Kodak is back with the brand new Kodak Z981 superzoom compact digital camera one year after the announcement of the Z980 super-zoom at CES 2009.

The model name “advances” by just +1, but the camera actually jumps to a 14mp sensor and 26X zoom ratio, up from 12mp and 24X.

The lens is also Schneider-branded, f2.6-f5, and has a 26-676mm equivalent focal range, enough for most photo-amateurs, along with image stabilization.

The Kodak Z981 sports a really useful vertical shutter button and a detachable vertical (non-battery) grip.

On the plus side, the camera has RAW capture and PASM which is short for Program, Aperture and Shutter priority, and Manual exposure: that means that Pro-oriented photographers will get their teeth on Pro-features and a less than 0.2 second click-to-capture specification.

Other features include a huge 3-inch display and (as required by 2010 standards!) one-touch upload to popular web-services (flickr, youtube, facebook, etc).

The Kodak Z981 takes four AA batteries, and Kodak actually includes four of the pre-charged (presumably LSD) types. This is a nice touch for AA cameras.

The Kodak Z981 is available for pre-order now at Amazon for $330.

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