In brief, this camera is very cool - but not perfect.

Let us start with the downsides.

The first is Kodak itself. They have selected Quicktime MPEG-4 as the format for their videos. As a result, incorporating video with typical video editing software will require a conversion that can cause the quality to degrade.

Kodak has also made a small mess by choosing only a proprietary port on the bottom of the camera to connect it to a computer (without a base) and that little adapter is small enough you'll surely lose it within a year.

By the way, if you like Kodak's Frame Dock II you are out of luck - although it claims to support the V1253, there is no adapter available for it. I called Tech Support; I was embarrassed for them.

I am also a firm believer that the timer feature should be controlled by a physical button and on this camera, it is not.

Now, capturing HD quality is amazing, but be ready to train your mind to frame photos differently because you cannot print in 16:9 format.

12 megapixel is a little misleading, too. You will probably default to 9 megapixel because it is the only size that will support HD and the 16:9 format. Otherwise you get vertical letterboxing - wasting real estate on the beautiful LCD.

This camera is not a point-and-shoot. Although really it is, until you get the settings just right and understand how to use the flash, ISO and stabilization, your first few photos will likely be blurry.

If you are like me, you like to access your camera through Windows. When this camera is connected, only the Kodak Easyshare software can see it. That's a drag if you like Picasa. You could always read from your memory card directly but if you get the Extreme III card like me - because it is the fastest and largest on the market - most card readers can't see that either. So much for backwards compatibility.

The icons and such on the screen are fine, but for some reason they are fuzzy. Although the psychological effect makes you think your photos are even more clear, anything unclear on an HD camera seems lame.

Now, let's move to the positives (less negatives).

Any new camera without face detection is not a real camera, I think. This camera has it and does it as fine as any Canon camera I have ever uses. It can even detect two faces at once. It's great.

The video quality is the best video quality I have seen on a camera or even on a video camera. It's stunning, stereo, and in amazing HD. It's not like Monday Night Football good, but it's better than anything you have ever created before (for the price, I should add).

You know that delay digital cameras have when they start up and before you can take the first picture? Sometimes you even miss the shot (especially with kids). This camera has two seconds to first shot. In my opinion this is a far improvement from earlier Kodak cameras, but there's no question the Canon Sureshot's one second time is better.

Kodak reproduces the best color of any camera I have EVER used. I am dedicated to Kodak regardless of their lame software and the imperfect user interfaces as a result. The final product (the photo) is all that ultimately matters, and Kodak simply delivers. Canon is a far cry from the best. Sony's good, though Olympus is better. Kodak still rules.

If you are familiar with how to focus a digital camera by holding the shutter button half way down - then you will be able to overcome any delay that is classic with digital cameras. This camera has some delay but it also turns the screen to gray once it takes the photo which is a real disorienting feedback.

Switching between photos and video in review mode is amazingly slow. Although it is fast compared to how fast my mobile phone can do it, it's still a little slow. To be fair the resulting images are nearly 2MB and the video is terrifyingly large. So, I can give some mercy on this point.

It is not my preference to have the zoom as a shuttle control surrounding the shutter button. I prefer it in the top right of the back. It is also not my preference not to have a physical view finder. However, each camera is different and in the end it is just a preference I have.

Finally, it seems to me that the battery might not be as long lasting as I have seen the Canon Sureshots last. They really are a fine camera. Even so, it seems to last an all day excursion. Of course, without a base charging it requires a computer.

To be fair, Kodak has an HD base just for this camera. However, it is intended to expose this and other media to an HD television. A base that is not connected to a computer? Couldn't they have added WIFI or something? Dumb.

Conclusion

I bought this camera because I like cool things. This thing is cool. The video is amazing. The photos are great. The size is nice and small. I bought the IPod white one (which you have to get directly from Kodak) and I love the look of it.

However, I don't like Kodak's software and hate that it appears I am stuck with Easyshare. Even so, this appears to be the next big thing in photography - stunning quality, small devices, and cheap prices.

Right now, there's nothing else like it out there.

In this round of wanting a new camera for myself, this is my third purchase. I have sent the first two back. This one is a keeper. The quality, the color of the images, the small size, the big screen, the video, the cool factor (and color). And it's only $300 (Sept 07).

PS: I know the specs say this camera comes with a camera case. But just think "soft camera sack" and you won't be disappointed.

While their are some bugs with this camera, that need a firmware update.
(Sep/NOV 07'contact Kodak) once this is done with the correcting
software, it is one of the best digital cameras on the market.

It features Smart scene mode which actually automatically selects the
best scene mode for you, if you don't have the time to choose it.

Actual video specs listed by Kodak are higher then what is stated.
(listed 1024x720)the actual is 1280x720 Full Frame Progressive at 30
frames per second. So the video on here with a large SD card is close to
and in some cases even better then many entry level HD Camcorders!

Sound on the video is in stereo which is also new to Kodak.
To playback HD video beyond the camera's high res 3" screen, you will
need to purchase the Kodak HD dock. ($99)
(This hooks directly to your HD TV and is essential to get for viewing
both Still images as well as the 720p video)

Note Sony's 1080i video on their digicams, does not come close to the
Genuine-Progressive full frame video @ 720 on this new Kodak camera.


Has an 3200 ISO. About 1600 without to much quality loss.

Bottom line while Canon & Nikon cameras may still have the nicest designs
this new Kodak is coming closer BUT with better detail and color acuracy
then many of them due to its new Kodak Color Science Chip.

I have been wanting to "upgrade" my digital camera for quite awhile and then I saw this one. Wow did it look and sound cool - especially the large screen.

It arrived yesterday and I have been unable to use it - it does not seem to be charging. I just spent 30 minutes on the phone with Kodak; they asked me to keep it plugged in overnight and see what happens. Ugh!

I do not like the USB charging; too many adapters to fuss with; less of a "connection" if you ask me. I located a Kodak USB/AC adapter at a local store because I do not want to use the PC. After at least 3 hrs., I turn the camera on, it quickly turns itself off. I really think something is faulty - I'm hoping it's just the Battery or the USB Cable that came with the camera.

Another reviewer described how lights came on during the charging process - NO lights are appearing for me; not until I turn it on. Now I really do think something is wrong with the USB charging. I am considering the AC Adapter and NOT using a USB connection at all; unfortunately will have to wait for its arrival in order to test.

Kodak Easyshare V1253 12MP Digital Camera with 3 x Optical Zoom
Well, I received mine this afternoon. Initial reaction: it's smaller than I thought it'd be. Feels solid and compact, and looks classy. Comes only with a "getting started guide" in terms of instructions or documentation. A bit disappointed at that. True, there's a CD in the package, but I had taken the camera to the office, and my company has limits on what I can load on my work computer.

The said guide is pretty skimpy, only 21 pages if you don't include the legalese and warranty information. I looked for the AC adapter to charge the battery. There isn't one. You can only charge the battery via a USB adapter. And since I could not load the software CD, I could not read any instructions beyond the guide. I connected the camera to my PC, and a blue flashing light came on. All seems OK. After 90 minutes or so, the original blue light became solid, and a second one (with a movie camera icon) started to blink. I figure that meant the charging was done, but let's face, it's only my assumption.

I disconnected the cable and turned on the camera. By the way, I own about 6 other digital cameras, so I can tell what the buttons do from their icons or labels, and I can use intuition to assume what they do. The buttons and operation are quite intuitive, and this is a credit to Kodak. The joy stick for menu selections is quite small, and it's easy to push wrongly and select an unwanted option. People with large fingers or not very dexterous will have issues with this type of control.

