Living up to its name, the Impossible Project brought Polaroid back to life with new cameras, including the good (though flawed) Polaroid I-2 Instant camera. But at $600, the idea of breaking it is mildly terrifying. Thankfully, iFixit has teamed up with Polaroid to help.
Known for its Right to Repair efforts, iFixit has a history of disassembling gadgets to determine how easy they are to repair. But in recent years, the company has offered more genuine OEM parts for devices to go with its repair guides, making the processor easier and better. Now, it's Polaroid's turn to get the iFixit treatment, with new genuine parts and repair guides for its I-2 instant camera.
We liked the I-2 Instant Camera, thanks to standout features like LIDAR autofocus and a large viewfinder. But it's not perfect, and at $600, it's on the expensive side for an instant camera, tying in price with the Instax Square Nons SL660 camera. At that high cost, you might be afraid to take it anywhere for fear of dropping and damaging it, negating the entire point of the I-2.
Polaroid's team-up with iFixit, however, means you have free access to several repair guides and a few genuine OEM parts as well. In terms of parts, iFixit already offers six case components, a replacement battery, the USB-C port the I-2 uses for charging, and the camera's display. But while iFixit offers a guide to replace the lens assembly, it's not offering that part yet.
Keep in mind that the guides suggest some of these repairs are quite difficult. And if you don't properly discharge the camera's flash capacitor, you could receive a "potentially dangerous electric shock." Other pitfalls include clips securing plastic clovers, so you'll want to avoid metal tools to avoid breaking the clips or marring the camera.
If you don't have the proper tools, iFixit offers them in a bundle with the parts. You can also buy the parts separately if you already have everything you need.
The repairs may not be easy with iFixit's guides and official parts, but they'd be even more difficult without them. So it's good to see companies like Polaroid, Google, Valve, and more working with iFixit to make DIY repairs possible.