Balda CE 35 (c. 1983)
The Balda CE 35 is a 35mm compact folding camera produced around 1983. It's a pocket point-and-shoot with a plastic body molded with a simulated leather texture. It was the lower-cost sibling of the Balda CA35 (which Balda also produced as the Voigtländer Vito C), and it shares a lot of DNA with the Minox 35 line of folding compacts. The lens is a fixed 38mm f/2.8 Baldanon. The viewfinder is a bright-line type with distance symbols and slow-speed LEDs. Exposure is fully automatic, with back-light compensation available. It measures 103×62×32 mm and weighs just 147g.
It went by a few names: the "Mini 35" and, in the UK, the "Mini 35 Plus." A version was also sold as the Yangtze-Balda CE 35A. The production tooling reportedly ended up in China, and the lens ring on those carries a "Yangtze-Balda" inscription. Beyond that, the record is thin. There's no solid documentation of the original price, shutter speed range, ISO range, or battery type. One collector forum post calls it "underrated and rare-to-find," noting the size is similar to the Olympus XA but with a better lens. Kamerastore lists no price data for it in certified condition, though a single forum listing showed a CE35A with flash and box at $50.
- Lens: Baldanon 38mm f/2.8
- Type: 35mm compact folding camera, manual focus, auto exposure
- Body: plastic, simulated leather texture, black
- Production: circa 1983 (some sources say 1982–1983)
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