Kodak EasyShare C743

Manufacturer: Eastman Kodak Co. Part number: 1856558

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$299.99 at 1 online store

CNET Editor rating:
2.5 stars Average
Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 20 reviews

More product information:: Editors' review; Product brief; User reviews; Specifications; Accessories; Manufacturer info

Bottom Line:: With so many better choices for budget cameras available, pass on the bulky, noisy Kodak EasyShare C743.

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Amazon.com Store profile \| Buy now	Rate this store See store profile	See Site	Enter zip code to get total price: Price +Tax +Shipping =Total price	$329.94 Your best price Shop now as of 09/06/2008

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CNET editors' review

Kodak EasyShare C743

price range: $299.99

With so many better choices for budget cameras available, pass on the bulky, noisy Kodak EasyShare C743.

The good: Has an optical viewfinder; handy in-camera editing.

The bad: Chunky build; very noisy images; few manual controls.

The bottom line: With so many better choices for budget cameras available, pass on the bulky, noisy Kodak EasyShare C743.

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Budget cameras are a dime a dozen these days, and without high-quality photos or unique capabilities, it's easy for these sub-$200 shooters to fall between the cracks. Of course, without a major flaw it's hard for a sub-$200 camera to really screw up, either. The Kodak EasyShare C743 is one such mediocre camera. It doesn't offer any notable benefits, but its flaws, while irritating, aren't enough to render it completely useless.

The C743's 6.8-ounce, blocky body feels bulky and cheap. The light and flimsy plastic shell doesn't feel very sturdy, and its thick profile makes it a bit too chunky to fit into a pocket. Fortunately, the control layout is standard and relatively comfortable, with well-spaced and accessible buttons.

Like most budget cameras, the C743's feature set delivers just the basics. With a standard 3x zoom lens (37mm to 111mm-equivalent), a 30fps VGA movie mode, and a handful of image presets, the C743 bears all the standard features of a low-end point-and-shoot camera. Photography controls are predictably scarce, with only a few white balance and ISO selections and no advanced exposure settings. Fortunately, a handy in-camera editing program lets users crop and tweak their images after they're shot. Finally, an optical viewfinder proves to be a welcome surprise on the budget shooter, offering an alternative to the camera's slightly smaller than usual 2.4-inch LCD.

The C743 proved to be a bit sluggish in our tests, but was still responsive enough to still be useful. After a 3-second wake-up time, the camera snapped off a shot every 2.1 seconds. With the flash enabled, that time increased to 3 seconds between every shot. The shutter response was also decent, lagging only 0.7 seconds in bright light and 1.2 seconds in low light. Burst mode was quick but short, firing off three shots in just 1.3 seconds for a rate of 2.3 frames per second.

Noise is the C743's greatest problem. While the camera can only reach ISO 400, the shots look as if the camera were set at ISO 1600. At the highest sensitivity setting, our images looked incredibly fuzzy, and fine details appeared smudged and blurry. Besides the heavy grain, our test photos also showed a lot of chromatic aberration, the purplish fringe that can appear on the edges of contrasting objects. Distortion is the C743's other major flaw; images are even and accurate in telephoto mode, but zooming out to a wider angle causes images to balloon and contort sharply.

Though the Kodak EasyShare C743's price is low, its flimsy build and incredibly noisy images disappoint even in the bargain bin. If you really want an inexpensive point-and-shoot camera, skip the C743 and look at the Olympus FE-190 or the Canon PowerShot A540. The Olympus feature a slim, stylish body and simple shooting, while the Canon offers a generous handful of manual controls to tweak your images. For the same price, the Kodak EasyShare C743 offers neither.

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User reviews

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Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 20 reviews

Showing opinion 1 to 10 out of 20

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9 stars

Good Entry Level Camera

by Tech_2K on January 10, 2007

Pros: Decent construction, features and pictures are good to excellent for the price.

Cons: plastic housing and battery life as with all lower end digital cameras.

