Minolta 16 EE II (1963–1965)

The Minolta 16 EE II is a subminiature camera for 16mm film. Minolta introduced it in 1963 and made it only until 1965, about as short a run as the selenium-metered 16 EE it succeeded. It uses Minolta's own cartridge film, though it will accept any perforated or unperforated 16mm stock. Its selling point over earlier Minolta 16mm models is focus. A slider gives it two zones, where the others were fixed-focus (except the much later 16QT).

The lens is a 25mm Rokkor, a 3-element, 3-group design that owners describe as very good. Shutter speeds are 1/50 and 1/200, plus a flash setting at 1/30. The CdS meter sets apertures automatically from f/2.8 to f/16, and a yellow LED in the viewfinder confirms correct exposure. It takes one 625 battery, reads ISO 25-320, and frames a small 10×14mm image. A PC socket handles flash, and the viewfinder has parallax compensation marks.

At 115×53×31mm and 250 grams, it is genuinely pocketable. The finish is good quality, though it feels a bit heavy for its size. There is no shutter release protection and no off switch, so the meter keeps draining the battery unless the camera stays in the dark when not in use. At release it cost around $67.50 in the US (about £29 in the UK in 1964), and it came with a zip-up case and wrist strap. The Minolta 16 CdS is the same camera sold as the 16 EE II in the US market, and the handbook shows the name change.

Surviving documentation is thin. No original manual details on dimensions, battery life, or repair history have surfaced. The collector consensus is that this is an easy, automatic point-and-shoot with a very good lens and fine picture quality, albeit on the smaller 10×14mm frame.