Skip to main content
DEAL WATCH: Keurig K-Express | 22% off $69.99

Keurig has changed the face of coffee, and snagging one of these for less than $70 is a solid deal. Read Review

BUY NOW
  • Testing / Performance

  • Physical Tour

  • Components

  • Design / Layout

  • Modes

  • Control Options

  • Image Parameters

  • Connectivity / Extras

  • Overall Impressions

  • Conclusion

  • Specs / Ratings

  • Testing / Performance
  • Physical Tour
  • Components
  • Design / Layout
  • Modes
  • Control Options
  • Image Parameters
  • Connectivity / Extras
  • Overall Impressions
  • Conclusion
  • Specs / Ratings

Testing / Performance

If it’s difficult to eyeball the difference between the colors, check out the chart below. This chart, also output by Imatest, shows the original colors as squares and the EasyShare-one’s colors as circles. Ideally, the shapes would be right on top of each other. However, some of the shapes are connected by a line representing the camera’s error; the closer the shapes are, the better the Kodak Color Science Chip could reproduce that tone.

The Kodak EasyShare-one performed decently with a 7.98 overall color score. There is a mean color error of 7.61, which is quite good. This digital camera over-saturated colors by 19.9 percent, which is on the high end of what it should be, but rendered colors were rich and vibrant. Most digital cameras over-saturate slightly to bring out lighter skin tones, but the EasyShare-one goes a little overboard. Still, a 7.98 overall color score is very respectable.  **Still Life Scene**Below is a shot of our elegant plastic still life scene captured with the Kodak EasyShare-one.

[

 Click on the image above to view a full resolution version (CAUTION: the linked file is very large)](https://reviewed.usatoday.com/cameras/viewer.php?picture=EzOne-StillLife-LG.jpg)

Resolution / Sharpness ***(3.22)***The Kodak EasyShare-one advertises 4 effective megapixels and a maximum still image size of 2304 x 1728 pixels. We used Imatest Imaging Software to help us analyze the number of effective pixels used to create the image files. Following processing and compression, the quality of the image can change substantially depending on the camera’s internal handling of the file. We report resolution scores as both a raw megapixel count and as a percentage of what the sensor can capture.  When a camera produces 70 percent of its advertised pixels, we give it a "good" designation. When a camera produces 80 percent, it is considered "very good." The very few models that enter within the realm of 90 percent receive an "excellent" designation.  
Click on the above chart to view the full resolution image
 The Kodak EasyShare-one produced "very good" results as its processed images came within 81 percent of its advertised pixel count. The EasyShare-one used 3.22 megapixels, which is certainly enough to make prints up to 8 x 10 inches. Kodak advertises the camera as able to produce prints up to 20 x 30 inches, but I don’t recommend printing that large.  The reported scores were shot at f/4.8 at a focal length of 18.6 mm. The Kodak EasyShare-one oversharpened images by 31.7 percent, which is quite a lot – even for a compact model.  **Noise - Auto ISO (4.87)**When users choose the Auto option in the ISO section of the setup menu, the camera uses a shortened ISO range of 80-160. Nevertheless, the camera still performed well in optimal lighting. The Kodak EasyShare-one received an overall automatic ISO noise score of 4.87, which is pretty good for a compact model; however, with a 160 maximum ISO speed in auto mode, the camera will not perform well indoors unless the ISO is manually set.  **Noise - Manual ISO (7.16)**As well as the EasyShare-one performed in the automatic ISO noise test, it performed even better when the ISO was manually set. We tested the noise levels at each ISO rating and entered the results into a regression analysis to determine an overall score. The Kodak EasyShare-one offers 80, 100, 200, and 400 settings. Below is a chart showing the EasyShare-one’s ISO ratings on the horizontal axis and the accompanying noise levels on the vertical axis.

The Kodak EasyShare-one received an overall manual ISO noise score of 7.16, which is actually one of the best scores we’ve seen from a Kodak digital camera and quite impressive for any point-and-shoot model.  **Low Light Performance (3.5)**To see how well the image sensor performed in low light, we exposed it to diminishing light levels of 60, 30, 15 and 5 lux. 60 lux is about the lighting you get in a room with two soft lamps at night. A single 40-watt bulb gives off 30 lux. 15 and 5 lux are very close to darkness and test the limits of the image sensor.    The Kodak EasyShare-one had some problems with this test because it does not have an auto focus illuminator. The image at 60 lux is pretty good; it retains illumination and the image is still crisp. However, the image at 30 lux loses its sharpness. The picture gets even furrier and darker at 15 lux and is hardly visible at 5 lux. It was difficult to attain focus even when using the self-timer. The exposures were taken using the automatic mode. We tried the night landscape scene mode, but the colors were completely distorted. From these results, the Kodak EasyShare-one looks like a sunny weather type of camera.  **Speed / Timing
***Start-up to First Shot (2.11)
*The Kodak EasyShare-one isn’t made for spontaneous photo shoots. It has one of the slowest start-up times of any compact digital camera. There are two ways to turn the EasyShare-one on: users can power it up with the designated button or flip the LCD out to automatically power it up. The button had the fastest time at 7.89 seconds. The LCD was even slower at 9.05 seconds. Both of these times are much slower than the average compact start-up time of about 2-3 seconds.