Summary: This is a decent camera for what you pay. Don't let the other low score reviews fool you. I have taken excellent pictures with this camera using low lighting ...

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Summary: This is a decent camera for what you pay. Don't let the other low score reviews fool you. I have taken excellent pictures with this camera using low lighting or with the flash, and outdoors the pictures come out perfect. I also own a Canon A530 (5 megapixels) and the pictures produced by both cameras are comparable in image quality. The plastic housing is actually pretty sturdy and has a good feel to it when you hold the camera. This camera is easy to operate and pretty much dummy proof. I will give it a 9 out of 10 star rating. Sure you can find better cameras and pay more or you can find cameras for about the same quality / price range, but a lot of those manufactures will not back up their products when they fail or need to be replaced.

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5 out of 5 users found this user opinion helpful.
5 stars

Poor low light performance in spite of flash

by npodila on November 13, 2006

Pros: compact size, fast image storage after click, powered by alkaline batteries

Cons: poor low light performance; no image stabilization

Summary: I tried taking pictures in low light conditions with every variation of scene mode and aperture. Each and every time the picture blur indicator came on and the picture looked ...

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Summary: I tried taking pictures in low light conditions with every variation of scene mode and aperture. Each and every time the picture blur indicator came on and the picture looked blurry. My point-and-shoot regular film camera took fine pictures in identical light conditions.
I am planning on returning this camera and getting one with image stabilization - that might work better

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2 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
2 stars

Great if you like awful pictures

by rfox316 on December 26, 2006

Pros: Nice looking camera, easy to hold, cheap price

Cons: Awful Pictures in all kinds of lights, for every 1 good picture, you get 5 bad

Summary: I had this camera for all of one day before I took it back and upgraded to a canon. DO NOT purchase this camera even if you are on a ...

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Summary: I had this camera for all of one day before I took it back and upgraded to a canon. DO NOT purchase this camera even if you are on a budget.

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1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
4 stars

Great Price but poor Indoor Picture Quality

by jmgibso on December 23, 2006

Pros: Great Price.....but at a cost

Cons: Photos indoors are poor

Summary: After researching this camera on various websites, I read a few reviews indicating that this camera performs poorly indoors and/or in poor lighting situations. I ignored this comments, thinking ...

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Summary: After researching this camera on various websites, I read a few reviews indicating that this camera performs poorly indoors and/or in poor lighting situations. I ignored this comments, thinking that the probably came from camera gurus that were trying to obtain a professional quality photo from a $139 digital camera. I was wrong. After shooting several pictures, I immediately realized that the previously read comments were accurate. I returned this camera today.

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1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
9 stars

?Great little Camera for such a low Price?

by flash4512 on December 21, 2006

Pros: LOW Price, Ease of Use, Picture Quality, Compact Size!

Cons: no image stabilization.

Summary: I got this camera with the dock station for only $159.88 @ Wally World. As for many of my customers the ease of use is important to them. So lets ...

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Summary: I got this camera with the dock station for only $159.88 @ Wally World. As for many of my customers the ease of use is important to them. So lets see you install the Ni-MH battery pack and hook two plugs to your computer and install CD software and 1 GB SD card in camera and you?re done. Now your camera is always charged and ready to go. After taking photos put camera back in docking station and push one button and presto your photos are on your computer. Then you can edit or E-mail or burn to photo CD or just take your SD card from your camera to Wally World and print them for 15 cents a print.

I Previously had a 3.2MP Kodak with docking station before this one and lets just say with this 7.1MP one when I took a photo of the Christmas tree at night with flash it looked like I took it out side on a sunny day just perfect. So I had to turn off flash to get photo of the lights. I had no problem with blurred photos maybe some persons were drinking while using. The Cnet editor while normally very good sure missed the boat on this one. And while smaller is normally a good thing I don?t have little girl hands and I don?t want something I have to push the buttons with a pencil and I think it is plenty small enough already.

