal AAs gets me through more than a days worth of vacation shooting, at least 50 with the screen on all of the time (then I recharge every evening, so cant tell you how many per charge.) Both the view finder and the screen show the zoom.
I administer a small computer network and I deal with complicated computer issues sometimes, which is another reason I like this camera and the software, its so simple you hardly need a manual for it, and that makes it fast to learn and fast to use.
Technically speaking, this camera has quite good exposure latitude, being able to turn a dusk photo into a daylight looking one, when on a tripod. Exposure compensation is broad, if you like to play with that, and the various exposure modes will cover all of the situations for normal and travel photography, enough for any one who doesnt require a full manual capable SLR. The shutters maximum speed is well over 1/1000 sec. This camera like all consumer digi cams has a lag before firing the shutter, but it is much quicker than my 2 MP Olympus, this C340 laging no more than 1 sec., and usually much less, according to the daylight situations I usually shoot in.
Unless you plan on making large prints, eg 10 x 16 on a regular basis, or shooting in volume, this is plenty of camera. Frankly if you need more camera than this one, youd know that already.
The Kodak software is very good and very easy to use and learn, and has many practical features.
This camera can act as a camcorder and it has replaced my analog camcorder. I get 45 mins of video (with 2 gig memory) at full resolution (640 x 480) with audio and the camera plays back the video with the audio! The quality of video doesnt match a true camcorder but this it is so great and simple having both in one, I dont mind. No more $7 tapes to buy and I can edit the films on my laptop.
Now can they put a phone into it?
On: 2006-04-24
I strongly dislike this camera. The flash is sooo bright that all of the pictures of my child come out making her look drunk, with her eyes halfway open. I have tried every setting and nothing works. I emailed Kodak customer service and they said the brightness of the flash is an inherent property of the camera and theres nothing they are willing to do to help me. Great company, huh? This is the WORST camera I have ever owned. I am going back to using my old, cheap, HP digital camera. Even though its only 2 or 3 mp at least Ill get normal pictures.
On: 2006-04-19
I have a different model Kodak camera, however they all use the same EasyShare software. Running Windows XP, I could not get the software to work properly. After several hours on the phone with Kodak tech support, they couldnt get it working either. They said they are aware of the problem on some computers running Windows XP. It is now several weeks later and they still dont have a fix. They dont really seem to care either.
It might not be a bad idea to consider other brands, instead of Kodak. Since, if the software wont work properly, then what good is the camera?
On: 2006-04-19
I have found 2 flaws, one that I had read about and hoped would be solved fairly easily, that is the poor (seriously poor) battery life. Since I did not get the dock (bought the camera in Istanbul, Turkey), the camera came with just "start-up" batteries, AA, which is a convenient idea. But the batteries died after I played with the camera and had taken just 38 pictures and a 14 second video. Next I went through 2 Duracell batteries with 55 pictures taken. Then went on to nearly use up 2 more the same day.
The second problem is that unless you use the LCD screen to set up the pictures, you cant use the digital zoom range for images that are really far away. Only the optical zoom range is viewable through the viewfinder. As well, without using the LCD screen, B&W, Sepia effects are not viewable through the viewfinder. If you have the color settings changed to B&W, the image in the viewfinder is color but when you take the picture the image is B&W. Of course a lot of cameras are now coming out without viewfinders at all, and I prefer to use the LCD screen typically, but sometimes you NEED to use the viewfinder.
The LCD screen itself is OK, some reviewers had said it was small and did not display images so that you could tell if a picture was crisp or not, but even our Nikon Coolpix E5700 is that way and I think the screen is OK. Some reviewers had suggested upgrading to the Easy Share C360, noting that a larger LCD screen was the only difference in the 2 models.
I am very pleased with the speed at which the camera operates. I can whip it out and turn it on and take a picture spontaneously without waiting for more than 5 seconds. The camera has a fast recovery time, both without and with flash, but the recovery time does lag a little with some multiple settings, for example; longer recovery for macro plus flash. The menu is very functional and user friendly without having read the manual.
