Kodak's Charmera, the keychain-sized digital camera that became a minor cultural phenomenon last year, is back with a new look. Reto, the company that makes the camera and licenses the Kodak name, has launched the Charmera Millennium Edition, which trades the original's '80s styling for a Y2k take on tech: think shiny metallics, fussy gradients, and early pixel nostalgia.
Mechanically, nothing has changed, though new digital filters evoke the washed-out aesthetic of the times. The Millennium Edition otherise keeps the same 1/4-inch 1.6-megapixel sensor and fixed 35mm-equivalent f/2.4 lens, shooting stills at 1,440 x 1,080 and video at 30 fps. There's a small rear display, USB-C for charging and transfers, and a rechargeable battery. It calls for a microSD card, not included, and sells in seven designs in blind boxes for $35 a pop (with a six-pack at $210).
The "original" Charmera sold out within hours of going on sale last September, and the design went on to pick up industry recognition, collecting awards earlier this year. If I spent a paragraph reciting specs, it hardly matters, as the appeal is a tiny, charming gadget that fits on a keyring.
There is a "translucent" charmera (from the first run) but it's frosted: the truly clear-plastic prison Charmera I want remains a dream.
