Argus Electronic 355X
After a decade of corporate turmoil, the Argus brand attempted to revive their fortunes with a series of Instant Load cameras for 126 film, the format made hugely popular by Kodak's line of Instamatics. A later 1970s series denoted by model designations ending in "X" were able to use Magicubes, as a small badge on the camera front indicates. These models from Japan also gained a more "mod" styling language than the earlier, boxy, 126 models provided by Balda in Germany.
The Argus Electronic 355X was the top model in this series. It signals its more serious intentions by being almost all black, and having an atom symbol on its nameplate. It improves on the Electric Eye 345X by offering autoexposure with shutter speeds ranging from 1/125th to 30 seconds—along with a (very necessary) viewfinder warning when to use a tripod.[1] The Argus Museum dates this model to circa 1972.
Notes
- ↑ A 1974 Argus product list (pg. 24) gives the details, as contrasted with the more basic "2 step shutter" of the Argus Electric Eye 345X. Product flyer posted online by Pacific Rim Camera.
Links
- Object record for an Electronic 355X from the Argus Museum collections database