I took about 10 pictures just to try the camera out. Most of the pictures were surprisingly good, but I can tell I'll have to try the many different scene options before I can take pictures reliably. There was some blurriness and fuzziness visible in several of the pictures, which i attribute to indoor light and my shaky hands, I suppose. I will try tomorrow under sunlight conditions.

The lack of an AC adapter in the package should be considered carefully by people who travel, especially if they do so without a computer at hand. True, you can buy an adapter from Kodak, but you will have to pay premium and hope there isn't a run on their stock. The camera is not recognized as a removable drive on your Windows XP, so, you will have to use the Kodak software to deal with your stored pictures until you load and save them elsewhere. I will file additional information about a week or two from now, after I become more familiar with this new "cool" toy. Let you'all know ....

The camera does not come with an adapter. The only way to charge it is with the USB connection to your computer and it will take 2 to 3 hours to charge the battery. The adapter has to be ordered from the Kodak Website as an extra accessory. I was about to order the adapter but found out that the camera would not charge up fully on my computer. I called up the Kodak tech. support and they verified with me that it was hooked up correctly, battery was in correctly, etc.. Kodak told me to return it to them or to where I had bought it.

First, let me say I was very excited about this camera. 12 megapixels and it shoots HD video? A high-end point-and-shoot that I can control advanced functions on? Less than $300 so I can let my kids use it? Awesome! Bought it at a world launch from a shopping channel, and told my brother about it too, since he and his wife were shopping for one.

Second, I am a semi-professional photographer who studied photography in school. I'm not a novice and own several advanced cameras, all of them Canons. Mine are too advanced and too expensive for my family to use, so I wanted something simpler but still high-quality. I am not thrilled with my Canon digitals (a Powershot G5 and the Digital Rebel XT), or digital in general, but the live demo I saw of this Kodak V1253 was compelling and I had to buy it.

So why did both my brother (intermediate camera user) and I hate it and are both sending it back? Well, honestly, because it sucks. It takes several hours for the battery to charge, but it wears down very quickly. I shot only 130 or so pictures at 9 mega pixel at a friend's wedding yesterday, and it died before the reception really got started. Most of them had flash, but regardless, that's unacceptable, period.

Even worse, it took forever to write the images to the disk. For at least 3 seconds after I took a picture, the screen was gray and I couldn't take others. It's supposed to enable you to do bursts (several pics in a row), but I couldn't even do one every 5 seconds. By the time it was ready again, I was anxious to take the picture (wedding moments happen fast and don't repeat!), and it wouldn't have time to fully focus. So if I got the shot, it wasn't sharp. In fact, virtually NONE of the pictures I took were sharp, even with all of us standing perfectly still. Not one.

I had bought a SanDisk Ultra II 2 gb memory card, and initially thought that the high capacity might be causing it to be so slow, but I have other Ultra IIs for my Canons, and they're lightning fast. My brother reported the exact same problem...couldn't do bursts, had to wait forever between pics due to the slow write time, and blurry pictures.

The default aspect ratio is very weird as well. My images were at a 6" x 3.384" ratio, not the 6" x 4" standard. I don't know if that can be adjusted in the camera, but I'm not keeping it long enough to find out.

I explored the special settings, which would come in very handy for novices: buttons for snow pics, at the beach, dark landscapes, etc. But if you turn the camera off, it doesn't seem to save those settings, and the camera turns itself off to conserve battery power. I could save some settings, but not all, and not more important ones, so you really kind of start over each time.

One other thing to know, if you're still considering this atrocious camera despite this review, is that it does not come with a memory card. It has built-in memory, but even at lower resolutions, it only stores a handful of images. You pretty much have to buy a card.

Worst camera I have ever used.

This camera does not come with the AC adapter in the box. It has to be purchased separately. You only get the USB cable to charge up the battery through your computer and it takes up to 3 HOURS to charge. Also their instruction book is not very complete either. Kodak wants you to log on to the Kodak website for help.

I purchased this camera a week ago and I am completely satisfied with it. I have read a lot of negative reviews about this camera and I am really shocked at how people are reviewing it. I'm no photography expert, but i have used digital cameras throughout the years and have come to the conclusion that this one has exceeded every camera i have used. I hope those giving negative reviews have FIRST upgraded the camera's firmware from kodak's website, because all SLOW writing issues and time between shots have been addressed. I use a 4gb class 6 SDHC card and have no issues between shots. It even saves the HD movies at incredible speeds, i'm talking 200+megs in under 4 seconds, thats unheard of. As far as focusing and sharpness is concerned, people have complained about blurry images. Could it be something as simple as holding down the shutter before taking the picture first so it focuses and locks on? When you master this you can take crystal clear pictures very quickly. Minor complaints usb charging, but you can pick up the AC adaptor for 10$. For the first HD video pocket cam, this camera is a hit.

I bought this camera a week ago but I didn't open it up until I did the research on it. Seems backwards but indulge me and I'll explain. First of all, I rely on the Amazon reviews when choosing a product. So far I have not been disappointed, for the most part people are responsible with their comments. I initially went to buy a different camera. However, after reading the reviews on it, the only negative review on that camera was the camera jammed. When I went into the store to ask if this was an issue, the demonstration model was jammed. Since, I had a coupon that expired that day I picked the brain of the sales people and found that the Easy Share V1253 exceeded the minimum number of options that I wanted and was well within my price range.

Well, I just can't be more pleased with my selection. Kodak loses a star for not including a useful manual or an adapter that can be purchased for $10. My concern was that I'd never figure out how to operate this camera. It wasn't the challenge I thought it would be. Also, when I picked up my 16 year old grandson, he had expanded my knowledge base in a few minutes.

Love the large screen!!!!

Also, I was given a firmware chip upon purchase. That upgrade resolves the speed issues and then some. You can view what version of the firmware that is in the camera and compare it to the latest version on the website for a free download.

Battery----anything you buy can have a defective battery. If it takes three hours to charge a battery and the battery doesn't seem to hold a charge, that should be a big clue.

Memory ---the earlier cameras came with a memory card because the camera didn't have internal memory. This camera holds about 10 pictures in the internal memory. The nice feature is unlike some of the other brands that require a special memory card that you can't find just anywhere, it uses the SD Card which is more popular and always on sale somewhere.

Settings----I wouldn't want a camera to hold a setting for snow, moving subjects, panoramic etc. After I turned the camera off, I might forget that setting is on and take inside pictures with a snow setting.
The pictures are crisp and clear, download is fast and it has many options for the price that I'm looking forward to learning how to use.

I bought a small inexpensive case and it fits nicely in my purse so I'll be prepared to take pictures of my new twin grandsons.

I would highly recommend this camera--main reasons the large screen on a compact camera--it takes beautiful pictures--and you get more bang for the buck.

I was leery to purchase this camera one month ago after some negative reviews that cited issues such as slow picture time, blurry, no A/C adapter and that it does not come with a memory card but instead with internal memory storage (with option for SD memory card). However, I figured the best review I could get was to open the box and use it for a month myself. The time to take a picture is not slow. I have a new baby and I push the button down half way to focus wait for the perfect moment and I get the perfect timing every time as opposed to prior cameras. So I am happy with that. Only one out of fifty pictures are blurry and that may be because of a poor focus or other issues. I am happy with that. It doesn't have an A/C adapter but that cuts the price of the camera for those who don't need it. If you want one pull out ten dollars and get one. It does not have a memory card include however that too reduces the cost up front for those who don't need one. Most people are upgrading cameras now days and already have a memory card from a prior camera. I love the operation system. It is very easy to navigate and to download onto your computer. I also like the software that it comes with. It is all very simple and user friendly. The weight and design are nice. It has a large picture viewer. I have used it for every day around the home and traveling for a day use and have not yet noticed any battery drain. (I suppose that could change with more frequent use)

My pictures are taken in wide format with 9 mega pixels and that is the format and detail that I have become to use. However I do change to standard 12MP at times and I took some close up pictures of my wife's flowers at that level and the picture quality was perfect.

