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Disposable Digital Cameras Have Arrived

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the and-here-it-is dept.

damiangerous writes "American chain Ritz camera has begun offering disposable digital cameras for $10.99. The price includes 4x6" prints and a Photo CD of the camera's 25 photo memory. Pictures can be deleted, but there's no LCD."

15 of 585 comments (clear)

  1. It's not disposable... it's reusable. by JohnGrahamCumming · · Score: 5, Informative

    It's not _disposable_ it's _reusable_. The camera is returned to a
    Ritz Camera store where the pictures inside are downloaded to a CD
    or printed. The camera itself is kept by Ritz and recycled to another
    customer. In other words your $10.99 is a _rental_ of the camera
    with processing of the pictures included in the rental price.

    There's a picture of one of these cameras here.

    The USA Today article has some more details
    on the camera and its use including the fact that it is likely to be sold at Walgreens
    and Walt Disney theme parks (seems like a good idea to me).

    The camera has a 2-megapixel sensor.

    John.

    1. Re:It's not disposable... it's reusable. by AirRock · · Score: 1, Informative

      I dont see it as much different. The standard disposable camera makers reuse components just like they'd reuse these "disposable" digital camera. The only difference is that after you use the digital camera once, theres typically nothing to replace.

    2. Re:It's not disposable... it's reusable. by morgue-ann · · Score: 2, Informative

      CMOS, not CCD sensor. Cheaper.

      Not the CMOS sensor like the Canon D30 and D60, but a buffed version of the teensy ones in cellphones like Omnivision's and Pictos (ESS Tech)'s.

    3. Re:It's not disposable... it's reusable. by Martin+Blank · · Score: 4, Informative

      I asked her a short while ago when she got home from work, and here's how it works...

      The camera costs $10.99, and then the photo processing is another $10.99. The camera contains no LCD, but you can delete the last picture taken. The image is still stored on regular film, and the capacity is 25 images. There is a self-timer on it for when you want to take pics and have yourself in it. That's pretty much it. The camera's film is unloaded by Ritz personnel, and the empties are sent back to the manufacturer to be reloaded with new film.

      Aside from the ability to delete the last picture before it's stored on film and the self-timer, there's nothing new about them. However, the ability to kill that picture you know sucked might be worth the extra dollar or two.

      --
      You can never go home again... but I guess you can shop there.
  2. Misnomer? by DogIsMyCoprocessor · · Score: 2, Informative

    Why are these called disposable? Won't Ritz just check the battery and put it back out for sale until the mechanicals wear out or electronics fry? Or maybe they'll advertise those as "previously-disposed" cameras? Isn't this actually a form of rental? Maybe consumers feel they are getting a better deal if they "own" the camera.

    --

    "And this is my boy, Sherman. Speak, Sherman." "Hello." "Good boy."

  3. Re:Same thing by nathanh · · Score: 2, Informative
    How is this any different from a standard 35mm disposable camera?

    You can delete pictures and shoot them again. Can't do that with a film-based camera.

  4. Found out how they do that..... by Creepy+Crawler · · Score: 4, Informative

    Well, there's either 2 ways (2 models).

    One is properity IR connection. The other is a headphone jack that somehow sends/receives data. And it DOES connect through a usb dongle to either type of camera.

    --
  5. More information and pictures here by jonhuang · · Score: 5, Informative

    What it says. looks like a fairly small camera, flash, plastic, "Dakota" brand?

  6. 3 Seconds? by filmsmith · · Score: 2, Informative

    Close, but not quite.

    Standard framerate for film is 24 frames per second. If you want to slow it down to two seconds, you need to shoot 48 successive frames in the course of one second and then play those back at the standard 24 per second, so to get 3 seconds, you'd actually need 60 cameras.

    And 60 at $10 a pop (not counting tax) has already got you up to $600...and that's not counting the equipment to synchronize all 60 of those camera's to fire on cue.

  7. Re:PKI = unhackable by dcgrigsby · · Score: 2, Informative

    Well, considering they're not disposable, but rather reusable you can start to spend a little on the chip. The bottom of the barrel Palm has sufficient power to do crypto.

    My GSM phone, which cost me nothing, has crypto cabilities. Surely my phone wasn't free to the manufacturer, so they must be making it up on the service. Same thing could apply here.

  8. In Japan for at least 18 months by Richard+W.M.+Jones · · Score: 4, Informative

    The Japanese have had fairly low-resolution (640 x 480) single use digital cameras since at least Nov 2001. I saw them there on a trip to Tokyo.

    Rich.

    --
    libguestfs - tools for accessing and modifying virtual machine disk images
  9. Re:I just bought two of these at Ritz. by Luckster7 · · Score: 2, Informative

    San Francisco. I called the nearest Ritz and they didn't have them but gave me the addresses of stores that did. I went to the Ritz at 499 Castro St, but 2185 Chestnut St and 2300 16th St are suppose to carry them too.

    I never did find any Cue Cats at Radio Shack. They were always out. :(

    --
    Deuteronomy 13:06-9
  10. Real price is $21.98 for 25 prints by morcheeba · · Score: 4, Informative

    I just rushed out to the store and got their catalog. I'll just transcribe the best parts:

    New! Available in June in selected areas
    - Delete & Retake last shot
    - self timer
    - Return the camera to Ritz Camera or Wolf Camera and get:
    -- 25 hires prints
    -- index print
    -- Your pictures on a Big-e CD

    $10.99 Camera Only
    Digiprint processing package: $10.99 (Frequent Foto Benefits not applicable)

    Avalable at selected stores in the following areas: Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Birmingham, Chicago, Dallas, North Carolina, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Tenessee, Washington DC.

    I talked to the lady in the store, and she said that only the stores with a Pioneer system would be able to process it (whatever that is). There was only one store in the RTP area that had this, and they were already closed at 7:45 pm.

    --
    HIV Crosses Species Barrier... into Muppets
  11. Re:Cheap rental by Kombat · · Score: 2, Informative

    The nice thing from the business point of view is that the continuing costs are lower. You just wipe the storage card and recharge the batteries, and you rent it again. Don't have to pay a couple bucks in film every time you rent the camera.

    Wrong. The camera does use film. I've read about these in "Popular Photography and Imaging." Though the images may be captured digitally, they are stored on plain old 35mm film.

    --
    Like woodworking? Build your own picture frames.
  12. Re:SPCA504B Based camera! Linux Drivers Available by FarrisGoldstein · · Score: 2, Informative

    Got it:

    Pin - Signal
    __________
    10 - Ground (Black)
    9 - Data+ (Green)
    8 - Data- (White)
    6 - Voltage (Red)

    9 and 8 might be swapped. I can't tell for sure. With the wires attached as above, when plugged into a USB port (without batteries) the LCD on the camera says "PC" and the green LED stays lit. Windows gives an error that it can't recognize the device, won't let you install a driver. I haven't made any progress under Linux.