HakingAutoflash 35

The Haking Autoflash 35 is a product of an era when 'point and shoot' stopped being a slur and started being a marketing promise — a fixed-focus compact paired with a Hakinon 38mm f/2.8. Some backstory: made by Haking of Hong Kong — the same OEM that built cameras rebadged as Halina, Ansco and Vivitar.

Format

35mm

Year

1980

Lens

Hakinon 38mm f/2.8

Min. focus

1.5 m

Flash

Built-in manual

Battery

2× AA

The Hakinon 38mm f/2.8 doesn't chase exotic specifications; it just renders cleanly, focuses predictably, and gets out of the photograph's way. On the film-availability spectrum, plain 35mm is as easy as it gets in 2026. It runs on common AA batteries — you can resurrect one on a Sunday afternoon with whatever the corner shop has in stock. The built-in flash will fire whenever the meter decides it should, so learn the override before your first night out. Minimum focus is 1.5 m, close enough for a coffee cup or a face but stops short of true macro. Something that catches new owners off guard: the 'EXP/MTR' switch is a rare quirk: MTR uses the CdS meter, EXP is a fixed sunny-16 backup for dead batteries. Best for everyday life and half-length portraits — a 40-ish lens stays out of the way and renders people without distortion.

The Haking Autoflash 35 sits exactly where you want a sleeper to sit: low prices, working examples plentiful, and a spec sheet that holds up against far pricier rivals. File away for later: cheap-and-cheerful holiday camera that shows up in flea markets across Europe for the price of a coffee.

• §1Made by Haking of Hong Kong — the same OEM that built cameras rebadged as Halina, Ansco and Vivitar.
• §2The 'EXP/MTR' switch is a rare quirk: MTR uses the CdS meter, EXP is a fixed sunny-16 backup for dead batteries.
• §3Cheap-and-cheerful holiday camera that shows up in flea markets across Europe for the price of a coffee.