The negatives are that after taking the picture, my camera takes about 1 to 5 sec with gray screen to record the shot. I have found that to be okay though because we already got the shot we wanted by holding the focus and taking the picture at the right moment. After the gray screen the picture shows up for view for 3 sec but can be easily by-passed by clicking the action button half way.

Good camera... Good price.

I've owned the V1253 for about a month now and while I'm certainly no professional photographer, I'm not absolutely sold on how amazing this camera is. In fact, if I had a 30 day return policy on my camera and not a 14 day return policy, I may very well have taken it back. Not 100% sure, but maybe.

In short, the camera does take excellent pictures and yes, the video, in HD quality, is very impressive. But there are a few personal observations that detract from that general statement. For example:

1] HD video. Impressive, no doubt. Now try to watch that file on anything less than a new computer. I have an AMD Athlon 64 3000+ with 2GB RAM and a Radeon 9700 PRO video card and I could NOT play the video back using the included Quicktime software!!!! The video and audio would stutter all over the place. I was astonished. I literally thought I had a defective camera. I tried it on my IBM R51 laptop at work. No good either. Now admittedly, a Core 2 Duo processor would not have an issue with this. But that's not what Kodak's website says. It says you only need a 600 MHz processor or better. Not true if you are talking about video playback. No way, no how. I finally downloaded GOM Media Player and installed QTLite and I was able to play back my video on a few different computers including a Fujitsu P1610. But that was a very disappointing experience. Kodak technical support was not helpful on this matter and told me that they were beginning to receive complaints and were considering a change to their "recommended minimum" description. I'll believe it when I see it. On the other hand, if you have a reasonably new system, you shouldn't have an issue with this.

2] Speed between pictures. There is no doubt that this camera is simply slow going from one picture to the next. The delay is 2-3 seconds per shot and it quickly becomes noticeable. The firmware update to 1.01 does little to nothing to resolve this. I wondered if this was a result of the memory card. Maybe it needs a class 6 card to move the pictures quickly. Well, don't ask Kodak. They can't even tell you if their own camera supports the higher speeds. In fact, it took a 30 minute conversation just to find out they the camera currently supports a 4GB SDHC card as a max. They offer no information on what class is supported or recommended other than to recommend their own Kodak 2GB SD card. I have a 4GB Patriot SD card that came out before the SDHC specification was set. Its performance speed easily meets a class 6 memory card. So unless there is something very particular about the Patriot 4GB SD, the fault remains with the camera.

Other minor negatives that have been mentioned by others:

- Lack of an AC adapter. It really is stupid. That's just being horribly cheap.
- The camera does freeze up at times. The only way to undo it is to remove the battery and then you have to reset the date and time again. Minor, but annoying.

That said, the camera does have some impressive specifications and I personally find its user interface to be clear, uncluttered and simple. That's one of the main reason I wanted to buy a Kodak. They have a good reputation (to me) for providing the consumer with a high quality camera that is not overly complicated. In that, they succeed.

I still consider myself a novice in picture taking though and I need to learn a lot more about how to better setup shots, how to make effective use of the ISO settings and flash, etc. I've owned several digital cameras over the years, so I know the real power still resides on the person behind the camera, not simply the camera.

I will say that I was originally looking for a less expensive camera. Several of the Canon cameras caught my eye. But the fact that this Kodak unit could handle HD video really caught my attention.

I'm not completely disappointed in the purchase. I like the camera and remain impressed by its picture quality. But in hindsight, I may have reached a bit further than is yet necessary.

I bought an Adata class 6 8gb SDHC to use with this camera. While the camera does not accurately report the number of photos or video time left with the 8gb card inserted, it can use all 8gb. Recording HD video it has a 2gb file size limit (most likey due to the FAT32 file system). So the max you can record at one time without stopping to create another file is 19:12. I was able to record a grand total of 77 minutes at the highest HD 720p resolution without problems, other than it was in four files. This review is based on my experience with the V1233, but I believe they share the same specs and firmware.

I purchased a Kodak V1253 digital camera and was instantly dissapointment with this product.

Upon receiveing, the first thing I did was download the most current version of Quicktime, EasyShare and firmware for the camera (v1.01) and installed them. After installing I began to test the camera's features, most notably the HD video. Unfortunately I was instantly disapointed. The level of visible noise while filming in standard 720p was terrible. When switching to HQ 720p, the quality improved, but the alloted time on a 2Gb memory card dropped to a paltry 16 minutes. A SDHC card could boost it up to 4Gb or even 8Gb and a much more acceptable 32-64 mins. Please note: Unless you update to the latest version of Quicktime, you will get choppy video playback, as it needs the most recent codec. I updated, and the video quality was still far below what I expected.

My dissapointment continued when I discovered that one of the most prized features for me, being able to zoom while recording video, was completely negated upon the discovery that the audible noise from the zoom lens extending and retracting is picked up by the stereo microphones. On the video playback, you can hear a VERY loud buzzing of the lens as it zooms.

Needless to say, although this camera's specs look good on paper, it's actual performance is subpar in the video field. As far as the photo quality goes, I didn't look to much. The video was such a turn off, that I knew I would be returning it for another model or brand.

One thing I did notice while trying out the photos, was the face recognition software is still getting worked out. Basically I felt that the camera was forcing itself to find a face when one was not there. Like when taking a picture of my living room, it found faces in the couch and lamp.

Kodak flaunts this as a great camera for video (that's what the "V" in V1253 stands for), however, if you are looking for a good photo camera, this might be good, but if you are like me, and were looking for a digital camera that could act as a camcorder also, you will be dissapointed.

I am completely satisfied with camera. First thing I did was to upgrade the camera's firmware. Picked up the AC adaptor for $10. For the first HD video pocket cam, this camera is a hit. Easy to use takes great pictures.

Hello. I just got this camera as a gift for my birthday. My camera is not accepting the San Disc PRO Duo card that I just purchased today, nor an old one from another camera. It says "Internal memory full" and will not let me take a picture. I only have 14 pictures on it, all taken on internal memory, so that the internal memory IS full. But it is not accepting or noticing the memory card I put in it.
I like the small size, the large screen, and that it is light. I am not too into HD technology, and do not own an HD tv, because I do not watch tv. I havent taken a video yet, but I read that you need a strong processor to play it on your computer. I have a very weak computer, and am not planning on upgrading, so this is disappointing to me. I have had a lot of trouble with blurry pictures, just over the couple of days that I have tried this camera out. I'm not used to having to hold the button halfway down to give it time to focus- I wasn't aware that I needed to do so until I read the comments on this site. It took me two tries to get my camera to recharge succesfully. I like that the camera comes with a case. My camera was purchased off of a tv shopping channel. I did not see their advertisement, but I heard that the main selling point was the amount of details you can see. Some of my phots seem to be VERY detailed (better than other cameras), and this is beautiful, though I have not printed them out yet, so I am not certain how they will turn out. But a lot of them have not even been focused by the camera, you can tell. My camera also has that delay of a few seconds- I plan on downloading the "firmware"- whatever that means- from the web site. So I give it 3 stars because there's no ac adapter, and I don't have a fast computer to play the videos; but it will go up to 4 stars if I learn how to push the shutter half way to solve the blur problem, and if the firmware download speeds up the seconds long delay.

