Should you buy an Instax Mini or Mini Evo? Instax Square or Wide? We demystify Fujifilm’s Instax lineup to help you find the perfect instant camera (or printer).
There's something magical about watching an image develop right before your eyes. The Polaroid camera arrived in 1947, and ever since, the world has been fascinated by instant-print cameras. Even with a smartphone camera in every pocket, the appeal of the instant print hasn't diminished.
Today, Fujifilm's Instax line of cameras and printers largely fills the instant camera niche Polaroid created. There are other options, but Fujifilm's Instax cameras and printers have provided the best image quality and most reliable results in our testing. I've been testing and using Instax printers for almost two decades and have owned all but one of these. The lineup can be confusing, but these are the best Instax cameras and printers you can buy based on my experience.
Which Instax camera or printer is right for you depends on the print size you want. Instax film comes in three sizes, Mini, Square, and Wide.
I have found the Wide and Square prints generally appear sharper, with richer colors, but this will depend on which camera or printer you choose, as quality does vary. In the end the choice is up to you. Or you can do what I did and get one of each.
Here at WIRED we like to extend testing to include “living with” the things we write about. In addition to testing new models when Fujifilm releases them, I own and regularly use several Instax cameras. I have been using Instax cameras and printers for almost two decades and shooting instant images for far longer than that.
To test Instax cameras I photograph a variety of scenes, varying light, color, and tones to see how the camera does across a wide spectrum of shooting scenarios (contrary to my photographer's training, Instax cameras tend to give the best results in bright, afternoon or mid morning light). To test the Instax printers I use a variety of images from a variety of cameras to see how the printer handles warmer and cooler tones, whether there are any noticeable color shifts, and how the sharpness varies depending on the source (for example images from my mirrorless camera almost universally come out sharper than images taken with my phone).
The Best Instax Mini Camera and Printer Combo
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Photograph: Scott Gilbertson
Fujifilm
Instax Mini Evo
The Instax Mini Evo is best camera-printer hybrid in the Instax line. As the name suggests, it prints Mini film, which is roughly the size of a credit card (3.4 inches x 2.1 inches). The body has a retro, film camera-inspired design (minus the viewfinder), but functions like rotating the aperture ring or ISO-style dial control lens effects and film effects respectively. When you're ready to print you pull the film winder. It's clever and fun, but the design is also very functional.
The Mini Evo uses a fixed aperture, F/2.0 and automatically switches shutter speed (1/4 to 1/8000 second) and ISO (100-1600) based on the exposure meter. The exposure meter is pretty accurate in my experience. High contrast scenes with deep shadows will stump it sometimes, but that's okay because the Mini Evo captures your image to its internal memory (about 45 images, expandable to 1 GB with a microSD card) so you can check your shot on the rear screen before you print. Once you have what you want, just crank the "film wind" lever and out comes your print. This isn't quite the high speed printing you'll get with the analog cameras, but it doesn't take more than a minute or two.
The Mini Evo offers 10 lens effects, which can pair with the 10 films effects (things like mirror image, soft focus, etc). to give you over a 100 different shooting possibilities. There's also a remote shooting option (though the Instax app) and a selfie mirror. There's even a shoe port you can use to mount a selfie light.
Despite all these features, the Mini Evo is dead simple to use. The only time I ever had to consult the manual was figuring out how to turn off the flash (in shooting mode, push the right side of the selector wheel). It works just as well as a printer too. To use printer mode, you'll need the Instax Mini Evo App (iOS, Android). The app will also let you transfer your images so you can post them to Instagram if that's your jam.
Alternative: The Instax Mini LiPlay+ ($235) is Fujifilm's other hybrid camera and printer option. It's newer, with some more effects available, and a rear selfie camera (so you can compose using the screen rather than a tiny mirror). I enjoyed testing the LiPlay+, but I prefer the design of the Mini Evo. The LiPlay+ does offer audio recording, including what Fujifilm calls a Sound Albums. In this mode, you shoot a series of images with sound, which will be combined into an animated video on the Fujifilm servers (via the app). As with the individual sound recordings, you can then print a QR code onto your image; scan it with your phone, and it will take you to the animated video. Sound recordings and animated videos will live on Fujifilm's servers for two years. If that sounds like something you'd use then the LiPlay+ is a better choice, though it lacks the cool retro-camera design of the Mini Evo.
