Kodak's DC280 digital camera defies a simple overall recommendation. Like the little girl with the curl, it is either very, very good or it is incredibly frustrating. As you explore the camera and put it through its paces, be prepared to be alternately impressed and disgusted, often in quick succession.

The DC280 is a 2.0 megapixel zoom (2x optical/3x digital) camera. It borrows heavily in its design from the older DC200/210 series. In other words, it looks very much like a typical "snapshot" film-based camera. This isn't a criticism--the familiar styling should prove reassuring to both first-time dcam buyers and those upgrading from older Kodak models. Also, don't be deceived by the 2.0 megapixel figure. The DC280 has a full 2.3 megapixel CCD but crops images slightly to ensure edge-to-edge quality.

Although the styling is perhaps a bit retro, the electronics and feature set are purely modern. The DC280 features a robust set of imaging controls and options that enable casual photographers to capture consistently good shots while providing the expert the power to manage virtually any condition.

People expecting "bells-and-whistles" on a digital camera will probably be disappointed with the DC280. There is no video mode, no sound capture, and the camera won't remind you of your wedding anniversary. The DC280's deep, yet intuitive menus are instead filled with photography options.

"On-the-fly" controls are placed on the top of the camera around a clear LCD status window (figure 2). The three buttons control the self-timer, close-up/normal focus mode, and flash settings. Easy to comprehend icons in the LCD show current settings as well as battery status, resolution and quality settings, and the number of images remaining on the memory card.

For more detailed control, there is a menu button just above the color LCD on the back (figure 3). Simple, well-behaved up/down and enter buttons are located on the side of the screen. In addition to the menu controls, there are left and right buttons below the LCD for scrolling through captured images. A nickel-sized dial on the back controls camera function modes. The thumb-operated dial moves easily between setup, connect, review, and capture settings with a reassuring "click" as it changes modes.

The final button on the back of camera is the power switch. The power switch is incredibly poorly designed. Not a proper switch or toggle at all, it is a spring-loaded slider. You slide the button to the right and it returns to its original position. To turn the camera off, you perform the exact same procedure. If all goes well, it isn't a problem. However, if your batteries are low, your computer connection hangs, or some other problem arises, you can't be sure you activated or deactivated the device. I learned to move the switch very slowly, then assume there was a problem if it didn't respond.

The DC280 has an excellent assortment of exposure controls. You can adjust exposure in 0.05 increments from +2.0 to -2.0 (1.0 equals a doubling of the exposure). Three metering system options are also included; automatic, center-weighted, and multi-pattern. You can also toggle the ISO setting between automatic and high-speed shutter modes. Finally, you can lock an exposure setting for when a consistent "look" is required for a series of shots.

In addition to the basic controls, such as compression quality (good, better, best) and resolution (full or half) the DC280 has four white balance settings (auto, daylight, fluorescent, tungsten). Other basic options include date/time stamp, and image sharpening/softening settings.

At first glance, the remaining menu choices may seem whimsical. The DC280 includes special effects modes including sepia tone, monochrome, and document. Another menu choice enables you to add a border to your image. While these aren't "serious" photography options, they are well-done and can have serious business applications. For instance, the monochrome mode is excellent for images destined for laser printer of copier output. The document mode enhances text legibility. Even the borders feature is robust. Borders can be created or edited in any standard image-editing application then imported into or exported from the camera.

Physically, the DC280 feels solid, a bit heavier than a film camera, but not detrimentally so. Rubber accent grips give the camera a comfortable and secure feel when shooting, but the camera could benefit from more aggressive contouring.

The color LCD is relatively small, yet is perfectly capable with the added advantage of being more battery-friendly. The ability to zoom into a section of an image in the review process makes it a more useful tool.

Although the controls are well-positioned, the viewfinder is annoyingly located nearly in midpoint between the ends of the camera. The viewfinder is best used by those with no nose. Because I have one, it constantly smashed into the LCD (which has no protective cover) leaving smudges on the display.

Credit must be given however for viewfinder accuracy--the frame is as close to being identical to the captured image as I've seen in a non-direct viewer. I know that proximity to the lens is important in accurate framing, but if Kodak won't move the viewfinder, they should at least add an eyepiece extension. When Kodak fixes that, they should also add a diopter adjustment to make things easier for photographers with less than 20/20 eyesight.

In fact, the DC280 is sorely in need of a few other modifications. The zoom lens should not automatically extend at power up--if you've forgotten to remove the lens cover, it pops off (only if you start in capture mode). The zoom motor seems anemic, even with fully charged batteries. With mid-charged or failing power, the zoom often simply stops and fails to retract when you turn off the power.

As annoying as the little physical problems are, they pale in comparison to the frustration provided by Kodak's software and connection routines. The DC280 comes with both serial and USB cables which both use the same camera port. A video out (PAL or NTSC) port, cable and a connection for an optional AC power adapter are also included.

