Hands on with Polaroid’s OneStep+ instant camera with app connectivity

Image: RAYMOND WONG/MASHABLE

As charming and fun as taking instant photos with an analog camera is, the world is digital now, and if you can’t post your shots to Instagram, they might as well not exist.

That’s why Polaroid Originals (formerly Impossible) has returned with the OneStep+, a new instant camera that mashes last year’s OneStep 2 with Bluetooth and app connectivity.

At $159.99, the new OneStep+ is a little pricier than the $119.99 OneStep 2, but it does come with a bunch of new improvements that are well worth the extra charge.

Physically, the OneStep+ is largely the same as the OneStep 2. It’s still an all-plastic instant camera that feels a bit like a toy, but that can be said for almost any instant camera these days. And it still uses I-Type and 600 instant film. Battery should last up to 60 days on a single charge.

The lens has been improved a bit and can focus about half the distance as the old one (about a foot versus two feet on the OneStep 2), which, of course, means even better selfies.

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To use the new OneStep+’s new features, however, requires connecting it your phone via Bluetooth and firing up the Polaroid Originals app (available on iOS and Android).

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With the app, the OneStep+ is able to take portrait-style photos — the same kind on smartphones that blur keep the subject in focus, but blur out the background.

The app also lets you create double exposure shots by superimposing one photo over another to create an eerie or ghost-like effect, as well as create light paintings.

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Additionally, there’s a “Remote Trigger” feature that lets you activate the camera shutter using the app (good for group photos) from as far as 32 feet away, a new 12-second self-timer mode, and a “Noise Trigger” that lets the camera take a photo when you clap, or when you splash in the pool, or if a dog barks. 

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Advanced photographers will appreciate the full manual mode that gives you controls to adjust camera settings such as the aperture and shutter speed.

The feature I think will be the most popular is the scanner. Using AI, you can take a photo of any Polaroid photo and the app will automatically crop, srom ittraighten, and even remove reflections, from it so that it’s good to go for sharing online.

There’s more to the app than simply new shooting modes and features for the OneStep+, though. Polaroid Originals wants it be a community where photographers can come and share their instant photos much like in a real gallery space. 

As such, the app will have curated editorial content to showcase some of the best photos shared within the app. There will also be video content and tutorials with tips and tricks on how to get the most out of their cameras. Yes, it’s another online profile you’ll have to create, but if you’re deeply obsessed with instant photography, there’s probably no better place to show off.

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As we said earlier: Yeah, the OneStep+ costs $60 more than the OneStep 2, but a lot of its new features are well worth the money. If you think they’re not, the OneStep 2’s still a excellent instant camera.

The OneStep+ goes on sale on Aug. 30.