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Here a Hybrid camera from FujiFilm that can function as a near normal camera but still have the ability to produce that near instant image.

The FujiFilm Instax SQ10 measure 12x11x4.5cm and weighs 471grams.

It has two modes, the ‘Auto’ mode is what you have with any conventional camera, whatever you click the shutter on gets printed which of course can be expensive as the film strips are not the cheapest. By far the better idea is ‘Manual’ where you take an image as you would with any digital camera, if you like the image once reviewed on the cameras screen then press the print button and after one final chance to say no the process begins, a matter of seconds later a white sheet emerges from the top of the camera and a couple of minutes later your image is processed and dry ready to give to whoever.

See also: Digital Cameras

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Before I go through the controls the images themselves are square 1:1 which is a rather unusual format they are 62x62mm. However the hybrid part is that you can store images internally – it can store 50 – or on a micro SD card (not supplied) which means you can take the images from the unit and print them on a conventional printer but of course this loses the instant process.

The camera is designed to be used left or right handed and it has two shutter releases left and right of the lens. Also on the front is a very powerful flash and a little more unusually the on/off button which is the bezel around the lens.

The base has a tripod screw, the left side a slide/flip door that hides the internal batteries micro USB charge port as well as input point for any Micro SD card you use, above this a neck strap anchor point. On the top is the exit point for the captured image once printed and just on the back the twin action release point which means you are unlikely to open by mistake if you do any unexposed images in the cartridge will be lost.

The right side has the pair for the neck strap as well as a pair to the slide/flip door and this side has the units battery.

The back is dominated by a 6x4.5cm TFT display and below this a double wheel the outer one has six well marked sections, the inner one has four direction movements and inside that the menu/OK button.

There is a square 220 page six language User Guide with the first 40 pages in English. It has plenty of illustrations and should get you up and running.

You are paying a premium for the ability to get images instantly and while there is digital zoom there is no optical zoom, you can change things on the photos after capture so brightness for example can be changed. Perhaps the ten difference styles such as Monochrome and Sepia as well as some I have never heard of will be fun at a party. There is even a self-timer so a selfie or multi-selfie is possible.

Perhaps most importantly the right side of the TFT tells you how many more possible prints you have on that cartridge of film by the number of white dots showing.

The Fujifilm Instax Square SQ10 is available from the link below for £249.99.

http://www.argos.co.uk/product/7450471