Minox
Minox (pronounced /ˈmiːnɒks/ MEE-noks) is a manufacturer of cameras, known especially for its subminiature camera.
Tele Minox with adapter on prismatic binoculars | |
| Industry | cameras, binoculars and other optical equipment |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1945 |
| Founder | Walter Zapp |
| Headquarters | Wetzlar, Germany |
Key people | Wolfgang Venzl |
Number of employees | approx. 30 |
| Website | www.minox.com |
Lower: The Minox logo used by Minox GmbH (1949).
The first product to carry the Minox name was a subminiature camera, conceived in 1922, and finally invented and produced in 1936, by Baltic German Walter Zapp. The Latvian factory VEF (Valsts elektrotehniskā fabrika) manufactured the camera from 1937 to 1943. After World War II, the camera was redesigned and production resumed in Germany in 1948. Walter Zapp originally envisioned the Minox to be a camera for everyone requiring only little photographic knowledge. Yet in part due to its high manufacturing costs the Minox became more well known as a must-have luxury item. From the start the Minox also gained wide notoriety as a spy camera.
Minox branched out into 35 mm film format and 110 film format cameras in 1974 and 1976, respectively. Minox continues to operate today, producing or branding optical and photographic equipment.