The Video Star
Photograph: Scott Gilbertson
Photograph: Scott Gilbertson
Photograph: Scott Gilbertson
Photograph: Scott Gilbertson
Fujifilm
Instax Mini Evo Cinema
Video and Instax prints together? How? QR codes, of course. The Instax Mini Evo Cinema takes its design from the 1965 Fujica Single-8 cine camera, and includes a “Decades dial” to let you time-travel through the history of film photography by turning it. This is where the Evo Cinema gets fun. The effects allow you shoot in the style of jerky black-and-white video from the 1930s or the Handycam-style footage of the 1990s, as well as many more. I was fond of the 1940s era effect, which adds that strangely faded color saturation that characterized film footage from that decade.
The Mini Evo Cinema is the largest Instax camera I've tested, with a tall, thin design that I found tough to hold without using the included extra grip. As an aside, the extra grip screws into a 1/4-inch tripod mount, something you don't always find on Instax cameras. To hold the Evo Cinema, you wrap three fingers wrap around the base, while the pointer finger rests on the shutter button.
The lens is a 28-mm (35-mm equivalent) f/2.0 with autofocus and face recognition. Focusing is totally automated and center weighted, though the face recognition will override this when it detects a face. The 5-MP, 1/5-inch sensor records photos at 1920 x 2560 pixels and videos at 600 x 800 pixels (though there is an option to record higher resolution using the 2020 high-quality mode, which bumps video to 1080 x 1440 pixels). That means it's good enough for Instax prints and social media, but won't look that great even at 4 x 6 inches.
The biggest downside to the Mini Evo Cinema is the price. At $410 retail, and higher right now due to demand, this is the most expensive Instax camera on the market.
Best For Manual Controls
Photograph: B&H Photo
Fujifilm
Instax Mini 99
Fujifilm's Instax Mini 99 is the best Instax camera for those who love manual controls and creative effects. It's not the sharpest Instax I've tested—that remains the Mini Evo above—but it might be the most analog and the most capable. Unlike most Instax cameras, the Mini 99 offers some manual focus and exposure controls, as well as some fun color effects, like the ability to simulate light leaks just like those thrift store cameras collecting dust on your shelf.
There are two dials on top of the Mini 99. One acts like an exposure compensation dial, allowing you to adjust exposure value (EV) two stops brighter and two darker. I found the L (Lighten) and L+ useful when shooting against snow, which has a tendency to overwhelm small sensors like this one. It's also good for strongly backlit scenes, though those are still not Instax's strong suit. The D (Darken) and D- settings proved less useful as they tended to make images overly dark. I could see them being more useful with black-and-white film though, adding a bit of drama.
The Mini 99 has a 60-mm lens made of plastic. It works out to roughly the same field of view as a 35-mm lens in 35-mm format (or if you prefer, somewhere between 1x and 2x on your iPhone). The shutter is fixed at f/12.7, which means you'll be relying on the flash in all but bright, sunny, outdoor shots. That said, unlike quite a few other Instax models, with the Mini 99 you can turn off the flash for those well-lit shots, and that means far fewer washed-out images.
Perhaps the most interesting part of the Mini 99 are the manual focus options. The Mini 99 does not have true manual focus where you turn a dial on the lens to get precise focus. Instead there are three zones of focus: close up (0.3 to 0.6 meters), midrange (0.6 to 3 meters), and infinity (3 meters to infinity). For those not metric-savvy, that works out to 1 to 2 feet, 2 to 10 feet, and 10 feet to infinity. While that's not as precise as a true manual focus camera, it's more control than you typically get with Instax.
Best Instax Camera on a Budget
Photograph: Fujifilm
Fujifilm
Instax Mini 12
As I was updating this guide, Fujifilm announced the Instax Mini 13. I haven't had a chance to test it yet, and it's nearly impossible to find one for sale, but I don't expect it to be any different than the Mini 12 that preceded it. The body design is slightly different, but the internals are unchanged saved the addition of a timer. If you want an instant camera and don't want to spend a lot of money, the Instax Mini 13 is your best bet if it's available. Otherwise, the Mini 12 works just as well and shares all the same specs. Both are capable, easy to use cameras wrapped in a colorful, bubbly design aimed at beginners.
