Kodak Pocket A-1
The Kodak Pocket A-1 is a 110-format camera introduced in 1978 and made in Harrow, England. It's fixed-focus and fixed-exposure, and it's built almost entirely of plastic. About as simple as a camera could be at the time. The Science Museum Group Collection holds an example in the Kodak Museum Collection and records its dimensions as 55 × 100 × 38 mm. Compact, but chunky.
The interesting bit of this camera's story is its name. In 1980 it was renamed the Kodak Brownie, reviving Kodak's most storied brand name for what was essentially an unchanged budget snapshot camera. One 35mmc article is blunt about it, calling it "Kodak's most pointless camera" and expressing disbelief that it was made for more than two years. The same review notes an early production detail. The shutter button was originally yellow and was later replaced with gray in the production run. A Spanish-market version, badged "camara," carried the silver button and faceplate of the later model.
Practical notes from the field are thin but useful. One 35mmc writer who actually shot a roll measured the shutter at approximately 1/32 second using a phone app. The same writer described the viewfinder as "surprisingly good, even for a spectacle-wearer." The camera is oversized compared to most 110 film cameras of the period, which at least makes it easy to grip.
Little else is documented. No lens specifications, shutter speed range, film advance details, flash specs or original price have survived in the record. It turns up occasionally on European classified sites and auction listings. One OLX Portugal listing asked €10 negotiable. It's a budget curiosity rather than a collector's prize.
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