Web Log: In search of the perfect Android vintage camera app

Nothing compares to you, Hipstamatic – well, almost nothing

Pixlr-o-matic has lots of old-school camera effects.

Every so often I browse the Play Store in search of an Android equivalent of the superb vintage effects iOS camera app Hipstamatic.

Nothing compares to you, Hipstamatic, but Pixlr-o-matic isn't half bad. It has plenty of vintage-style overlays, frames, and tints to keep Instagrammers happy by simulating old-school camera effects including bokeh, fading, wonky darkroom development and Polaroid-esque frames.

The only problem is that developers Autodesk are no longer developing Pixlr-o-matic so it remains in the various app stores and as a Chrome plug-in but without dedicated support and the proviso that "at some point in the future this app will break".

The good news is there is a replacement app of sorts. Pixlr Express has most of its predecessor’s vintage effects but with lots of extra editing functionality and a camera thrown in, making it a general purpose camera app. And the free version is plagued with ads; I was quick to pay the in-app €2.29 to make them go away.

https://pixlr.com/o-matic/Opens in new window ]