And while it may not be the greatest for the photo Experts for the rest of us it?s really the last camera you?ll ever need and do yourself a favor get the C733 so you will have the docking station. This will save you batteries and hassles of transferring your photos to your computer. And it?s still half the size of my 35mm film camera. So for the price it?s really the best camera on the market and Kodak stands behind their product. And if you take videos just buy the Hitachi DVD camcorder it?s also cheap so the Cnet editor won?t like it either. This one does all the junk the others do and then some and soon as your done just stick the DVD in your DVD player it?s a great deal also.
Updated
The one you need is the Kodak EasyShare C703! Not C733 as I said before sorry about that. But it's not to late I think they are still on sale at Walmart.com for $159.88

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1 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
10 stars

Kodaks are best

by tomahgrl on March 6, 2008

Pros: not a bunch of useless features

Cons: what cons????

Summary: couldn't be happier. this is an awesome camera. takes great crisp pictures unnecessary buttons.

Summary: couldn't be happier. this is an awesome camera. takes great crisp pictures unnecessary buttons.
2 stars

Don't waste your time on this camera

by Currychanna on December 9, 2007

Pros: Can't think of any

Cons: Fails after shooting a few pics

Summary: We bought this camera for my 18 year old, and from day one we noticed that it would die after taking a few pics. We thought it was the batteries, ...

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Summary: We bought this camera for my 18 year old, and from day one we noticed that it would die after taking a few pics. We thought it was the batteries, so we'd get new ones. Finally we changed the brand of batteries, and followed manufacturer's instructions on what to use. Same old thing, the camera was a total waste of time.

If we did not have a family emergency (cancer) to deal with, we would have taken it back to the store!

I would never encourage anyone to buy the Easy Share. It's the most awful camera we ever owned.

Complained to Kodak and am awaiting word from them. The warranty is up (bought it last year this time), and I won't pay to fix it!

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2 stars

not worth it

by hearts21 on July 23, 2007

Pros: are there any?

Cons: after having this camera for only a few months the lens/zoom has broken 3 times, picture quality is poor/blurry and the screen cracked without anything even touching it

Summary: basically, dont buy this camera unless you plan on putting a lot of time and effort into fixing it.

Summary: basically, dont buy this camera unless you plan on putting a lot of time and effort into fixing it.
5 stars

budget camera, nothing special

by sk1212 on July 1, 2007

Pros: it takes outdoor pictures very nicely, easy to use controls, simple camera for people who want the basics

Cons: indoor pictures way below what i expected from kodak, especially in the dark, red eye removal is not very good

Summary: although it has the basics you could get cameras with much better all around quality for the around same price range, although no major problems with the c743, I reccommend ...

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Summary: although it has the basics you could get cameras with much better all around quality for the around same price range, although no major problems with the c743, I reccommend you check out the cannons or the sonys, although they are a little more exspensive, it is worth it to get better photos.
Updated
dissapointed with the kodak c743

