It's official, vintage digital compacts are trending (Petapixel)

[JeffS7444]

https://petapixel.com/2022/10/26/gen-z-is-bringing-back-digital-cameras-of-the-early-2000s/
I guess it was just a matter of time before they were rediscovered in the world's closets and thrift stores, and prices on some Canon models in particular are soaring.

 

[oldwino]

This guy was so ahead of his time…such a hipster.

 

[farlymac]

I wish my Nikon P7700 hadn't gone toes up. But then it wasn't designed to survive for twenty years or more.


What If by P F McFarland, on Flickr

PF

 

[oldwino]

I wish my Nikon P7700 hadn't gone toes up. But then it wasn't designed to survive for twenty years or more.

What If by P F McFarland, on Flickr

PF

My P7800 is still going strong. Makes good looking images, particularly black and white

 

[Freakscene]

This guy was so ahead of his time…such a hipster.

That's a film Olympus Trip, not the digital one. Robert Frank had a drawer full of them.

Marty

 

[jsrockit]

It is funny to me that digital p&s cameras are cool now simply because they are vintage. They were not that cool the first time.

 

[Coldkennels]

Itâs funny to me that digital is cool now simply because they are vintage.

Especially funny for me as digitals of that era - whether compact or proto-DSLR - are the things that put me off digital for life!

 

[raydm6]

I have an old late 1990's era Agfa ePhoto 1280 lying around here somewhere. It runs on 4x AA batteries and outputs a whopping 1 megapixels. Max res. is 1024 x 768. Kind of a cool form factor though.

 

[p.giannakis]

I can't believe the prices that my old coolpix 8400 is fetching! Time to clean it up and sell it on...

 

[KoNickon]

Good to know, I guess. I need to pull out my later brother in law's Nikon CoolPix -- can't recall the model number but it's the one with the lens section that swivels separately from the grip and shutter release. (If it even works now, that is.)

 

[jsrockit]

I can't believe the prices that my old coolpix 8400 is fetching! Time to clean it up and sell it on...

Well, according to the sold auctions on eBay, between $22.50 and $105.03. The next highest is $41.50.

 

[p.giannakis]

Well, according to the sold auctions on eBay, between $22.50 and $105.03. The next highest is $41.50.

Ok, I'll wait a few months then.

 

[JeffS7444]

Until a few months ago, Canon Powershot SD1000 / IXY 10 was ~20 USD for a nice example, while Fujifilm Finepix F30, F31FD, X10 and X20 continue to command some pretty fancy prices. Back in the day, I bought the Canon for $150 from an office-supply store, good times.

 

[JeffS7444]

I see that the mania is also affecting prices of Sony's living-relic DSC-W800 and W830 compacts; a 2014 model (CCD sensor!) which may or may not still be in production, but good luck finding one at normal prices right now.
https://electronics.sony.com/imaging/compact-cameras/all-vlog-compact-cameras/p/dscw800-b

 

[jsrockit]

I see that the mania is also affecting prices of Sony's living-relic DSC-W800 and W830 compacts;

Where? I see them selling for $20-100. The sexier cameras like the Contax TVS Digital sell for $300+ and that's 5mp.

 

[hap]

Canon sure shots are typically very good.
I guess my Nikon 1 V! doesn't count as a compact.

 

[ptpdprinter]

Is the attraction of old digital cameras that they slow you down? Is it the anticipation of having to wait to see your photos until the compact flash reader you had to order off eBay arrives? Is it the aesthetic of the 1MB image? Or, as the article stated, is it the authenticity of the images from old digital cameras? Or perhaps is it the fact that the people using old digital cameras are all celebrities you have never heard of?

 

[Archiver]

My first digital camera was the Canon S45 in 2002, a 3.8mp camera with 35mm wide end, 3.6x zoom and a lousy 15fps 360p video mode that last for three minutes. It was, however, capable of raw capture, something I never used in the day of highly expensive CF cards. The S45 is still functioning, believe it or not. It cost close to AUD $900 twenty years ago! In today's money, that's $1350. Think of what kind of digital camera you can now buy for AUD $1350, a Panasonic LX100 II, a Sony RX100 VI, a Fuji X-E4 and lens. But in 2002, the S45 was the bomb.

I carried it everywhere and it was the start of my life's work. I don't say that lightly, either. Looking back at the images, I'm surprised at how clean the base ISO images were, and the colours were particularly pleasant and natural. The S45 was followed by the S70, Fuji F30, Canon G7, G10, S90, Ricoh GRD III, Sigma DP1... My formative photographic years were spent with these 'vintage' digital cameras and I still carry a Panasonic LX10 and Sony RX0 when not carrying something bigger. I even bring out the Sigma DP1 a few times a year. It's funny how these old cameras are becoming trendy now.

 

[Archiver]

This part is especially funny:

21-year-old Zoe Nazarian, who uses a Canon S100, tells PetaPixel “I love the fact that when you take the picture you can’t immediately post it to social media. There’s something so refreshing about taking a picture and waiting.”

She adds “I also love the ‘lower quality’ and grainy look that my camera gives compared to my iPhone.”

Isn't this the same train of thought associated with film? My Samsung Note 8 isn't a slouch for photo quality, but still doesn't quite have the quality/colour of the jpegs from my old Canon S45 in bright daylight.

 

[JeffS7444]

I see [Sony DSC-W800/830] selling for $20-100.

Really? Do tell.