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Apple Dipped Its Toes in Digital Cameras

 

Apple Dipped Its Toes in Digital Cameras quicktake

Here’s a fun bit of trivia: did you know that at one time Apple (then named Apple Computer) made compact digital cameras? Launched in 1994, the Apple QuickTake was actually one of the first digital cameras available to consumers. Three models were built by Kodak and Fujifilm, and the cameras boasted a whopping 0.3 megapixels and the ability to store eight photos at this resolution. The camera had a flash, but lacked zoom, focusing, image review, and file deletion (the entire contents had to be wiped).

The QuickTake was released during the period when Steve Jobs was “exiled” from the company. When he returned in 1996, one of the things he did was streamline the company’s operations by killing off all the non-computer related products, with the QuickTake being one of them. The QuickTake is now a collectors item.

Apple Dipped Its Toes in Digital Cameras quicktake2

With Apple branching off more and more into non-computer related products, would anyone be surprised if they decided to test the digital camera industry waters again?

 
 
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  • Stev

    How much would a QuickTake 200 be worth? I have one stashed away somewhere.

  • http://www.richardsnotes.org rwanderman

    I had a one of these (made by Fuji for Apple) and a few canon Xap shots too. I also had a surveillance camera and a MacVision box before that. Great stuff.

    http://www.richardsnotes.org/archives/2008/03/07/digital-camera-journal-2000/

  • IchiroA

    Yes, I had an earlier one. I think it was based off the Kodak. QT 100

  • http://www.petapixel.com Michael Zhang

    It looks like they sell for about $70 right now on eBay. It’s probably wiser to hold onto it :-)

  • Ipodguy93

    I found our old HP camera from 1999! It boosted a stellar 1 MP!! Had a 1 inch color screen! Optical viewfinder! Live View! 2x Digital zoom! Weighed less then a ton! I think it was an HP C200. haha But I remember it taken decent pictures.

  • Acheron

    I think they already have dipped into the camera market again in their iPhone line.

  • http://letterfromhere.blogspot.com/ Madison Guy

    Can’t imagine Apple jumping back into this business. Mature, low margin business. Better to build the devices to host the photos.

  • Clancycoop

    Their camera currently holds the top-used spot on Flickr.

  • http://twitter.com/PXLated PXLated

    Wasn’t there even an Apple branded Canon Zapshot?
    Apple is again back in the camera game, it’s just in the form of an iPhone.

  • http://www.richardsnotes.org rwanderman

    I don’t think Apple rebranded the Xap shot, that was just a Canon device with “disks.”

  • http://twitter.com/Andrei_Photos Andrei

    I don’t think apple will dive in the digital photography industry again

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  • http://www.flickr.com/photos/umnak/ Jumnak

    Apple is one of the largest digital camera producers in the world. The iPhone.

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