*Shot to Shot (9.64)
*The Kodak EasyShare-one has two burst modes, a first burst and a last burst. The first burst proved slightly faster in testing with an average time of one shot every 0.36 seconds, while the last burst had a shot every 0.38 seconds. The camera took five shots before stopping to record the pictures to memory.

*Shutter to Shot (8.42)
*There is a slight amount of shutter lag with the EasyShare-one. It takes 0.29 seconds from the time the shutter release button is pressed to the time the picture is taken. This is common for compact digital cameras, so there are no surprises here. 

Physical Tour

 **Front (7.5)**From the front, the Kodak EasyShare-one looks rather unassuming. It has the same multi-textured façade that the Kodak C340 employs. There is a brushed aluminum panel across the bottom with fine horizontal lines. The top panel is a matte silver color. Joining the two panels is a polished silver plate with the Kodak brand name and a slight incline where fingers will likely rest. To the right of this plate is the Schneider-Kreuznach C-Variogon 36-108mm 3x optical zoom lens, which is labeled as such. The lens extends in three segments and the black built-in lens cover snaps open when the camera is turned on. Just above the top left of the lens is a built-in microphone. Above the microphone is the built-in flash, which has a clear textured face. To the right of the flash are two circles; the left is the self-timer and video LED indicator and the right is the light sensor.

Back*****(9.25)*****The back side of the EasyShare-one is a little more telling of its gadget status – when the LCD monitor is showing. The screen is tucked away with a two-paneled matte silver back and a Kodak EasyShare-one logo. The LCD monitor can fold out, rotate fully, then fold back into the camera body with the screen facing outward. In this position, the EasyShare-one fully assumes the look of a multi-function device.  

 A 3-inch liquid crystal touch screen dominates the back, which has a white casing and silver lettering and buttons. The Kodak EasyShare-one logo shows up once again below the LCD screen. To the right of the screen are a few buttons. At the top is the teeter-totter zoom toggle with a ‘W’ on the left for the wide setting and a ‘T’ on the right for the telephoto setting. There are two buttons below this: Menu and Share. The Share button is the only button on the back that departs from the silver theme; it has a ruby red center instead. Below these two buttons is the multi-selector, encircling an "OK" button; the selector is like a shallow bowl with tag lines pointing in the four navigational directions. Below this feature are two more buttons: the top button has an arrow next to it and signifies the Review button and the other button is clearly labeled Delete. All of the buttons are separated with a shallow groove that is barely noticeable.  **Left Side (8.0)**On the left side of the Kodak EasyShare-one is a rubber port cover that protects the DC in and USB / A/V out jacks. This cover is white, matching the panel it is located on. There is also a surrounding matte silver-colored panel that also includes the large hinge toward the back.

Right Side ***(8.0)***The two separate parts of the EasyShare-one, the LCD monitor and the body, can be seen from the right side. The body portion sits on the right and consists of a white panel set within the silver casing. At the top of the body is a silver rounded panel with a thin eyelet for the wrist strap and the stylus for the touch screen, which appears like a serrated edge because most of it rests within the camera. When the LCD monitor is facing outward, the record and playback switch appears at the top and the Info button sits at the bottom.

Top ***(8.0)***The two segments of this digital camera can be seen from the top as well, although there are no major features on the top of the monitor. There is only a small rubber pad on the top of the screen. On the left side of the body is a series of holes that acts as the built-in speaker. To its right is a recessed power button, followed by a smaller square button with a flash icon on it. A ‘4.0 Megapixels’ banner appears to the right of the flash button. Below this little billboard is the slot for the Kodak Wi-Fi card, which can be pushed in all the way so that it is hardly seen – although it must be sticking halfway out to connect to other networks. To the left of the slot is a tiny LED that flashes orange when the wireless card is connecting to a network and shows a steady green once connected. To the right of the card slot is the rectangular shutter release button.

Bottom ***(7.5)***The left side of the bottom is a plastic door with metal hinges that opens to the lithium-ion battery and the SD card slots. To the right of that is the dock connection port that fits onto the Kodak Printer Series 3. To its right is a standard tripod socket and a slew of information such as Eastman Kodak Company’s address and the camera’s serial number.

Components

 **Viewfinder (0.0)**The Kodak EasyShare-one’s 3-inch LCD screen acts as the viewfinder as well. While the large screen does put a drain on the battery, with a bright 230,000 pixel display, an optical viewfinder would just consume space.    **LCD Screen (9.25)**Obviously, one of the strongest features on the EasyShare-one is its 3-inch LCD screen. It folds out from the camera body, rotates, and can fold back in with the monitor facing in or out. Whenever the screen is flipped outward, the digital camera turns on. The view on the screen is always right-side up even when flipping thanks to Kodak’s auto rotate function. The LCD is a touch screen, so it is responsive to fingers or the included stylus. Some of the arrows in the screen’s menus are smaller than fingers though and difficult to pinpoint with the stylus, so the multi-selector on the camera body is still useful. When the camera is first turned on, it will prompt users to use the stylus to touch the screen in certain points; this calibrates the screen and can be done at any time through the setup menu. The view on the screen is beautiful, whether it’s being used as a viewfinder or for playback. 230,000 pixels give this screen enough resolution for smooth images with a lot of definition.

