Last Updated on 12/16/2017 by Chris Gampat
Screenshot image from the Pokemon toy camera video by Shawnee Union
Pokémon has been enjoying a resurgence with the advent of the Pokémon Go app last year, and it looks like a fair bunch are still going crazy over it. It won’t be surprising, therefore, to find some related merchandise floating about on ebay. Lo and behold, we found a rare photographic gem that will surely delight your 90s kid-slash-Pokémon-fan alter-ego.
Sorry kids of today, we 90s kids had some of the coolest Pokémon stuff back then. A fine example would be this awesome Pokémon toy camera that came out in 1999. It’s cute with the eye-catching design, featuring a carved Pikachu, a Diglett for a shutter button, and Pokéballs around the front lens and the flash above. It also works perfectly like a typical point-and-shoot camera, complete with battery-operated flash. It looks cool AND takes actual pictures — making it essentially the stuff of camera collectors’ dreams.
Curious? Watch how this Pokémon toy camera works in the video below:
What about the photos, you ask? What the video missed was that it also had a mask that creates vignetted photos with Pokémon designs around the frame. Pretty neat for Pokémon fans, I should say. The photos are also reminiscent of the Purikura (Japanese photo sticker booths) sticker photos that were also popular with 90s kids. Here are some sample snaps from Phillip Pessar:
So, do you want to catch this camera? Prepare to shell out at least $15 for this Pokémon toy camera on ebay. Or be on the look out for items for bidding (like this one). But if you’re a collector really keen on getting the rare stuff, here’s one from Japan that also has a super cool design, a hotshoe, a strap, and a set of detachable masks that will imprint some Pokémon line art on your images. According to this Etsy page, this extremely rare Pokémon toy camera was given out to visitors during a very early Pokémon convention at Shogakukan in Japan. Needless to say, you’ll need to shell out a good amount for this!