Home > Consumer Reviews > Kodak EasyShare DX3500 With Docking Station [2.2MP]

I've had my DX3500 for more than two years now, (bought from Amazon photo store), and on the whole it's been a good purchase. It was my first digi-cam and I was looking for something simple to take shots of my new daughter, (I had two months to practise before she arrived on the scene). The 3500 has proved simple and easy to use, with okay definition and good colour saturation. Indoor performance with the integrated flash was also pretty good too. I've now progressed more onto landscapes and action shots, (I like aircraft), where unfortunately the lack of a zoom makes itself felt, (now getting shots consisting of much sky and a little dot, which is what I was trying to get a picture of - grrr!). Providing your subject is reasonably well lit, and less than 400m away you'll probably get acceptable (or better!) results.
You won't get good A4 prints from it, but the glossy 6x4" shots look very good, (I'm using Kodak photo card in an Epson 880 inkjet as it gives better results than Epson stock). I bought a 128MB Compact Flash card at the time, and I've filled it with 112 shots on one occasion at highest resolution, so that seems to be a good size card for the camera.
Downsides? It seems to take a wee while to start up, getting longer as it gets older. The digital 'zoom' is utterly useless and horrific, and the lack of any optical zoom is a real pain. It does look a bit toy-like and flimsy, (it's actually quite robust).
I'll be giving mine to a relative next year, as I now need a decent optical zoom, oh and 5MP would be nice too!
If you do manage to get one, make sure to get the camera dock too as the '3500 is pretty useless without it.
I would have given 5 stars, but sorry the lack of zoom is inexecusable.

This is an excellent little camera and a fine introduction to digital photography, both in terms of its price, ease of use and quality of image reproduction. Although it has been criticised for a lack of advanced features, the key to remember here is that it was designed with simplicity in mind. Although somewhat chunkier than a lot of digital cameras, it is comfortable to hold. It has a powerful built in flash, with red eye reduction and a fill flash option - useful for subjects with strong backlighting. The 3x digital zoom is ample for most average users, and the macro setting takes excellent close ups, which retain clarity even at a distance of around
6-7 inches.

The print quality is also excellent - even printing on plain inkjet paper for leaflets, newsletters etc, produces crisp images without graininess and pixelisation. Anyone who says otherwise needs to learn how to use an image editing program, because, as with all digital images, photos taken with the DX3500 need to be resized for printing.

It is also extremely user friendly - far less complicated than a 35mm camera. On the down side, the imaging software Kodak provide is at best basic, but there are many excellent freeware programs that can be used to counter this. There are also additional lenses and filters to be had for around £37 per item which will hardly break the bank.

All in all, this is a wonderful little photographic tool, when used properly. I would highly recommend it to anyone just getting into digital photography or indeed, photography in general. More experienced users might prefer a bit more sophistication - but this comes at a price! For value for money and user friendliness, this product gets full marks from me - and I'm a really hard person to please!

I've just recieved my camera and have to say that it's brilliant!! Its the first digital camera I have owned and I'm impressed. The process of transfering pictures from camera to computer is incredibly easy with the docking station, and the software supplied is also excellant. More experienced users may find it a little simple but if new to digital photography then the whole package is a must. The picture quality is first class (2.2M) and pictures I've taken with the digital zoom (x3) are clear. My favourite is the video out meaning I can show my pics on other peoples TVs, if they dont own a computer. At this price, this camera is excellant value and I cant recommend enough.

After using a relatives Kodak DC290 for months and being delighted with its picture quality, if not its speed, when I decided to buy my own I was tempted by Kodaks offerings but the DX 3500 fell far short of expectations. The camera I had been used to was 2.1 megapixels so I expected this one at 2.2 to be of comparable image quality if not marginally better but its actually worse. Theres no zoom on it and for taking pictures of people which is what I intended it for its a joke. This is obviously one of those product improvements which are supposed to improve on previous editions while actually being a step back.

When looking at all the digital cameras available, I was undecided until I saw the kodak DX3500 with its docking port. I didn't expect the camera to be so easy to use and set up on my PC - it was, and is so easy to use, the docking port and rechargeable battery pack are brilliant features. If you are undecided I would definitely recommend this camera, you won't find this camera cheaper anywhere else. Still undecided? don't waste anymore time, order one today.