Shooting information can be obtained using the Info button on the side of the screen; date and time, flash mode, exposure compensation, and the number of images that can be taken are just some of the information available on the screen. If the screen is not touched or the buttons are not pressed after ten seconds, the LCD screen will darken a bit until the EasyShare-one is touched. The duration of the backlight on the screen can be altered in the Device section of the setup menu; the screen can stay bright for 10, 20, 30, or 60 seconds. The actual monitor that houses the 3-inch touch screen gets quite warm. It’s not hot enough to burn your hands or fry eggs, but it could certainly melt chocolate into sauce. The screen could double as a hand-warmer in the wintertime; unfortunately, it will warm your hands in the summer too and is likely something Kodak will want to work on prior to the release of the next version.  **Flash (6.0)**The Kodak EasyShare-one has a built-in flash similar to many compact cameras. It has only a few flash modes: Auto, Red-Eye Reduction, Fill, and Off. These modes are selected by pushing the square silver button with the flash icon engraved into it atop the camera. The Red-Eye Reduction mode has a "pre-flash" that can be turned on or off. When it is off, the camera supposedly automatically corrects the red-eye (although it did not successfully do so in my tests). When the pre-flash is on, the flash fires twice. The mode is not actually prohibitive to red eyes. Luckily, there is a red-eye reduction function button on the Kodak Printer Dock Series 3 and a red-eye fix in the Kodak EasyShare Software.  When the lens is at its widest focal length, the flash can reach from 2-10.5 feet. At the lens’ most telephoto setting, the flash only reaches 2-7.5 feet. These figures are average, as some compact models reach only to 8 feet and others reach as far as 22 feet. The narrow flash unit causes hard shadows, so try to get your subjects away from walls or places that may intensify this effect.  **Zoom Lens (7.0)**Kodak uses a Schneider-Kreuznach C-Variogon 3x optical zoom lens that is effective in both still and video imaging. The zoom toggle is a bit sticky; if you tap on it, the camera may zoom more than you’d anticipated. The lens measures 6-18 mm and extends from the camera body in three segments when the Kodak EasyShare-one is turned on. Around the rim of the lens, the camera flaunts its 36-108mm equivalent focal range. In addition to the optical zoom, the EasyShare-one has 3.3x digital zoom, which deteriorates pictures quality and is not recommended. A sliding bar on the LCD screen shows how far the user has zoomed from wide to telephoto and requires a separate push of the ‘T’ end of the toggle to enter the realm of digital zoom.  

Design / Layout

 **Model Design / Appearance*******(7.5)*****The innovative concept of this digital camera doesn’t match its lackluster design. The Kodak EasyShare-one looks like any other traditional digital camera from the front with its two silver panels and polished highlights. The EasyShare-one is rectangular and encased in a silver and white aluminum housing. The back is a little more telling of this Wi-Fi camera's innovative nature. The entire back of the camera is a 3-inch LCD monitor that folds outward and rotates 180 degrees and can be folded back into the camera facing in or out.  The Kodak EasyShare-one looks like a traditional, although slightly more formal, point-and-shoot camera with a fancy LCD screen that provides a pocket album aesthetic from behind.

Size / Portability*****(7.0)*****The Kodak EasyShare-one markets its portability to attract on-the-go consumers to its wireless conveniences. Now users on vacation can send e-postcards seconds after taking the picture – assuming they’re in a HotSpot. The EasyShare-one’s body reflects its on-the-go status. All of the surfaces on the camera body are either flat or raised so subtly that it’s unnoticeable, helping the Kodak EasyShare-one measure a perfectly rectangular 4.1 x 2.5 x 1 inches. The EasyShare-one is heavier than you’d think from just a glance at the front; it weighs 7.9 ounces without the battery and cards. Despite its weight, the Kodak EasyShare-one is still very portable. It comes with a leather carrying case and a wrist strap. It may be too thick for some to stuff comfortably into a pocket, but will fit easily into a small bag or purse.  **Handling Ability*******(7.5)*****Handling can be a little tricky with the EasyShare-one. The camera is compact, but not so much that the average Joe’s hands will get cramped. There are no major grips, but the polished, slightly raised name plate on the front acts as a sort of grip for the middle finger. Shooting shouldn’t be tricky at all; it’s the mode and feature changes that could get complicated. This Kodak has a large touch screen that requires the use of a stylus; it can also work with fingers but most of the navigational features are too small for this. So using a stylus to scroll through pictures in the playback mode is complicated when you also have to press the Delete button or other dedicated buttons on the actual body of the camera. Those accustomed to multi-function devices should have no trouble acclimating to the interface of the EasyShare-one; however, long time Kodak EasyShare users expecting the same degree of simplicity as found on their EasyShare C340 may need to factor in a slight adjustment period. But  once users become familiar with navigation, the EasyShare-one really will be a point-and-shoot (and -share) device.

 **Control Button / Dial Positioning / Size (7.0)**The control buttons are all adequately sized, although they are slightly cramped. They should be fine for most people, but if you’ve got exceptionally large fingers these buttons could prove to be cumbersome for you. The multi-selector and the zoom toggle are a bit stiff and pushing them in the correct direction will take a little more force than you’d think it’d take. The buttons are well positioned and neatly aligned and structured to accompany the touch-screen.    **Menu (8.5)**The menus in the Kodak EasyShare-one are some of the most appealing I’ve seen. They are colorful with big text, big icons, colorful photo examples, and other such pleasures. There are many, many more menus here than in other Kodak EasyShare digital cameras though because this model does so much more. The menus can be navigated with the multi-selector or the stylus on the touch screen. Navigation with the stylus is a little tricky because some of the onscreen arrows are tiny. However, the multi-selector is a bit stiff too.

