Kodak Easyshare Z812 IS First Thoughts

[Howard Creech]

Wouldn’t George Eastman, inventor and marketer of the first consumer camera (1888) be amazed if he could see what the venerable company that bears his name (Eastman Kodak) was selling these days?  One of the newest digital cameras from the folks in Rochester is the Kodak Easyshare Z812 IS.  The Z812 IS (the flagship of Kodak’s megazoom Z-series) is a compact 8.2 megapixel digital camera with a 12X Schneider-Kreuznach Variogon (36mm-432mm equivalent) zoom, optical image stabilization, a 2.5 inch LCD, auto and manual exposure options, face detection AF,  a Smart Scene mode, and a 1024x720 @ 30fps HD (high definition) video mode.

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The eight megapixel mega-zoom (with IS) digicam class is very crowded these days, so the Z812 IS faces some pretty stiff competition from Canon’s S5 IS, Panasonic’s FZ18, Sony’s H9, Fuji’s S8000fd, and the Olympus SP-560 UZ. The Z812 IS offers users impressive responsiveness, super images with very accurate color, a nice selection of useful features, loads of creative flexibility, direct access to the most commonly changed/adjusted camera settings, and a lower price than most of its competition.

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The Z812 IS does have a few shortcomings – Kodak doesn’t include a rechargeable battery and charger in the package - they must be purchased separately.  Additional shortcomings include the lack of a custom/manual white balance mode (a feature lots of photography enthusiasts regard as essential) and the jog dial (push to engage and turn to change settings) which offers direct access to exposure compensation and ISO sensitivity is too easily pressed/turned accidentally.  Finally, noise management is a little too aggressive, so shadow areas are a bit darker and highlight areas are tiny bit less defined than they should. 

Consumers buy mega-zoom digicams because they want most of the benefits of a dSLR without the extra expense and bulk of a modular camera system.  The very compact Z812 IS delivers SLR-like features and performance, a nice balance of tweakability and flexibility, and P&S (point and shoot) ease of use at a much lower price than a comparable dSLR.

Check back in a few days for our full review of the Kodak Easyshare Z812 IS.

 

[Double M]

Don't forget to complete the firmware upgrade to 1.04!

The firmware upgrade improves the following settings:

- Faster click-to-click time
- Faster time to display quickview
- Improved video image quality in the HD setting
- Defaults to HD HQ (high-quality) in Video Mode
when using a memory card

This was confirmed via an email from a Kodak representative.

I can speak from experience that any zoom/focus issues that might be present while recording HD video are improved with this upgrade.

[Dino]

Howard, I think it would be better to compare it with 12X zoom cameras (love to see Z812 vs Panasonic FZ8), not against 18X zooms.
Correct me if I am wrong, Z812 have manual white balance mode, Z712 have not.
Please somebody, in few words, compare Z712 vs Z812, I am interested is the picture quality same (especially night shots). About other differences I know: 8MP, better flash, HD Video...

[Double M]

Howard, I think it would be better to compare it with 12X zoom cameras (love to see Z812 vs Panasonic FZ8), not against 18X zooms.
Correct me if I am wrong, Z812 have manual white balance mode, Z712 have not.
Please somebody, in few words, compare Z712 vs Z812, I am interested is the picture quality same (especially night shots). About other differences I know: 8MP, better flash, HD Video...

Hmm, why not compare it against the FZ18? The difference between 18x vs 12x is not so much that it would be a huge disadvantage to the Kodak, and with the pricing and the video possibilities, he might still recommend the Kodak as a plausible alternative over the FZ18. I know I did, after trying both.

The money I saved allowed me to buy a great tripod for night exposures, a better than average battery from Kodak and charger and a nice photo bag. That's good value in my humble opinion.

[Howard Creech]

Howard, I think it would be better to compare it with 12X zoom cameras (love to see Z812 vs Panasonic FZ8), not against 18X zooms.
Correct me if I am wrong, Z812 have manual white balance mode, Z712 have not.
Please somebody, in few words, compare Z712 vs Z812, I am interested is the picture quality same (especially night shots). About other differences I know: 8MP, better flash, HD Video...

Hi Dino,

Thanks for sharing your camera comparison opinion - I stand by my original contention. I regard megazoom digicams as a class and I think comparisons within that class of cameras is relevant - all the cameras I mentioned provide 8 megapixel resolution and each of them features image stabilization and a long zoom.

Here are my comments on the subject from the full review of the Z812 IS (to be posted soon) - "The Z812 IS’s Schneider-Kreuznach Variogon zoom is surprisingly good, and I think Kodak made the right decision to stay with the slightly improved version of the zoom that graced their first mega-zoom digicam – even though most of the Z812 IS’s competition is now sporting 18X zooms. The long zoom race (like the megapixel race and the LCD size rivalry) is getting a bit ridiculous. Long zooms are inherently complex and as lens complexity increases optical faults are magnified exponentially, so Kodak’s commitment to stay with the 12X Schneider Variogon rather than developing a new “longer” lens or trying to stretch the Variogon out to 18X provides a nice dose practicality in this “me too” marketing environment."

The Z812 IS does not feature a custom/manual White Balance mode.

Howard