This camera has two huge things going against it...ease of use and (unchangeable) amount of compression.

Do NOT expect to take this thing out of the box and shoot good pictures. There's a serious learning curve here before you're taking non-blurry pictures (don't even think about using this at night without a tripod.) Even after a hundred shots, I have managed but a dozen or so decent shots. If you leave the ISO at auto, darker shots will end up with a LOT of noise. In doing photos of holiday light displays, I discovered in a display of animals made out of lights that it's possible to confuse this camera into being completely out of focus with some things.

After uploading files to my hard drive, I noticed the Kodak picture files (at 9MP 16x9 setting) were about the same file size as the 5MP pictures from my trusty Canon Powershot S50. That's a LOT of compression, and it shows. Comparing photos at actual size resulted in a lot of flaws in the images in comparison to my Canon. The 720 "HQ" video is no different. I have to wonder how much better the image quality would be if they'd lay off the compression ratio.

The video can be decent if you stick the camera on a tripod and your target isn't moving a lot. It still looks mostly like standard camcorder video in the end...just camcorder video that happens to fill an HD screen. I suggest setting auto focus to "Single AF" for video..."Continuous AF" results in the camera continuing to try to focus on things, making everything OUT of focus most of the time. I also recommend setting Image Stabilizer off...it seems to break up the picture when panning...but you can't permanently set that, you have to do it each time you turn on the video function.

Battery life is less than ideal, and there's no viewfinder, and therefore no option to turn off the LCD. The camera also has an annoying green diode on the front that comes on in varying degrees of brightness depending on what you're doing (in the case of pictures, people in neighboring states should be able to see it), but it's recessed a bit so I'm hoping to find some hobby store filler to cover it with.

I DO like the LCD screen, most of the menu layout, and the size and feel of the unit. And I think they could fix some of my issues...particularly file compression...in firmware updates. And it's reasonably priced for what it does. It just doesn't do it well enough for me to recommend it.

Let me preface this review by stating that this camera must be updated with the latest firmware in order to truly enjoy the features and capabilities. The camera is extemely user friendly. The 3.1" screen works well even in direct sunlight. The onscreen menus are very easy to navigate and easy to read. The shots taken with this camera come out stunning and can be enhanced using Kodak's Photo Touch technology and cropped right in the camera without the aid of a computer! I find this to be incredibly convenient especially if you are away from home but want to produce some pictures at the nearest printer or photo department. At this point I do not have experience with capturing video. This camera will charge when connected to a computer with the included USB cable. A standard wall charger must be purchased separately.

We've had ours over 6 months and besides HATING having to connect it to the computer to charge, we liked the video and photos because it was bought for our 13 year old daughter and everything was great for her first digital. BUT..here it is the holidays and it's jammed, won't turn on, charge or work and Kodak says I have to send it in where it won't be back until after the holidays. VERY disappointing! We didn't take it anywhere or use it excessively so this will keep our score low on this one. NOT SO IMPRESSED. Will update on Kodak's service later....

Good points about this camera:
- high res for low price
- panoramic feature is cool
- colors look great
- responsive (seems to start fast without a long delay)
- HD video with great colors

Negatives
- If you want to take video at 720p, you are limited to 16 minute shots. I have a 2GB and 4GB card, and with each, it limits you to 16 minutes; must be a file size restriction or something...very annoying.
- On some of the videos that I've captured (while using zoom) the video capture slows down and people look like they're in slow motion. :(
- NO DOCK! This wouldn't be so bad except it's really hard to find a dock to buy for it. I bought one but it doesn't fit firmly on the dock. :(
- I don't know why they went with Quicktime format...my first impression was that the video from my old Casio Exilim was less pixelated. It may be a higher resolution but some of that effect is taken away by the fact that the compression isn't as good as some other cameras.
- The camera interface isn't as intuitive as I hoped it would be.

-Overall
This is a very good camera at a great price. It has great colors and some really neat features. It's not perfect...but I'd still recommend it.

As long as you go to the kodak web site and down load the new firmware update for this camera it is great! Before I updated the firmware ever other picture was blurry. So don't think it is junk until you update that software on the camera, the pictures are nice and the HD video is super nice!

4 stars only because the good firmware was not on the camera out of the box.

Easy to use. A shooting option for every condition. Several framing formats from which to choose. Excellent photos with loads of detail. The movies really are high definition. If the camera had a 5X zoom I'd give it 5 stars.

I bought this for my granddaughter for Xmas. It was exactly what she wanted and she has not been disappointed. It performs all the functions she wanted especially the ease with which she can download pictures from the camera to her computer and then forward them onto her friends.Kodak EasyShare V1253 12.1MP HD Digital Camera (Black) + 1GB Accessory Kit

Let me start off by saying that I am a Sony HDR-SR1 owner, and I was looking for something that was a cost effective back up where as I didnt want to always log a $1,500 camera around.

I wanted to leave the days of standard definition behind behind and record in HD only..all the time.

Let me tell you folks, do even hesitate, buy this camera now!! This is the first digital camera that records video and photos in HD!!!

If you have control over the lighting, you will have be very pleased to see the output..If you don't have control over the lighting, then of course the quality of the recordings will down and there is no where to add any attachments.

If you want a great HD Camera that records HD video and Photos then you can't go wrong with this.

The weaknesses of this camera are:
noticeable drop in clarity in low light situations
only 3x optical zoom
You have to buy the HD base to see on your HDTV
You have to buy the Wall Charger (comes with only computer charger)
Comes with Weird proprietary usb solution that breaks easily.

The Strengths of this Camera are:

Excellent quality shots in outdoor, well light situations
Price: I paid 229 (350 with all necessary accessories)..Excellent for a pocket sized HD Camera.
Fits right in your pants pocket, like a cellphone
Above average to almost very good quality HD video in well lit situations.

In Conclusion, no this will not take the place of your full sized HD Camcorder, but this is an excellent backup and a very reasonable price.

I recently purchased this camera along with the Kodak 5100 All in One printer. (I stuck with Kodak because of the unused memory cards and digital picture frame I already had). First thought about the camers....Small, Great visibility on the screen, Lots of picture options as far as lighting and color, Very user friendly and self explainitory.
PROBLEM......When I print my pictures on the "Compatable" "Suggested Accessory" AiO printer the pictures are clearly not 4x6 like is stated on both the printer and the camera. (I know its not the printer b/c I got out my old camera and printed great pictures with it on the new printer). The edges are all cropped about 1 to 3 cm. Now I am struggling with getting in touch with these kodak fools. 2 emails, 30 minutes of being on hold and then getting hung up on and 1 1/2 hours waiting for a response on the supposed live chat line, Kodak probably wont be my next buy. But in the meantime if anyone has any advice please, I need to have not waisted my money.

I had high hopes in the purchase of this camera, and I am still not quite content. I'll start with the first issues I've encountered that bother me the most and then detail additional pro's and con's at the end.

Please note that I have installed the firmware update as of the first week of December 2007.

1. I've looked all over for a solution, but there is a missing codec for Quicktime, which is largely Apple's fault, but it prevents you from viewing and hearing the video's recorded in HD 720 at this time. I've read this is an issue in both Vista and XP, although I only have Vista at this time. I've tried all of the proposed solutions, and I am not the slightest bit challenged in this department. This is also a pain when you want to take the video you've captured and convert it to a DVD or other media.

2. No matter what size of memory card you have in the camera, it maxes out at 16 minutes of constant video capture. If you have the memory for more video, you can take more than 16 minutes in total, but they will be in 16 minute (or less) chunks.

