Customers appear to still have a want for physical photos, bringing about the Polaroid Lab from Polaroid Origins-- "an instant formula for timeless images"... or just a portable means to print photos taken on a smartphone.
Technically an update of the Instant Lab, a crowdfunded project from 2012, the Polaroid Lab does not actually connect with smartphones. Instead, it uses a 3-lens camera to essentially take a photo of the photo on the smartphone display, before optimising it and printing it out. Polaroid Labs describes the process as a "miniature tabletop darkroom," since printing involves the same chemistry as traditional Polaroid snaps.
The company adds the printer is compatible with the iPhone 6 and up, as well as "most" Android devices. A companion Polaroid Originals app allows users to play with settings such as exposure and colour correction as well as create collages with multiple photos. An internal battery allows for 1 month of use on a single charge.
The Polaroid Lab ships on October 2019.
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