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RewindPix: two-minute evaluation
It is 2026, and retro is in. To be honest, retro is rarely not in — the definition of what is presently ‘retro’ simply adjustments. Proper now, in images, the present retro hotness is the concept of a digital digicam that ‘takes footage like movie’. This can be a highly regarded thought in the mean time, and plenty of cameras have tried to ship it, from Fujifilm‘s costly analog love letter the X half, to cheaper choices just like the screen-free Camp Snap.
At first blush, it won’t be apparent what’s completely different concerning the RewindPix. It is a plastic-bodied digital compact, geared up with a 13MP Sony-made sensor, a set 35mm equal lens, a flash and a viewfinder. Up to now, so customary, in addition to a cutesy wheel that you need to wind on between photographs.
The actual trick comes within the RewindPix companion app. By way of this app, you’ve got entry to an enormous variety of film-like filters to imbue your photographs with particular look. Coloration-rich seems to be simulating slide shares like Fujifilm Velvia; crunchy black & white seems to be; smooth-toned coloration seems to be that put one in thoughts of Kodak Portra; intense pink- and purple-hued seems to be that resemble specialist Lomography movies – there is a lot in there.
From the choice, you possibly can choose three of those seems to be, ‘load’ them into your digicam as a ‘roll’ of 36 pictures, and swap between them as you shoot. As soon as you’ve got hit your 36, you reconnect to the app to ‘unload’ your pictures and see what they appear like (bear in mind, the digicam has no display). From there, you possibly can reload with three new movie shares, and repeat.
It sounds a bit nuts. And it sort of is. However truthfully – it really works.
Having spent a substantial period of time with the RewindPix, I am not fully with out my reservations, however I’m fairly charmed. One side of capturing movie that not one of the film-like digital compacts have managed to recreate for me is the thrill – that nervous anticipation of loading a brand new inventory, and seeing what the outcomes will probably be. Not even a gorgeous piece of premium package just like the Fujifilm X100VI may give you that.
The RewindPix is as shut as I’ve ever come to that feeling with a digital digicam. That film-look choice display is extremely addictive; I genuinely felt like a child in a sweet retailer, and was rigorously contemplating my selections each time I went again to reload. The pictures definitely aren’t good, and I got here away with a share of duds in addition to photographs I preferred – however that is what occurs once I shoot movie, too.
Light-weight and well-designed, with a substantial enjoyable issue, the RewindPix is a winner for the value. And with the potential for extra movie seems to be to be added to its repertoire by way of app updates, I can see it having long-term attraction, too.
RewindPix: worth and availability
The RewindPix continues to be in pre-release, following a mind-blowingly profitable crowdfunding marketing campaign on Kickstarter the place it incinerated its preliminary $15,000 (£11,214) funding aim to the tune of greater than $1.1 million (greater than £800,000) at time of writing. You may nonetheless pledge a minimal of $119 (about £89) to safe your self a digicam, although transport timelines are nonetheless to be confirmed.
I believe this can be a good worth, just about precisely the place a retro-styled digital compact ought to be pitched. It is a bit of costlier than the Camp Snap, although presents significantly extra performance, and is less expensive than the overpriced Fujifilm X half.
RewindPix: design
- All-plastic construct, however has a satisfying weight to it
- Lovely large optical viewfinder
- Operates like an actual movie digicam, full with wind-on wheel
Those that aren’t proof against a little bit of retro kitsch (responsible) will possible be very charmed by the look of the RewindPix. It bodily resembles the old-school analog compacts it is aping, with a easy rectangular physique design that is centered round a giant, spherical fastened lens within the versatile 35mm focal size. The lens additionally has a 43mm filter thread.
On the highest plate of the digicam is a giant, honking, unmistakeable pink shutter-release button (swappable to different colours), subsequent to a shoe mount for attaching flash items if desired. The RewindPix does have its personal built-in flash, and it is a correct Xenon flash, not an LED, that means it fires with the correct degree of depth. You activate it by way of the sliding swap on the entrance of the digicam physique. On the underside there’s additionally an ordinary screw thread to be used with a tripod.
Sitting on the high left is one in every of my favourite options: the large, lovely optical viewfinder. So many new compacts — digital and analog — come geared up with tiny, boxy, fiddly viewfinders which can be awkward and unsatisfying to compose a picture with. Not so with the the RewindPix. You get a superbly clear view of your scene, marked with framing strains. In fact, the truth that it is offset from the lens implies that it solely semi-accurately represents what your picture goes to appear like — however that is the case with all compacts on this mode.
