If you have been trawling ebay for a bit, you might have come across a bunch of colorful, reusable 35mm cameras under the name Kodak M35. Now, I know they are cheap little plastic cameras, but why aren't they available in the USA? There are plenty of eBay sellers - all from China, Taiwan, or Korea, with prices ranging from nearly $30 to quite a bit more, as if these were some sort of collectible. I searched US sellers, and although B&H have them listed for sale, there are no photos of the product, and their site says expected delivery in 7-14 days, but at $25.00 each.
Now, with the Dubble Film Show and the Harman 35, I certainly don't really need another camera in that same class, but I would like to test one out, as I am prepping for a 35mm toy camera issue of Monochrome Mania. The Kodak M35 looks very similar to the Dubble Film and Harman products, and yeah, there's only so many ways one can manufacture a cheap plastic camera that is barely a step-up from a one-time use camera.
What surprises me most is that these camera have Kodak branding, yet not a peep from Kodak in the US about selling/marketing them. They are colorful, and sure to attract young buyers, so I have to wonder why there has not been anything about them from Kodak or Kodak/Alaris. Are they testing the waters elsewhere before they sell in the US? I don't expect anything better than what I have gotten from the Dubble Show or Harman 35, but at $25, they would be an attractive alternative, and priced right. Of course they are probably worth $10, but that's where we are these days with new film cameras, no matter how low-tech they may be.
Some digging in the Web led me to Sino Promise Group in Hong Kong, which proclaims itself as the largest distributor of Kodak/Alaris products in the world, and THAT's where I found the Kodak information about the M35 and the M38 cameras. Here's the key bit of information at the bottom of the page about the M35: "Sino Promise Group LTD. manufactures and sells the above film cameras. The Kodak trademark, logo and trade dress are used under license by Sino Promise Group LTD. Products are not available in all countries." Indeed, they appear to be marketed in China, Philippines, Thailand, etc.
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| Specs are pretty much the same as the Dubble Film and Harman 35 cameras |
So, there you have it. Sino Promise Group makes these under license from Kodak, and markets them, not Kodak. Maybe we will eventually see them sold here in a variety of stores, but they were introduced in 2020, and the M38 model looks a lot more like the Dubble/Harman cameras. I bet they are all made in the same factory - perhaps Great Wall? Keep your eyes open for them to appear somewhere in the US at a retailer... or a flea market.
UPDATE - JULY 27, 2021.
I was at the Film Photography Project HQ last week, and Mike Raso has one of these cameras. I was able to inspect it, and it's EXACTLY the same camera as the Harman Reusable Camera. The only thing that's different is the color of the front part of the camera, and the branding. Given that the Harman camera comes with 2 rolls of Kentmere 400, it's a better deal
3 comments:
Hi Mark,
Maybe Kodak doesn't even know its' trade name and logo are being used here.
The Chinese are very good at stealing names and goods!
About 5 years I went to a tradeshow at the Stampede grounds in Calgary, AB, with a group of colleagues and acquaintances and one of our party was greeted by a Chinese (PRC) booth selling HIS patented product, even with an exact photocopy of HIS promotional brochure!!
He went to the organizers and protested that this was plagiarism and theft of intellectual property.
The organizers asked the Chinese company to remove their exhibit, which they duly did.
But, no expression of guilt or remorse, just "We're paying you a compliment by copying your patented product, but we'll keep the revenue and do you out of your lawful sales".
Even though the product was covered by a worldwide patent, the Chinese did not care.
Did not apply to them; insult to injury, they chose a Canadian tradeshow to show their copied Canadian product!!
They have no shame in copying Western goods and pocketing the money.
I wonder if Kodak is aware of their name being linked to Asian goods?
Regards,
David
Dave,
We have found that Sino Promise not only markets the cameras, but it turns out that they are a large producer of chemicals for Kodak's operations. So, it's all legit, and of course, the Chinese connection is largely hidden from view of the consumers.
Mark
No surprise that Sino Promise is behind these cheap film cameras. Kodak builds few photographic products today. It licenses its brand to any company willing to purchase a license. Kodak cut deals with China-based suppliers and manufacturers long before its 2012 bankruptcy. You’d probably be happier with a 20-year-old Kodak S series film camera; many were built by Kodak-owned Chinon, and a few were re-badged Minolta. They had better lenses and didn’t rely on puny AAA batteries.
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