General concensus regarding Kodak digital cameras vs. other makes

[Zippper]

I'm eyeing a rather good deal on a 5 megapixel Kodak digital camera. I have a 2.1 megapixel Nikon now.

What is the general concensus regarding Kodak digital cameras vs. other makes. Are they average? Below Average? Above average?

I know that Kodak is a step down from Nikon (perhaps a few steps). But -5 megapixels is a few steps up from 2.1.

Is the higher resolution vs. brandname tradeoff worth it?

[Gary Sheynkman]

From hours of tinkering at bestbuy... i think that the consumer digicams from Kodak are a bit dumbed down so that ANYONE can use them. I found the picture of the 5mp to be subpar (when printed using kodaks own 4x6 printer) compared to some 4 megapixel pictures from a nikon 4500
http://img.dpreview.com/reviews/nikoncp4500/Images/frontview-001.jpg


You can find a great deal on this camera since they are no longer in production.

I will always recommend nikon and canon over other brands unless you are going for the Uber-compact cameras

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Kodak? Simple cameras. Boring too. At one point there was so little difference between their cameras I had no way of telling them apart at a glance. Now it's a bit better, but their offerings tend to be on the unexciting side.

[groan]

i have known several users of kodak camera's (not me) and have seen the photos. they are surprisingly sharp and color is quite good.
i'm a nikon man myself (nikon coolpix 5000)

[Suhit Gupta]

I agree that the Kodak line seems to all seemed the same. I was, like many others, quite excited about the Kodak DCS 14n, which at at whopping 14MP was expected to be great, especially since it was slated to come out towards the end of 2002, and with a fantastic price compared to any of its competitors at the time. But it was delayed for so much time (almost a year)... people started losing interest. Anyways, since then I have been mostly disappointed with their stuff. Perhaps it is time to take another look...

Suhit

[backpackerx]

I've only used a Kodak camera once but my impression was that is was made from cheap plastic and lacked many useful features. They are definitely geared for people who just want to shoot with the auto setting. I don't know about lens quality but I'd assume if the rest of the camera is cheap then the lens is too and a lower megapixle camera might even give better results.

[Howard2k]

I use a Kodak camera and I'm pretty happy with it. I'm no "camera geek" though.

For me I can take it, point and shoot and view later. It takes SD media, has a few options, will record video and "just works".

Nothing complex but just a decent non-geek camera.

Having said that. I doubt I'd buy another one. One of the main drivers behind this was my inexperience, the low price and the SD slot. When I re-purchase there will undoubtedly be a better range of quality cameras taking SD.