The Mini 13 uses the same 2-element plastic lens (it's a 60mm f/12 lens in 35mm-speak)as the Mini 12. There's no focusing. Everything is auto-exposure. If this camera had a motto it would be: Keep it simple. That extends to the flash as well, which is fully automatic, but not always-on like other models. Instead the Mini 13 detects brightness levels and only fires the flash when needed. That said, the Mini 12 fired the flash far more than I would have liked and the Mini 13 hasn't changed on that score.
The parallax correction on the 12 was quite good. This works in both normal and close-up mode (enabled by twisting the lens to close up). Parallax correction means you don't have to guess where the center of the frame is for close-up subjects. What you see is what you get, eliminating those accidentally ill-framed close-ups that sometimes happened with the SQ 40 or the older Mini 11.
Is Instax Mini 12 or 13 better? Buy the Mini 13 if the price is the same. It adds a timer, which is moderately useful at times, otherwise they are the same camera, get whichever is cheaper. Avoid the Mini 11, which is not worth it even at the sale price during big sale events.
★ Alternative: If the bubbly design of the Mini 13 isn't your thing, the Instax Mini 41 (7/10, WIRED Review) is essentially the same camera, but in a more camera-like body. You get the same automated exposure and focus system, parallax correction, close focus capabilities, and print quality, all wrapped in a body design that makes it look more like a traditional camera.
The Best Instax Square Camera
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Photograph: Scott Gilbertson
Fujifilm
Instax SQ 40
Instax Square doesn't have near the number of camera options as the Mini. My top pick camera is the SQ 40, which is completely analog: press the shutter button and out comes your image, which develops in about 90 seconds. There’s a film counter near the bottom left side of the back to let you know how many images you have left and that's about it for features.
Using the SQ 40 is about as simple as it gets. Twist the lens barrel to turn it on, frame your shot, hit the shutter button and out comes your photo. The only other option is a selfie mode, designed for use close up. In this case, be sure to frame your images with the mirror on the front rather than the viewfinder as parallax distortion is an issue up close. In my shooting experience, this most often manifests as closeup images where the subject is not centered as it appeared when you composed. The parallax stops being an issue at about four to five feet.
The SQ 40 runs on CR2 batteries. Fujifilm includes two when you buy the camera, which should be good for around 300 images. I suggest getting some rechargeable CR2s when those run out.
Alternatives:
Instax SQ 1 ($199): The SQ 1 is the more colorful, cheaper version of the SQ 40. In terms of features it’s identical, though the body design is slightly different. There’s a small grip on the left front side of the body that I find gets in the way more than it provides something to grab. Otherwise the images coming out of the SQ 1 are the same as what I get from the SQ 40, so if you want to save a few dollars (or get a more colorful camera) this SQ 1 is a capable camera as well.
The Best Instax Wide Camera
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Photograph: Scott Gilbertson
Fujifilm
Instax Wide 400
Go big or go home. The Instax Wide's larger image has always made it the Instax of choice for photographers. Ingenious enthusiasts even figured out how to mod older models (the Wide 300) with custom lenses for even better quality images. The Instax Wide 400 is similar in most ways to the 300 that preceded it. It uses the same lens and the same full auto exposure system. If you want full exposure control, this is not the Instax for you. That said, I love this format and hence this camera.
It's a rather chunky thing. The film is pretty good sized, so the camera is as well, but for me that just makes it easier to hold than some of the others here. There's a nice big grip, which holds the 4 AA batteries, enough to shoot 100 images according to Fujifilm's specs. Design-wise, the single color look is reminiscent of the SQ1 (see above), spare and simple. The 95mm f/14 lens is made of two elements (both plastic) and gives you the equivalent of a 35mm focal length on a full frame camera. Fujifilm did add a new close focus option to go with the 10 foot to infinity focus. I wish Fuji had reversed the order, as I sometimes forgot to turn the lens of the second click and ended up with out-of-focus images. Once you get used to it, though, it's fine.
