The Kodak EasyShare V1073 ($229.95 direct) is cursed with an unexciting design and a touch-screen user interface that's more confusing than it is convenient. This 10-megapixel shooter more than makes up for its dull aesthetics, though, with snappy response times, vivid colors, and the ability to record high-definition (1,280-by-720, 30-frame-per-second) video. Translation: It's pretty impressive.

Resembling a small black brick with rounded corners, the 5.2-ounce V1073 measures 2.3 by 3.7 by 0.8 inches (HWD). The front of the camera houses a Schneider-Kreuznach lens (35mm equivalent: 37mm to 111mm) with maximum f-stops at f/2.9 and f/5.2; the lens is capable of up to 3X optical zoom. When the lens is recessed, only its gunmetal-colored casing is visible, which would be slick if the rest of the camera weren't so stark-looking. This is not the cam to get if you're trying to turn heads.

Flip the camera over and that's where the confusion begins. The 3-inch touch screen, which dominates the back, doesn't actually replace all of the controls. Like Sony's touch-screen Cyber-shot DSC-T300, its power and shutter buttons are located on top. But Sony incorporates most other controls into its touch-screen user interface, adding just a playback button and zoom control on top of the camera. Kodak, on the other hand, clutters up the back of the camera with zoom and playback buttons, as well as two additional navigation buttons next to the (big) display. The on-screen touch menu can be a bit tedious to navigate. Some of screen icons are not easily visible because they're small and blend in with the subject that's being shot, and the expanding animated menus only add to the confusion.

The spacious 3-inch screen is a good thing, but it's very dim compared with the DSC-T300's display, or that of the Canon PowerShot SD870 IS. On bright days it was very difficult to see subjects to frame shots and near impossible to navigate the touch-screen-based menus. The DSC-T300's display features a glossy finish that shows more glare indoors but is definitely more useful than the Kodak's, which, while it offers less glare, is barely passable for outdoor shots in sunlight. There's no viewfinder on the V1073 either, which makes the dimly lit LCD your only option for setting up shots.

There are 21 preset scene modes, including Candlelight, Fireworks, and the less interesting Text Document, for sharp text shots. Other features include optical image stabilization and face detection. Several onboard imaging options are offered. Of these, the most useful is Kodak's own "Perfect Touch," which makes a copy of an image you select, adjusts its contrast and brightness, and corrects red-eye.

For lab testing, we use Imatest (http://www.imatest.com) a camera-testing suite that incorporates ISO targets, distortion grids, color charts, and software analysis, to analyze images. The results of the X-Rite Color Checker, a professional palette of 24 scientifically prepared colored squares, indicated that colors were a bit oversaturated, but that's not unusual, or necessarily incorrect. Capturing accurate color doesn't always mean that the results will be the most pleasing to the eye. I found that distortion at the both the telephoto and wide-angle positions of the lens was minimal, and virtually undetectable to the naked eye. The V1073 offers ISO settings up to 6400, and like many point-and-shooters, noise becomes noticeable at 400 and gets increasingly distracting as you go up. However, noise levels are a bit lower than on competitors like the Sony DSC-T300 and the 12MP Pentax Optio S12.

Photos captured outdoors on a very sunny day using both the V1073 and the T300 yielded similar results (despite the hard-to-see display on the V1073), but mild differences in color reproduction were present. The T300 captured a more accurate blue in the sky, but I found the V1703's color interpretation to be more pleasing overall.

Upon start-up, you can snap off a picture in roughly 3.6 seconds. After that, the camera was able to shoot images at an extremely brisk pace, making me wait only 2.2 seconds on average between shots. But actually photographing an image was a different story. The V1073 averaged a disappointing 0.8 second of lag time between hitting the shutter button and taking the photo. The DSC-T300 averaged a mere 0.4 second, which means you have a 50 percent better chance of getting the shot.

Like the non-touch-screen EasyShare M1033, the V1073 captures HD video, and the quality blows competitors away. Don't expect the razor-sharp imagery you get from HDTV channels, but prepare to be wowed. Compared with the video taken from cell phones and typical point-and-shoot cameras, the V1073's 1,280-by-720 at 30 fps (in MOV format) video is a lot easier on the eyes. I've reviewed a few point-and-shooters with cool video features lately, including the waterproof Olympus Olympus Stylus 1030SW and the Pentax Optio S12, which takes DivX-encoded movies, but being able to record HD video definitely raises the bar.

Playing HD video back on a computer is easy, since Kodak supplies a USB cable and records to an SDHC card, but connecting the camera to an HDTV requires a $99 dock. The dock sends video to your HDTV via analog component cables; HDMI would be much better since it's digital and therefore less susceptible to signal noise, which can degrade audio and video. The HD-video-capable $300 Samsung NV24HD features HDMI out via an optional dock, but it's a more-expensive camera. The V1073 also captures still shots in 16:9 for viewing on an HDTV.

Like most touch-screen devices, the Kodak V1073 suffers from poor battery performance. During a week of testing, I had to recharge the battery at least three times—most point-and-shoot cameras can last on a single charge over the testing period. Still, considering that the V1073 captures HD video and terrific still shots, at $229 it's not a bad choice. But if you're not a touch-screen fanatic, one of the company's traditional, less-expensive HD video models, like the EasyShare M1033, might be a better fit.

Check out the Kodak EasyShare V1073's test scores.

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