After months of popping my head into every camera store I knew, my timing was finally right and I was able to purchase a Kodak Charmera mini toy camera. I’ll admit, I got swept up in the buzz and was excited to rip open my blind box to see which version I got. No, I didn’t get the chase clear one, but at least I didn’t get the ugly blue one either.

Right away, I clipped it onto my bag and it became my everyday camera. Not the one I reached for when I wanted to shoot for fun, but rather the one I reached for when it just so happened to be near. The magic of the camera is the size. I could take it with me to social gatherings and no one could tell. But when people do notice, it ends up being a huge people-pleaser. Everyone is curious about the tiny, cute toy camera. It sparked lots of conversation. In that sense, for the social aspect, the camera punches far above its weight.

However, when you finally pry out the tiny SD to import your photos, that’s when the fun ends. I knew to expect low-quality (I’d be a fool to think otherwise), but most of the photos are just plane fugly. I got way more pleasing results from an old digi-cam. It really is a toy and all-gimmick.