**OK I have been using the camera for 3 weeks now and have one last complaint or two. This camera has a serious case of "Objects in mirror appear further than they really are." This means that in order to take a photo that will appear as the true distance from the camera, you have to use the zoom, otherwise the picture looks like it was taken from WAY further away than it really was. Thus, when you use the digital zoom for objects that are really far away, the picture quality is less. I am going to guess that this is because of the size of the camera and its components.
I am really struggling with close-ups using the macro and actually the Kodak Easy Share CX6330 with 3.1 MP did a better job with it. By the way, you CAN use flash with macro, but you have to set the flash manually.
I have switched to the Kodak Ni-MH Rechargeable batteries, since I went through 7 sets of AA batteries in less than a week of having the camera. With the new batteries, I have been able to take about 200 pictures (in a matter of a few days) AND get them uploaded each time without having the batteries die. I was recently out for 4 hours in Istanbul taking lots of random shots, turning the camera on and off, using the LCD screen, playing with the settings, took over 100 photos and the "Low battery" indicator has yet to appear, so I am very pleased with the switch.
I am not much into video, but the video quality is really nice when the lighting is good. You cant use digital zoom for video. The audio is pretty good too providing that the object you want to hear is fairly close to the camera. If a person is standing 6 feet away and speaking clearly, you will get decent audio and very good video. My results from video of scenery at varying distances without using zoom are very good. I have taken video while driving, and just standing and taking panoramic video of my surroundings and both have given great results. You can shoot video in "continuous mode" or set the camera to take 5, 15, or 30 second video. The latter is great feature if you want to share videos on the internet with family and friends without having to think about whether or not you have just taken a very long video and not having to worry about long upload times.
Overall, for this being a "point and shoot" camera, it does its job pretty well as long as the battery issue is resolved. I have taken some really nice quality photographs (some I consider my all-time favorite photos) with the camera already. The owners manual tips for prolonging the battery life (not using the LCD screen as viewfinder, not reviewing your pictures using the LCD screen) are great but you cant adequately utilize the camera features without using the LCD screen, thus draining the batteries. Its kinda hard to accept those tips and expect great pictures since so much of trying to capture great images is trial and error. Also note that the manual says that Battery performance is reduced at temperatures below 41?F.
On: 2006-04-03
I would give this camera 0 stars if possible.
printer would stop working. camera was not nice at all. it had some ratting noise in it. i sent it back for a replacement. same thing with the other one printer would stop working and same noise in camera.
also the camera has a long shutter pause so it is hard to get a good shot. well maybe if you were doing still life.
dont buy this camera
horrible!
On: 2006-03-23
This camera is junk! It uses way too many batteries and does not take good close up photos. I just returned mine and got the Kodak Z700 and I am MUCH HAPPIER! All I can say is that I did research before hand and thought that this would be the best camera for the money. Boy, was I wrong. The battery life is non-existant! 20-30 basic pics b4 I had to change batteries again.
On: 2006-03-19
I love this camera. I takes great pictures and is very easy to use. At first i thought that the picture quality was going to be bad because when it shows up on the cameras screen the quality doesnt look very good but when you upload them onto the computer the quality is great. So far i havent had a problem with the batteries. (...). We used the same kind in our old digital camera and the old one would quickly use up all the charge but not my new Kodak.
On: 2006-03-18
I am a long-time Kodak fan and user of their cameras and printer docks. After dropping and breaking my CX7430 (I also reviewed this camera and the 6000 printer dock), my husband bought this camera for me this past Christmas. Although I am happy with the overall performance, it is not without flaws, some of which could be a dealbreaker. I much preferred my CX7430 to this model, but I must admit the C340 is growing on me, despite its faults. Im an avid scrapbooker, and my toddler-aged son and husband are the main "targets" of my photography obsession.
