There's a Disastrous Apple Failure Existing on the iPhone

These are part of the QuickTake family (100, 150 and 200) with one thing in common: they were complete failures. They were released nearly 3 decades ago and some of them are still collected today. Their very low sales numbers suggest that they were not exactly a hit.

The Birth of QuickTake

Around 1994, Apple thought it was a good idea to get into the digital camera business. The problem was that the market didn't take it well, and soon after the presentation, the product became another failure for an Apple that hadn't been successful in those years.

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QuickTake 100.

The first QuickTake, called the QuickTake 100, was introduced by Apple in February 1994, meaning we're about to celebrate its 30th anniversary. To be fair, it didn't seem like a bad idea at first. It wasn't the most advanced camera on the market, but it didn't have terrible specs either.

In addition to its distinctive design that was consistent with the company's other products at the time, the QuickTake 100 had a number of standout features, including a single 50mm fixed lens with a focal length range of f/2.8 to f/1.6, making it a very versatile camera in theory, even for low-light situations. Its shutter speeds ranged from 1/30 to 1/175.

However, the QuickTime 100 has some unforgivable flaws for a $1,500 camera. It actually costs around $750, but given the inflation over the last 30 years, $1,500 is what it's worth today. That's what turned many people off even though it's a great camera.

Its main problem is that the battery barely allows for 12 shots, which is more than the memory allows. So this is another flaw that makes it almost impossible to accumulate 8 photos at the maximum resolution (640 x 480p). If you drop it to 320 x 240p, you can save up to 32 photos, but the problem is that after taking 12 photos, the battery is already dead.

The other issue is that you need a Macintosh. Macs are still not the majority of computers today, and they were even less then. Without a Macintosh, you have no other way to transfer your photos. So people who don't have a Macintosh don't need QuickTake 100 because it's useless to them.

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QuickTake 150.

Stubbornness refuses to improve

The QuickTake 150 was introduced in 1995 to address the shortcomings of the QuickTake 100. Production was transferred to Kodak with one of the notable changes being the ability to take advantage of 3 AAA batteries for battery independence, as well as compatibility with Windows computers to reach the masses.

But its price remained more or less the same, and the storage and battery issues didn't improve much, causing Apple to fail with it again amid fierce competition, despite Apple partnering with Kodak to produce the QuickTake 150.

The third and final QuickTake camera, the QuickTake 200, was released in 1996. The problem was that it not only retained the previous shortcomings, but did not improve them. After improving on the 3 AAA batteries, the company added support for external memory cards up to 4 MB. At the time, this was a pretty good amount to improve the available internal storage space.

Another big new feature on the QuickTake 200 is the addition of a small screen that doubles as a viewfinder. It's not the first to do this, and it's not a trend yet. However, its resolution remains stagnant, and the lens hasn't improved much beyond extending the shutter speed from 1/4 to 1/5.

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QuickTake 200.

Steve Jobs made QuickTake disappear

When Steve Jobs returned to Apple, we all talked about how the company's direction changed with the move to the iPod, iPhone, and iPad, but we overlooked the fact that that change involved canceling projects like QuickTake.

There was no QuickTake 250, and it is not known if it ever made it to Apple's design desk. It is also not known if anyone tried to convince Steve Jobs to continue the product line, but the fact is that the company did not continue and all QuickTake models were discontinued in 1997.

The fierce competition in this field forced Apple to step aside. Their image as a 'computer company' was still so present in the minds of consumers that they could not imagine Apple launching products other than Macintosh.

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QuickTake is available on iPhone 11 and later.

QuickTake silhouette exists on iPhone

It's been 30 years since the first QuickTake was introduced, and the iPhone continues to remember it with QuickTake for video. This is basically what Apple calls a fast video mode that debuted on the iPhone 11 generation.

After opening the Camera app, even in photo mode, users can hold the shutter button to record a video, can pause the video by releasing the button or continue recording by swiping to the right. It's a simple detail but still curious when knowing the history of these extinct cameras.

David Pac

Update 10 February 2025