Digital Cameras Kill off the 35mm Film

The UK electrical goods retailer, Dixons has announced that it is to stop selling 35mm film based cameras, citing the rise of digital camers - and camera phones as killing off demand for older film based cameras. Dixons, originally a photographic studio, opened its first outlet in Southend in 1937. Cameras were the first products that Dixons sold.

"Last year, we pulled the plug on video recorders, but today's announcement is in many ways a more sentimental event," said Bryan Magrath, marketing director at Dixons. "35mm cameras were the first products we ever sold and film processing has been a part of our lives for several decades. Time and technology move on, though, and digital cameras are now the rule, rather than the exception. We have decided that the time is now right to take 35mm cameras out of the frame."

Dixons reports that sales of digital cameras are now outstripping sales of 35mm cameras by 15 to 1.

A test of 100 customers carried out by Dixons revealed that 93% are now unable to tell the difference between digital prints and 35mm film prints. "Statistically, this tells us that there is no real difference in quality between digital and film," said Bryan Magrath. "The digital camera, which delivers huge benefits due to its memory, speed, image quality and transferability of images, is a big winner with the millions of customers that shop with us every year."

Industry estimates reveal that around three-quarters of photographs are taken on holiday."

Posted to the site on 9th August 2005