Model Design / Appearance
The Kodak EasyShare V603 comes in two different colors, Midnight Black and Silver Essence. Both have a slight texture on their otherwise matte finish. The camera frame is a simple rectilinear design with clean edges and an unfettered layout that emphasizes function without ignoring form. The midnight black model at PMA was much easier to handle in part due to the pronounced difference between the polished silver controls and the textured black surface of the camera.
Size / Portability
The overall camera size is definitely petite although the thickness of the camera is a bit odd when considering the other dimensions. The Kodak EasyShare V603 has dimensions of 3.6 in length by 2.0 in height by 0.9 inches in depth and at a mere 4.2 ounces without battery, this camera will easily pop into a back pocket, a purse or bag without a second thought. Even carrying this camera for extended periods won’t be a hassle, and the wrist strap eyelet on the right side of the camera will certainly work well as a safety device in that instance. The retracting lens barrel neatly fits flush to the surface of the camera and no other extrusions are present on the surface, so users don’t need to worry about catching or breaking port covers or other features when moving the camera in and out of bags or pockets.
Handling Ability
Although small cameras often mean poor handling for those who have large hands, the Kodak EasyShare V603 proved to be a pleasant surprise. My hands comfortably gripped the camera while I was quickly able to scan menu and setup options with the thumbs of my right and left hands. While the controls placed on the top of the camera took a little time to get used to, the extending lens barrel all but eliminated any concerns about blocking the lens with the fingers of my left hand. The placement of the microphone in the upper corner of the front face directly beside the right hand is the only really problematic handling concern for the V603. By positioning this feature so close to the right hand, it will be too easy to accidentally muffle audio inadvertently when shooting video clips.
Control Button / Dial Positioning / Size
The controls for the Kodak EasyShare V603 were an interesting amalgam of success and failure, with the spacing of each control being the area of greatest success for Kodak in terms of ease of use and navigation. Unfortunately the small body size of the camera means that external controls will also be small, and in the case of this reviewer, that leads to somewhat tedious engagement of these features. The zoom control is undersized and suffers for that. It would be nice to have a zoom control with clean and concise movement that wasn’t impaired by its own physical 
limitations, but that’s obviously difficult on a camera this small.
Also, the number of external controls present on the V603 is an impressive number, which could lead some beginning users feeling overwhelmed by both their number and their less than successful labeling. Also, it is frequently necessary to tilt the camera in order to navigate the control options located on the top, which means losing time and frame composition. And as for those controls, if the user is shooting in well lit situations they will not disappoint; however, because many of the buttons feel the same, in lower or no light situations this could lead to confusion and accidental altering of settings until familiarity with the design has been reached.
The menu structure was simple to navigate in part due to menu layout, but also in large part to the size and presence of the four-way controller, which allowed for concise navigation.
Menu
There are several menu options on the Kodak EasyShare V603, all of which have a pleasing linear design that provides full text descriptions over vague symbols. While technically transparent, the menu structure for the V603 has a black background that covers two-thirds of the LCD screen, only leaving a small amount at the top of the LCD left uncovered. There are four menus located throughout the V603, although all are easily accessed without hassle.
The shooting menu is accessed when the camera is placed in shooting mode and the menu button to the left of the LCD is pressed. The shooting menu allows users to access the following controls: Self Timer, Burst, Picture Size, White Balance, ISO, Color Mode, Sharpness, Exposure Metering, Auto Focus, AF Zone, Long Time Exposure, Set Album, Internal Memory and Setup Menu. These options are scanned via the up and down arrows on the four-way control with the OK button used to select submenus.
The final option within the shooting mode menu is a setup menu option, designed in the same format as the shooting mode menu. It provides access and control to these options: Return, Camera Sound, Sound Volumes, LCD brightness, LCD dimmer, Auto Power Off, Date and Time, Video Out, Photo Frame, Orientation, Red-Eye Pre flash, Video Date Display, Blur Warning, Language, Format and About settings. Like the shooting mode, this menu is scanned via the up and down arrows on the four-way controller and submenu selections may be made using the OK button at its center.
The playback menu is entered when the camera is switched into review mode, which allows the user to engage these controls: View By, Album, Perfect Touch, Crop, Slide Show, Multi-up, Copy, Protect, Image Storage and Setup menu.
Once images have been altered, cropped and manipulated with the settings available in Playback mode, the user can enter a menu called the Share menu to export images from their camera. A number of different options are as follows: Print, Email, Favorite, Print All, Cancel Prints.
Ease of Use
The Kodak EasyShare V603 is certainly easy to use, with basic auto modes, a wealth of preset options and a dollop of manual options that are happily not necessary for quality images. The V603 has a logical menu structure that enables fast scanning with the four-way controller and follows a linear list structure rather than the often confusing illustrated formats that feature vague pictures of images that convey little to nothing of the control they represent. The controls, while small, are laid out with enough space so that users won’t need to worry about accidental activation when shooting in well-lit situations, but their identical size and shape could led to mishandling when in low light situations.