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Elsewhere, there is a real wind-on wheel, simply as you’d discover in an actual movie compact, and also you do really have to wind it on between frames. The RewindPix is not the primary digital digicam to faucet this properly — the X half did the identical factor with its wind-on lever, however personally I discover this degree of kitsch much more endearing in a $119 digicam than I do in an $849 one.
Within the middle of the rear of the digicam is a small LCD display that tells you which of them movie filter you are utilizing and what number of pictures you’ve got taken, and subsequent to it’s the sliding ‘C’ swap that allows you to toggle between your three loaded filters. On the underside left is the Wi-Fi button for connecting the digicam to your telephone, and on the underside proper is the ‘M’ button that switches to ‘In-camera’ mode in case you do not wish to fuss with the filters (extra on that later).
Regardless of its all-plastic construct, the RewindPix has a shocking quantity of heft to it. There is a cause for this: two metallic weights have been positioned contained in the physique. In accordance with RewindPix, that is for stabilizing the digicam and balancing its weight, and isn’t an try and make the digicam really feel extra premium than it’s — however doing the previous does nonetheless accomplish the latter.
The design is charming, and meets the temporary of what it must be virtually completely. If somebody described the RewindPix to you then requested you to sketch what you thought it regarded like, you’d in all probability find yourself drawing one thing that appears virtually precisely like the true factor. It is what it must be! Nothing fallacious with that.
I do have a gripe. I’ve listed all of the buttons and controls on the RewindPix’s physique, and the observant amongst you could have observed that I did not point out an influence button. That is as a result of it does not have one. You flip the RewindPix on by winding the shot-advance wheel, and it turns itself off after a interval of inactivity.
Now, one of many causes I take pleasure in capturing with analog compacts just like the Olympus XA2 is that I can at all times be prepared. I can stroll round with the digicam in a single hand, my finger on the shutter button, and the second I see one thing to seize, I can increase the digicam, shoot, then wind on to be prepared for the subsequent. Many, many instances, I raised the RewindPix and fired the shutter button to seize a second, solely to find it had turned itself off.
Positive, most digital cameras have an auto power-off function – however most provide a faster startup resolution than winding a geared wheel (and also will allow you to flip that function off if desired). If the RewindPix goes to faux to be a movie compact, I will use it like one, and the power to be ‘always-ready’ is one in every of an analog compact digicam’s chief benefits, in my view. If RewindPix are taking replace requests, a strategy to disable the auto power-off is high of my wishlist.
RewindPix: efficiency
- App-based number of movies is brilliantly addictive
- Picture high quality is first rate, if unspectacular – film-based filters do a lot to punch up photographs
- Settings are fastened, which is nice for ease of use, however might be creatively limiting
The RewindPix is unavoidably a bit fiddly, the way in which all phone-interacting cameras are. It’s important to hook up with the digicam’s unbiased Wi-Fi community to load your movie picks, then disconnect to shoot, then join once more to unload. I used to be utilizing a beta of the Android model of the app (the complete model has since been launched), and it was largely steady – although I did expertise a connection drop that prompted a picture to vanish in the course of the unloading course of.
The app is the one strategy to totally have interaction with the film-simulation course of. The digicam has 4GB of pre-installed reminiscence, and you may entry your pictures by plugging it in by way of the USB-C cable; nonetheless, nearly all of movie seems to be are saved within the app and utilized there, so that you must use the app to get the complete expertise.
Picture high quality is firmly within the realm of fine sufficient. The 13MP sensor is a tiny 1/3.06-inch sort, and the lens has a set f/2.2 aperture with 4 glass parts and two plastic ones. The extent of element is nice sufficient for Instagram and different types of on-line sharing, however isn’t on the degree the place you’ll be making prints out of your photographs. Dynamic vary is okay however not the perfect — blown-out highlights and murky shadows are a standard sight. A well-chosen movie look can assist this appear like clever selection somewhat than a technical limitation.
A stroke of design genius was the choice to permit you to load three movies at a time, somewhat than only one. Having to finish the unloading and reloading course of each time I needed to attempt a brand new filter would have been a tedious chore; however having three without delay is thrilling. It makes you rather more versatile, with choices for various lighting circumstances, versus when capturing precise movie the place it’s essential to choose one roll of movie at a time — I’ve been out with B&W movie loaded whereas the sunshine is wealthy and golden, or out with costly coloration movie on a muted day of drab, nothing-y gentle.
