Ranking the 10 Weirdest Digital Cameras of All Time

If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times. We’re truly living in a golden—if not insane—era for digital camera technology. Not only are we getting powerful, pristine, and top-of-the-line cameras out-doing each other with new releases each quarter, we’re also getting wild technological innovations that run the gamut from groundbreaking to downright silly.

Yet, for every welcome addition like the crazy hybrid camera-gimbal DJI Ronin 4D, we also have plenty of cameras that deserve a moment in the sun just for their sheer goofiness.

And, believe us, there are a lot of cameras to highlight from the past several years.

Luckily we also have some of the best camera experts in the game to showcase some of their favorite selections of digital video and photography cameras in this cool video breakdown.

What Are the Weirdest Digital Cameras Ever?

We have to thank Chris from DPReview TV for putting together this breakdown along with the help of fellow YouTuber and blogger Gordon Laing from Camera Labs (which you can also follow on YouTube here).

Watching their back-and-forth list is perhaps the most fun camera-specific YouTube content that I’ve ever watched before. And, truth be told, some of these cameras I actually vaguely remember from their brief moments in the sun several years ago.

In case you’re wondering, here’s their full top 10 listed below:

• Canon Powershot Zoom
• Sony F505
• Minox Rolleiflex TLR Minidigi
• Minolta DiMAGE V
• Fujifilm Finepix
• Apple Quicktake 100
• Leica Digital Modul R (Leica MDR)
• Lytro Light Field Camera
• Ricoh GXR
• Nintendo Gameboy Camera

Some of the highlights include the Canon Powershot Zoom, which has actually provided some groundwork for some capable point-and-shoot video cameras down the line, as well as the Sony F505, which also eventually begat some newer Sony cameras like the Sony ZV-1 (which actually makes a great webcam here today).

The Nintendo Gameboy Camera

However, for any fellow millennials out there, seeing the Nintendo Gameboy Camera on this list might bring back a whole host of early memories as faded and dormant as some of the photos taken with the camera’s four shades of gray.

Notable for its groundbreaking at the time digital camera technology, the Nintendo Gameboy Camera has actually gone on to be one of the most famous cameras in Internet folklore and has been cleverly hacked by YouTubers and creators alike to make use of its archaic, yet quite iconic, style.

However, while its 128x112 resolution might not stack up against modern digital 4K resolutions, cameras like these have proven that the odder they might be, the longer their legacy will survive.

Which really makes us think… Outside of new hybrid innovations like the DJI Ronin 4D, what cameras being released today might one day go down in infamy? 

Let us know your thoughts and selections in the comments below!