Looking for expert advice, is this worth it?

Question

JCPenney outlet is selling this camerafor a few days. ive been looking for a good digital cam and i just wanted to know if this was worth getting.

this is what the flyer says-

kodak easyshare 12 megapixel digital camera refurbished with 90 day guarentee.

-12 megapixel CCD for high quality prints up to 30x40

-high resolution 2.5" color LCD

-5x optical zoom

-capture HD quality stills and video

-64MB internal memory SD/SDHC/MMC expanision slot.

Im no expert, but from what i know 12 megapixels is really good. its only $89.99 so I was wondering if maybe that was too good to be true?

will it be worth it?

Answer 1

There are two Kodak cameras that meet those specs: The Z1275 and the slightly newer Z1285. Both are okay but they're not great (despite the 12 megapixels). The Z1285 is still available for around $150 retail. Even for $150 however, it's unfair to expect a great camera. These cameras will produce good 8x10 prints, but not “high quality prints up to 30x40”. It's more about the quality of the lens than the number of megapixels. Here’s a link with the full specifications and some user reviews: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/compare_...

The fact that these cameras are refurbished means that they were sold once, returned, then inspected & possibly repaired, and now they are being sold again at a discount… and with a lesser warrantee. Or perhaps they were used as demonstration models in JC Penney stores. I’d treat it as buying used gear with the benefit of a 90 day guarantee if the camera breaks.

Have a look at the user reviews. If this looks like a camera you might enjoy, I'd have no problem buying it from JC Penney. They are about as legit as it gets.

Do keep in mind that you will need some extras. This camera uses AA batteries and you should get Li-Ion rechargables with a 2000+ mAh rating. Regular batteries, even Duracell/ Energizer alkaline batteries, won’t last for more than a few shots. You’ll also want to get a 1GB SD memory card because the 64MB internal memory will only hold a few pictures, or a few seconds of video.