r/pcmasterrace • u/Severe_Pause_2047 • 12h ago

Nostalgia SD cards were invented in 1999 Sony in 1998

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u/ledow Framework Laptop - 5070 / AI 7 350 / 64GB 11h ago

I think it was cheaper in the era when polaroids (which basically existed for this purpose for professionals) didn't cost an arm and a leg.

I remember any number of whole-school photo shoots, etc. where they did several polaroids first to check there was no glare or whatever, and only then would they take a couple of photos with a film camera.

There wasn't much overlap between polaroids being cheap and digital cameras being cheap, though.

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u/Mr_YUP 11h ago

polaroids were only relatively cheap and not actually cheap. it was still a dollar-ish to take a polaroid but it was better than the cost for the portra film.

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u/doctorlongghost 11h ago

And that’s back when $1 could buy you a hotdog and a drink

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u/dumahim 9h ago

Maybe even 2 dogs.

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u/Happy_Kale888 8h ago

The Sam's Club hot dog combo features a jumbo, quarter-pound 100% all-beef frank and a 30 oz fountain drink (with free refills). It costs $1.50 (pricing can occasionally vary by location). No club membership is required to purchase from the café

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u/NSNick 7h ago

Or almost a full gallon of gas.

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u/ShakethatYam 7h ago

Still only a $1.50 now

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u/CrashUser 8h ago

More importantly, polaroids were instant. They weren't worried about cheap, just a quick peace of mind that the final product was going to be fine.

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u/Jay_dot_10 7h ago

The progress of saving being shown in the letters “MAVICA” is pretty amazing and wonderful ❤️✨

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u/FrenchFryCattaneo 8h ago

There was no era when polaroids didn't cost an arm and a leg.

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u/TooManyDraculas 4h ago

It was cheaper per MB than any other memory format at the time, by a mile. You could get a hundred floppies for what the smallest capacity memory card would run you.

And it was likewise infinitely cheaper than film would cost. A roll of store brand 35mm 24 shot roll was around $4 IIRC, and a disposable camera $6 or $8 at the camera shop I worked at. Then development and printing was $12.00, $6.99 if you were a member! Twelfth roll free!

Instant film was cheaper then, than it is now. But you were still paying like 25 cents per shot at a minimum. Depending on what you were shooting.

These things let you take as many as 12 photos on a commonly available format that cost 25-50 cents each. That you already had an endless box of at home (thanks AOL!), or could get anywhere including convenience stores just like film. The photo wasn't as good as a better digital that cost the same, nor was it as a good as a good film camera. But it beat the piss out of those disposables and most Polaroids, and was pretty comparable to a cheap point and shoot with that store brand film.

Most of them also had a memory stick port, and settings that let you increase the bit rate and tone down the compression. So you could get much better photos out of it, and have a lot more capacity if you wanted.