Kodak M753

The Kodak EasyShare Zoom M753 is a feature-packed budget compact. Retailing at just under £100 it’s the cheapest on test, which we’re sure will make it popular on the high street. But if the Samsung i70 got where it is on looks, then the M753 made its way onto the scene from Pop Idol.

Its first test is Landscape mode. Perhaps the M753 is not as cultured as its rivals, for while they’ve given us all the variants of verdant possible, the M753 has simply given us green. Perhaps a little lighter and darker in places, but still a plain monochrome of green, with tonal variation but no distinct shading visible. The white balance is off in this brightly lit shot too, and although it has picked out some great detailing in the shadows, sunlit patches are as white as a pair of box-fresh Reebok Classics.

Sunset mode unfortunately fares little better. While it’s good that the M753 can compensate for low-lighting conditions and still produce a clear shot, it has got no real appreciation of the nuances of deep golden-honey highlights, preferring instead to bleach the whole image. Although it’s crisp and clear, it’s lacking in the evocative tones and shading produced by the other cameras in this test, and makes this shot look more like an overcast midday than an evening of blazing sunshine.

Its Night shot is, sadly, appalling. The overall colour tone is better than some models in this test, but still distinctly fake-tan orange. Despite having anti-shake on, there’s still motion blur thanks to the slow shutter speed. It has, however, captured the jewels on the clock face, suggesting that this is another one that would benefit from a tripod at night. The M753 also suffers from colour casts across the LCD under artificial light. Kodak is by no means the only brand currently experiencing this problem, but it does make setting up a shot difficult.

However, just when you thought it was all over for the M753, it manages to pull off a fairly spectacular backlit shot of a beachside alley. Although the sky is a little too bleached out, it shades upwards from the light source beautifully. The distant light source itself is captured well and with more detail than expected. The contrast between the sun-bleached trees, hot blue sky and shady fences and gravel is pallid but effective. It manages to convey the feel of the scene very well.

It’s a mixed result then for the Kodak EasyShare Zoom M753. Although there are areas in which its scene modes seriously fall down compared to others, the ease-of-use of its manual settings plus the good level of detail it captures, means that this camera does have the potential to shine if you’re prepared to work at smoothing out its rough edges.