3. The focus can be a little glitchy. I find myself being more patient to wait for it to come into focus, but my wife and mother-in-law have taken many poorer photos with the camera with the point-and-click mentality. I got the camera in anticipation of the birth of our first child, and I've been disappointed by many of the pictures that my mother-in-law was able to get of the delivery. As an addition of this, sometimes the foreground is focused correctly but the backgrounds come out very pixelated and blurry, without zoom.

The Good:
- Re-chargeable battery, just plug into your USB or buy the AC Adapter and you aren't loading up on rechargeable AA batteries anymore, or carrying around the lot in your camera case.
- Great HD quality video that will be functional on computers in the future.
- Price. $230 is the going rate and very competitive.


The Bad:
- Takes poor pictures in poor light
- 3x Optical Zoom
- 16 minute limit for consecutive video

One of the better point and shoot pocket sized cameras, this Kodak machine has features galore, all at a great price !

I bought this camera for my vacation travels before thanksgiving. Just after a month, during our family vacation trip we took some great snapshots in the beginning and then suddently the lens cover won't open. Camera was totally useless in that state. We were at the most scenic place during our trip when camera showed this problem and we couldn't take the pictures of that amazing place. Not only that but we had no other means to take pictures during rest of the travel days. This left us frustrated. I have already used Nikon, Canon and Sony cameras and never saw such kind of issues. I really hated this camera.

After coming back from vacation I contacted Kodak and they wanted camera to be sent to them for service. I have already sent them the camera. I will try to keep you updated.

It's not often I write reviews for tech gadgets but I thought I would make an exception. Allow me to introduce you to the Kodak Easyshare V1253, a 12-megapixel camera that I had the opportunity to use over the holidays. What sets this camera apart isn't its large image capacity - after all, exactly how far will the megapixel craze take us? Will we have 30 megapixel cameras by next Christmas?

What really impressed me was the identity crisis this camera has - it thinks it's a camcorder too! I read on the box that this camera was also capable of capturing 30 frames-per-second widescreen video in High Definition (720p). I must admit that I was skeptical since every video I had ever seen captured on a digital camera was horribly inadequate for viewing on a television screen.

The video quality blew me away. I shot countless videos over Christmas and proceeded to integrate them into a DVD using iDVD. The end result was a video that impressed everyone who saw it. You could have fooled anyone into thinking it was shot on a HD video camcorder costing 3 times as much.

Which brings me to the final selling point for this camera - the price. I would have thought $220 for a 12MP camera was a good deal by itself but the ability to shoot great digital photos and high-definition video? Now that's pretty amazing.

There's plenty of other features this camera has such as great face recognition technology, impressive low-light capability but for me the video sealed the deal. And for the price you can't go wrong.

Guten Tag!!

This camera is Awesome!!

The camera that I have came with the update already loaded.

This was compared in store to some other brands. The sales guy was actually pitching me hard on another brand and a lot more expensive camera. However, he was shocked, as I was, when we compared the video, the quickness of the auto focus, and the quality of the pictures.

The video on the other brand, in addition to not being HD, was very choppy looking compared to this camera.

Also, believe it or not this camera focused faster than the other cameras we compared it to.

And lastly, the pictures looked as good (if not better) to more pricier models.

The pictures' colors and sharpness seem very natural and they have a great pop to them.

And HD video on a $200 camera?!?! Wow!! The vids look great! I have had no issue watching the vids on my computer.

I hope Kodak adds even more video features on the next iteration.

Great Camera with hard-to-beat Price and Features.

The 720p video performance of this camera is very good and easy. I wish it had a 5x zoom, 3x just barely cuts it. I have a problem getting comfortable holding this camera. They did not design in any thumb or rubber grips to help you hold it. It doesn't have a true manual control where you can specify the ISO, exposure, and f-stop. I had to make due with one of the preprogrammed exposure modes. You charge it with the supplied USB cable. The still images look just a cut below in quality from the ones I take with my Kodak Z730.

This camera is amazingly awesome. I absolutely love it. It has just enought features for it not to be complicated and has clear and crisp picture quality. It also has great video and looks great on HDtv!

I upgraded from a 6 mp kodak camera. I take better pictures with the 6 mp than I do with this new 12 mp camera. I have tried every setting and I don't know what I am doing wrong looking at the other reviews I must be doing something wrong because other people don't seem to have have the blurry picture problem.

Top of the line product, Top of the line Specs, Top of the line company...

Kodak Easyshare V1253 12MP Digital Camera with 3 x Optical Zoom

I purchased this Kodak Easyshare V1253 in October, when my old trusty Kodak Easyshare (much older version but very reliable) camera had its battery charger die on me. I bought the V1253 on a business trip when I urgently needed a camera. Sadly, I have been disappointed by it. I am a very savvy digital camera user. Here are the problems:

1. The camera is very susceptible to camera shake, and the shutter takes a few seconds to fire off. So you don't get the action photo you wanted first of all, and then the photos turn out very fuzzy if you have a third party take a photo and they don't know enough to hold the camera VERY VERY STILL as you wait the few seconds for the shutter to go off. This is therefore a bad camera for a teenager. And a very ineffective camera for a casual point and shoot type of user.

2. The quality of the photos are very good if you are lucky enough to not have camera shake when you took it. The digital video is high quality too. The longest video I took was about 12 minutes. I put in a 2 GB Sandisk and had no issues with memory storage to the disk.

3. Others have noted that it was a funky cord with a cheesy looking adapter to charge the camera attached to your PC. There is no AC charger so I had to buy one for about $10. It was worth getting. I would suggest to Kodak they include the AC charger in the first place and charge a bit more for the package.

4. At Christmas, the camera refused to charge. I did a bunch of troubleshooting with the manual and had to mail it in for repair back East. I sent it Dec. 10th and did not get it back until January 12. Thus, it missed the entire Xmas season. Luckily my old camera was fixed in time to capture our holiday photos . . .

So overall, it is not what I had hoped for given I spent $300 for it. I do not recommend it.

If you are looking for a super simple lightweight camera then this is the camera for you! I have been purchasing Kodak Easyshare cameras for several years now and this is by far my favorite camera. I have had the bigger bulkier cameras with the higher zooms and lower megapixels. I wanted a smaller camera that was easy to carry along with me. (Almost a necessity when you are running around with 3 very active kids!) I decided to give this camera a try even though it didn't have a great zoom like my old cameras. I am so happy that I did! This camera is AWESOME! Besides being able to just slip it in my pocket or throw it into my purse, the clarity of the pictures is UNBELIEVABLE! I do wish it had a little more zoom but with 12 megapixels who needs zoom??? I would definatley recommend this product to anyone who wants a simple, easy to use, lightweight camera. DON'T DELAY --- BUY IT TODAY!

I didn't need another digital camera but the allure of owning a HD camera sucked me it. Glad it happened. This camera is feature rich and a joy to use. Only problem I had was that Kodak did not explain very well that you needed a high capacity high performance SD memory card to take movies over 30 seconds. My standard 2 gig SD would stop between 23 and 30 seconds. The picture quality and the viewing on a hi def tv are amazing. My Casio and Canon Elf 1000 are now on the outside looking in. I bought this at Amazon and got it within one business day and at a better price that Kodaks online store which I will never use again.

My first 50 pictures turned out great. In week 3 when I would turn the camera on the lens would extend and the camera would power down with the lens out. I would have to turn the camera on & off and give the lens a gentle nudge to get it to retract. I'm not sure how or why but problem seems to have remedied itself. However, I cannot get the camera to take a crisp picture. The red blurry indicator is always on. I even put the camera on a solid countertop to take a picture and it was blurry. I'm about 1 week over by return/exchange date, so my only option is to send it in for repair. Also, it doesn't come with any accessories worth mentioning. The delay between taking pictures causes many missed shots. The video is great. I would recommend Sony Cyber-shot or Casio Exillum instead.

