DIGITAL X

Online arm of DIGITALX magazine, the source for news and trends in technology business, gadgets, the Web, government policies, mobile, and social media. Published in Lagos, Nigeria.

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November 20th, 3:00pm 0 comments

Polaroid is Back! And It May Be What You Want for Christmas

Z340-page
 If you never used a Polaroid camera, at least there will be a few of those pictures in your parents' albums - square with an extended bottom part, image area now turning greenish with age.... Who needs a Polaroid camera when everything has gone digital with face recognition, touch screen, on camera editing, expandable memory, and so on? The answer is the same people who use those fancy, flat like paper point-and-shoot models. Why? Because, most times, to print the photos you've taken with the 21st century cameras, you still have to get yourself to a studio, even if all you need to print are just pictures from a night out with friends. 

Enter Polaroid. Again. 

The Z340 14-megapixel instant camera does not use ink. Rather, it uses ZINK (Zero Ink Printing Technology), which is a process by which the system heats up clear dye crystals that have been embedded in the printing paper, to reveal the images captured during exposure. 

Polaroid-z340

Because it's a mobile photo studio, the Z340 (retailing at N47,541 - excluding shipping)  is bulkier than most amateur cameras you're used to. But it has a comfy strap by which you can hold it. Like latest digital cameras, however, you can preview the images you're capturing on an LCD screen, correct redeye, and crop. It saves your images in a file, which you may choose to print later. You can also share the pictures with friends online.

That's where the similarities end. With the Z340, you can print your pictures immediately, up to 40 prints on a single charge (although Polaroid puts its own figure at a modest 25 prints per full charge). 

Although it's a fixed focus camera, there are 30 different scene modes, including Portrait, Snnset, and Backlight. Advanced camera users can use the white balance function while casual photographers can simply rely on the auto setting. 

The camera can hold 10 sheets of 3"x4" printing paper at once (and that's all it comes with. You can refill by buying more paper @ N3,180 for 30 sheets - excluding shipping). 

Zink-paper

 

**Dollar to Naira exchange rate: $1:N159.

Posted by Sam Adeoye