There's not a lot to this camera, and that's part of its appeal. The lens produces decent images, and large format makes it more fun to share with friends. I do wish there were a way to manually control … something, anything, as that would open up some more possibilities, but if you like this format this is the best camera to get.
Other Instax Wide Cameras:
Lomography Lomo'Instant Wide for $200: If you want to spend a bit more, Lomography's Instant Wide shoots Instax Wide film and has some extra lenses you can add on. It shoots in both full auto and offers a programmatic shutter mode. I haven't tested this one yet, so I can't speak to the image quality, but the built-in 90mm Lens is roughly the same field of view.
Fujifilm Wide Evo for $409: At first glance the Wide Evo looks like a clone of our top pick, the Mini Evo, but for the wider format Instax film. Would that it were so. There are some similarities. You get the filter effects, a couple of new lens filters, and the “intensity” ring, which allows you to dial in how strong the various effects are. The lens can switch between wide angle (16-mm full-frame equivalent) and standard (28-mm full-frame equivalent), and there's dials for controlling all the effects. The shutter button is an annoying lever-style shutter, where you flip down, rather than a button you press. This head-scratching design decision is, um, not good. It's awkward and mars the experience of shooting in irredeemable ways in my experience. Combine that with a nasty shutter lag (even by Instax standards) and the price tag, and this one is hard to recommend. If you want a printer, go for the Instax Wide. If you want a camera, either the Wide 400 or the Lomography Lomo'Instant Wide are better deals and better cameras.
Don't Need Another Camera? Get an Instax Printer
Photograph: Scott Gilbertson
Fujifilm
Instax Link Wide Printer
While I have a certain nostalgia for instant photos, and I own several Instax cameras, the truth is most of the time I make instant images using an Instax photo printer. Sure it’s really just a smartphone printer that doesn't need ink, but I already have a digital camera and the results I get pairing images from a real camera with an Instax printer outshine what I get from Instax cameras. If you already have a good point and shoot digital camera, or a solid smartphone camera, an Instax printer is the way to go.
My favorite Instax printer is the Link Wide. I just love the bigger images of the Link Wide. The Link Wide connects via Bluetooth and uses its own app, the Link Wide app (iOS, Android). There are some nice extras in the app, like the ability to print multiple images in one print with collage print, or add fun features to your images like hearts, or (shudder) glitter, or any other of the 15 editable templates in the app. One feature I don't use much, but might be handy for social media is the ability to add QR codes to your images. For example you can add a QR code with a link to a recipe to your photo of the result to then share on social media. There are also some 1,600 in-app “stickers" that let you put clip-art-style overlays on your images. It might sound kind of corny, but these effects are actually quite fun, especially if you have young children. If you don't see it right now, check back; this camera frequently goes in and out of stock.
Alternatives:
Instax Mini Link 3 for $99: As the name implies, the Mini Link 3 film size is mini prints. Overall print quality is about the same as our top pick, the Evo Mini hybrid, but you lose the camera functions to save $100. And the Link 3 does have a few novel tricks. The Link app includes options to add borders or make collage prints from multiple images. There's also an AR mode, Instax AiR Studio, which adds animated filters and virtual objects to your images, floating hearts, sparkles, etc. It's sort of gimmicky and not something I use much, but fun to try every now and then.
Instax Square Link for $132: The one Instax printer I have not tested, the Square Link is the way to go if you love the square prints. I have (and still use) the older SP-3, which is essentially the same, though the Square Link uses a different (and much better) smartphone app. Most of the features found in the Mini Link are also available for the Square Link, the main difference being that you print square images, and the Square Link charges by USB-C.
Instax Mini Link+ for $170: This is Fujifilm's latest printer, it was released earlier this year and we're still waiting for a review copy. Fujifilm says it should have somewhat improved print quality, something we haven't seen from Instax in many, many years. I'll update this guide when I get a chance to put it through its paces.
Fujifilm is constantly refreshing its Instax lineup, adding new features like parallax correction and faster USB-C charging, which almost all Instax cameras now offer. In some cases though the company has not stopped selling the old models. In general, we suggest sticking with the latest models, but sometimes you’ll find deep discounts on older models. Here are a few other models that are worth considering.
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