That’s Impossible! Polaroid Originals discontinues Spectra film

Polaroid Originals posted a blog post that it has discontinued production of Spectra-format film packs. The company does have some remaining packs left for sale. Introduced in the mid-1980s by Polaroid Corp., Spectra format film featured a wide-format print. The cameras haven’t been produced for years and the chronic jamming and breakdowns of the majority of the remaining cameras has made continued production unviable, the company said.

Our manufacturing team led an intensive, 6-month testing and improvement plan on Spectra cameras and our film. We optimized the dimensions and deflection angle of the ejecting film, reduced the pod weight, and lowered the mask friction through different coatings. We also carried out multiple battery tests with different voltages and currents from different suppliers.

This fault is completely random and depends on many variables with each pack of film and the configuration of the camera circuitry. There is, unfortunately, no simple fix.

Andrew Billen

Head of Global Manufacturing, Polaroid Originals