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My mom probably still has the amazing Polaroid digicam that I bought on clearance around 99. It could store, like, 20 VGA images on the internal storage. It took around 5 seconds to capture an image that looked like it had been forgotten at the bottom of a half eaten bowl of ramen.
polaroid digicam? so it stores them and prints them out for ya?
That would have been amazing, but no. In the late 90s/early 00s Polaroid was struggling and slapped their name on a bunch of shit products. Still kinda does.
It’s weird to think that 1 Hour Photo processing pretty much killed the instant camera, then digital killed 90 percent of actual film processing. Every once in a while somebody comes out with a pocket sized digital printer that can turn your phone into a convoluted Instax, but they are always shit quality or one of the consumables required for the process cost way too much.
will cost probably a lot more but if you find a good deal on a superzoom camera those are neat because at the max zoom range you can get some shots that not many other cameras can take (and certainly not phones)
I got a used sx60 hs for like $200 a couple years ago, compared to my phone (oneplus 12) it’s decent at macro, great at high zoom, but worse at basically anything else. of course if you want that look then it’s good for that too lol.
Also keep in mind that those all have pretty small sensor sizes (actually apparently the sx60 hs has exactly the same sensor size as this camera) so you need the area to be pretty bright for max zoom to be usable, and fast subjects are pretty hard.
curated photo dump:
TV
captive birds
wild birds (i really don’t know why that hawk let us get so close to it…)
full zoom
macro (it can actually focus on the lens, if you ever want to do that)
top of the london eye
random helicopter
can get some nice bokeh
full zoom range across the thames
doesn’t have that 2000’s aesthetic quality, it’s giving more 2010, sorry hard pass
Well yea, this one came out in 2014
Probably would look relatively similar to this camera when using a regular amount of zoom?
I’m sure there are a lot of earlier ones as well tho
If you want a new one, a Kodak AstroZoom might be the shit superzoom camera you’re looking for. Not very light-sensitive, zero connectivity except MicroUSB for charging (thankfully, can be used while charging) and card reader mode, 20 MP but as sharp as 2 MP at 42x optical zoom. No real video or audio codecs (MJPEG at 1080p30 with companded PCM audio, at a bitrate that would only make sense at H.264/H.265 and yet struggling with some Class-10/UHS-I cards). Buggy firmware (timelapse options are 10, 30, 60 and the default -16384 s, no EV control in Auto mode, macro and burst always disabled after restart), slow autofocus that can only be locked by holding the shutter halfway down throughout the video, sensor from a midrange phone, and processor comparable to 2008 models. Only 5 full-res shots per second (or 30 in 1080p or 120 in VGA, mirroring its video “capabilities”, no 25, 24 or 23.976 support). Bonus, it’s neither compact nor upgradable with a better lens so worse of both worlds.
I mean, I have a basic 2013 compact that would beat it in everything but apparent cred, quality at 20x+ zoom, mode selection and the ability to be used while charging (without a DIY solution) if it didn’t have age-related problems like worn battery and dust in lens. It can even be remotely controlled over Wi-Fi, impressive for the time!
If you want a small digital camera separate from your phone, it’s probably fine. The problem is that mid range phone cameras have comparable quality, so most people are better off spending £40 more on their next phone than buying a £40 camera. As a result of this reality, these sort of cameras aren’t in high demand, and don’t have many options available.
If I wanted a camera separate from my phone, I’d probably save up for a DLSR or film camera, as I’d get better pictures and more out of the experience. However, if you absolutely must have this type of camera, I won’t stop you.
tbh, digicams have been getting kinda big on tiktok because of the 2000’s quality people wanna capture (as it’s more æsthetiqué), but you’re right about the more niche ones that aren’t sony cybershot or that one samsung one with the flippy screen (for selfies)
Good? No idea. Necessary? Most definitely.
Call it gender affirmation. It’s medically necessary. Bill it to your insurance or something.
your telling me the NHS will cover it?
Not a rip off, but if you have any second hand/thrift shops near you I think it wouldn’t be too hard to find something like this for <10£. If it turns on, takes a pic, and is not visibility broken it’s good, they don’t really degrade usually (until they die completely)
If you plan to use it and you can afford it, sure go for it.
Use it and keep it out of a landfill
Just don’t forget to have fun with it!
EDIT: Also I’m not sure what kind of batteries it has but be aware that the older it is the more likely those batteries are to be difficult to find but also more likely to be not great condition from hello. Unless it takes some kind of disposable battery, in which case you’re likely fine. Or if you have the confidence AND skills to make a new battery for it if need be.
I selected AA in the search filter
That’ll help, just be sure to pull the batteries out often. Especially if storing it. It’s a nightmare cleaning the corrosion out if they get forgotten for awhile. I’ve had to do it twice… on the same camera… sometimes it takes a few tries to learn a lesson lol
