When I was little I remember we had a Polaroid camera, which my dad always got out on ‘Special Occasions.’ It was a massive black box – I’ve lived in smaller flats, and it took several hours to set up (although that could have been just because my dad was doing it!)
I grew up thinking Polaroid’s ... Read review
Advantages: Lots of fun Disadvantages: Film can be expensive
...I remember we had a Polaroid camera, which my dad always got out on ‘Special Occasions.’ It was a massive black box – I’ve lived in smaller flats, and it took several hours to set up (although that could have been just because my dad was doing it!)
I grew up thinking Polaroid’s were a bit naff and so did a large proportion of the population. Polaroid gained an image that was a bit sleazy. It was the camera you used to take the sort ... ...the traditional box shape of Polaroid cameras.
On the top is a bright yellow button to turn it on and alter the setting for indoors and outdoors which is the same button you press to take a photo. That’s about as complicated as it gets!!
The actual photos work in the same way as normal Polaroid ones – you take the picture, pull it out of the camera, and within a few moments it develops.
It can take some getting used ... more
When I was little I remember we had a Polaroid camera, which my dad always got out on ‘Special Occasions.’ It was a massive black box – I’ve lived in smaller flats, and it took several hours to set up (although that could have been just because my dad was doing it!)
I grew up thinking Polaroid’s were a bit naff and so did a large proportion of the population. Polaroid gained an image that was a bit sleazy. It was the camera you used to take the sort of photo’s that you didn’t exactly want the staff at Boot’s looking at when you got them developed…
That was until it gave itself a dramatic makeover in line with the ‘naughty Noughties’ and suddenly Instant Camera’s were cool!
‘i-zone’ instant pocket camera’s were Polaroid’s bid to regain domination of market where other camera manufacturers had suddenly tried to grab a piece of the action. They were marketed with young people (and me!) in mind. The gimmick is that the mini pictures these cameras produce are actually stickers! Cool, eh?
I have the basic blue edition, but there is a range of colours and styles, including silver, metallic shades, transparent and even Tweety Pie and one with a built in FM Radio. Although the product itself is not new on the market, new variations regularly appear.
The camera is fairly compact although only pocket sized if you have big pockets. It is long and thin rather than the traditional box shape of Polaroid cameras. On the top is a bright yellow button to turn it on and alter the setting for indoors and outdoors which is the same button you press to take a photo. That’s about as complicated as it gets!!
The actual photos work in the same way as normal Polaroid ones – you take the picture, pull it out of the camera, and within a few moments it develops. It can take some getting used to, especially when photographing people, they need to be really close up, otherwise they just look pale and not very interesting, but after a few practice shots, its easy. Don’t expect top quality shots, they just don’t happen, but I would hope that people looking for excellent photo quality wouldn’t be perusing bright blue and yellow plastic cameras in the first place!
The photographs really are mini. They are 3.6 cm x 2.4 cm. Each one is numbered, so you know how many shots are left. When the photo is developed, you just cut it out, peel off the backing paper and stick it on whatever takes your fancy.
You can also buy the film as just mini photos without the sticky bit, but where’s the fun in that? Also available is ‘fortune film’, where when the photo pops out it displays a message like a fortune cookie, which fades as the picture develops – I can’t really see the point of this, but it apparently sells by the bucket load, so obviously someone does!!
I have had a couple of faulty films, where the pictures never develop or don’t come out clearly even if the lighting was correct. Polaroid are very good at dealing with customer queries, and I’ve always had mine swapped with no quibble if I’ve had a problem.
The I-Zone makes a great gift for difficult to buy for teenagers. I bought one for my niece and she loved it. Apparently they are ‘well cool.' It’s easy to use and robust so it makes an ideal first camera as well. The film is simple to load – you just lay it in and away you go.
It would also make a great present for people who regularly get very drunk indeed (in my experience, we are talking students here!) as they would no doubt find it hilarious and it has the added benefit of providing lots of little stickers of documentary evidence of ‘the night before.’
The camera itself retails at around £19.99. This usually includes one pack of film containing 12 shots and the 2 AA batteries required to work it, although keep an eye out for offers in places like Toys R Us where I’ve seen it retail as low as £9.99. Films come in twin packs (2 x 12 shots), which retail at £8.99. I usually buy mine from Boots, but photographic shops and supermarkets also sell them.
As mobiles develop and more and more have the capacity to take photographs, I’m sure the popularity of instant cameras will diminish, but for now, they certainly are a great little fun camera and ideal to take anywhere.