In the recording mode, the Menu button shows four options: Auto, Video, Scenes, and Setup. The first three options change modes, but the Setup option is what changes settings and such. The Setup menu has six large icons across the top with a changing set of settings on the bottom. When users scroll through the icons, the text title appears just above the icons: Wireless, Capture, Contacts, Groups, Device, and Preferences. From the recording mode, the camera sends users directly to the Capture menu. The following options are provided: Picture Size, White Balance, ISO, Date Stamp, Red-eye Pre-flash, Color Mode, Focus Zone, Exposure Metering, Sharpness, Continuous AF, Video AF, and Video Zoom. The Wireless icon has only two options: one for Available Networks and the other for Profiled Networks. The Contacts icon has an Add Person option at the top, followed by the lengthy list of contacts that the user enters. The Groups icon to its right bunches those contacts together for faster mass e-mails; its options are similar to an Add Group at the top and the user’s list of groups below. The Device icon has a long list of settings that can be changed: Language, Date and Time, Slide Show, LCD Backlight, Touch screen Calibration, Orientation Sensor, Sound Theme, Video Out, About, and Format. The Preferences section of the menu houses these options: Startup View, Email Address, The Gallery Password, and EasyShare Gallery URL.
In the playback mode, the buttons have completely different functions. The designated Menu button lets users choose the playback view from these options: Recent, Favorites, Albums, Calendar, The Gallery, Friends’ Albums, Outbox, Storage, and Setup. The Share button reveals these options: Email, Prints, Upload, Transfer, Slideshow, and Setup. All of these options will be discussed further in their respective sections.   **Ease of Use (7.0)**The Kodak EasyShare-one is not as easy to use as some of its other Kodak counterparts. However, it can be said that it is the easiest wireless digital camera to use. The camera’s interface is still fairly intuitive and easy on the eyes. The large icons and large text aid in ease of use. The small navigational arrows and stiff on-camera zoom toggle and multi-selector make changes a little tricky. What is even trickier is the stylus and the tiny virtual keyboard. These are all very new concepts, so perhaps Kodak will improve the ease of use on its next wireless model – assuming that the EasyShare-one is the start of a new line. While using the Kodak EasyShare-one isn’t rocket science, it will still require a date with the owner’s manual, which is a good 111 pages long.  

Modes

 **Auto Mode (7.5)**When the Kodak EasyShare-one is powered up, it defaults to the Auto mode every time. The auto mode still lets users change the flash mode and exposure compensation on the touch screen. The burst mode can also be accessed from there. The rest of the settings default to Auto, but can be changed within the Setup menu. This is the type of Auto mode I prefer, especially on cameras that do not include manual modes. All of the settings default to automatic for those times when the photographer is in need of a quick shot. However, the auto settings can be overridden by the photographer, allowing for some creativity.  **Movie Mode*******(7.25)*****The movie mode is an example of one of the specs that was changed from the January announcement to the October release of the Kodak EasyShare-one. The original spec was for a VGA movie mode that shot 30 frames per second. However, the released EasyShare-one shoots 640 x 480 pixels at a rate of 24 frames per second. Nevertheless, the video quality still looks pretty good and not terribly choppy. The movie mode records audio simultaneously; unfortunately, the built-in microphone can pick up sounds you may not want to hear in the clip. The 3x optical zoom is available in movie mode, but the audio picks up the sound of the sticky toggle clicking and the zoom mechanism whirring in and out. Most compact digital cameras disable the optical zoom in movie mode and some offer digital zoom as a replacement. The EasyShare-one is quite the opposite. It allows access to the optical zoom (although even the optical zoom can be disabled in the setup menu), but disables the digital zoom completely. Overall, the movie mode is impressive – especially when it is coupled with the 256 MB of internal memory. The only piece of the puzzle that it is missing is more size options. I would prefer a 320 x 240 pixel image size so that I could email video and it could be received easier.  **Drive / Burst Mode (5.5)**The Kodak EasyShare-one has a burst mode, but it must be reset before each burst. When the top left corner of the touch screen is pressed, a small Burst menu appears with these options: Single Picture, First Burst, and Last Burst. Once one of the burst modes is selected, the camera will take its five-picture burst and then recoil back into its single picture default. That could be annoying for those soccer moms who want to burst and burst and burst. The EasyShare-one can capture about 2 frames per second for five frames, whether it’s the first five shots or the last five before the shutter button is released. The burst mode takes awhile to record to the memory, which can be inconvenient. Overall, the burst mode is decent but should ideally have a setting of either on or off instead of needing to be reset between bursts.  **Playback Mode (9.25)**The camera must be set to the playback mode with the tiny mode dial on the side. The EasyShare-one displays an index screen with the option to scroll through pages and pages of pictures. Users can classify their pictures as Recent or Favorites and they can also store them in Albums or the Calendar. When scrolling through the pictures, users can select certain images to put in a "drawer" at the bottom of the touch screen. This drawer simply specifies groups of pictures. Across the bottom of the index screen are a few icons, including the Wireless, Edit, Slideshow, Favorites, and Print icons. The wireless icon connects to wireless networks. The Edit icon moves pictures into albums, copies them, and crops them. The slide show icon throws the pictures in the drawer into a looping slide show complete with fades and wipes. The heart icon designates photos as Favorites and can be found in a Favorites folder. The printing icon adds pictures to the Outbox so they can be e-mailed or printed wirelessly.

