It's been a while since Kodak produced a camera worthy of serious consideration by serious photographers. But now the company looks to be getting focused. Not two weeks after the company announced a whopping 39-megapixel CCD, it's now rolling out a "performance" camera.
The Kodak EasyShare P880 is an 8-megapixel digital intended to compete against the likes of Canon's EOS 20D and the Nikon D70. And with its relatively low $600 price tag, it just might hook a few consumers.
But this camera isn't what it appears to be. Unlike the Nikon D70 and Canon EOS 20D, the Kodak P880 is not an SLR; it's a conventional digital in SLR clothing. The lens is not detachable, though Kodak is selling a snap-on telephoto accessory. This is really just a much more advanced take on the decidedly consumer-oriented EasyShare series, and the P880 certainly does offer some advanced features, including histogram analysis, support for RAW format, and a boatload of manual controls. And because it isn't an SLR, it also shoots 30fps VGA video.
What's unclear is whether consumers who aren't savvy enough to step up to a true SLR camera will really have a need for all the P880's advanced features. Does Joe Snapshot even know how to read a histogram? It's hard not to wonder whether Kodak isn't trying just a little too hard to hold onto its consumer-friendly niche with what should otherwise be a prosumer camera. But the marketplace will decide.
