The film format is the running cost, and it is chosen at the till
An instant camera is bought once and its film format is bought forever, which makes that the first decision and the expensive one. Formats differ in print size and aspect — a credit-card-sized print, a square, a wider rectangle — and each is sold only by the maker that defined it, so the camera commits you to a supply chain as much as to a look. Everything else is simpler than a digital camera and more consequential, because there is no reviewing and no second attempt. Exposure is either fully automatic, automatic with a lighten-and-darken control, or manual, and that control is what saves a backlit picture from being wasted film. The flash is usually always-on by design; the ones that can be switched off are the ones usable in a room where the light is already good. A close-focus or selfie mode changes the lens for arm's-length subjects, and its absence shows up as a soft face. The viewfinder is offset from the lens, so parallax is real at short distances and some cameras mark the correction. A hybrid model photographs digitally and prints afterwards, which turns the film back into a choice rather than a consequence. We compare film format and print size, exposure control, flash behavior, close-focus mode, viewfinder and any digital printing path.
instax mini film, 54 × 86 mm prints · automatic exposure and flash · selfie mirror and close-up lens · 5-second print · two AA batteries included
The simplest instant camera on this shelf: automatic exposure and flash, a selfie mirror and credit-card-size prints on instax mini film, for about $93.
Best for: Parties, weddings and children: anyone who wants an instant print with no settings to learn.
≈ $93
i-Type and 600 film · twin-lens autofocus · double exposure and self-timer · USB-C battery for 15+ packs · tripod mount · bundle with 16 color photos
Polaroid’s autofocus instant camera with double exposure, a self-timer, a tripod mount and a USB-C battery, sold by Amazon.com in a bundle with two packs of color film for about $160.
Best for: Someone who wants real Polaroid prints and a few creative tricks, and accepts the cost of the film.
≈ $160
Fully automatic exposure and flash with cheap instax mini film.
Full-size i-Type and 600 film with twin-lens autofocus.
instax mini for the mini 12; Polaroid i-Type and 600 for the Now.
instax mini film costs less per shot.
The Polaroid has twin-lens autofocus; the instax has a close-up mode.
More than 15 film packs per charge, per Polaroid.
The instax has a selfie mirror; the Polaroid a self-timer.
They develop in minutes; keep them out of strong light while developing.
Budget for film first: it is the real cost of an instant camera.
Each amount in a write-up is what the listing showed when that page was written. The figure next to the product is pulled in as you read, and it is the one that counts.