POSITIVES: Thus far I am very pleased with the print quality. It is outstanding, and up to the standards you expect from Kodak. I get fantastic enlargements from Snapfish, thanks to the generous megapixels for a reasonable price. The controls are well laid-out and easy to use. The size is perfect, small enough to easily carry in a purse or bag, yet large enough for a comfortable hold.
It performs well in low light, and the screen gains up considerably to give a good LCD view. The LCD is remarkably bright and visible even on days where the sun is bright and glare seems to be everywhere. The macro function produces breathtaking results, which we thoroughly enjoyed testing at the Butterfly Conservatory. Outdoor shots are captured quickly and easily, with very little lag between rapid "firing". The Sport function is excellent for subjects in motion, and captures fast-paced moments in time beautifully. It also creates really fun shots if youre shooting, say, a child splashing around in mud puddles. The flash does a great job of auto-adjusting. The self-timer is also great! Perfect for quick group portraits.
For only $9.99, I was able to purchase a dock adapter that allowed me to continue to use my EasyShare 6000 printer dock, rather than be forced into unnecessarily purchasing another dock. My 6000 prints quality pictures that I am exceptionally happy with, and from my personal experience are the exact same quality of the newer docks.
NEGATIVES: The battery life on this camera is absolutely terrible. I use a rechargeble Kodak battery pack and my printer dock as the charging station. I am able to get no more than 50 pictures before the battery is completely drained. I have tried everything imaginable to fix this - regular AAs, a new Kodak battery pack, and many different name-brand rechargable batteries. I *might* get an additional 5-10 pictures from the Kodak pack, but overall the effect is the same. With my CX7430 I could get an average of 300 pictures before the battery began to blink out. An e-mail to Kodak Tech Support suggested doing all of the things I have already done (does anyone bother to read what we write?), and no further assistance was offered after I pointed out that these things had been done.
Additionally, the main control disc is VERY loose, and the camera is easily powered on when placed inside a purse, bag, or even its custom case. This drains the battery incredibly, even if only left on for a short time. Even if you double check the camera after placement into the bag, the simple motion of walking is enough to jostle the control and power the camera back on. It is more than a little disappointing to leave for a function with fully charged batteries, only arrive there with a dead camera. Knowing that you have spare batteries isnt reassuring, knowing that each expensive set of batteries will net you only 50 or so pictures, and a lot of time and frustration.
Overall, if you are unconcerned with frequent battery changes and charges, you will receive an excellent picture quality for a great price. However, I cant say Id count on this model if youre like me, and enjoy taking hundreds of successive shots to capture that one photo you cant live without. The time is takes for frequent battery changes is a PITA, and more than once I have lost a moment thanks to yet another set of dead batteries.
On: 2006-03-12
The camera is great, have had it for several months, an improvement over an older (non Kodak) camera I had. Prints are very nice. Paper is a bit expensive, but since Im only printing a few specific shots to give to family/friends, its OK. Still loads cheaper than developing and printing rolls of film
Biggest complaint is the software - it is basically crap.
If you have Windows XP Pro, it will ONLY print if your account has Administrative Rights (not an issue for XP Home users). This is a show-stopping complaint for most of us that use XP Pro
Also, the Gallery software does let you put a "caption" on a picture, but does NOT let you rename pictures files themselves, so you are stuck with names like 100_0064.jpg.
Additionally, the Gallery software does not "play well" with anything else. If you have other pictures and you copy them into a Kodak Gallery folder using Windows Explorer, the Kodak Gallery refuses to even acknowledge them If you rename the .jpg files so that you CAN use them with other applications, Kodak Gallery gets confused.
All in all, the software might be acceptable for my elderly mother who doesnt really "use" a computer, but anyone else, particularly anyone with large existing picture collections will be very dissapointed
On: 2006-03-12
Ive had four other kodak digicams... getting this one recently actually made me HAPPY that I dropped and broke my last camera *hehe*.
