The interface of the P880 is
legible, and generally quite easy to understand. Icons are
used for most settings, but their meaning is quite clear which
helps make the interface user-friendly.
Some of the ease of use of the P880's interface is also due,
in part, to the fact that so many of the camera's functions
are controlled directly with buttons. These buttons display
short menus of their options directly on the monitor or the
EVF, both of which are very legible, and the selection of
any particular option is simplified by the use of the very
precise joystick, or the Command dial.
Similarly, basic camera settings are easily modified irrespective
of the mode in use, the Setup options being always
accessible in all menus:
LCD Brightness: serves to adjust the brightness
of the LCD monitor, not the EVF.
Image Storage serves to choose where images and
videos will be stored, either in the internal memory or
a memory card.
Set Album: allows selecting a specific album (album
names must first be created on a computer and then transferred
to the camera.
Low Light AF LED: On or Off. Controls the AF assist
LED. The LED comes on when the ambient light is insufficient
for the AF system to operate reliably on it own.
MF Assist AF: On or Off. Allows fine-tuning the
auto focus using the manual focusing ring.
Red-eye Reduction provides 3 settings for red-eye
reduction:
Preflash Only: the default, pre-fires short flashes
to constrict the subject's pupils and lessen the likelihood
of red-eye.
Preflash and Auto Fix: preflashes the flash, and runs
the internal program that automatically eliminates red-eye.
Auto Fix only uses no pre-flash, and simply runs the
red-eye reduction program.
AE/AF Button Set serves to select how the AE/AF
button works: AE Lock (default), AF Lock, AE/AF lock.
Program Button Capture decides the shortcut to
the capture menu assigned to the Prog. button in the capture
modes.
Program Button Review: decides the shortcut to
the review menu assigned to the Prog. button in the review
mode.
Orientation Sensor: On (default) or Off. Presents
vertically shot photos vertically.
Quickview: On or Off. Decides whether or not an
image is shown immediately post capture.
Camera Sounds: serves to choose an overall sound
Theme, or individual sounds for Shutter, Self-timer, Errors.
Sound Volume provides 4 settings: Off, Low, Medium
(default) or High.
Mode Description: On (default) or Off. When On
the camera display a short description of the mode (P, A,
S, M only) as it is selected. SCN mode descriptions remain
active.
Accessory Lens: On or Off (default). Lets the camera
know when an accessory lens is mounted.
Date and Time: sets the date and time on the P880.
Video Out: selects the video out signal (NTSC or
PAL).
EVF/LCD Stand By selects the delay before the EVF
of LCD shut down to conserve power: 15 or 30 seconds, 1
minute (default), or 2 minutes.
Auto Power Off selects the delay before the camera
shuts down to conserve power: 3 minutes (default), or 5,
10, 15 or 30 minutes.
Language: selects the language for the interface
and the menus (English, German, Spanish, French, Italian,
Portuguese, Chinese, Korean or Japanese).
Reset Camera: returns the P880 to its original
settings.
Format: to format either the internal memory or
the memory card.
About: displays information about the camera, including
the Firmware's version number.
Regrettably, the instruction manual Kodak provides with the
P880 is rather poor. The contents are not well organized and
critical information is too difficult to find, and in some cases
entirely omitted. In fact, it is hard to believe that Kodak,
one of companies responsible for the popularization of photography,
allows such a poor manual to be included with a camera intended
for more advanced users.
Software
Kodak includes a single CD
with the P880 that contains a program called EasyShare
Software, the program is an image browser that also serves
to download images from the camera when it is docked or connected
directly to a computer via USB, print albums and burn CDs
or DVDs.
Images can be organized into
albums and seen as adjustable-size thumbnails, or sorted using
keywords that have been assigned previously.
The task bar at the top of the program’s window provides
buttons that can be used to change image orientation, burn
photos to a CD, or see them as a slide show. While large tabs
on the left side of the program's window serve to make prints
at home, or order prints online, or email images, or access
the Kodak's EasyShare Centre.
Selecting an image in the
program's main window allows it to be edited. The image to
be edited opens in another window, where it can be cropped,
processed for automatic red-eye reduction, enhanced, scene
balanced which offers controls to adjust exposure, shadow
and highlight detail, colour balanced, have effects applied,
or be rotated.
Most of the editing is automatic, requiring a single click
from the user, or can be cancelled, returning to the program's
main editing window.
But aside from these few functions,
the EasyShare appears to be primarily designed to get the user
to use peripheral services from Kodak such as Kodak EasyShare
Gallery, formerly known as Ofoto, an image printing service.
With the current
version of the software, RAW image support is limited to working
on a JPEG copy of the image until the upgrade of the software
has been downloaded. But, while the download is free of charge
it requires registering with Kodak, a process that involves
supplying first and last names, and an address amongst other
details.
The upgrade to version 5.2.0.0 adds support for the RAW format,
and images can be edited for Picture Detail (noise suppression
and sharpness) and white balance. Once edited, photos can
be saved in Kodak's RAW format (*.KDC), bitmap (BMP), JPEG
or TIFF.
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Interface & Software
