polaroid

Much of our day is spent on the computer — IM'ing friends, playing games, working, posting photos on social media — and Polaroid Cacher wants to immortalize the best of those fleeting moments.

The concept camera is a screenshot come to life, bringing the instantaneous photo printing of Polaroid and the digital experience together.

Polaroid Cacher from Adrià Navarro on Vimeo.

In the video, we see a Google Chrome browser plug-in that works as a screenshot would. A viewfinder appears and the user can toggle the lens around and adjust the zoom. After taking the snapshot, Polaroid Cacher wirelessly prints the photo, using a vintage Polaroid Land Camera and a custom laser-cut enclosure.

Designer Adrian Navarro is rethinking cameras and made a presentation on his background research for the Polaroid Cacher project. He discusses repurposing vintage cameras in ways that are efficient, commercial, and fit in with today's visual culture.

What do you think about an analog format for your digital experiences? Innovative or excessive?

It seems as though there are a million and one ways to make an iPhone image look like a Polaroid picture online, so why not take it one step further and make the snap a true Polaroid? In the latest concept from The Impossible Project, the mobile photo lab Impossible Instant Lab, you can transform any digital picture trapped in your iPhone into a physical, Polaroid-style photograph.

Similar to the science of the original Polaroid camera, images in the Impossible Instant Lab are exposed using only the light from the iPhone's display, then processed and developed by in-device chemicals into a physical photo. When used in conjunction with the Instant Lab app and photo base, you'll instantly develop your favorite mobile photos anywhere. Of course, a pack of Polaroid film (fit for the Polaroid 600 and SX 70 cameras, to be precise) is needed to make all this happen, but a purchase of the lab also comes with an Impossible Project film voucher.

An idea that began in the last operating Polaroid factory, the Impossible Project is still in the works on Kickstarter, but is set to unveil in February 2013. You can pre-order a camera now, starting at $189. Watch The Impossible Project's Instant Lab video to see all this instant photo gratification in action.

Need a new gadget obsession? Check out the Polaroid SX-70 Black Label Edition Instant Camera Kit ($419) from The Impossible Project. This kit comes with a beautifully restored all-black Polaroid SX-70 camera (that folds down into a compact brick for storage) circa 1972 and two packs of PX600 Silver Shade UV+ Black Frame film so you can start snapping away as soon as you rip open the box. The SX-70 was the first instant SLR to hit the market, so you're buying a piece of history here. The camera will be available soon, so start pinching your pennies!

There's a trend in the air at CES — a WiFi-enabled camera trend, to be exact. Polaroid is among the companies offering a camera to get you online. The SC1630 Smart Camera harnesses the power of an Android-operating smartphone minus the monthly texting plan.

The 16MP, 3X optical zoom camera uses a 3.2-inch touch screen display to easily share pictures and videos across the World Wide Web of social networks, thanks to its included WiFi and Bluetooth connection. Photos are automatically organized within the camera by date, location, and those smiling people in the shot. Just like any other mobile device, the camera includes a geo-location feature so you don't forget where each memory was made.

The price of Polaroid's SC1630 Smart Camera is still up in the air; look for the camera to hit stores sometime in 2012.