Getting Started

Assuming you've charged the batteries, you can pop open the EasyShare-one and start taking pictures almost immediately -- there are a few quick setup screens for things like date, time, and touchscreen calibration. On the other hand, setting up the wireless features and computer synchronization will require some fiddling and/or manual reading, as well as installing the EasyShare software on your computer. You'll also need to set up a free EasyShare Gallery account (Kodak's photo site), as well as a T-Mobile account if you want to use the camera at places like Starbucks and Borders. Once you have created your Gallery account on your computer, you enter and save your email address and password in the camera for future access. Until June 2006, you get a free bound photo book and 10 free prints with your new account.

Kodak provides full-featured EasyShare software for both PC and Mac platforms. It lets you edit and manage all your photos, organize them into albums, add captions, create slideshows, print at home, burn CDs, email them, and upload them to the Kodak Gallery site. Creative projects include greeting cards, books, and calendars that you can order from the Gallery site. The EasyShare software must be open when transferring pictures from camera to computer, either via the included USB cable, or over a Wi-Fi connection. The best feature of the software is probably the one-touch camera synchronization, which can upload email addresses from your address book, as well as transfer photos. It's a great way to make sure your camera's memory card is always completely backed up.

While the Kodak software is very good, if you are already using another program, such as the Microsoft Digital Image Suite or Google Picasa on Windows, or Apple's iPhoto on the Mac, you probably don't want to start all over again with a new image management tool. The EasyShare software even goes so far as to import ALL the photos in your pictures folder automatically when you first open the program, and there's no way to opt out other than temporarily moving your pictures elsewhere.

But don't worry if you'd rather not switch from your current photo program. You can get almost all the benefits of the camera without installing the EasyShare software. You'll lose a few proprietary features, such as the integration between the computer software and the Gallery Web site, but you can transfer pics via USB in the usual fashion to whatever photo app you prefer. Similarly, you can use all the features of the Kodak Gallery site, including uploading and emailing photos wirelessly, independently of the EasyShare software application. One feature you will lose is the ability to transfer photos wirelessly to your computer (since this requires the EasyShare software to be open), but USB transfer is quicker and simpler anyway.

Going Wi-Fi

To get started with Wi-Fi, you first insert the Wi-Fi card all the way into the slot on top of the camera, then push it again to pop it up halfway. This is the "deploy" position. An amber light will glow indicating the card is ready for use. Then you click on the Wi-Fi satellite dish icon at lower left to scan for available network SSIDs. A list will come up, from which you select the desired network and enter the encryption code, if any. You should then be connected, and the light will change to green. If a password is needed, it will be saved in a new profile for you. You can also save profiles for open networks so that they will associate automatically next time. A T-Mobile HotSpot profile is already in the camera, you simply enter your account name and password when you are at a HotSpot location. If you don't already have a T-Mobile account, you'll need to set one up on a computer before trying to connect the camera. You can choose from hourly, monthly or camera-only plans ($4.99/month).

You can also transfer photos to your computer wirelessly, if you have the EasyShare software installed and open. Choose Transfer from the menu that pops up when you press the Share button, and a list of available computers on the network will appear. Transfers worked flawlessly, but we wish that the Wi-Fi connection did not drop after four minutes of inactivity. We were often involved in creating emails or choosing pictures to upload, and the connection would drop before we could send them. Ideally, the camera should automatically reassociate whenever you try to perform a function that requires being connected. Right now, you must reconnect manually by pressing the Wi-Fi icon, and the upload and transfer features are grayed out unless you are connected.

Once you're connected to a Wi-Fi network, at home or at a hotspot, you can email photos to anyone in your contact list, and upload photos to the Gallery Web site. Emails and print requests (for you home printer only -- not online print orders) can also be prepared offline and saved in an Outbox for later sending when you are connected. We wish we could also download photos from the Gallery site that might not be on the camera, and order one-click online prints to be sent to people on our contact list. Kodak could probably add these features in a software update.