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Digital Camera World
Digital Camera World
Hillary K. Grigonis

Kodak's viral keychain camera has just gone Y2K. The new Charmera Millennium Edition is a compact camera with low-fi vibes inside and out

Several Kodak Charmera Millennium edition cameras in someone's hand.

The viral Kodak Charmera is no longer stuck in the 1980s. The Kodak Charmera Millennium edition brings the trendy but tiny low-fi camera into the early 200s.

The refreshed Kodak Charmera trades colors and patterns inspired by the 1987 Kodak Fling into Y2K-inspired metalics and pixel art. The Y2K inspiration also influences what filters and frames the Charmera can use with the photos, adding pixel filters in four different colors. The Millennium Edition also has four different frames to choose from, including a Y2K video game theme and a TV-inspired frame.

The update arguably brings the Charmera’s exterior into better match to the electronics inside. Like the earlier edition, the Kodak Charmera maintains its 1.6MP sensor, taking snapshots that measure just 1440 pixels wide – the photos resemble those of early camera phones. That low-fi resolution better matches early digital camera tech than the 1980s disposable film camera that the original Charmera is based on.

That small 1/4 inch sensor is paired with a 35mm equivalent f/2.4 lens.

Like the 1987 Kodak Fling, however, the Kodak Charmera remains a tiny camera. The Millennium Edition Charmera measures just 58 x 24.5 x 20mm – that’s only 2.2 inches wide and less than an inch tall.

(Image credit: Kodak)

Kodak is keeping the blind-box intact for the new Millennium-inspired designs as well. The six new colors and patterns will be sold in boxes that don’t reveal what color is inside, turning the camera into a collectable game. A six-pack of all six colors will also be available.

The new Kodak Chamera Millennium Edition sells for the same price that the original is currently selling for. That’s about $35 / £35 / AU$55 / CA$55 for a single camera and $210 / £210 / AU$ 324 / CA$324.

The original Charmera quickly sold out right at launch – the Millennium Edition could potentially see the same level of popularity. Worldwide sales open on June 16 at 10 PM EDT / 7 PM PT / June 17 at 3 AM BST.

The Kodak Charmera is made by Reto Production, a Kodak licensee that also makes the Ektar H35mm half-frame film camera.

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