Touching a picture on the index screen twice will enlarge the picture to fill up the whole view. Users can then scroll through the large pictures by pushing the right or left sides of the monitor. Individual pictures can be zoomed in upon from 1-8x with the zoom toggle. The Menu button moves the picture into different folders or albums and the Share menu is where photographers can utilize that coveted wireless capability. From here, users can Email, Print, Upload, or Transfer – as well as play a slide show and enter the setup menu. Single photos can be labeled by pushing the Info button, which lets users add captions as well as file them into albums and view file information.

Pictures that were shot vertically can automatically rotate if the Orientation Sensor is turned on within the camera. This option can be found within the setup menu, where an option can also be found to change the interval time between shots in the slide show function. Pictures can be displayed for 3, 5, 10, or 30 seconds. Viewing photographs on the Kodak EasyShare-one is a beautiful experience, as the bright 3-inch touch screen is large and colorful with plenty of resolution. The EasyShare-one does market itself as a hybrid digital camera and digital photo album with its large screen and massive amounts of internal memory. The wireless capability adds a whole new spin on the playback mode, as pictures can be emailed or printed almost as fast as you can scroll through them.  **Custom Image Presets (8.0)**The Kodak EasyShare-one has a nice scene mode menu that includes Portrait, Sports, Landscape, Close-up, Night Portrait, Night Landscape, Snow, Beach, Text, Fireworks, Flower, Museum/Polite, Self-Portrait, Party, Children, and Backlight. The menu has colorful example pictures of the scenes with a text title and explanation of what it is to be used for. For example, the Sports scene mode has a picture of a couple shin-guarded legs around a soccer ball. Its explanation is, "For subjects in motion. Uses fast shutter speed and Auto flash setting." Many of the scene modes are highly specialized; the Children mode could more aptly be called Children In Bright Light mode. Fortunately, the text explanation says what kind of lighting is expected in a particular image preset. The EasyShare-one certainly has a wide enough selection with 16 custom image presets; many compact models average about 12 or so scene modes.

Control Options

 **Manual Control Options       Don’t expect much manual control from this digital camera; you just won’t get it. The shutter speed and aperture cannot be manually set, although there are scene modes optimized for certain shutter speeds and apertures and exposure compensation is available. Users can manually select the ISO, EV compensation, white balance, color mode, focus zone, and metering.  Focus***Auto Focus (7.0)*The Kodak EasyShare-one has a through-the-lens auto focus system that has two selectable modes: center zone and multi-zone. The latter is the default and measures three zones to evenly focus the picture. The center zone option focuses on the subject in the center only. The camera’s auto focus system shows brackets on the LCD view; they appear red when out of focus and green when they are focused. The EasyShare-one also has a continuous auto focus mode that can be turned on and off in the Capture section of the setup menu. When this mode is engaged and the camera is too close to an object, it cannot adjust and focuses in and out. What is too close? In normal shooting, closer than 24 inches is too close. In the Close-up scene mode, the Kodak EasyShare-one can focus from 4-28 inches in the wide setting and 17-28 inches in the telephoto setting. The focus was quite responsive and worked even when it didn’t look like it worked on the LCD screen. I took some pictures of my son on a swing and the pictures turned out focused – even though he looked like a blur on the LCD. The only problem with the Kodak EasyShare-one’s auto focus system is the lack of an illuminator for dimly lit subjects.  *Manual Focus******(0.0)*****The Kodak EasyShare-one does not have a manual focus option.  **Exposure (6.0)**The exposure is automatically controlled, as the shutter speed and aperture are not manually controllable. The Kodak EasyShare-one does let users toy with the exposure compensation which is only available through the touch screen. The standard range of +/- 2 stops is available in 1/3-stop increments.  **Metering (7.0)**The Kodak EasyShare-one offers the standard three exposure metering modes: Multi-pattern, Center-weighted, and Center-spot. The through-the-lens system takes an average of several zones for the multi-pattern metering. For the center-weighted, the camera measures the lighting from the center of the image and the center-spot uses an even smaller point for measurement. The EasyShare-one has a Backlight scene mode for users afraid to adjust this option; the Backlight scene mode uses the center-weighted metering mode to properly expose subjects in front of bright windows and such.

ISO ***(7.0)***The Kodak EasyShare-one’s ISO ratings are located in the Capture section of the setup menu. This digital camera has standard options that are found on most compact models. It has an automatic setting, which performed decently in our tests. The automatic ISO range is quite truncated from the manual range at 80-160. Its manual selections are much better: 80, 100, 200, and 400. When these are manually adjusted, there is relatively little noise. These options are located in a menu that does not have live views. **White Balance (3.5)**The Kodak EasyShare-one has an extremely sparse white balance menu. Most cameras offer seven or eight white balance presets and a manual setting. However, the Kodak EasyShare-one only offers Auto, Daylight, Tungsten, and Fluorescent. There is no live view within the menu, so it’s impossible to tell what colors pictures will contain until they’ve already been taken. The Fluorescent setting looked warm, while the Tungsten setting put off a cool blue tone. Because the flash is used so much, a white balance mode optimized to the camera’s flash would have been helpful, as would a manual setting.