It makes you downright GIDDY how easy this is to use!
You follow the simple directions for setting it up. Take your pictures. When ready, set it on its dock, click ONE BUTTON, and zoom, high quality pictures are flying out of this little dandy.
I LOVE THIS CAMERA!!!!! I love it, I love it, I love it.
If I were a wealthy person, Id buy one for everyone I know, and Id buy some spare ones to keep incase of future clumsyness.
Hurry and buy this before it becomes unavailable! (cams that come WITH their docks seem to dissapear pretty quickly on amazon!)
On: 2006-03-11
The key quality is the ease of use in that the operating buttons are well marked and easy to press - not jammed together.
The directions are good, although simplifying even more, if possible, would be good for " old " users like myself. I am enjoying the camera!
On: 2006-03-10
I spent a lot of time researching which would be the best camera for my needs and I wasnt disappointed with the Kodak EasyShare C340. Im glad I also purchased the printer dock because it just makes everything so simple. This camera is perfect for someone who wants good quality prints as well as the opportunity to email photos without having to take a lot of time to learn how to use it. I highly recommend this product.
On: 2006-03-01
This camera was my first digital one, and I have had a lot of fun with it. If you read the characteristics of the product, you will find that it provides all you need to take pictures without being an expert. It has a lot of modes to shot, depending of the type of picture you want, or the place to take it.
Additionally, the resolution of 5 MP lets you take high quality photos, and if you look at the description, you will note that you can make films with sound.
The only drawback (and I do not know if is different in another cameras), is the life of the batteries. I should buy a pair of rechargeable batteries, or the AC adapter.
On: 2006-02-28
Simple review actually...
Great Pics (at any res)
Fast write time
Video option is a neat convenience (not a pro solution, but this IS a still-pic camera)
Compact Design
Numerous Manual Camera Modes makes for fun pic taking
Easy Control of menus
A welcomed upgrade from a Kodak cx4230 that has faithfully served me for three (3) years.
On: 2006-02-14
I received this camera for Christmas this year and it was by far my favorite gift. I take care of a little boy during the day and I love taking action shots of him. This camera is perfect for that it takes great indoor and outdoor shots. As far as printing pics if you have a lot of pictures to develope I would suggest taking them to get developed at a store. The printer does a great job but it is very slow and the replacement ink and paper is a little expensive but it is perfect if you want to share single prints with people.
On: 2006-02-09
Great little digital camera! The flash can be a little overpowering in some situations, but Im still paying around with that. Its easy to transfer images to your computer and its not bad on batteries. I keep it in my pocket and take it everywhere.
On: 2006-02-07
We bought this camera for my mother because it was supposed to be so easy to use. HA
First, sometimes it turns on and sometimes it doesnt. When it does turn on, you can maybe get a single picture before it shuts off.
Second, the USB cable doesnt work.
When customer service was called, they told me that they only recommend using the rechargable batteries. Funny that in their users manuals they say you can use any AA batteries.
Now we have to send it in for repair. Who knows if it will ever work.
They have outsourced all their customer service and it is difficult to understand the very nice and trying to be helpful customer service people.
On: 2006-01-11
The camera takes decent pictures in bright light, but its useless in any sort of dim light. The flash is weak (probably because it has to run on AAs), so only close subjects are well-lit; and theres no autofocus lamp, so it cant focus unless youve got bright light. I returned it and got a Canon SD500 instead.
On: 2006-01-09
Both the camera and printer dock are very easy to use!
On: 2005-12-27
Esta es una camara muy completa, la calidad de foto es muy buena, las multiples funciones para capturar fotos es genial, el consumo de bateria no es alto y se recomienda una memoria externa. Recomendable para fotos de calidad
On: 2005-12-22
I bought this camera to be easy to carry to family gatherings and other good point and shoot events. I already own a Nikon D70 that I use to take the "good" pictures, but it is too heavy to lug everywhere with my 3 kids, so I needed something more portable.
