Kodak EasyShare C530

Model Design / Appearance
The case of the EasyShare C530 is light gray plastic, but feels fairly well built. The C530 has a typical rectangular shape and there is nothing that protrudes from the camera too far, so it’s unlikely that the plastic shell will be damaged by a short drop. The lens is recessed, so it’s unlikely to get damaged in normal use. The lack of features leaves the camera barren in places, making it visually unbalanced. Then again, at this price, aesthetics are not a priority.

Size / Portability
At 3.3 x 2.6 x 1.2 inches, the C530 is a portable camera, and pretty lightweight at 5.2 oz. It’s perhaps a bit thick to fit into a shirt pocket comfortably, but still small enough for a jacket pocket or handbag. The slightly rounded corners also means that it shouldn’t get caught on anything if you try to quickly take it out of a pocket to snap a passing celebrity. Its start-up time, however…might let you down and ultimately, still cause you to miss the shot. 

Handling Ability
The grip on the front makes for a firm hold on the camera: between this and the wrist strap, you are unlikely to loose your grip on the camera unless you fall off a cliff (in which case, the camera will be the least of your problems). Although the case is made of plastic, it didn’t seem to be especially slippery. The thumb grip on the back also helps.

Navigation is easy by default. There are so few features or adjustable options that it’s impossible to get lost or overwhelmed.

Control Button / Dial Positioning / Size
The shutter is extremely light: because there is no autofocus; there is no halfway-depressed position and I often found myself inadvertently taking pictures when testing the button. The other buttons are well placed. It’s possible to reach both the buttons by the LCD and the 4-way control dial with the thumb of the right hand (although you do really need the left to brace the camera while doing so). The only exception to this is the Share button, which is a little awkward to reach in the bottom right corner. You are only likely to use this button, however, when viewing stored images, and since users typically do this with both hands, it’s not a big problem. There are no dedicated zoom controls; pressing the OK button enables the digital zoom at 2x, and pressing it once more steps it up to 4x. This is not intuitive, but it’s the only main quirk of the camera other than its omission of essential shooting features.

Menu
Given the limited features of the Kodak EasyShare C530, it’s not surprising that the menus are pretty simple. In auto mode, you have options for the self-timer, exposure compensation, picture size, color mode (color, black and white or sepia), the album the photos will be stored in, the video length, the image storage location (internal memory or SD Card) and finally a separate setup menu. The share menu (entered by pressing the Kodak share button) allows you to set images to print, email or add to your list of favorites for viewing via the EasyShare software.

Ease of Use
Again, given the limited number of features, it’s not surprising that the EasyShare C530 is very simple to use. To take pictures, you just switch the dial to auto mode, then press the shutter. To review pictures, you just press the review button and scroll through the list of pictures. It really is that simple: there are no complex menus or bewildering combinations of buttons to press to get to your photos. This camera basically offers the interface of a disposable camera.