Shutter Speed ***(0.0)***The shutter speed is another one of those specifications that was tweaked from January to October. The original announcement proclaimed a 4-1/1400th of a second range. The released model has an odd 1/2-1/1448th of a second automatic range. While many point-and-shoots shortchange the shutter speeds, this is a bit short for even that. Most compacts extend their range to go as fast as 1/2000th of a second. And many shutters can open for at least a few seconds in the night mode. Thus, the shutter speed range is slightly disappointing and will limit shooting in available light to daylight situations.  **Aperture (0.0)**The Schneider-Kreuznach lens has a wide f/2.8 maximum aperture at the widest end of the 3x optical zoom. It opens as far as f/4.8 at the telephoto end. The aperture can be closed to f/8.0, which is standard for compacts. The aperture cannot be manually controlled, but can be indirectly manipulated using the camera’s exposure compensation function.  

Image Parameters

 **Picture Quality**** / Size Options (6.0)**With a 4.23 megapixel CCD, the Kodak EasyShare-one offers up 4 effective megapixels for still imaging. 2304 x 1728 pixels is its maximum resolution, which Kodak advertises as fine for 20 x 30-inch prints, but I wouldn’t print over 11 x 14 inches. There are only four still image size options in total. The largest 2304 x 1728 is for printing enlargements. The 2304 x 1536 is 3:2-formatted for 4 x 6-inch prints. The 1656 x 1242 size is for small prints and the 1200 x 900 size is for e-mail. Surprisingly, this wireless digital camera does not have a smaller 640 x 480 still image size for faster e-mailing. Movies can be taken at that resolution, however, at a rate of 24 frames per second.  **Picture Effects Mode (6.0)**The Kodak EasyShare-one has a standard palette of color modes, including Color, Black & White, and Sepia. The color mode is the default of course. The other two modes are for users who don’t like taking the time to add these effects in postproduction software. The black and white and sepia modes look just as they should; they are not washed out like some compact models’ color modes.  

Connectivity / Extras

 **Connectivity*******Software (7.0)*The Kodak EasyShare-one comes with Kodak EasyShare Software version 5.1 for Windows and Macintosh. The software also includes QuickTime for playing movies, but no movie editing options are available. The program has several tabs running down the left side of the screen: My Collection, Print at Home, Order Prints Online, Email, Creative Projects, and Kodak EasyShare Center. Across the top of the screen are options pertaining to the chosen tab. For instance, the Print at Home tab has buttons across the top for the printer setup, paper alignment, to-do lists, and other options. Users can browse through photos at any time with the My Collection browser and select individual pictures to edit. The editing options include Crop, Rotate, Red-eye Reduction, Enhance, Scene Balance, Color Balance, Scene Effects, and Fun Effects. There is also a Help button to explain editing functions, such as the ambiguously named Scene Balance that adjusts the brightness of the image. The Fun Effects setting was the most interesting editing tool to play with. There are four buttons – Spotlight, Coloring Book, Cartoon, and Fisheye – that apply amusing effects to the picture.

Pictures can be printed online or at home through the designated tab that helps select printers and papers and shows print previews as well. Photos can also be e-mailed directly through the EasyShare Software if the computer is hooked up to the Internet. The Internet is required to use the bottom two tabs: Creative Projects and Kodak EasyShare Center. The Creative Projects section is more or less an advertisement to purchase Kodak photo books, photo calendars, and other such items. The Kodak EasyShare Center has photography tips, software troubleshooting, and links to new products and promotions. All in all, the Kodak EasyShare Software is quite inclusive, easy to use, and so fun to play with that even users who want to oust the computer from the digital photography process may want to give it a try.

Jacks, ports, plugs (6.5)*The beauty of a wireless camera is that it won’t need jacks, ports, and plugs. Nevertheless, the Kodak EasyShare-one includes them. A rubber port door covers the DC in and mini-USB / A/V out jacks. The A/V out jack can be selected to transfer in NTSC or PAL format. There is a connector on the bottom of the camera that sits atop the Kodak EasyShare Printer Dock Series 3 or Camera Dock Series 3. * *Direct Print Options (9.25)*The Kodak EasyShare-one has more direct print options than most digital cameras. Not only is it compatible with PictBridge, but it can also print to Image Link compliant printers. And because the EasyShare-one has a Wi-Fi card, users can sit in their living rooms and wirelessly send pictures to their home printers (granted they too have wireless cards). The EasyShare-one uses its SDIO Wi-Fi 802.11b signal to transfer images to the printer at a rate of 11 MB per second. If there are several wireless enabled printers, computers, or camera phones, the Kodak EasyShare-one will sense them with its Apple Rendezvous technology; users need only to select the device they want to transfer images to. I used this system to select the Kodak EasyShare Printer Dock Series 3, which also has a dock for the camera. Users can crop images before sending them to the printer, but users cannot access the features located on the printer itself. The Printer Dock Series 3 has a red-eye reduction button on it that I found very useful because the EasyShare-one produced a lot of red eyes. However, this feature was only available when I physically docked the EasyShare-one onto the printer. The Kodak EasyShare Printer Dock Series 3 produces waterproof 4 x 6-inch prints and is wireless and Bluetooth enabled. The printer charges the camera’s battery when it is docked.  *Battery** (7.0)*The EasyShare-one package includes two rechargeable lithium-ion batteries and a battery charger that plugs straight into the wall. Kodak goes above and beyond by offering two batteries so they can be switched out. The skinny KLIC-5000 battery can also recharge within the camera when it is docked in a Series 3 printer or dock.