This camera takes spectacular, highly detailed, vivid photos. However, you must 1)Master the features and settings in correspondence to the time of day if you are taking pictures outside and 2)Keep the camera as still as possible.

I was in New York City for vacation over the Holidays (Dec. 2007), and I took it least 50 photos of the city from the 86th floor of the Empire State Building. Out of those 50 photos, about 8 came out as "spectacular, highly detailed, and vivid" photos. I attempted to keep the camera EXTREMELY still on a ledge, and many of the photos still came out blurry. Keep in mind, this was at night, so perhaps I needed more fiddling with the features. I found the sunset and high ISO settings to work the best at night for cityscapes. Perhaps it was the memory card's flaw, but I doubt it since the day time pictures came out flawless. Many pictures at night on the picture viewer will look sharp until you upload them to the computer and you realize that many of them are blurred.

Master the settings. Keep the camera still as possible. Result: Enjoy quality images.

Otherwise, look elsewhere.

I've had this camera for two months. My last camera was a Kodak Easyshare which I loved and used daily. This one will not focus. On some things, but many many photos are turning out badly. I need to have excellent focus in order to take pictures of things to put on my blog, and I'm having to use my old camera to do it. Better focus with less pixels? Explain that to me, please. Also, sometimes the pictures just don't even "take" and there will be an unreadable something on the memory card.

Save your money, this one is trouble

Well ... I bought the Kodak v1253 with high hopes of owning a camera that could capture reasonable 720p video. I use my old Sony T1 primarily as video camera, and was looking forward to improving the quality of my home movies. Well, this camera CAN capture HD video. Unfortunately, Kodak has saddled the device with a highly compressed video format, further complicated by wrapping the format in a mov container, that requires a super-computer to playback.

I've tried playing the video on both my XP (Athlon 3000 dual core) and a Vista (Duo-Core) machines, and neither of these systems can play back the video without stuttering ... a lot. I've been forced to convert the video into easier-to-playback MPEG formats using Adobe Premiere, a tedious conversion process that takes about 30 minutes of computer time for every minute of video.

The end result is "technically high-definition," but doesn't look hugely improved from my Sony camera's standard definition video when played back on my 1080p television. It's better ... but not enough to warrant all the work convertina and editing it.

This is my first attempt using a Kodak camera, and I found the experience pretty frustrating. It is a slow camera, with a delay after each photograph as you watch a gray screen as the image is written to the SD card. This seems to occur even with fast cards, and even with the latest firmware. I've never experienced this kind of delay with Sony or Canon cameras before, so it seems very odd to me. Perhaps you Kodak users are used to this? I've mainly used canon and sony cameras in the past, and am not used to this.

Also, there doesn't seem to be a way of reviewing photos on the lcd without extending the lens ... so, if you just want to show a friend some photos directly from the camera, you better watch your hand because that lens is going to extend whether you want it to or not.

The LCD on the back seems ok, but most of the time you want to capture the highest megapixel possible, and the 12mp format doesn't conform to the 16x9 ratio of the LCD. So, a large portion of the LCD goes unused. The "actual used" lcd resolution does not seem to be as good as the competition.

Finally, I've never had a camera "lock up" on me. The camera will occasionally freeze if you hit any buttons while it's writing to the flash card. The screen blanks, the lens stays stuck out, and you have to remove the battery and replace it before it will reset. Really, really weird.

I guess I'll stick with the Sony for now, as I can edit the Sony's MPEG1 video in real-time, without any rerendering, with direct MPEG splicing software like Womble. Plus, the MPEG1 video that sony camera's generate will play on virtually any computer in the world without heavy processing power and without having to install software or special codecs. They will also playback in PowerPoint without a hitch.

I had considered buying the Kodak camera for my parents as an easy point-and-shoot with the ability to film video. However, the video component of this camera let me down, as I'm SURE my parents computer won't be able to handle playback of the video.

So, get the Kodak if you have a really fast system, don't share videos with family members on slower systems, and don't need to edit video. The static images I captured seemed to be of fine quality.

I got this camera from Costco today. The package included everything for the whole things to function. Many people complained that they didn't get the adapter, but I did. There also was a camera case (made of fabric), a plastic dock, and all the other necessary wires and pieces. I was also pleased by the price. It is so far the best price I found for this camera.

Overall, very good quality of pictures.

The only thing that makes me frustrated (and you might call me an old-fashioned person) is how thin this camera is. I mean, that sounds cool, up until you actually hold the camera in your hands. It is quite heavy for being such a thin camera. OF course, whether you want a stylish or a classical camera is your personal choice. But as for me, I prefer the design which Kodak Z712 has. Please google it, for you to understand what I mean.

The LCD screen is fantastic, no doubt!

Wow, checked out this one with a friend and compared back to back with sony Cybershot the new 8.0 mp, this Kodak is a tag or two better than the Sony's quality and features.

Boy, wa i hooked when i found out the panoramic stitching of three or two photos to form a super wide angle photo, it was stunning!!!! i dont understand why some reviewers say that the camera does not focus well, because even though i am not familiar with this camera yet, i was able to zoom 1x, 2x and 3x and still get very very good results with very crisp and detailed pictures.

i thought the video was fine also as i was able to film for about 10 seconds in HD mode with the internal memeory in BestBuy today. i love the design of it, it is longer than some cameras, but the screen is HUGE!!! and the camera looks so magically stylish.

and touching the buttons gives satisfaction as well and the camera feels so solid in the hand. and the buttons are just right for my fingers.

To bad i am not in a market for a sub $[...] camera, and this Kodak, while being so great, is only being sold for $[...] on [...], i cannot believe it. for the price, this one is simply the BEST!!!!

The closest Sony i saw in the Best Buy was $[...]. There is just no match for price, quality and features. This is my fair comparison. I am not biased to any camera and Sony is very good too, but it lacks features and price is just a downright drawback when Kodak can do with the same great quality or better.

As with any product that we use in our lives, there are some things that I feel could be better with this device. However, I am very pleased with it, and I am furthermore happy that I purchased it. I have a daughter that is almost 6 months old, and having this camera to point and shoot whenever I need it has been really helpful. I always tell my fiance that the TV and the camera will be the last two things to go if money ever gets that tight...haha

I finally got rid of my old friend Pentax.I had the 90 & 105 WR. I loved them but wanted to get a digital with video for the grandkids. I LOVE this camera.
Living in FL, the sunsets are wonderful and so much color with the V1253.
The "Easy" is the best part of setting up and shooting fanastic picture the first time. For size plus value of a 12 MP, buy this one...

I just bought this camera, and I love it. Kodak must have made some serious improvements recently. Unlike previous descriptions, mine came with the AC adapter. I don't have the problem of the "gray screen" when the photos are being printed to the card, but I am using an SDHC 4 gig card. The photos download like any plug and play device without the EasyShare software, and the videos play in HD with ease on my laptop with Vista. The zoom is audible during the video replay, but the video is smooth and and not choppy. Without reading any instructions all of our photos have been clear, and I'm taking action shots of a 2 year old running around. I call this camera user friendly and high quality. The only thing we needed to buy to be up and running was the memory card. I wish I would have replaced my other digital camera sooner.

For the price it really can't be beat. I 'm able to take wide ratio 9 MP and standard ratio 12 MP, plus with a $35 4 gig memory card, I can shoot up to 26 mins of HD video. This was only a dream a few years ago.

