Kodak EasyShare V1253

Guide price: £199.00

Compact, 12 megapixel digital camera with HD Video/Photos. When I first received this model to test I was immediately impressed with the build quality and finish, it looks & feels just like an iPod! (It is also available in black!) The thick polycarbonate casing is glossy and the stainless steel middle strip is substantial, this camera also features a metal tripod bush, battery/card door (with metal sprung hinge)zoom lever and mini joystick. So built to last and take normal everyday punishment without damage! Buttons are kept to a minimum and amount to five along the top, that light up in blue and four running down the side of the massive widescreen 3.1" widescreen.

Start-up is swift and the 3x Schneider-Kreuznach Variogon lens positively shoots out in under a second! This is without doubt the fastest camera Kodak have made and is ready for action very quickly, the screen is also completely lag-free and (again) colour accurate. The screen information display has been completely re-designed and is very attractive, easy to read and navigate around with tabs and beautifully rendered text and icons, this model is really very easy to use and change settings on, to get the very best out of it.

12 Megapixels is a huge amount of pixels and this camera has more pixels than most of the current range of SLR cameras!(albeit using a much smaller sensor) This means that if you want to crop a picture or zoom in, you can to a truly massive extent and still end up with a very high quality picture; This feature and the fact this camera supports HD output (16:9 aspect ratio @9 megapixels) are the killer features and the reason you should seriously consider buying this model.

Total ease of use, interesting added extras such as themed automatic slideshows with music! eight selectable picture sizes from 1.2mp up to 12 mp, 24 scene modes, a superb panorama function, that amazing widescreen display, face detection and a huge range of selectable ISO settings for all lighting conditions make this camera stand out, from the emerging high megapixel count compact digital camera list.

Memory card type: SD (Supports SDHC cards)

Battery: Lithium-Ion rechargeable

Hilary's Conclusion: I've been testing this camera for a full two weeks and I've come to really like it! The build quality is superb and the screen is huge and super sharp, the photos are pretty darn good as well! All in all I rate this camera as a really great buy!