Memory (9.0)*The Kodak EasyShare-one provides the most internal memory by far of any compact digital camera. With 256 MB, the EasyShare-one successfully bridges the gap between a digital camera and a digital photo album. The camera also has a slot for SD or MMC cards and can accept cards up to 1 GB.  *Other features (9.0)***Wi-Fi-Enabled – The Kodak EasyShare-one was the first consumer Wi-Fi digital camera announced and one of the first to be released. This could be the next big thing in digital photography, as the marketing research Yankee Group estimated that Wi-Fi use in public HotSpots climbed 600 percent in 2004. Wi-Fi allows the EasyShare-one to wirelessly send photographs to a printer or even e-mail them. So now if you’re vacationing on the West Coast and want to send a picture to your sister on the East Coast, you can do it in a matter of seconds. The Kodak EasyShare-one includes a wireless card that must be popped up from the top of the camera for it to search for and communicate with wireless networks. The camera can sync with your wireless home network, even if it’s encrypted – you just have to enter the password. You must also choose your country’s Kodak EasyShare Gallery URL and enter your password for photo e-mailing. The EasyShare-one can sync with other wireless devices as well, including the optional Kodak Printer Dock Series 3 (when it has an optional wireless card as well). When the digital camera is searching for networks, it will provide a list of those it found from computers, printers, and other devices. Users must then choose which device to connect to so they can e-mail, print, or otherwise transfer photos wirelessly.  *Virtual Keyboard – This Kodak has a virtual keyboard that lets users enter text for folder names, picture labels, and e-mail messages. The keyboard is complete with numbers, letters, caps, shift, tab, space bar, and even a ".com" button to make typing e-mail addresses easier. The virtual letters are quite small though, so a direct hit from the stylus is required. Sometimes when users keep hitting ‘e’ and the camera registers a ‘w’, the LCD screen just needs to be calibrated; this can be done in the setup menu.  *Self-timer - The Kodak EasyShare-one has a self-timer that can be selected to capture photos 2-60 seconds after the shutter release button is pressed – a far more expansive selection than most cameras provide. Users get a countdown with the LED on the front of the camera.  *Two-year Warranty – Register the Kodak EasyShare-one within 30 days and the camera is covered for two years. Most digital cameras come with a one-year warranty, so the EasyShare-one goes above and beyond.    *Limited Time Offers – From now until June 2006, EasyShare-one owners can get a free bound book of their favorite photos and ten free prints on the Kodak EasyShare Gallery. A certificate comes with each digital camera with a password for the free gifts. Users can also sign up for a free 30-day trial of T-Mobile HotSpot Internet access service.  *Selectable Sound Themes – There are several sound themes to choose from, although I can’t say that I understand how the names of these themes relate to the actual sounds. The options are Shutter Only, Standard, Dew, Skies, Dunes, and Days. All of these sound like different electronic beeps to me. If you’re not into making noise at your photo shoot, the Sound Volume can be turned off; it can also be turned to Low, Medium, or High.  *Box Contents* – When you purchase the Kodak EasyShare-one, you won’t just get a digital camera. A Kodak Wi-Fi card will come included as well as a wrist strap, two rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, a wall-mount battery charger, a leather case, an audio-video cable, a USB cable, Kodak EasyShare Software, a Getting Started kit, and a camera insert to fit the optional camera or printer dock.  

Overall Impressions

 **Value (7.5)**The Kodak EasyShare-one begins its own genre of digital cameras as the first wireless-enabled consumer digital camera. The EasyShare-one retails for $599 and comes with a wireless card and a host of accessories, including a leather case, a nice software package, 256 MB of internal storage, and a slew of limited time offers from Kodak. In addition to its wireless capabilities, users will get a 3-inch 230,000 pixel touch screen LCD, digital viewing capabilities, and a still and video imager that produces rich color tones with minimal noise. While the EasyShare-one does far exceed the $500 mark, the capabilities included will make for a strong value for those who can afford it.     **Comparisons**Nikon Coolpix P2 Nikon released this model the same week the Kodak EasyShare-one began shipping, so it’s hard to say which is truly the first Wi-Fi consumer camera to hit the market. The P2 has 5.1 megapixels in a generally unassuming camera body. Its features are also fairly unassuming; the P2 has 16 scene modes and a 3.5x optical zoom lens. This model includes a Nikon technology set that offers in-camera red-eye fix, lighting compensation, and a face priority auto focus mode. However, it does not have the organizational features that the EasyShare-one includes. The Nikon Coolpix P2 has 16 MB of internal memory and a slot for an optional SD card. The 3.6 x 2.4 x 1.5-inch body is thicker than the EasyShare-one, but weighs less at 6 ounces without the memory card and battery. The Coolpix P2 has a large 2.5-inch LCD screen that is not a touch screen and does not have anywhere near the resolution of the EasyShare-one’s large display. The P2 has 110,000 pixels on its 2.5-inch screen as compared to the EasyShare-one’s 230,000 pixels on its 3-inch screen. The most comparable aspect of these cameras is the wireless capability. They both come with Wi-Fi cards included and can sync with computers and printers. The Nikon Coolpix P2 retails for $399.95.  Nikon Coolpix P1 Released at the same time as the Nikon P2 and the Kodak EasyShare-one, the Coolpix P1 has very similar features to the P2. It has 16 scene modes, the same 2.5-inch LCD screen with 110,000 pixels, Nikon technology, the Nikkor 3.5x optical zoom lens, and even the same size and weight. The Nikon Coolpix P1 adds more megapixels and internal memory to its feature set. With 8 megapixels, the Nikon Coolpix P1 doubles the amount of resolution available on the Kodak EasyShare-one, but still cannot compete as a digital photo album. The Nikon P1 has 32 MB of internal memory. This digital camera does add a touch of manual functionality with an aperture priority mode that offers a maximum aperture of f/2.7 for a slight edge in low light. The Nikon P1 has a movie mode that shoots VGA video at a faster rate of 30 frames per second and adds a burst mode that can take 2.3 frames per second. The Nikon Coolpix P1 retails for $549.95 and includes a Wi-Fi card for communicating with computers, printers, and other wireless devices.  [**