I've suffered with the flaky and unreliable serial connection of my personal DC210 camera for the past year, so was relieved to see the USB option on the DC280. Admittedly, setting up the camera through USB was truly plug-and-play without the configuration hassles of a serial connection. Yet, that small joy was quickly forgotten.

While USB enables automatic plug and go hardware, each of the bundled software installations requires a system reboot, negating that perk. All would be forgiven, except that the software is seriously sub-par in usability, functionality, and aesthetics.

Arcsoft's PhotoPrinter 2.0 (figure 4) simply isn't acceptable as the "main" application for a camera in the DC280's class. PhotoPrinter is included on the Kodak Driver CD and is installed by default.

The one task a digital camera software program must do well is manage the transfer of images from camera to computer. PhotoPrinter 2.0 fails in this regard. The program is a "one-trick pony" designed to facilitate photo placement on a printout..

Worse, the program took the files, copied them somewhere, and left me looking at a cartoonish interface wondering where my images were. Inexplicably, PhotoPrinter gave my images new names that did not match the names shown on the camera prior to transfer.

The good news about PhotoPrinter 2.0 is that it isn't needed. Kodak also supplies an OEM version of Adobe's PhotoDeluxe 1.0 Business Edition (ver. 2.0 for Mac) and PageMill 3.0.

The bad news is that even though the Adobe programs are much more suitable, they still rely on the mediocre Kodak TWAIN module for transfering files. Kodak desperately needs to either develop or bundle a decent image catalog & transfer utility.

Kodak does include a nifty mounting utility for Windows. The utility is in concept a nice idea. The camera appears under the My Computer icon in Windows (but not in Windows Explorer) if you double-click on the camera icon, you'll get to the media card icon. The camera memory card acts much like a 20MB hard disk (the size of the CompactFlash module included with our review unit), enabling you to list the image files, display thumbnails, copy, delete and perform other basic file management tasks.

It isn't fancy, there are no catalog, editing, preview, or archiving options, but it is an efficient method of getting the images onto your computer. That is, when it works. I had just under a 75% success ratio in the dozen or so tussles I engaged in.

The connection is flaky, any change in either the camera's status or your computer's operation tends to lock everything up, even disabling the camera's power switch. I had to open the battery compartment or unplug the USB cable in order to reset or turn off the device.

Kodak has recently posted a firmware upgrade for the DC280 (ver. 1.01) that reportedly solves USB transfer lockups, lens retraction problems, improves battery-level sensing, and fixes other bugs. Unfortunately, we weren't able to test the upgrade before returning the camera. If the fixes do live up to their promise, much of the frustration of transferring images should be removed.

The final software "solution" provided by Kodak doesn't really seem to have much application. The Camera Control utility basically copies the status indicators and LCD screens of the camera into a Window. There are no "new" controls provided.

It seems a lot of trouble to connect the camera, run the program, and move through the options onscreen to do exactly what you could accomplish faster and easier on the camera itself.

The picture taking option is almost laughable in its silliness. You have control of the zoom and shutter, yet there is no viewfinder--only by waiting an inordinate amount of time (about a minute) for the image to appear in the preview window will you know what you caught. Never run the Camera Control utility while using the Mounter--it ensures a Windows "blue-screen-of-death" for your system and battery removal for the camera.

My final gripe about the software and transfer routines is speed. With the mounting method, transfers over a USB connection are gratifyingly fast. Unfortunately, the TWAIN driver is relatively slow. Pulling a single file from the camera isn't too painful, but select the "transfer all" option and you'll have time for a nice nap before the task completes. Worse, the driver loads and expands each image into the application as it transfers. With full-resolution images easily expanding to more than 5MB each, transferring a full "roll" of images results in more than 150MB of image data processed into RAM. Obviously, this brings even "power systems" to their knees as data is swapped to the hard disk.

The DC280 is the first USB-equipped camera I've reviewed that practically demands an optional CompactFlash card reader.

Power consumption is about average for a flash- and zoom-equipped digital camera. A fresh quartet of AA batteries (either alkaline or rechargeable) was sufficient to shoot a full "roll" of 34 high-resolution images. However, excessive zooming or prolonged use of the LCD will obviously shorten battery life. Kodak did provide a simple Ni-MH/Ni-Cd battery charger and a set of rechargeable as well as standard alkaline batteries, but an AC adapter is optional.

If you detect some frustration and even rancor, you're probably right. Although my older DC210 shares and even suffers more deeply from most of the problems plaguing the DC280, I would buy it again under the same circumstances. I would also consider purchasing the DC280, simply because my first priority in a digital camera is taking pictures. Additionally, although I couldn't test the firmware update, I'm happy to see Kodak responding to the problems in a positive manner.

The DC280 is maddeningly good at grabbing images, competitively priced, supported by a company that knows photography inside and out, rugged, durable and relatively friendly to use. Just be aware that everything that isn't critical seems to be a problem with the DC280. If you have patience and the right priorities, you have to give the DC280 a shot.