- Instax Mini Evo Cinema is a hybrid digital-instant film camera, styled to resemble the FUJICA Single-8 Super 8 camcorder
- The camera is equipped with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth and doubles up as a direct smartphone printer
- Currently only announced for release in Japan
Fujifilm Japan is wasting no time in making its mark on 2026, releasing what might be one of the most unusual cameras of recent years. The Fujifilm Instax Mini Evo Cinema is a hybrid digital-instant film camera (I know, it took me a while to get my head around what that meant too), that aims to blend the very best elements of modern camera technology and nostalgia-inducing classic flair.
There are several headline-grabbing features to the latest addition to the Instax family, which are traditionally amongst the best instant cameras on the market, not least of which is its crown as the first Instax to be equipped with video. While Fujifilm made the curious decision to add audio-recording to the Instax Mini LiPlay+, this was still a purely photo-only camera, merely adding the option to pair sound with a slideshow of captured images.
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The Instax Mini Evo Cinema captures both still images and videos, the latter of which it then converts into a QR code that can then be printed, along with an image taken from a frame in the clip. By scanning the code, viewers can revisit a video at any time along with related still images in print form.
The videos themselves can be edited using a dedicated mobile app, which allows the usual splicing and cutting of clips in addition to being able to introduce cinematic opening and ending templates. It’s an intriguing approach to keeping Instax instant cameras relevant in the video-centric era in which we live.
Speaking of eras, probably the biggest feature of the Instax Mini Evo Cinema, one that Fujifilm is going all-out to promote, is the ’Eras’ dial. This physical control on the camera body allows the user to scroll through a number of preset image styles inspired by different decades. Beginning in 1930 and the very start of commercial film-making, the dial offers ten positions all the way through into the 21st Century, the last stop being 2020.
Standout eras that are likely to get most of the attention are the 1980s setting, which gives a 35mm color negative feel, and the 1960s era which Fujifilm explains is a recipe based on the look of Super 8. This one is especially relevant given than the body of the Fujifilm Instax Mini Evo Cinema is itself styled around 1965’s FUJICA Single-8 camera, an 8mm model that used a similarly eye-catching vertically oriented handgrip.
For someone of my age, it’s the 2000 and 2010 positions that stir up the bittersweet pang of nostalgia, bridging the gap between the early days of digital photography and the smartphone age. Clicking the Eras dial to 2010 will apply a style based on the look of time-relevant smartphone editing apps. I’m hoping the 2000 detent doesn’t pixelate images or take what feels like an hour to process each shot, much like some of the compact digital cameras I experienced circa 2005, but we’ll have to wait and see as Fujifilm didn’t provide a sample of this notch in its press release.
A retro record
Fujifilm is no stranger to camera oddities – I’m looking at you Fujifilm X-Half – but the Mini Evo Cinema truly doubles down on the retro trend of the Instax family. Without seeing samples first hand, it’s too early to review the quality of the results, and we don’t even know what sensor size the camera will be equipped with. It’s safe to assume that it won’t be able to match the the best video cameras available today for absolute image integrity, but being able to “hand over a video” as Fujifilm puts it is undeniably a unique idea that the emerging Tik Tok savvy generation will love, given that these users also show an affinity for retro designs.
To round off the feature spec, the camera also functions as a portable smartphone printer thanks to the integrated Direct Print Function.
I’ll reserve judgement until the TechRadar team can perform a thorough review, but I’d be surprised if this didn’t prove to be another solid performer in the enviable line of successful Instax products. The caveat is that Fujifilm have, so far, only announced the Mini Evo Cinema for the Japanese market, with no mention of availability in other territories. The current information omits a launch price and full specification, but if you happen to be in Japan soon and want to pick up a unit, it begins shipping on January 30.
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