Polaroid POLSM01W Socialmatic WiFi Instant Print Share Camera White

I am not usually one for reviewing products, but given the price of this item I felt it was only right to describe my experience.Opening the box and on a first look, this is an exciting and beautiful little gadget. However, unfortunately, the problems start to emerge as soon as you lift it out. The body, which is bulky but light, feels cheap to the touch. While I gather that entry-level Polaroids have traditionally been made with plastic bodies, you might not expect it of such an expensive item.Undeterred, I plugged the camera in and let it charge up. Once you've turned it on, you're prompted to go through a set-up wizard and connect to wi-fi. You're then prompted to sign up to Polaroid's social network, Socialmatic. Could I get signed up to Socialmatic? No - problem 2. The fields did all recognise that they had been completed and I was faced with repeated error messages. Unable to proceed further through the set-up, I cancelled out of it. I later managed to sign up to Socialmatic using my laptop.I went into the Google Play app and downloaded Facebook and Instagram - my two main photo-sharing platforms. Problem 3 - Facebook repeatedly failed. Wondering now if there was a software issue, I (eventually) found the option within Settings to search for upgrades. Fully upgraded, I re-downloaded Facebook. Unfortunately it continued to crash - and now Socialmatic was too. I never actually managed to sign in fully to check out the app, so I'm afraid I can't comment on how well it works.Setting all of the tablet's failings aside, a comment on the photo capability itself. I only ended up taking two photos - 1 with the front camera and 1 with the "selfie" camera. The front-facing camera produced a photo of reasonably good quality, though there was a significant delay between pressing the trigger and the image actually being taken. The photo taken with the selfie camera was of extremely poor quality: pixelated and grainy, even in good lighting.As a lover of vintage Polaroid products I was really rooting for this camera to be great. Unfortunately, it was anything but, and didn't really do anything it claims to do. (I will admit that I didn't test the print function - I wouldn't have wanted to waste the paper.) I wasn't even able to complete a factory reset to delete my photos and information as you are required to sign in to Socialmatic to authorise this...my (correct) details weren't recognised.I would not recommend this camera to anyone - don't waste your money.

In the world of selfies and instant gratification there needed to be one more step in sharing images on the social network - quality images instead of pixelated suggestions. Along comes Polaroid and does that remaining task. `The Polaroid Socialmatic boasts a full-fledged Android operating system that turns it into a powerful personal computer. It features a desktop-grade Internet browser and email client, as well as builtin GPS, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity. These enable photo geo-tagging, remote printing, and a unique QR code feature: It embeds a code that can be scanned by smartphones, smart cameras, and other digital devices, thus providing you the ability to track and follow your photos as they make their cyberspace journey around the world.'Now, how easy is it to use? First, read the manual - there is an important setup outlined before you take your first picture. Then it is as easy to use as a smartphone. The camera itself is made of high quality materials, with a rechargeable lithium-ion battery, a built-in LED flash, stereo speakers, a microphone, the latest in ARM processors, a 4.5-inch full color touchscreen, 4GB of internal storage that's expandable to 32GB, and onboard photo editing powers. If you use this camera with ZINK Zero Ink printing technology, you don't need to be dependent on your computer. Press a button, and out slides vibrant, smudge-proof, and water-resistant 2" X 3" prints that feature a sticky back for easy posting. Who could say it better?The results are fun, instantly gratifying shareable photos as well as images that can be stored and shared on all social media networks. More than likely, use over a longer period of time will enhance the results and open new ideas for use, but for now this appears to be a problem solver for many people deeply into photo imaging for social reasons. Grady Harp, February 15

crap, sent it back

This was the second Socialmatic that I ordered (after I had to send the first one back) and it had the same problem - a dodgy battery. It's such a shame as the camera is brilliant. I love that you can go online and post directly to Facebook and Instagram too. The print quality is good considering the size but don't expect miracles. I'm hoping Polaroid will fix the problem and release the camera with a decent battery.

Bad item....Poor quality for something so expensive. Sent back for a refund due to a number of issues. The quality of the hardware and software does not match that of a device which is 250 quid.

I have had the item for just over a year and the battery won't charge at all. If you Google the problem you will see that hundreds of people have the same problem and it is not fixable. The internal battery is not replaceable and my camera is out of warranty. There are loads of these cameras for sale on Ebay at around £15 each but is says that they will only work when plugged into the mains as the battery is effective. £250 down the drain. I am not amused !!