Whereas with the RewindPix, you possibly can swap from one to the opposite with a easy swap of the ‘C’ slider. I discovered my most popular load out was usually to set C1 as an ordinary color movie look, C2 as a loopy or dramatic coloration look similar to infrared or purple tint, and C3 as a B&W look. This made me really feel well-equipped for all capturing conditions – good and poor climate, indoors and open air.
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The RewindPix does have the choice of the ‘In Digicam’ mode, activated by urgent the ‘M’ button on the rear of the digicam. This permits it to perform extra like a standard compact – there’s no requirement for a telephone connection or a restricted ‘roll’ of 36. It simply shoots indefinitely, with three filter choices: Sunny Heat, Breezy Cool and Merely Mono. (Professional tip: if the app-based features aren’t working and you may’t determine why, it’s doable you’ve got activated In Digicam mode by mistake. I be taught these items so that you don’t should).
Photographs taken utilizing In Digicam mode might be accessed immediately from the cardboard, and may have the filters utilized, that means the digicam can perform with out a telephone. Although truthfully, this mode is so much much less enjoyable, and removes a lot of the RewindPix’s key USPs.
As this can be a point-and-shoot compact, settings usually are not user-controllable. The shutter velocity is variable — the specs say it could actually go as gradual as 1sec, although RewindPix’s promotional materials says it’s fastened at a wise minimal of 1/60sec. That is slower than regular for point-and-shoots (a set setting of 1/125sec is extra frequent), and is completely advantageous for handheld capturing, however does imply you need to take a bit of extra care that you just’re holding the digicam regular; a couple of of my extra optimistic one-handed seize pictures got here out blurry and ineffective. I believe the trade-off is value it, as 1/60sec provides the digicam a bit extra latitude in low gentle, however it’s value being conscious of. Like every device, you need to get used to its quirks.
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In the end, the RewindPix is unadulterated enjoyable. It truly is. The anticipation that builds up between loading the movie seems to be and seeing how they arrive out, for me, is as shut as digital images has ever come to the thrill of ready for movie scans to come back again from the darkroom. I shot extra photographs than I wanted to for this evaluation, purely as a result of I used to be having fun with myself, and since I needed to see what the completely different movie filters regarded like. (What the hell is ‘The Resort’? Just one strategy to discover out!)
Can I see myself utilizing it long-term, or does it really feel just like the novelty will put on off? I’m unsure, although I’m nonetheless having fun with the digicam after a few weeks’ of heavy use. The truth that RewindPix will be capable of add new movie seems to be by way of firmware updates to the app guarantees to increase the digicam’s lease on life, as will the choice to create your individual filters. This requires upgrading to ‘Professional’, although you’ll be relieved to be taught that this requires solely a one-time price of $9.90, not a subscription.
The small sensor, fixed-focus prime lens and lack of a settings management all place limits on the standard of photographs you possibly can create with the RewindPix, in addition to the kinds of photographs (you gained’t be capable of shoot portrait-style photographs with a shallow depth of area, as an example). Nevertheless, I believe the digicam is sensibly priced for its sort, and the massive groundswell of assist for RewindPix on Kickstarter demonstrates that there’s clearly an urge for food for the concept.
Solely time will inform whether or not the RewindPix sees mass adoption, and whether or not the many individuals who’ve been charmed by the idea are nonetheless utilizing the digicam years down the road. However I’d say in case you just like the sound of what I’ve described right here, you’ve got little or no to lose by heading to RewindPix’s Kickstarter and securing a digicam to check out for your self.
Ought to I purchase the RewindPix?
Purchase it if…
Do not buy it if…
How I examined the RewindPix
- I acquired a mortgage unit of the RewindPix for testing, and used a beta model of the app, which has since launched formally.
- I’ve run three ‘rolls’ of movie by the digicam, in addition to taking various photographs utilizing the ‘In Digicam’ mode.
- I’ve shot in variable gentle circumstances and have taken the digicam to a number of places round London.
I’ve used the RewindPix to seize greater than 200 photographs over a interval of two weeks. I’ve used a beta model of the RewindPix app to use a number of selections from the number of movie seems to be accessible, and have additionally spent a while capturing within the easier ‘In Digicam’ mode. I used the digicam in numerous areas of London, predominantly centered on Hackney and the Metropolis, throughout which period the climate modified regularly between brilliant sunshine and overcast with showers.
First reviewed Might 2026
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