There is a reason people like to flaunt their vintages. It carries that nostalgic feeling of connecting to the old times. And when it comes to cherishing and collecting the old moments, nothing beats the pleasure of turning the pages of our family photo albums.
The excitement of waiting for the reels to be developed into the photographs used to be a craze in the old days. But soon, the digitalization came in and wiped out all the time-gap by pampering the people with digital pictures. However, the love for printed photographs never died. This is the reason, recent years have been quite happening in terms of top camera brands coming up with latest models of instant cameras. 2017 has seen two of the biggest players and the toughest competitors in the instant camera brands, Polaroid and Fujifilm, which have been flooding the market with their latest versions, one after another.
If you are a lover of instant cameras, it’s going to be a hard deciding which brand to go for. The various factors which affect and alter one’s choice, include the price range, pixel quality, photograph size, color richness, the range of special effects, the camera weight, ease of usage, and things like that.
Here is a broad comparison between the Polaroid and Fujifilm instant cameras, that covers from basic to highly refined features of their various models. Let’s have a quick view of each and decide which one to opt for!
Polaroid: Polaroid has been a long-time player in the field of instant cameras. After going through a rough time nearly a decade ago, Polaroid has been back with its instant camera series like Impossible I-1 in 2016. In 2017, the company went a step forward and launched two of its newest series Polaroid Snap and Polaroid OneStep 2.
Polaroid Pros
- High Megapixels: The pixels are great as Polaroid Snap pampers the users with 10-megapixels pictures. This enhances the photograph quality and makes it look so much alive.
- Decent Price: Polaroid has been wise to keep its latest models like Polaroid Snap quite budget-friendly. The cameras are available at a decent price of $99.
- User-friendly: Polaroid has taken great care of customer-comfort and gone a step forward in making models that are highly user-friendly. The cameras are simple to use and have a built-in flash system. It’s just one simple click and the pictures are done. Polaroid cameras like Polaroid Snap comes with hand strap which makes it easier to hold and carry it.
- USB and Battery: Polaroid Snap model includes a USB cable and even Bluetooth system. The batteries are rechargeable and can be charged with the provided USB cable.
- The SocialMatic Model: The SocialMatic model is unbeatable, as in, you can store for up to 32GB and view the digital version of all your picture. This allows the user to take his time and select the final pictures that need to be printed. The digital version also gives the user, the privilege to share the pics on social media platforms.
- Larger Pictures: The printed pictures come out in larger sizes and can be decorated with various things like photobooth mode and classic logo
- Decently Priced Films: In comparison to other brands the films are very competitively priced and hardly cost $25.
Polaroid Cons
- Bulky: The Polaroid can be difficult to carry as it is comparatively heavier.
- Picture Tones: The only three classic varieties that can be enjoyed are normal, black and white, and sepia picture tones.
- Dull Colors: The pictures lack vibrancy as the colors are really restricted, which makes them look rather full.
- Battery Problems: Many of the users have complained of the poor battery qualities and faced difficulties in recharging them.
Fujifilm: The only brand that has given tough competition to Polaroid is Fujifilm. Fujifilm touched the weak nerves of Polaroid and grew its own instant camera series Instax, that compensates every feature that Polaroid lacks. Fujifilm introduced its first instant camera line Fotoroma. In 2017, Fujifilm has launched latest models like Fujifilm Instax Mini 9 and Instax Mini 90 Neo Classic.
Fujifilm Pros
- Affordable Price: Fujifilm Instax Mini 9 can be easily bought under $70.
- The “Kids Mode”: Fujifilm has taken the instant cameras to a whole new level by adding many brilliant features like Kids Mode, which makes it a piece of cake for anyone to take pictures. With its quicker shutter speed, it can capture even the fast-moving objects.
- Light-weighted: The models are a relief as they are almost half the weight of the Polaroid models, which makes them easy to carry.
- Beautiful Models: Compared to Polaroid, which comes in very limited model designs, Fujifilm is available in a variety of pretty models with flaunting colors like grape, black, white, yellow, and pink.
- Brightly Colored Pictures: Fujifilm instant cameras offer white balance like cloudy and sunny. The cameras are great for selfies, as they deliver great quality of colors and have a high range of manual settings for exposure modes.
- Brightness and Flash: The Fujifilm models have a flash range of 2.7 meters. It also provides huge angle range for taking selfies with its dual shutter buttons.
Fujifilm Cons
- Smaller Photographs: In contrast to Polaroid, Fujifilm prints pictures that are smaller in size.
- Costly films: The films are really costly and in order to get the black and white effect pictures, you would have to invest and buy a different pack of film.
- Battery Investment: As the batteries are non-rechargeable, it add another weight to your pocket.
Conclusion: Both brands have their own perks and values. Their limitations are also different. It really depends on the customer, his purpose, and the specialized benefits he/she wants from the camera. On a certain level, both brands are quite tough to choose from. Buying a camera is a huge investment. So, make a wise choice by going thoroughly through all the pros and cons of both and then pick the one which is worth your money.
