The ability to carry a high-resolution camera around in your pocket – in the form of your smartphone of choice – is unbeatably convenient. But there’s something lacking about the experience. The convenience of digital photos just can’t quite seem to pack the same visceral feeling that a photo in your hand does. That’s why Polaroid – everyone’s favorite vintage film company – bring us the Polaroid Lab, which can turn those smartphone pics into old-timey Polaroid prints.
Yeah, it sounds crazy. But it’s kind of simple. Just shoot your photos as you normally would, and then leave the photo you’d like to print as a Polaroid on the display. Place your phone screen down on the Polaroid Lab, press the red button, and let it do its magic; that “fantastic” selfie or photo of your dog posing in the fall leaves prints out just like your favorite vintage Polaroid. That’s it.
To pull this off, the Polaroid Lab uses a three-lens system that essentially takes another picture of the picture you’ve already snapped on your phone. It’ll do its own digital enhancement thing to ensure the new picture is ready for printing in vintage form. Then, it delivers a scrapbook-ready print in seconds (though each photo takes a good 15 minutes to properly develop and dry). And if you’d like to make any of your own edits, you can use the Polaroid Labs app – which you need on your phone to use the printer, anyway.
We’re a little unsure of the Polaroid Lab’s practicality or necessity; why not just shoot with a real OneStep2 and have the fun and imperfection of a real vintage Polaroid? That’s the best part. But hey – if this is something you’re interested in, pick one up. You can start printing awesome photos when the Lab drops on October 10th.