Ill give it 2 stars because it did manage some nice exposures in auto mode on a tough day when I was taking pictures of people in the shade with a sunlit snowy background.
I picked this particular camera because everyone raved about the ease of use and the price. I guess it is easy to use if you are one of those people who likes the easy button and to let the software do all the work for you, but we use several digital cameras in our family and I like to keep things organized on my computer the way I want them, not the way someone decided the software should do it.
a few problems:
1. On the first use, I went through 4 sets of batteries in one day taking pictures at a family gathering...ouch! so much for saving money. It really needs more than 2 AAs to run. I could purchase the dock and rechargable kodak proprietary battery (my aunt says that battery lasts longer) but I dont want to clutter my desk with a camera dock.
ALSO, when the betteries get low the delay time from press the button to shutter open gets downright long...
2. All of our other cameras use the same mini usb connector to connect to the computer, we have one cord and it is always out on the desk to hook up whichever camera we need. This camera uses USB but has some different smaller usb connector and would have required us to keep another cable. seems stupid, like it is just another wak for kodak to make you use their stuff.
I guess if you want the dock and the kodak rechargeable battery this camera would be OK, but I do agree with another review I read that the dial is very loose, so it is easy for the camera to be turned on accidentally if it is in a bigger bag. I travel with a diaper bag and wanted to be able to throw the camera in, so that doesnt really work for me either.
Fortunately I was able to return this camera to where I bought it. I like the feel of the less expensive canons much better, I think I will try one of those next.
good luck out there...
On: 2005-12-21
WOW! What a great camera bundle.
+Love that dock for charging. All you have to do is plop it on there and pretty soon your camera is all fully charged and ready to go. No switching batteries or hooking up cables.
+Love those photo lab quality prints. No streaks or grain like ink jet.
+Love that SHARE button. Take a bunch of pics and then browse through them on your camera. "Tag" the ones you want to print with the SHARE button, and all you have to do is set it on the printer dock and press print. It KNOWS which shots you want to print. So cool.
+Love that little knob that switches between modes. I dont have to browse through the menu looking for that scene mode. Switching modes with the 340 takes 2 seconds.
-Ok theres one minus. I wish the LCD was bigger, but thats no reason to pass up this great camera. SO USER FRIENDLY. (check out kodaks website for tips on how to use scene modes and auto focus to your advantage)
On: 2005-12-13
The picture quality of this camera is very good but so is that of a lot of cameras on the market today. I have two big problems with this product. The first is that I assumed Id save some money on batteries switching from lithium (from my last camera) to regular AAs. One pair of batteries did not last even one Thanksgiving afternoon(about 30 photos in all.) Part of this is due to my second complaint which is the on/off dial. It is VERY loose so that almost every time I put the camera away in my purse or baby bag, when I retrieve it the camera is already switched on. I wish Id gone ahead and bought a decent camera though it would have cost two to three times the cost of this one.
On: 2005-12-07
After nearly numbing my brain researching a variety of cameras and reading all the reviews for each I settled on this particular model. I received this camera on 11/28/2005 and have given it a real workout taking pix of my grandson who was born 4 days later. With the exception of a few photos which were a little out of focus due to, I believe, operator error the photos have been wonderful. I have not taken any outdoor shots as yet but I cant imagine the quality being any different. I have not tried out all the different settings which include ones for snow and beach and children and more.
The printer has worked perfectly and makes beautiful prints. As for the ink cartridge and paper - I have never run out of ink before I ran out of paper. It has been my experience that the "low ink" message appears when about three sheets are left but it has printed the remaining sheets perfectly before the message tells you to replace the cartridge. By the way I have taken and printed approximately 70 photos. You may or may not consider that limited experience.