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-N1 – ](https://reviewed.usatoday.com/cameras/specs/Sony/Cyber-shot%20DSC-N1.htm)The Sony N1 attempts to merge a camera and a digital viewer together like the Kodak EasyShare-one, but does not include the wireless capability that can sync it with software and other organizational programs. The Cyber-shot N1 has the same 1-inch thickness, but weighs 5.5 ounces without the card and battery. Available in November, this digital camera has twice the resolution of the EasyShare-one with 8.1 effective megapixels. The Sony N1 comes with a Carl Zeiss 3x optical zoom lens and a similar 3-inch touch screen with 230,000 pixels. This model has automatic and priority modes, but still no fully manual mode. The Sony N1 offers 26 MB of internal memory. The Sony Cyber-shot DSC-N1 will retail for $499.  **Who It’s For***Point-and-Shooters* – With all kinds of automated modes and features, the EasyShare-one is made for point-and-shooters who want the convenience of printing and communicating wirelessly.  *Budget Consumers* – For a 4 megapixel digital camera with a 3x optical zoom, $599 isn’t exactly a bargain. But when you consider the wireless capabilities, the 3-inch touch screen, the 256 MB of internal memory, and the two-year warranty, the price doesn’t sound all that steep.  *Gadget Freaks* – The Kodak EasyShare-one is bliss for gadget freaks; it has so many gadget-friendly features. A 3-inch touch screen and stylus can organize 1,500 photos into a calendar. The wireless card can e-mail those photos, print to a home printer, and sync the camera with home networks and the EasyShare Software. This is definitely a must-have for the gadget freak.  *Manual Control Freaks* – This EasyShare doesn’t offer many manual controls. But a manual control freak who also wants wireless capabilities will have to pay a few thousand dollars for a professional model.  *Pros / Serious Hobbyists* – Professionals and serious hobbyists will have fun with the Kodak EasyShare-one, but the concept may not be new to them. Digital SLRs already have wireless capabilities.  

Conclusion

  

 **Conclusion**The Kodak EasyShare-one begins its own genre by merging a digital camera with a digital photo album and infusing it with wireless technology. This EasyShare takes the traditional pointing and shooting technique to a new level. The camera includes 16 scene modes on a colorful interactive menu that appears on the bright 3-inch touch screen. Most of the modes and settings are automated, but the 4 megapixel imager still performs well. The Kodak EasyShare-one scored high on our resolution and noise tests, matching its impressive feature set. It comes with 256 MB of internal memory and has the capacity to store 1,500 photographs. The EasyShare-one is the perfect gift for obsessive-compulsive people who are adamant about keeping their pictures organized. This Wi-Fi enabled camera can automatically file photos into albums or can move pictures into other folders. Moving and organizing photos is simple with the large touch screen that has 230,000 pixels of resolution.  The Kodak EasyShare-one has a fairly ordinary front façade that doesn’t do much to advertise its flashy feature set. It retails for $599 and includes a wireless card that syncs with Kodak EasyShare Software, printers, personal computers, laptops, camera phones, and other wireless-enabled devices. This digital camera offers convenience at its best and unleashes the true potential of the digital image. The Kodak EasyShare-one was announced in January and took way too long to get to the market, as it was just released in October. However, Kodak makes up for the delay with a plush package that includes a 2-year warranty, 2 batteries (one to spare), a battery charger, a leather carrying case, a nice software package, and a host of promotions. Add an impressive imager to the lavish package and the EasyShare-one may impact the digital camera industry far beyond its sales.    

Specs / Ratings

 **Specs Table**{{manufacturer_specs_table}}{{raw_scores_table}}

Meet the tester

Emily Raymond

Emily Raymond

Editor

Emily Raymond is a valued contributor to the Reviewed.com family of sites.

See all of Emily Raymond's reviews

Checking our work.

Our team is here for one purpose: to help you buy the best stuff and love what you own. Our writers, editors, and lab technicians obsess over the products we cover to make sure you're confident and satisfied. Have a different opinion about something we recommend? Email us and we'll compare notes.

Shoot us an email

Up next