Flashcubes: Kodak Instamatic Camera Commercial circa 1965 Eastman Kodak Company

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more at http://shops.quickfound.net Public domain film from the Prelinger Archives, slightly cropped to remove uneven edges, with the aspect ratio corrected, and mild video noise reduction applied. The soundtrack was also processed with volume normalization, noise reduction, clipping reduction, and/or equalization (the resulting sound, though not perfect, is far less noisy than the original). http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instamatic The Instamatic was a series of inexpensive, easy-to-load 126 and 110 cameras made by Kodak beginning in 1963. The Instamatic was immensely successful, introducing a generation to low-cost photography and spawning numerous imitators. During its heyday, the range was so ubiquitous that the Instamatic name is still frequently used (erroneously) to refer to any inexpensive point-and-shoot camera. (It is also frequently used incorrectly to describe Kodak's line of instant-picture cameras, the Kodamatic series.) The Instamatic name was also used by Kodak on some Super 8-based home-cine cameras... History Early Instamatics The first Instamatics went on sale in early 1963. They were the first cameras to utilize Kodak's new 126 format. The easy-load film cartridge made the cameras very inexpensive to produce, as it provided the film backing plate and exposure counter itself and thus saved considerable design complexity and manufacturing cost for the cameras. A wide variety of print and slide film was sold by Kodak in the 126 format. The lead designer for the Instamatic program was Dean M. Peterson, also later known for most of the innovations in the point-and-shoot camera revolution of the 1980s. The first Instamatic to be released was the Instamatic 50, which appeared in the UK in February 1963, about a month before the 100. The first model released in the US was the basic Instamatic 100. With fixed shutter speed, aperture and focus, it continued in the tradition of Kodak's earlier Brownie cameras, providing a simple snapshot camera anyone could use. It also featured a built-in flashgun for AG-1 "peanut" bulbs, a feature lacking in the 50. The lineup was soon expanded to include a variety of models from the basic but popular 100/104 to the automatic exposure 800/804, which featured an aluminum chassis, rangefinder, selenium light meter, and clockwork spring wind. (The 100/104 designation refers to the type of flash: models ending in 0 had a built-in flashgun, while those ending in 4 used flashcubes.) The top-of-the-line model was the Instamatic Reflex SLR, which was made in Germany and could accept a variety of Retina S-mount lenses. Commercial success The Instamatic was an instant success; more than 50 million Instamatic cameras were produced between 1963 and 1970. Kodak even gave away a considerable number in a joint promotion with Scott paper towels in the early 1970s in order to generate a large number of new photographers and stimulate lasting demand for its film business... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flash_(photography)#Flashcubes.2C_Magicubes_and_Flipflash In the late 1960s Kodak improved their Instamatic camera line by replacing the individual flashbulb technology (used on early Instamatics) with the Flashcube. A flashcube was a single-use module with four flashbulbs mounted at 90° from the others in its own reflector. For use it was mounted on a swivel mechanism atop the camera that also provided an electrical connection to the shutter release and a battery inside the camera. After each exposure, the film advance mechanism also rotated the flashcube 90° to a fresh bulb. This arrangement allowed the user to take four images in rapid succession before inserting a new flashcube. The later Magicube (or X-Cube) retained the four-bulb format, and was superficially similar to the original Flashcube. However, the Magicube did not require electrical power. Each bulb was set off by a plastic pin in the cube mount that released a cocked spring wire within the cube. This wire struck a primer tube at the base of the bulb, which contained a fulminate, which in turn ignited shredded zirconium foil in the flash. Magicubes could also be fired by inserting a thin object, such as a key or paper clip, into one of the slots in the bottom of the cube. Flashcubes and Magicubes look similar but are not interchangeable. Cameras requiring flashcubes have a round socket and a round hole for the flashcube's pin, while those requiring Magicubes have a round shape with protruding studs and a square socket hole for the Magicube's square pin. The Magicube socket can also be seen as an X, which accounts for its alternate name, the X-Cube. Other common flashbulb-based devices were the Flashbar and Flipflash which provided about ten flashes from a single unit. The Flipflash name derived from the fact that once half the flashes had been used up, the unit was flipped over and re-inserted to use the remainder.