I was given this in the surprise bag I received back in January. I saved it for a possible day at the beach during a camping trip to Scotland, but the weather had other ideas, as you will see.

If you search for the camera online, it is still available to buy, and prices range from £8-25. It comes in many different colours and, if bought new, all are pre-loaded with 10 exposures of colour 35mm film.

On the back of mine, it said, for Aldi Stores and Made in China. The actual camera feels very toy-like, everything plastic. It has a focal length of 28mm, no flash, one speed of 1/120s, and one aperture of f/9. That means 400asa film would be best for a cloudy day and 100asa for a sunny day. The waterproof case is rated at IPX8, which means you can submerge it up to 3m for 30 minutes. It is not made for prolonged diving, just surface splashing.

As I said, I took it on a camping trip to Scotland this summer, where it rained at some point each day. There was not one day when I wanted to enter the ocean or a loch for 10 shots of muddy water. I ended up taking it to the Fairy Pools on a rainy, misty day.

I found the camera hard to fire in the protective case, only knowing if I had done so when the film would advance. Out of the case, the camera worked much better. I tried to keep the front of the camera free from raindrops as much as I could, but it was pretty much impossible.

I managed to take the 10 shots and sent it off to be developed. I got 8 shots back.

I took the last two shots of my tent and the view; this was after I had to fix it with duct tape. Due to the wind, one of the poles had split, collapsing the back of the tent. I needed it for 2 more nights, so I used duct tape and hope.

It didn’t look great, but it lasted the next 2 nights before it was time for me to pack up. I bought a replacement pole for that section when I got home. I took the old one apart and kept the elastic and undamaged sections as spares. So if it happens again, I will be able to fix it properly while camping. I have also retaped the seams with iron-on tape, so I should be set for next season…or later this year.

As for the camera, I reloaded it with a scrap film to see if the numbers went past 10. They did. I would say reload it with 24-exposure film over 36. I wouldn’t use the camera as the main one; just use it for fun, as the quality isn’t great.

I don’t think I will use this camera again; I prefer the Flashback or the other compact camera I got in the bag. As for this one, I have plans to leave it in a little library for anyone interested in it.