When I reviewed the Polaroid Now last year, I praised the camera for being a fantastic entry point into instant photography, and one of Polaroid’s best releases in recent memory. It benefitted heavily from its simplicity, and more importantly, it took great photos.
The new Polaroid Go attempts to repackage a lot of the Now’s best elements into a smaller body — unfortunately, it isn’t the home run that I wanted it to be.
The features
Polaroid Go borrows a lot of features from the chunkier Polaroid Now. The body shape is similar (just on a smaller scale), and keeps the simplistic approach to its interface. There aren’t a lot of buttons to add unnecessary confusion into the mix, which was one of my favorite things about the Now so it’s nice to see it replicated here.
Also returning from the Now is the inclusion of a self-timer and double exposure function, with the addition of a reflective viewfinder that doubles as a selfie mirror. Of course, the main reason for picking up the Go is its size — it’s extremely easy to toss into a bag or jacket (or even your back pocket if your pants are on the baggier side) and take on the go for spontaneous photoshoots. The camera also comes with a convenient carrying strap that you can wear for quicker access.
The smaller size of the camera itself also brings smaller, business-card-sized photos that are great for those who like to carry their captures around with them in their wallet or give them out to friends at parties. They maintain the classic 1:1 Polaroid aspect ratio that many have come to love, emulating kind of a tangible Instagram post without the ability or temptation to overthink and overprocess with a buffet of filters.
Credit: Dylan haas / mashable
The performance
At the outset, the Polaroid Go sounds great: Everything you love about Polaroid instant photography in a portable package. But, how does it work in practice? Well, it may be Polaroid’s smallest camera to date, but certainly not its best.
Let’s start with the good stuff because there is plenty to like. First off, the size of the camera is near perfect — I thought it looked almost comically small when I pulled it out of the box and worried that it’d feel fragile during use, but that wasn’t the case at all. It actually felt really comfortable to operate and bring around with me, and it fit like a glove in my tote bag that I carry while leaving plenty of room for the rest of my essentials. I also liked having the rechargeable battery instead of having to constantly stock up on AAs. It definitely nails the convenience factor that it’s going for.
In addition to the convenience that comes with its portability, the Go also brings simple, no-fuss operation to the table that should be a hit for instant photography newbies and seasoned shooters who don’t like to overcomplicate things. On the camera, you’ll only find two buttons: One for the shutter, and one for the flash. The flash button contains multiple functions, too, including the aforementioned self-timer (activated by holding the button down for a few seconds), and double exposure (activated by pressing the button two times quickly). It’s bare-bones but in the best way possible. In theory, I love the Polaroid Go, but when I started using it myself, more than a few issues made me raise an eyebrow.
Now, I know that instant photography is all about not having all the control over your photo’s outcome — it makes for a more special, unique experience that other cameras can’t replicate. But, the results that I got from the Go were a little too erratic for my liking. The camera had a lot of trouble handling certain lighting conditions, specifically bright sunlight and low light. Anytime I took a photo while the sun was at its highest, I got overly contrasted prints that made it impossible to make out the subject. In low-light, most photos ended up looking pretty washed out. This made it far more challenging to get good shots, which some photographers will welcome, but for me, it contradicted the initial promise of convenience and accessibility. Not all artists want to suffer.
It was also disappointing that the Go had to ditch the autofocus lens that you’ll find in the Polaroid Now — the camera really would have benefitted from keeping this feature, as working around the Go’s fixed focus proved to be frustrating at times. It also doesn’t help that Polaroid’s Go-specific film is on the pricier side. At $20 per 16 shots (that’s more than a dollar per photo!), pulling out a lackluster capture is a huge letdown both artistically and financially.
The self-timer works well and does exactly what it says it’ll do, but the same can’t be said for the Go’s other bonus functions. The double exposure, for example, is a cool concept that I find works far better on larger photos (like with the Now). Since the Go’s prints are so tiny, it’s hard to make out anything in the frame when attempting a double exposure — unless you’re going for an abstract approach, I found it to be not the best (more talented photographers may be able to achieve better results).
Finally, the selfie mirror was… well, not that noticeable to me. The reflection on the camera’s viewfinder isn’t all that easy to see, especially if you don’t have 20/20 vision. Still, it did slightly help with framing, even if I could really only see an amorphous blob that resembled my face on the reflective surface.
Many of Polaroid Go’s issues are authentic to the instant film photography experience, but it’s a little frustrating when the better performing Polaroid Now is right there for the same price.
The Polaroid Go vs. the Fujifilm Instax Mini
A lot of photographers that use the Polaroid Go will make the obvious comparison to Fujifilm’s Instax Mini, another popular pint-sized instant camera. While neither will be a necessarily bad choice for anyone, I find that the Instax Mini is an overall better value, personal preference aside.
Looking at them head-on, the size of each camera may fool you. It seems like the Instax Mini unquestionably towers over the Polaroid Go, but looking at it from another angle — the way that it may be stored in your day bag — it becomes apparent that the two cameras really take up a similar amount of real estate, with the Instax Mini feeling just a hair bigger.
The Instax Mini — which is $30 cheaper than the Polaroid Go and also uses cheaper film — utilizes its features in a way that I think makes for a more pleasant photo-taking experience. The Instax’s automatic exposure settings, on average, work way better for me than the Go’s. I almost never have lighting issues, and low-light captures always come out looking great. The newest Instax model also has a selfie mirror like the Polaroid Go does, and works just as well. The Go does have a better, larger viewfinder, though.
The rest will come down to your personal preference. The Instax’s wider photo shape versus the Go’s 1:1 ratio, the Intstax’s true-to-life colors and details versus the Go’s more dreamlike vibe, and the overall feel of each camera will hit different for everyone.
Add to cart?
The Polaroid Go is not a bad camera. It’s a good camera, in fact. But it’s not better than the Polaroid Now, and its portable nature doesn’t make up for what it lacks in performance compared to the previous model (especially when they both cost the same amount of money).
Most will say that the imperfections of the instant photography process are what make it special and one-of-a-kind, which I agree with, but the Go doesn’t strike the balance it needs to bring that unadulterated charm to a wider, perhaps less experienced audience.
If you’re in the market for an instant camera, I say go for the Polaroid Now instead.
