You've got to hand it to Fujifilm for variety. Just a week after dropping details on the 100MP GFX100 II for professional photographers, it's back with the Instax Pal, a tiny camera aimed at an entirely different market: teenagers.
If the size, about the same volume as an earbud charging case, didn't clue you in, the fact that it looks like a cartoon mouse, complete with a tail, should. And while it may be a little too twee for the the 13-and-up audience Fuji tells us the camera is meant for, parents may see the logic in getting one for older elementary and middle schoolers who aren't ready for their own smartphone.
What the Heck Is It?
Cameras come in all shapes and sizes, but I'll admit I'd not seen one quite like the Instax Pal before. It's a small, all-plastic digital with rounded edges. The strap sticks out to the side, it's too narrow for an adult wrist, but I could see it working for early elementary students. The lens is prominent, and there are only two buttons—power on the top and the shutter release on the rear.
Fuji isn't selling the Pal on its own. The Instax portion comes in the form of an existing product, the Mini Link 2 printer we reviewed last year. The Mini Link takes any picture from your smartphone and prints it onto Instax Mini film. Because Mini is a chemical film format, not an inkjet, thermal, or dye sublimation process, its prints look more like instant photos and, well, less like digital snapshots. You can still buy the printer separately for around $100, while the bundle with the Pal doubles the price to $199.95.
The Pal camera works with either a smartphone app, Instax Pal to send photos to an Android or iPhone for pre-print editing, or in a mode where it can send photos directly to the printer. I think more people will opt for the app, as it adds some editing tools, and also works as a viewfinder for the camera. I got better pictures with the live view enabled, though was disappointed that the Bluetooth connection delivered a choppy preview with noticeable lag.
Without the app you'll have to guess what's in frame. Fuji includes a finger clip that snaps onto the top of the camera and doubles as a viewfinder—look through it to get an approximate idea of what the lens sees. It's not too hard to get decent shots and selfies with some guesswork; the lens has a moderate wide angle (28mm) that matches up with most smartphone cameras. Just point the camera at your subject and press the shutter.
Smartphone App and Direct Printing
The Pal app doesn't print on its own, so you still need to install the Mini Link app to run the printer. In addition to the Mini Link, the Pal app sends pictures to print with the Square Link, Link Wide, and Mini Evo.
Direct printing is pretty easy to use, and lets you use the camera to make prints without a smartphone connected. Move the mode switch on the bottom from the F (for fun) position over to L to set it to Link mode. Power on the Pal and printer, put them next to each other and you should see a both flash green lights and sound some beeps. Take a snapshot and the Pal sends it right to the printer, the camera's indicator light flashes purple to let you know it's happening.
The downside is that you can't reprint these photos later, at least not easily, as there's no way to import them into the Pal app. You can always load files onto your phone and print from the printer app, of course, it's just more work than an automatic transfer.
Picture quality is nothing to write home about, its 5MP snaps are noisy and without too much detail. The LED flash provides some illumination, but since the sensor has very limited dynamic range, you'll end up with deer-in-the-headlights scenes in dim light and blown out highlights for close-ups. It delivers good-looking snaps for bright, evenly lit scenes. Prints look better than on-screen photos, but my eye spots some dithering from color noise that you don't get with an analog Instax like the Mini 12. Photo enthusiasts can safely skip the Pal, though camera collectors may want to pick it up, if only to pair with a Hello Kitty Instax.
The Pal has internal memory, enough to hold about 50 pictures, and works with microSD cards if you want more space. There's a standard tripod socket on the bottom, along with a USB-C port for charging. Frustratingly, the Mini Link 2 printer uses the older style micro USB port to charge.
Too Cute for Teens?
It's likely the app component that's pushing Fujifilm to market the Pal for teens. The company is clear on its messaging, the Pal is for kids 13 and up. It's a little confounding, simply because high schoolers feel like they've already aged out of the Pal. And while it's up to parents to decide when to give their child a smartphone, if a teen has an iPhone or Galaxy from the last five years, they've got a far better camera in their pocket, and one that already works with the Mini Link printer.
I think the Pal makes sense for younger kids, but I'm not a parent, so take that opinion with a grain of salt. As for the recommendation, it's likely that Fuji didn't want to deal with market regulations surrounding toys, a designation under which it would fall if it was marketed for pre-teens. The microSD card may be a choking hazard for really young kids, but I can't see anyone hurting themself with the Pal. It's safer than a baseball.
Parents can make their own decisions as to what to buy for their younger kids. The Pal camera has some appeal for kids who take an interest in photography—the cartoonish design and simple two-button interface make that clear. You can hand it off to your little one and let them take some snaps, and they can work with them on your smartphone with some supervision, and print out keepers for the fridge.
But the price is a concern. Fuji is selling the camera in a bundle with the Mini Link 2 printer exclusively, so it's a $199.95 proposition for parents. The Pal camera is sized to lose, but not priced for it. We'll have to wait and see if Fuji changes it tune and decides to sell the Pal a la carte. For now it's the bundle with the Mini Link 2 only. It's set to go on sale next month, and includes a starter pack of film and a DIY Idea Booklet as well.
Fujifilm is also bringing out a new limited-edition Mini film to market next month, Soft Lavender. The color film has light purple border that's soft enough to write on, as opposed to the standard white plastic border. It's priced at $15.75 per pack of 10 photos.