Kodak's 2004 CX-series flagship — 5MP 1/2.5in CCD, 3x 34-102mm-equiv f/2.7-4.6 zoom, optical finder, AA power.
The EasyShare CX7530 was announced by Kodak in May 2004 as the five-megapixel flagship of the CX7000-series of budget dock-compatible compacts, arriving a few months before the similar CX7525. It aimed squarely at family users with nine scene and colour modes and the Share button for one-touch print and email tagging.
It pairs a 5-megapixel 1/2.5in CCD with a 3x zoom covering 34-102mm equivalent at f/2.7-4.6, focusing to 10cm in macro. Framing is by optical viewfinder or 1.8in LCD, ISO runs 80-800, continuous shooting reaches 2.4fps, and storage is 32MB internal plus an SD/MMC slot. Power comes from two AA cells (NiMH or lithium - Kodak advised against alkalines) or a CRV3, and it weighs about 240g loaded.
The CX7530 is one of the more capable budget Kodaks of its year, with a brighter lens than most rivals and an honest optical finder, and its warm CCD colour is the draw for digicam revivalists. Operation is unhurried and flash recycling slow, so it suits patient snapshot and travel-memory use rather than action.
Plentiful and cheap used, so hold out for a clean one. Run it on NiMH AAs as Kodak intended and check the contacts for alkaline leakage damage, stick to plain SD or MMC cards of 2GB or under (it predates SDHC), and inspect the LCD and lens barrel; docks are optional extras.