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April 26, 2006
[ REVIEW—KODAK EASYSHARE V570 camera ]
Price: $699
Rating: 4 stars
The low-down: The Kodak V570 Easyshare 5 megapixel digital camera is “the world’s first dual lens digital camera” according to the company’s publicity.
Why two lenses? It is a solution to a lens design problem – how do you make a small optical zoom lens that will cover the range from a wide angle 23mm to a medium telephoto 117mm without creating optical and mechanical problems that are expensive to solve.
Kodak’s solution is to fit the camera with two lenses – a fixed focal length 23mm f2.8 lens and a 3x zoom lens. The user doesn’t have to switch between these lenses, it is done automatically as the camera is zoomed from wide to tele and back. It seems to work.
[Kodak V570 wide angle without vertical correction]
The dedicated wide angle lens produces sharp pictures which are virtually free of any barrel distortion. The 3x zoom, from 39mm to 114mm (film equivalent) works like any such lens.
The V570 produces Kodak’s typical output of vivid, sharp images, ideal for printing directly on a matching EasyShare printer without any computer futzing.
Like this: The small form of the camera and its rugged construction make it a true pocket camera with a good measure of user control. The little joystick is used for instant exposure compensation (amongst other functions) and that is brilliant. Auto white balance is exceptionally good.
Dislike that: There is no optical viewfinder. The camera reverts to full auto mode every time it is turned on. Preferred settings can be saved in the Custom Scene Mode and easily recalled with a second press of the Scn button, if you remember.
Parting shot: The dual lens system looks like a gimmick, as though Kodak is straining to create some distinguishing feature for the camera. In fact it works well. For anyone planning a trip that will take in the cramped cities of Europe where it is hard to get back far enough to take in an entire building the V570 will be a boon. We like it!
Posted by terry at April 26, 2006 04:55 PM
Worth Checking Out
Digital Cameras SydneyComments
Hi there. I love the review. I have had the opportunity to use a V570 myself and I fully support your opinions on the camera. I do contract work for Kodak and I get my hands on a lot of cameras before their release. My parting shot: If you liked the V570, you are going to LOVE the Z612!
Cheers!
Posted by: Rik at May 25, 2006 01:23 AM
The V570 can stitch 3 shots together for an ultra wide angle. Is this a useful feature or is it best left to PC (or Mac) s/w to do? I'm assuming that some s/w out there will do this.
Posted by: Rod at June 19, 2006 03:33 AM
Rod: Most compact digital cameras come with a panorama stitching facility. It is useful but not unique to the Kodak. TL
Posted by: Terry at June 19, 2006 08:43 AM
I bought this camera online for a lot less than the price you quote. It totalled about $5oo with 1Gig card and spare battery. Over the past four months I have used it extensively. The wide angle lens allows me to take shots of whole rooms or groups of people with just one shot, where a normal camera requires two or three shots. The camera is the same size as my mobile phone and fits in my pocket easily. The main drawback is its inability to deal with difficult lighting situations. It is good in the dark, but when dark and light are together, it performs badly compared to most other cameras I have tried. The Easy Share system drove me crazy for a while because I travel a lot. I solved this with a card reader in my laptop and another (256Meg) card.
Overall it is a great litle camera.
Posted by: Mark Smerdon at March 14, 2007 12:29 AM
I was very keen to buy the Kodak V570 camera. Must have bought one of the first to arrive in Australia. It turned out to be the worst camera I have had. The wide angle lens was great but within 20 days the second lens was playing up - blurred dark images -another month and the second lens was just a black image. I sent off to Kodak for repairs in April - on 10 July I finally got a replacement camera. By January the replacement camera had a blackened second lens (wide angle still worked!) How can the same fault happen with two cameras.. ?? MUST be a design fault. It was returned to the retailer who knew how bad Kodak were with the first repair/replacement. When Kodak didn't meet their contracted repair time of 12 days, the retailer gave me a refund and I was able to go and buy a real camera - a Canon Ixus 850 which also has a wide angle (28 instead of 24) but no paralax issues and continual optical zoom right up to close-ups.
Has anyone else had these design faults in this camera.
Also movies on the Kodak camera have a lot of noise compared with the Canon. I really wouldn't recommend anyone to buy this Kodak. I thought it was going to be the Best Camera ever and it turned out to be a dud.
Posted by: Charmian at April 16, 2007 02:59 PM