I took all my photos set on the minimum megapixel setting because I didnt want to run out of memory. So I decided to purchase more memory. Now I look forward to changing the setting so that I can make enlargements.
As for the Easyshare program - it is great. You can download the photos and arrange them in "albums" with dates which makes it easier to go back and retrieve them quickly. You can email directly from the Easyshare program. Among the things the program does is let you crop, enhance, and work on any red-eye problems plus other fun features. I have also used the downloading feature where I downloaded some of my favorites including ones I had "played" with(as in cropping, etc) to a CD and took to my favorite neighborhood store and made copies using their "self-serve" equipment. Very easy to do.
Obviously you may get more features with a higher grade Kodak digital but this camera suits my needs and you cant beat the price. With the current offer I received the travel case which is great since it holds the camera, the docking station, print tray and all accessories. This all in one package is perfect for taking to special occasions where you might want to put an album together on the spot for the honoree.
Oh, by the way, at the hospital someone picked up my camera and promptly dropped it while handing it to me. It hit the floor and I cringed but the camera had no external damage and obviously no internal damage either since I have taken about 50 pix since with perfect results.
If I ever decide to upgrade my digital camera I will stay with Kodak. And I will already have the docking station and printer! Guess you could say I am very pleased with the product.
You dont have to be a rocket scientist to operate this camera. I am definitely not a hi-tech person and I dont care for convoluted instructions or buttons and knobs that make your eyes cross, so I found this camera to be perfect for me.
Hope you find this review helpful.
On: 2005-12-05
Thanks for making my day, monarch, but I had to offset your 3 star rating after reading this! So, you dropped one camera 3 feet onto to concrete and it chipped the battery cover, and the second one got knocked of of a table onto a tile floor...and the LCD is messed up. Imagine that! Does it say "Wilson" on the side of a camera? NO, ITS NOT A BASKETBALL THATS MADE TO BE BOUNCED ON HARD SURFACES!! And then you call it "frail" because something didnt work right after you smashed it...amazing!
All, this is a great camera. Any camera will die in the hands of "monarch"!
Monarch wrote:
"I should have learned my lesson with my first Kodak EasyShare digital camera. I dropped that one from waist level on concrete, and the battery cover chipped, and then never shut properly again. I had to use the tripod base screwed into the camera to hold the batteries in. Finally it just quit working after having it for about a year. I just bought this Kodak EasyShare C340 5MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom last week, and was happy at the design/picture quality improvements over the last. I took it to a reception last night, where a 3yr old knocked it off a table onto the tile floor. Nothing chipped off this one, but the LCD screen is a hazy, digitized mess now. This, even after replacing batteries.
So, other than the physical frailty of the camera, Im pleased with its simplicity, abilities, functions, and photo quality."
On: 2005-12-04
Thanks for making my day, monarch, but I had to offset your 3 star rating after reading this! So, you dropped one camera 3 feet onto to concrete and it chipped the battery cover, and the second one got knocked of of a table onto a tile floor...and the LCD is messed up. Imagine that! Does it say "Wilson" on the side of a camera? NO, ITS NOT A BASKETBALL THATS MADE TO BE BOUNCED ON HARD SURFACES!! And then you call it "frail" because something didnt work right after you smashed it...amazing!
All, this is a great camera. Any camera will die in the hands of "monarch"!
Monarch wrote:
"I should have learned my lesson with my first Kodak EasyShare digital camera. I dropped that one from waist level on concrete, and the battery cover chipped, and then never shut properly again. I had to use the tripod base screwed into the camera to hold the batteries in. Finally it just quit working after having it for about a year. I just bought this Kodak EasyShare C340 5MP Digital Camera with 3x Optical Zoom last week, and was happy at the design/picture quality improvements over the last. I took it to a reception last night, where a 3yr old knocked it off a table onto the tile floor. Nothing chipped off this one, but the LCD screen is a hazy, digitized mess now. This, even after replacing batteries.
