Fujifilm Instax Square SQ1: Affordable and Fun

The Fujifilm Instax Square SQ1 is as simple—and fun—to use as any other Instax camera. It’s a pure point-and-shoot, easy enough to pass off to a friend for a snapshot, and its wide-angle lens makes for solid selfies. If you’re looking for a square-format instant camera and are more of a snapshooter than artiste, the SQ1 instant camera will have loads of appeal for you. And it’s our Editors’ Choice.

- JIM FISHER

SOLID COLOR AESTHETICS

The SQ1 drops the split two-tone design from the previous-generation SQ6 in favor of a mostly solid color in your choice of Chalk White, Glacier Blue, or Terracotta Orange. The camera itself is all plastic, and while there’s a blockiness to the look, edges are comfortably rounded off, and the textured grip and wrist strap make it very easy to hold.

The camera itself is on the bulky side, at 5.2 by 4.7 by 2.3 inches (HWD), and it weighs a little shy of a pound with a full pack of film loaded. It’s wide enough to sit upright when set on a flat surface, but Fujifilm didn’t bother to include a tripod socket. The SQ1 has no manual exposure options (for long exposure work) nor a self-timer.

Film loads in a door at the rear and ejects from the top. Instax Square packs are a little tricky to load—you need to make sure you insert them at an angle to fit. Yellow strips on both the film pack and in the film compartment guide you.

The SQ1 is powered by a pair of included CR2 batteries. They’re long-lasting, but replacements are not as readily available at retail as more common AA and AAA cells. You can get them easily enough via Amazon and at big-box stores, though. Fujifilm expects the camera to snap about 300 photos before you need to swap them out for a new set.

Fujifilm Instax Square SQ1

PROS

Fun, square instant prints. Very easy to use. Close focus and mirror for selfies. Color and black-and-white film available.

CONS

No self-timer, tripod socket, or double exposure support. Smaller photos than Polaroid cameras. CR2 batteries aren’t always easy to find.

BOTTOM LINE