Camera Test: Kodak EasyShare P880

Just to reinforce that this is a serious camera for serious shooters, Kodak makes a dedicated TTL accessory zoom flash for the P880 and P850: the P-20, complete with autozoom and bounce head ($150, street). There's no swivel on the P-20 flash head, though, so you can bounce the flash off the ceiling for horizontal shots only. (You can bounce the flash off a nearby side wall for verticals.)

Hard to believe, but the P880 also has a PC flash connector. And front-mounting accessory lenses-you'll also need an adapter ring-increase the range of the zoom to 17mm on the wide end and 195mm on the long end.

So, if an 8MP digital SLR with a 24-140mm equivalent lens appeals to you (but a $1,000+ price tag does not) definitely check out this little powerhouse at half the price.

Certified Test Results

Resolution: Excellent (1780Vx1750Hx 1785D lines). Color accuracy: Excellent (Avg. Delta E: 5.92). Highlight/shadow detail: Very Good. Contrast: Slightly low, adjustable to three levels. Noise: Moderately low at ISO 50-200, unacceptable at ISO 400. Image quality: Excellent at ISO 50-200. Distortion: Visible barrel at 24mm (0.64%), with light falloff gone by f/5.6; Imperceptible pincushion (0.05%) at 50mm; Imperceptible pincushion (0.04%) at 140mm. AF speed: Moderately fast in medium to bright light, slow and sometimes balky in low light. Video: 640x480 with mono sound at 30 fps (tested), to capacity of the card. CIPA battery life rating: 320 shots.

Vital Statistics

8MP (3264x2228), 5.8X optical zoom (24-140mm 35mm equivalent) f/2.8-4.1; 2X digital zoom; 2.5-in. LCD screen; SD/MMC card slot plus 32MB internal memory; JPEG, TIFF, and RAW formats; PictBridge enabled; proprietary Li-ion ?battery; 4.5x3.8x3.6 in., 9.2 oz with card and battery. Street price: $530. In the box: Rechargeable Li-ion battery, charger, A/V and USB cables, wrist strap, lenshood, insert for Kodak camera and printer docks, software (Kodak EasyShare). Accepts optional tele and wide-angle converters, filter adapter, dedicated P-20 accessory flash. Info: www.kodak.com; 800-835-2365.

What's Hot

• Knockout image quality.

• Big LCD, accurate EVF.

• Genuine wide-angle view.

What's Not

• Only goes to ISO 400.

• So-so autofocus.

• Lenshood can shade flash.