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9 stars

Very good for the price

by JMcL989 on June 4, 2007

Pros: nice price, good pictures

Cons: bulky and not "asstecicly pleasing" <--nice spelling huh

Summary: the kodak ES C743 takes pretty good pics. i like mine

Summary: the kodak ES C743 takes pretty good pics. i like mine

Showing opinion 1 to 10 out of 20

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Specifications

Manufacturer: Eastman Kodak Co.
Part number: 1856558

General
Product Type Digital camera - Compact
Weight 5.1 oz
Width 3.6 in
Depth 1.3 in
Height 2.6 in
Main Features
Resolution 7.1 megapixels
Sensor resolution 7.1 megapixels
Optical Sensor Type CCD
Effective Sensor Resolution 7,100,000 pixels
Total Pixels 7,400,000 pixels
Optical Sensor Size 1/2.5 in
Light Sensitivity ISO 200, ISO 800, ISO auto, ISO 400, ISO 80, ISO 100
Digital Zoom 5 x
Shooting Modes Frame movie mode
Shooting Programs Party/indoor, Back light, Landscape, Beach, Portrait mode, Children, Night portrait, Self-portrait, Sports mode, Close-up, Snow, Fireworks
Special effects Black & White, Sepia
Max Shutter Speed 1/1400 sec
Min Shutter Speed 4 sec
Exposure Metering Center-weighted
Exposure Modes Bulb, Automatic, Program
Exposure Compensation ?2 EV range, in 1/2 EV steps
White Balance Automatic, Presets
White Balance Presets Tungsten light, Fluorescent, Daylight
Digital video format QuickTime (MPEG-4)
Still Image Format JPEG
Color support Color
TV Tuner None
Video Capture QuickTime - 640 x 480 - 80 sec - With 32MB card, QuickTime - 320 x 240 - 276 sec - With 32MB card
Memory / Storage
Flash Memory 32 MB Flash - Integrated
Integrated Memory 32 MB
Floppy Drive None
Image Storage JPEG 3072 x 2304 : 24 dBi - With 32MB card, JPEG 1024 x 768 : 170 - With 32MB card, JPEG 2304 x 1728 : 44 - With 32MB card, JPEG 1600 x 1200 : 80 - With 32MB card, JPEG 3072 x 2048 : 26 - With 32MB card
Flash memory 32 MB - Integrated
Supported Flash Memory MultiMediaCard, SD Memory Card
Lens System
Type Zoom lens - F/2.7-4.9
Additional Features
Self Timer Yes
Self Timer Delay 10 sec, 2 sec
Additional Features USB 2.0 compatibility, Cropping an image, Direct print, Digital image rotation, DPOF support, Audio recording, Auto power save, PictBridge support, Date/time stamp
Camera Flash
Effective Flash Range 2 ft - 12 ft
Type Built-in flash
Flash Modes Flash OFF mode, Fill-in mode, Auto mode, Red-eye reduction
Red Eye Reduction Yes
Effective flash range 2 ft - 12 ft
Guide Number (m / ISO 100) 8.5
Viewfinder
Viewfinder Type Optical - Real-image zoom
Color support Color
Display
Type LCD display - TFT active matrix - 2.4 in - Color
Mounting Built-in
Resolution 112,000 pixels
Digital Player (Recorder)
Type None

Microphone
Type Microphone - Built-in
Connections
Connector Type 1 x Docking station, 1 x Composite video/audio output, 1 x USB
Expansion Slot(s) 1 x SD Memory Card
Lens Systems
Auto Focus TTL contrast detection
Type Zoom lens
Focal Length Equivalent to 35mm Camera 37 - 111 mm
Focus adjustment Automatic
Auto Focus Points (Zones) 3
Min Focus Range 23.6 in
Macro Focus Range 13-70cm
Lens Aperture F/2.7-4.9
Optical Zoom 3 x
Zoom Adjustment Motorized drive
Features Aspherical lens, Built-in lens shield
Miscellaneous
Carrying Case None
Cables Included 1 x USB cable
Included Accessories Docking station insert, Wrist strap
Min Operating Temperature 32 ?F
Max Operating Temperature 104 ?F
Power
Power Device None
System Requirements for PC Connection
System Requirements Details Windows 2000/XP - 128 MB - 200 MB
Hardware Windows 2000/XP - 128 MB
Min hard drive 200 MB
Operating system MS Windows XP, Apple Mac OS X 10.3 or later, MS Windows 2000 SP4 or later
Peripherals USB port, SVGA monitor, CD-ROM drive
Battery
Supported Battery 2 x AA NiMH rechargeable battery, 2 x AA Lithium battery, 2 x AA Alkaline battery, 1 x CR-V3 Lithium battery
Manufacturer Warranty
Service & Support 1 year warranty
Service & Support Details Limited warranty - 1 year
Type 1 year warranty, - Limited warranty
Full contract period 1 year
Software
Type Kodak EasyShare, Drivers & Utilities

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Kodak EasyShare C743

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CNET editors' review

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Main Features

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Additional Features

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Viewfinder

Display

Digital Player (Recorder)

Microphone

Connections

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Power

System Requirements for PC Connection

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