Polaroid has just unveiled a new camera for some instant analog fun.
The Flip comes with fewer features than Polaroid’s pricier I-2 model, but is more advanced than the Go, Polaroid’s most basic instant camera — so it could hit the sweet spot for some folks looking for such a device.
Polaroid’s latest camera, which goes on sale at the end of this month, deploys sonar autofocus, a technology that uses sound waves to measure the distance to the subject, ensuring it appears as sharp as possible in the print that pops out of the camera. While none of Polaroid’s current lineup uses sonar autofocus, it actually featured in some of its older cameras back in the 1970s and 1980s, including the Polaroid SX-70 Sonar OneStep and Polaroid SLR 680.
The Flip’s sonar autofocus works in conjunction with a hyperfocal 4-lens system, which, as you press the shutter, quickly pulls up one of four lenses — depending on the distance to the subject (0.65m, 0.85m, 1.2m, 2.5m) — to help capture the sharpest image possible.
Polaroid’s new camera also comes with a Scene Analysis feature that warns you if your photo is likely to come out underexposed, in which case you can deploy the camera’s built-in flash to throw some light on your subject. It’ll also tell you if the subject is too close to the lens to be in focus.
Additional features include double exposure for more surreal shots, and a self-timer mode, though remote control functionality is also possible via the Polaroid app.
“Polaroid Flip is more than just a camera — it’s an invitation to embrace real-life moments,” the company says of the latest addition to its range. “In this hyper-digitized, constantly doomscrolling, high-anxiety age, the Polaroid Flip offers a way to connect with life’s best moments — the real, tangible, analog ones; with eight pictures in a pack that will connect to life far more than 800 digital ones.”
Keen to hammer the point home, it continues: “Polaroid delivers a true analog experience: photos you can hold forever, not pixels lost in the cloud or forgotten on a phone. The Flip invites creators to simply live a life worth capturing, then click the Flip’s iconic red shutter button.”
Polaroid’s latest instant camera competes with others like the Instax devices from Fujifilm, which recently added the Instax mini 41 to its lineup.
The Polaroid Flip lands on April 29, and is available for $200, and 200 British pounds from Polaroid’s online store. Retailers will stock it from May 13.