So, other than the physical frailty of the camera, Im pleased with its simplicity, abilities, functions, and photo quality."
On: 2005-12-03
I have been a kodak digital camera user for several years with thousands of pictures taken on my DX3500 for my job. I decided to start looking for a family printer/camera combo and came across this one at a local store. I checked on Amazon and found it much cheaper with special offers to boot!! Anyway the camera is excellent with enough features and options for the casual photographer. The size is just right and i can easly put it in my pocket with it being just a little larger than a clamshell mobile phone. The photo process was so simple my 6 year old was printing pictures and the quality is equal to standard developed pictures. Another great feature is when you place your camera on the printer dock its recharging the kodak supplied rechargeable batteries so your always ready to go. I trully was amazed at the quality of the photos and no computer is needed to print out amazing shots. This kit is well thought out and Kodak includes EVERYTHING you need to get going, rechargeable batteries and all the cables needed to hook up to the computer whether just the camera or the printer its all there no need to run to the store and buy anything your ready to go out of the box. You get a 10 sheet sample pack of photo paper and ink which we used up the first day just taking shots around the house. I ordered the PH160 by Kodak off of amazon which gives me a .23 per picture average which equals our local store. The great quality, ease of use with the camera and printer, excellent picture quality with no extras to buy equals a solid value by Kodak right out of the box. **Do not be fooled by other printer combos as many do not include cables, batteries, ink, paper etc. and upon purchasing these items the price is right up to the initial kodak combo price.**
On: 2005-11-29
This is a good and simple bundle to get as a gift for someone whos more on the technology challenged side. I bought this bundle for my Mom and it was a perfect gift for her. The camera is good and easy to use. The printer was a little bit harder to figure out, but once we figured it out, its now easy to use. Its a good bundle gift because it comes with everything you need to get started; camera, printer, and all the accessories you need. I would buy two additional items with this bundle: a larger memory card and more photo printer. 16MB memory card is too small, and you will burn through the 10 pieces of photo paper that it comes with very quickly.
She loves that shes able to take pictures and print them out right away. She hasnt quite learnt/understand the concept of keeping digital files on the computer, but she understands the concept of taking a picture and then printing it out right away. This camera is different than many digital cameras nowadays in that it also has labels for the commonly used buttons on the back. This helps my mom greatly because she cant remember what every little icon means. This camera also has the look and feel of a "traditional" camera. Sometimes the cameras that would appeal to someone that is more technologically savvy, really intimidates those who are not. This is a very good package that gives you new technology without being intimidating.
I would say its a good package gift, but if youre looking for high quality, high technology, youll do better getting separate units.
On: 2005-11-27
I purchased the bundled after a long research process. I love the camera and dock. The camera takes great pictures, and has so many options to ensure your pictures turn out great. The printer dock pictures come out great and at the quailty that you would pay for at a local store. I reccommend it!!
On: 2005-11-20
I bought this camera from Amazon a couple of weeks ago. I took pictures at two parties, one in extremely low light, and they all came out great! Very easy to use, perfect for the user that wants a great picture, but doesnt want any hassle. I purchased rechargeable batteries and I would say they lasted for about 70 shots a charge. I would also recommend a large memory card which I got. A good purchase for $200 complete. You cant beat it.
On: 2005-10-19
The camera is good for someone looking for a point and shoot digicam. The movie mode is the same compared to other kodak digicams. But comparing it to the Kodak z740 and other higher models the build quality is poor and the plastic looks cheap. I own a z740 also and the results are quite similar. Its a good buy for $170.
On: 2005-10-12
The entire family is enjoying the camera. Easy to use, photos are excellent. It does eat the batteries. Always carry extra. The preliminary flash has caused some strange facial expressions in impromptu photos.
On: 2005-09-01
I am so happy with my kodak c340 purchase. The camera is so easy to use. It takes excellent pictures!I wish it came with more memory.
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