The drawback is your stuck with Kodaks software for importing the pictures, but it's not a big deal. Save as to another folder and import it to your favorite picture editing program. Battery life is relatively short, but really for the cost of this camera purchasing another battery is no big deal. From someone who has spent hundreds in digital cameras, for the money it's a contender to be recognized.

Recording movies is very intuitive, hard drive space 7 minutes is about 1 gig of memory in HD 720p mode. I use Magix editing software it imports and edits easily Kodaks format.


My wife and I will be visiting Prague in a couple months and I'm looking forward to the high resolution memories. :)

The camera has its appeal and takes good photos - it's strength lies in the HD video which can run until the card gets full. The recorded sound quality is also good. However, there are several reasons why I ended up returning the camera:
1) The mini-USB adapter to recharge and connect the camera is a major design fault - it falls out easily and can get lost easily. I wish to understand why Kodak chose such cumbersome design.
2) The camera glows blue like a lighthouse in the dark. Taking discreet photos in the dark is not an option.
3) Startup and shutdown time are slow - there is also delay in taking photos.
4) Battery life is nothing to call home about - extra batteries are needed even on a short trip.
5) Despite a metal casing the camera feels fragile.
I hope Kodak will take user feedback to heart and adjust these design flaws. With their HD capabilities Kodak has otherwise been a trailblazer in the Point-and-shoot market.

If you want to have a camera that will take great pictures and video and fit in your vest pocket this is the camera. The video is full 30fps 720p HD (compressed mpeg4) I have a mac and can easily import the video through a card reader and burn DVD's. The video is nothing like the tiny low frame rate video on other cameras and it's perfectly acceptable for catching those unexpected family moments. Having the ability to catch photographs and video in the one device was the selling point for me. No need to drag big bags of video and camera equipment around all the time. Switching from video to stills takes just a few seconds and the LCD screen is huge. Oh - and the camera has panorama stitching software in camera thats incredibly simple to use. Great for wide vistas etc. This camera is for sale at around $200. A no brainer.

Excellent pictures. The lens makes the difference! Would love an optical viewfinder, but it is sacrificed to the thin form factor. A bit clumsy to connect for charging/downloading, but still a great camera.

I upgrade my camera about every 2 years. I love this camera but it does seem to have a few things that I would like to see improved.
Pros:
-Great pictures. (auto focusing works great, even in low light)
-Good pictures in low light (indoors, without flash)
-Fantastic movies (excellent resolution and frame-rate in HD setting)
-Low cost given the HD movie capability and performance.
Cons:
-Takes a long time to write data to the memory card.
-Interrupting the data save to memory card by hitting the pic review button, can cause a corrupted pic.
-Movies are huge.
-After the auto-focus is locked, it takes at least 1 second for the camera to capture the image. This might be why some people have trouble with bluring, they begin moving the camera before the image capture process has completed.
-Lens makes a slight grinding noise as it deploys.
Conclusion:
Great camera for all-around pictures and HD movies. Its small size and low cost doesn't inhibit you from taking it almost anywhere. I love this camera.

I have had many point and shoot digital cameras in the past. I did have early Kodak Digital EasyShare point and shoot cameras, However Kodak out did the competition on this one.

This is a very easy camera to use.
Fast power - on cycle.
High pixel resolution.
Mode selection is a snap.
Easy to navigate "joy-stick" type button configuration.

STUNNING, Beautiful image capture results.

Bravo! Kodak. Excellent results!

When I bought the Camera I was very excited because of the 12 megapixels and the HD Video but in less than 30 days the camera wouldn't turn on anymore. I returned it and got another one, thinking it was just a fluke. I had the second one for only 12 days and it and it had a similar problem, the screen wouldn't come on and the lens tried to pop out and got stuck.

I was thoroughly disappointed and have lost faith in Kodak as a reliable product. It had a lot of nice features but I was not willing to try again.

First off, this is a very good camera. Photos look stunning, and lots of features to make them look that way. The high def video is a great little feature, just make sure you have the right computer to view it. One little quirk you might want to remember is, if you take out the battery and put it back in the time gets reset. Well, if you're lazy like me and ignore it and just start clicking the shutter right away, the camera wont work and wont take pics. So you have to restart it and make sure you either hit cancel or reset the time. Other than that little thing, there really isn't anything wrong with this camera. The 12 megapixels is really sweet! and if you like getting blow ups of your pics you will not be dissatisfied at all. Battery life is spectacular, though if you are on an outing and plan to take a multitude I suggest getting an extra battery, they're cheap (20 bucks I blieve?). The screen is wonderful, the colors jump and even in the sun it works well, just watch out for the glossy, you have to angle it right. The 16:9 pics look stunning and are great.

All in all a wonderful camera at a great price jammed with features.

Took camera to the top of Mt. Rainier, took 360 pictures in freezing cold temperature on one battery charge....never had to use my spare. Pictures turned out great!

we bought this as a gift for our son and daughter inlaw they are having thier first child they love it / my wife feel inlove with it going to buy another one soon / simple to use and photo are great. we are a Kodak family, other then my 35mm all our cameras are Kodak name

I previously owned a Kodak EasyShare DX6340 and it was a great camera. I decided to purchase their new V1273 and found it almost useless. The problem is in their display screen. It is impossible to see even on cloudy days and there is no view finder to use under those conditions. Therefore your left guessing as to how to frame your picture. I wrote Kodak about the problem and they said all digital cameras have this problem. That is not true. While on a resent trip someone showed me there Sony digital camera and the display was clearly visible in bright sunshine. I contacted Kodak again about the problem and they said "sorry your beyond the 30 day guarantee". So now I'm stuck with a useless camera not to mention the accessories I bought with it. I will never buy a Kodak product again.

This is a great camera for the money. My favorite features are the HD photos which are crystal clear and widescreen, the fast focus from this point and click, and the ease of managing all the photos. The size and view screen are great too. The only downfalls are the HD video which looks subpar and the flash could be a little less bright at close range. Other than that I would recommend this camera to anyone who wants to spend around $200.00.

I have the 8MP, 10MP and 12MP variety of this camera. The ONLY function for which this camera is superior is Video. In all other areas, it is an inferior camera.

The MAIN downfall to this camera is the ports and lack of an AC Charger. You're supposed to charge it with a USB cable, not an AC charger, yet the camera has an AC charger port and NO USB Port! So, you have to carry around the proprietary Kodak cable and charge it via a computer. I personally don't wish to use the Easyshare connection, and prefer to just take the SD card out and plop it my their computer or card-reader. So, I'd prefer to have a charger (which you can buy separately for like $40.)

I work for a community media organization where we all have cameras like this, and I can attest that the video (especially the audio that accompanies the video) on this camera is superior to any camera I've seen (besides camcorders). Also, they don't promote it, but the 3-picture panorama feature on the Kodak EasyShare's is uniquely easy and incredible and makes for some of the most simple and unique pictures I've seen (it automatically stiches 2 or 3 pictures together in a seamless panorama/wide-screen shot that looks cinematic and beautiful).
All in all, I'd say this camera is only the right choice for you if you plan to use it for a lot of video blogging. For stills, the other versions with a charger and separate USB port are a better choice. and 8-10MP is more than enough. Unless you're wasting paper and $ by printing everything, You shrink down every picture before sharing it or posting it anyway.

Fabulous ..best all around camera I have seen. Excellent picture quality. Simple and easy to use.

