Dash, This Needs A Better Flash!
Pros:
One time use camera, affordable
Cons:
Faulty flash crash, poor action shots
The Bottom Line:
I would not recommend this because of the faulty flash and poor quality photos.
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
Being a person who frequently forgets and/or loses relevant items, the Fuji QuickSnap Flash 400 seemed like a great solution on several occasions - once, when I forgot a camera on a family trip, another time when I lost a digital camera (later to find out it was misplaced by one of my children). I was incorrect.
The Fuji company is Kodak's major competitor, so I figured the product had to be good. I picked it up for $6.99, a special price that I noticed is frequently run by the company. I applauded myself that I got brand name quality (or so I thought) for two dollars less than Kodak.
The camera is easy to use - press the button on the upper right side to take a picture. If you need flash, you pull out the button on the front until the reddish orange light comes on and presto! flash photo ready. The only problem is that once you have used the flash a couple of times, the light never comes back on. Therefore, you have to take photos from that point forward that require no flash. Additionally, the 400 speed film is supposed to enable you to film movement with this camera. This does not seem to be the case because I have turned up several blurred photos at simple family events (not fast paced sports photography or anything).
The flash failure is particularly annoying. The first time around, I carefully used the rest of the film in the camera only for outdoor shots once the flash died. I figured this was a one time event, but after two additional purchases of this camera in emergency situations, I determined the flash they use is just plain faulty. I now have two half-used Fuji cameras yet to be developed from over a year ago because I figure "I'll use them outside". The likelihood of that actually happening is nil, so years from now I will probably speculate what photos from when are on these abandoned cameras.
Frankly, I have had better performance from generic brand one-time use cameras that I picked up for $3.99 from the drug store clearance bin. I highly suggest using Kodak or an "inferior" brand so that you do not experience the same flash crash as I did - especially inconvenient if you need night photos! Convenience only applies when the item works like it is supposed to.