Advantages: Cheap camera, easy to use, fun sticky photos Disadvantages: Not very durable, expensive films, hard for kids to remove photo
...of that wonderful brick, the Polaroid camera (surprise surprise!) But what advances have they come up with in the instant-photo market? Well the I-zone instant pocket camera is the answer. Although I wouldn't exactly call it an "advancement in technology". More like "let's make it smaller, and the photos with it..." ;-)
Polaroid have come up with the I-zone camera as an excuse to milk their Polaroid instant photo technology as much as possible - ... ...- just like the standard Polaroid camera. On fact, the hardest thing about using this camera is getting the blimin' thing out of its packaging! Once you've hacked your hand to pieces, given in and used some scissors to get it out, all you need to do it put the batteries and film in.
They really have made putting the film in as easy as possible. Simply unwrap the film, open the camera cover, and pop the film in with a black strip poking out the end ...
MikeWhalley 13.05.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Polaroid Pocket/ I-ZONE
Advantages: Comes in variety of colours, easy to use, no processing. Disadvantages: Leaking caustic paste, expensive film, easy to ruin first picture.
Polaroid I-Zone Cameras cost around £18 from Boots. I bought mine a while ago when they were only available in red, blue or green, but since then the range of colours has widened. Some of the newer ones even come with changeable covers like mobile phones do. I-Zones are easy to load, but I nearly always spoil the first picture of each film. After you've taken your picture (adjust the flash setting and hit a button), you have to pull out a strip of ... ...after it's developed, you have to cut off the excess paper. Be careful to follow the marked lines though or you run the risk of leaking caustic paste. (Not good.) There are three flash settings - one for indoors, one for a sunny day and one for a cloudy day. These settings are depicted as little symbol pictures. On the bottom of the camera there are more pictures; these ones tell you how to use the camera. Once you've used up the film (comes in blocks ...
sy2kgbr 08.10.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Polaroid Pocket/ I-ZONE
Advantages: Cute!, easy to use, easy to load film Disadvantages: Expensive to buy replacement films
...bought it.... The Polaroid I-Zone is a mini(ish) camera that takes very mini pictures. Some packages you can buy come with a free film, others don't. I'd recommend the free film anytime because it takes a little while to get used to the camera. You'll find that what you see through the viewfinder, isn't exactly the picture that is taken, but you get the hang of it. Loading the film is unbelievable easy. You open the underside of the camera pop the ... ...get the insides of a Polaroid on your skin! This is a camera for all ages but obviously young kids should be watched, as you need to use scissors to trim your photos down. It's definitely not for the professional photographer but then professionals wouldn't choose a Polaroid anyway. It seems to be a camera that splits the sexes because in general I've found that men say "What's that?" in a credulous voice and women say "OHH MY GOD! THAT IS SOOOOOO ...
eca99ajm 06.04.2001 (27.10.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Polaroid Pocket/ I-ZONE
Advantages: Instant sticky photos Disadvantages: A bit pricey
...instantly, we decided that a Polaroid would be the best option. We looked at the standard Polaroids on offer and opted for the Polaroid i – zone.
This camera is one of those little flat ones - about 7 inches long and silver. It has a single purple button which is used to take the photos. The only other control is a switch which can be set for taking photographs indoors, outdoors in sunny conditions or outdoors in cloudy conditions. It also ... ...(these come supplied).
The main feature of this camera is that it takes small, passport sized photographs – about one and a half inches by one inch in dimension. These take a couple of minutes to develop and have an adhesive backing so they can be mounted directly into a photo album or stuck on a wall or a door if the subject matter is likely to have general appeal.
The photos produced are of surprisingly high quality, but because they are ...
Thamisgith 29.12.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Polaroid Pocket/ I-ZONE
Advantages: Instant photos, small and easy to use Disadvantages: The cost of the film
A snazzy little Polaroid camera, available in several trendy colours. Taking 2inch x 3inch instant photos, this camera is priced at around £18 in gift kit form, supplied with film and batteries.. Films cost £5.00 for 12 shots (stickers) This clever little number caught my eye late last year. With our own digital camera being too expensive for our children to use, we felt that this was a fairly basic and easy to use point and shoot camera for our ... ...them anywhere you like. Polaroid have just introduced a numbering system which takes the guessing out of what remaining film you have left When the film is finished it is very easily removed and replaced with a new one. To my amazement, my mum bought one for me too, so I have been keenly snapping away too. My house now has little pictures all over the place, however I was disappointed to discover that Polaroid did not have the forethought to market ...
headgardener 09.02.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Polaroid Pocket/ I-ZONE
It has a small LCD to show how many pictures you have left, a two zone focus, a lowlight automatic flash, a wide picture format the lens extends from the body, when switched on and retracts when you turn it off
Unfortunately it doesn't have a timer, which would have been a useful addition, can only use Fujifilm Instax film packs! (*)
