Polaroid’s Entry-Level 10 MP i1032 Camera

Think consumer digital cameras aren't about megapixels anymore. Polaroid disagrees, quietly rolling out the 10 megapixel i1032 for a mere $300.

Although you’d never know it too look at their Web site, press releases, or significant announcements, Polaroid has rolled out its i1032 digital camera, a consumer-oriented point-and-shoot with a video mode and a whopping 10 megapixel resolution. And here’s the kicker: Polaroid’s snuck it into venues like Wal-Mart for as little as $298.

Besides the eye-popping 10 megapixel resolution, the i1032 features a 3x optical and 4x digital zoom, a big 2.4-inch LCD display, a 640 by 480 video mode, and PictBridge support for connecting directly to any PictBridge-compatible printer. The i1032 supports JPEG images (no word on RAW support, but it isn’t listed), plus AVI and MPEG-4 video. The camera comes with 32 MB of internal memory but supports up to 1 GB via SD cards, runs on two AA batteries, and (Polaroid says) requires Win98SE, ME, 2000, or XP. (For what, we don’t know.) And, being a point-and-shoot, the i1032 offers auto-focus and auto-exposure, with the usual auto-flash options, alone with red-eye reduction and fill flash.

Hey, not bad for $300#151;just be sure to buy some SD storage along with it!