Good to average speed for a consumer camera.

When you press the shutter release on a camera, there's usually a lag time or delay before the shutter actually fires. This corresponds to the time required for the autofocus and autoexposure mechanisms time to do their work, and can amount to a fairly long delay in some situations. Since this number is rarely reported on (and even more rarely reported accurately), and can significantly affect the picture taking experience, we routinely measure both shutter delay and shot to shot cycle times for all cameras we test, using a test system Dave designed and built for the purpose. (Crystal-controlled, with a resolution of 0.001 second.) Here are the numbers we collected for the Kodak EasyShare V603:

The V603's performance ranges from quite fast to just average, depending on what you're trying to do. It starts up fairly quickly, and has a very fast shutter response when the lens is set to its wide angle position. At the telephoto end of the lens' range though, the lag time of 0.85 second is average. On the other hand though, if you "prefocus" the camera by half-pressing and holding down the shutter button before the final exposure, it's blazingly fast, with a shutter delay of only 0.081 second, among the fastest on the market. Shot-to-shot cycle times are average, at about 1.03 seconds for large/fine JPEGs. Continuous-mode speed is quite good, at just under three frames/second, for up to four shots in succession. The flash takes about four seconds to recharge after a full-power shot, about average for this class of camera. Connected to a computer, download speeds are fast enough that you probably won't feel a need for a separate card reader, but nonetheless aren't as fast as many cameras currently on the market. Bottom line, while not a first choice for sports or other fast-paced action, the V603 is responsive enough (particular at wide angle lens settings) to handle most family photo opportunities.

Battery
Short battery life with the LCD on.

The Kodak EasyShare V603 uses a custom rechargeable 3.7V LiIon battery for power. Battery life is measured according to CIPA standards, and achieves around 150 pictures per charge using a 128MB SD card.

Storage
No card is included with the Kodak EasyShare V603, although it accepts SD/MMC cards; 32MB RAM is built into the camera.

I strongly recommend buying at least a 256MB card, preferably a 512MB one, to give yourself extra space for extended outings.