Should you buy a new compact point-and-shoot camera, or go for a secondhand model? If you’ve been on TikTok, Instagram, Etsy, or eBay recently, and seen any content on compact digital cameras, you might have come across this term: ‘Y2K Camera’ / ‘Y2K Digicam’ – but what does it mean? It’s supposed to be a term referring to early vintage digital cameras, made around the year 2000.
Most listings are actually cameras from 2000-2010 (or later) – rather than earlier than 2000, as digital cameras from prior to the year 2000 were generally very early models, with low resolution, poor connectivity, old, outdated and difficult-to-work-with memory cards (remember Smartmedia?), and poor reliability too.
If you do go for a ‘Y2K Camera’ expect to pay more for it (beware of the very high mark-ups on some listings), as it’s currently a trend, and if you see a camera that’s going for well over the usual price, it’s most likely that social media is to blame.