I bought this camera as a birthday present for my wife - who doesn't typically enjoy technology. She loves it. A couple of the complaints I've seen about the battery charge not lasting very long and the usb charger are not really issues. The battery lasts several days on a charge - on a vacation I will end up charging it every few days, not on a vacation it lasts easily several weeks. It just depends on how much you use it, but I don't find it to be worse than other digital cameras I've owned. As for the charger being usb based, this is just the way things are going. Nearly everyone already has other things that charge this way. Personally, I use either my computer to charge or I use my Blackberry charger, which is also usb based. If you really don't like this you can spend the 10 bucks and buy a charger for it, it's not really that big of a deal.

I think the camera is a great deal, has high quality output and is easy to use (if my wife thinks it's easy, believe me it is).

I have a larger digital camera, Kodak Z712IS, w/ a 12X Optical Zoom. It's great, takes incredible pictures, lots of great features, manual modes, etc. But, I couldn't take it with me when running around Disney for example with my Niece and Nephews. I needed one that I could put in my pocket but that could also take great pictures (didn't want to sacrifice quality for size). This camera was the first that satisfied all my requirements (and many more). Glass German lens (my previous point & shoot plastic lens Canon always distorted everything around the edge of the photos - gave my thin girlfriend HUGE ankles, etc.), focus assist lamp, Li-ion battery, Image Stabilization, and fits in any pocket (it's VERY thin). This camera also has HD still and Video, 12 Mpx! (9 for HD, but that's great!), TONS of presets (more than my Z712), Programmable presets!, almost as many digi-features as my Z712 (minus the manual settings & exposure bracketing shots, which I can live without for my "pocket cam"). Oh, also, stereo microphones! Not sure how much that will matter unless there are 2 distinct sounds on either side of me, but it might get a bird chirping to the left and a brook babbling to the right. It also can run on an ordinary AC adapter as well as a USB AC adapter. Its controls are great and sensibly laid-out. NO Click-WHEEL to turn!!! All the features you use most or need/want to change quickly either have their own instant buttons or the "joystick" accesses them with a single movement. The HUGE 3.1 inch screen is AWESOME! Also, this camera comes with a rechargeable Li-Ion battery (I expected to have to buy it seperately). I was worried it would drain the battery quickly, so I ordered a spare one. It lasted me all day everyday, even on our "photo day", on which I took about 40-50 shots not counting retakes and we reviewed photos often. If you take lots of retakes, or lots of video, you may need a second battery (which I bought online for $20, it's $30+tx @ BestBuy) but otherwise, you shouldn't need another. If you have Kodak's universal Li-ion charger, you can charge it up in the car or home, OR you can charge through the USB by computer or USB AC Adapter. I looked on my Universal Charger sheet. This battery is the highest capacity battery in the 700X family (1000 mAh). It lasts longer than I expected, considering that HUGE screen it has to light-up (it has a selectable screen dimmer, comes set to 3 seconds I think, I changed mine to 10 seconds which only makes a difference in battery life if you take lots of pics of course).

I bought this for a Disney trip. Since I was already familiar with Kodak's camera systems, I really gave it a good test run. As most reviewers here have said, it takes INCREDIBLE pictures (and video too)! I didn't have any trouble learning how to take pictures with it like one reviewer said (Kodak familiarity makes no difference - I just used the auto settings when I was just taking pics & not testing it). I took daytime, nighttime, in the rain, sunshine, inside attractions w/out flash, even on a roller coaster (got 2 great shots but I won't try that again!). All of my shots came out great! As with any camera, you have to allow it to focus and understand how auto-focus in general works (but you can set this camera on continuous focus so you don't have to do the "press half-way" step). You also have to hold any camera still or set it down in limited lighting conditions (but this camera has several presets for night shots plus high ISO - I took a GREAT night shot of the Hard Rock Café at Universal Studios City Walk and even took a panoramic of it - this camera has a "panoramic-stitch" mode that works amazingly well). It has various selectable auto-focus modes for specific situations(such as 2 central-focus settings, multi-face detection on & off, multi-zone(normal), etc.) and other exposure metering(sensing) modes (that allow you to set exposure for someone in the shade with sunshine all around them for example). But I never bothered changing the settings while in the parks and only had one picture that would have required me to fool around with such modes (person in shade w/sunshine). The rest all came out beautifully! It has a great "Help" feature that tells you about every feature on the camera as you're going through them (you just move the zoom control and it tells you what the feature does and gives enough detail to be helpful).

NOW, for the BAD news . . . This is a case of a great camera with BAD firmware (the program that runs everything inside). Fortunately, Kodak has a new firmware download on their website (the web address is in your manual). I had several of the same problems some reviewers mentioned the first day! (EXTRA slow after-shot processing sometimes, corrupted photos when I didn't wait until the screen came back and pressed a button, and it totally locked-up - unresponsive with power on - twice . . . just take the battery out and put it back in). I downloaded the new firmware that night (first update your EasyShare software to the latest version on Kodak's site, then download the firmware program to your computer, connect your camera to the USB port, select your camera in the EasyShare software, then find the firmware update menu choice for it telling EasyShare the filepath & name - takes about 5 seconds). It fixed everything EXCEPT (ARE YOU LISTENING KODAK?), the corrupted photos when you press a button before it finishes processing. I HOPE that Kodak will fix that soon and get a firmware release to us. But, I have to say, you can live with that by just not interrupting the camera while it's processing your shot. It takes longer than my Z712, which is done before I could even press a button, but I noticed it does Not affect the speed of burst shots so if you want to take several shots in succession, use burst. If you can live with that, it's an Incredible camera and the reduced $179 price here is the deal of the century (esp. with the included rechargeable Li-ion battery!).

great little camera for the price. I was behind the times and hadn't gone digital, but now I don't have to worry about ruining my film in airports anymore. It is easy to use and has a pretty large screen. Only drawback is one I guess all cameras have, when you take a picture in bright sunlight and try to see it onscreen, it is hard to see without going into the shade. But it is a great little camera.

I absolutely love this camera. We had a Konica Minolta that is not even close. This stitches the pictures together for a huge panoramic shot...right in the camera. No other software needed! It takes practically unlimited digital movies, that can be played back right in the camera or on the computer.
I would have given it 5 stars except that the software appears to crash my computer (VISTA ;-( that I hate) another review said you have to charge it on the computer, you don't there is a seperate charging plug, and you can also keep an extra battery charged up to replace as needed. (which is the case with most digital cameras) For the price it is really good. The zoom is not the best, but hey, you can't have everything. If you need a panoramic camera that takes great quality movies in HD, this is the one.

I love my new V1253 Camera. I have been using it for almost two weeks now and am really impressed both by the quality of the pictures in 12MP and 9MP wide screen and the quality of the video. I purchased a G610 Printer dock for instant printing and the pictures are beautiful. I also used the EasyShare software to order pictures online from Kodak and they are excellent and even cheaper than those printed at home. I would recommend buying a large data card. I bought an 8gb SDHC card and it will hold about 2000 pics. Some have complained about the need to charge the camera from the computer, and I agree. For about $25 you can buy an AC adapter which will charge the battery in about an hour. For about $8, you can buy an adapter that allows the USB cord to plug into a wall socket. I have tried both and they both work fine. I also purchased an AC/DC universal charger that charges the batteries out of the camera. This is great if you are visiting foreign countries because it also has universal plugs, but otherwise is probably not worth the money. I paid $181 with shipping for this camera and I think it was a great deal.

I own a larger Kodak Easyshare camera but wanted to downsize to something I can fit in my purse. I love my larger camera and expected the same quality photos from this littler version. I am extremely disappointed! There are 23 different photos taking options and I have tried them all unsuccessfully. Even taking photos on auto results in bad pictures. I should have taken the camera back right away and got a refund but I kept th