The Digital Camera in 1995

Do you guys remember 1995? Michael Jordan came out of retirement, Windows 1995 was released, the website eBay was launched and digital cameras were all the rage!

The average digital cameras in 1995 eliminated the need for film and developing pictures. Instead, you could plug your camera into your computer and transfer the pictures straight onto your computer. However, several of them didn’t yet have a display screen.

Let’s take a look at one of the best digital cameras from 1995, the Epson PhotoPC. It was developed by Sanyo and was the first digital camera to be sold under the Epson brand. It was priced at $500, which was the cheapest color digital camera at the time.

It had an internal storage of 1MB, which only allowed it to store 16 images at 640x480 pixels or  32 images at 320x240. However, you could also add memory modules to increase your storage up to 4MB. However, the extra 2MB memory node cost $300 while the 4MB cost $600, that’s more than the camera itself!

The camera is not adjustable and comes with fixed specs and a fixed lens. It cannot zoom but it has an autofocus that goes from 2 feet to infinity. It sports an ISO of 130 and an F-stop of 5.6.

Some of its other features included lightweight hardware at only one pound, a self-timer, a built-in flash and the ability to store its photos for a year even without power.

The biggest downfall of the camera is the absence of a screen for reviewing photos. Customers would need to connect the camera to their computers using the cables to transfer and view their images.

The product comes with the camera, the transfer cable, batteries, an instruction manual, the photo transfer software that comes on two floppy disks, a camera strap, a card that advertises extra accessories, another card that reminds you to remove the cling film from the camera screens and a registration form.

There is an on-off switch at the bottom left of the camera that slides the lens cover on and off and turns on the little LCD screen at the top. On the left side of the camera is a little door that opens up to reveal the port for your transfer cable. The camera is described as having an LCD touch screen, but don’t be fooled it is just a display screen. Along the bottom is a threaded hole in which you can screw in your tripod.

Along the right side, there is a convenient rubber grip with a nifty grove in the back where you can place your thumb. If you look closely on the right side there is also a small lever in the rubber grip that, when lifted, pulls the entire grip off. This reveals the compartment in which you place your batteries and another compartment where you would install your memory nodes.

The camera has four buttons next to the LCD screen, one that switches between high res and low res i.e. the two images sizes, a button that allows you to set your camera timer, a button to change between the flash modes and the last button to delete the most recently taken picture. However, to delete more you must connect to your computer.

Ultimately, it’s a simple point and shoot with the convenience of foregoing camera film and film development. The camera gives you a fun low resolution, grainy effect that creates images that are a little old-timey and look like they were taken back in the 90s!

The Digital Camera in 1995 is courtesy of home page EHC