Home slide shows of holiday trips used to be all the rage in the 70s, but these days most people prefer to share their snaps instantly via email or social media. But it appears many people are keen to bring the old fashioned slide show back with a tiny projector called Projecteo funded within just 24 hours of being launched on Kickstarter. The diminutive device uses 35 mm slide film to set your Instagram photos free from their digital confines and project them onto any surface.
While this isn't the first time we've seen digital photos given a retro make-under – there's been the View-Master-esque Image3D and the Impossible Instant Lab, which turns iPhone snapshots into Polaroid prints – the Projecteo is certainly the cutest and most pocketable. And the retro display style seems a perfect match for the lo-fi appearance of Instagram filtered images.
Inspired by the "magical qualities" of the images produced by an old Rollei projector, the teeny-weeny Projecteo (it's the size of a matchbox) uses a powerful LED combined with a lens and focusing mechanism to project images that are claimed to be of good quality at sizes of up to 2.5 ft wide (76 cm) in a pitch black room. Obviously the size and LED limitations mean it could struggle a bit in lighter conditions.
Projecteo takes wheels of 35 mm slide film that are specially produced to contain nine full color Instagram images on each frame. A companion iPhone app is used to select images from an Instagram account and arrange them in the circular formation. Once developed, the sets are cut out in a custom circle cutter and placed in a plastic wheel that slots into the projector. Additional photo wheels will be available to order.
Using the Projecteo is said to be as simple as turning it on, twisting the lens barrel to focus, and spinning the wheel to change the image. Hack-fans will also be pleased to hear that makers, Benjamin Redford and Mint Digital, are actively encouraging others to disassemble the projector to see what's going on with the LED, capacitors, resistors, switch and batteries, and then create something of their own with it.
A pledge of US$25 on Kickstarter will get you a white Projecteo – expected to ship in December or January – while $40 will bag you one in Rollei P35 projector colors. If you're feeling flush, for $350 you can work with designers to create a one-off color combination and a pledge of $500 could also get you one of three gold plated devices.
Here's a quick video from the team behind the Projecteo.
Source: Kickstarter via Uncrate