Polaroid 600 packs carry the battery that powers a vintage camera. i-Type packs are battery-free, which is why i-Type fits only modern Polaroids and costs about a dollar less a pack. Everything else about the two films matches.
Polaroid sells i-Type film and 600 film in the same box shape, at the same print size, with the same development time. The one part that separates them is the battery: a 600 pack carries one, an i-Type pack does not.
The short answer
If your camera is a modern Polaroid, buy i-Type film. That covers the Polaroid Now, Now+, Flip, I-2, OneStep 2, OneStep+ and the Polaroid Lab printer, all of which have their own rechargeable battery. If your camera is a vintage 600 model, buy 600 film, because the camera has no battery of its own and takes its power from the pack. 600 film also works in every modern camera on that list, so it is the one pack that fits both old and new. It does not work the other way round: Polaroid states that i-Type film is not compatible with vintage Polaroid cameras.
Polaroid Go film is a fourth format at a smaller print size, and it fits only the Polaroid Go.
What is physically different
Polaroid’s spec sheets for the two films are near enough identical. Both are rated ASA 640, hold 8 photos per pack, and print at 107 x 88 mm with a 79 x 77 mm image area. Development takes 10 to 15 minutes either way, and Polaroid lists both as 100% Polaroid chemistry.
The line that differs is power. Polaroid lists 600 film as containing a battery to power your camera and flash, and lists i-Type film as battery-free. Its support page states the point directly: the important difference between 600 and i-Type film is the absence of a battery inside the film cartridge. That is why i-Type film will not work with vintage Polaroid cameras, and why new Polaroid cameras, which have a built-in rechargeable battery, do not need one in the pack.
That battery is why a 40-year-old Polaroid with a flat pack in it looks exactly like a dead camera. The camera and its flash both run off the film.
Both films carry the same ASA 640 rating, so a modern camera meters them the same way. Putting 600 film in a Polaroid Now does not change the exposure. All it means is that you are carrying a battery the camera will never use.
Price per shot
| Film | Polaroid i-Type | Polaroid 600 | Polaroid SX-70 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Print size | 107 x 88 mm | 107 x 88 mm | 107 x 88 mm |
| Image size | 79 x 77 mm | 79 x 77 mm | 79 x 77 mm |
| Film cost per shot | about $2.37 | about $2.50 | about $2.75 |
| Current cameras | MiNT SLR670 MAX, Polaroid Flip, Polaroid I-2, Polaroid Now Generation 3, Polaroid Now+ Generation 3 | MiNT SLR670 MAX, Polaroid Flip, Polaroid I-2, Polaroid Now Generation 3, Polaroid Now+ Generation 3 | MiNT SLR670 MAX, Polaroid I-2 |
| Current printers | Polaroid Lab Instant Printer | Polaroid Lab Instant Printer | n/a |
Sizes and costs per shot from the product records; film prices checked September 10, 2026.
At the last check, in September 2026, a single 8-shot pack of Polaroid Color i-Type film was $18.99 on Amazon and a single 8-shot pack of Polaroid Color Film for 600 was $20.00. That is $2.37 a shot against $2.50, a difference of 13 cents a frame or $1.01 a pack. Over ten packs it comes to about $10.
Polaroid does not publish a reason for the gap. The one difference the two product pages document is the battery.
Ten dollars across eighty shots is not enough to decide anything on its own. Both films are current Polaroid products, both listed as produced in the EU. The one format Polaroid itself warns about for stock is SX-70, which is covered further down.
Which cameras take which film
| Model | Type | Film or media | Street price | Amazon rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polaroid Lab Instant Printer | Instant photo printer | Polaroid i-Type and 600 | $111.99 | 4.3 (2,108 ratings) |
| Polaroid Now Generation 3 | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | $129.99 | 4.2 (515 ratings) |
| Polaroid Now+ Generation 3 | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | $149.99 | 4.2 (241 ratings) |
| Polaroid Flip | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | $179.99 | 4.7 (7 ratings) |
| MiNT SLR670 MAX | Analog instant camera | Polaroid 600 / SX-70 / i-Type | $1299.00 | n/a |
| Polaroid I-2 | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600 and SX-70) | n/a | 3.8 (23 ratings) |
Prices and ratings checked September 10, 2026.
Polaroid lists i-Type film as compatible with the I-2, Flip, Now, Now+, OneStep 2 and OneStep+ cameras, plus the Polaroid Lab printer. Of those, four cameras are still on sale: the Now Generation 3 at $129.99, the Now+ Generation 3 at $149.99, the Flip at $179.99 and the I-2 at a $599.99 list price. The Lab was $111.99. The OneStep 2 and OneStep+ are discontinued, so an i-Type pack bought for one of those is for a second-hand body.
PCMag’s Jim Fisher made the Flip his Editors’ Choice for I-Type cameras. He wrote that it is reasonably priced and gets the most out of its expensive I-Type film thanks to a reliable sonar-driven focus system, and called it the best instant camera Polaroid has made to date.
| Model | Type | Film or media | Street price | Amazon rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polaroid Now Generation 1 (discontinued) | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | $89.00 | 4.6 (6,605 ratings) |
| Polaroid Now Generation 2 (discontinued) | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | $109.00 | 4.3 (1,300 ratings) |
| Polaroid Lab Instant Printer | Instant photo printer | Polaroid i-Type and 600 | $111.99 | 4.3 (2,108 ratings) |
| Polaroid Now Generation 3 | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | $129.99 | 4.2 (515 ratings) |
| Polaroid Now+ Generation 2 (discontinued) | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | $141.19 | 4.3 (1,310 ratings) |
| Polaroid Now+ Generation 3 | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | $149.99 | 4.2 (241 ratings) |
| Polaroid Now+ Generation 1 (discontinued) | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | $174.99 | 4.5 (2,437 ratings) |
| Polaroid Flip | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | $179.99 | 4.7 (7 ratings) |
| MiNT SLR670 MAX | Analog instant camera | Polaroid 600 / SX-70 / i-Type | $1299.00 | n/a |
| Impossible I-1 (discontinued) | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | n/a | n/a |
| Polaroid 600 series (vintage family) (discontinued) | Analog instant camera | Polaroid 600 (ISO 640) | n/a | n/a |
| Polaroid I-2 | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600 and SX-70) | n/a | 3.8 (23 ratings) |
| Polaroid Originals OneStep 2 VF (discontinued) | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | n/a | 4.6 (6,100 ratings) |
| Polaroid Originals OneStep+ (discontinued) | Analog instant camera | Polaroid i-Type (also takes Polaroid 600) | n/a | 4.5 (2,100 ratings) |
Prices and ratings checked September 10, 2026.
600 film covers more ground. Polaroid lists it as compatible with the Polaroid 600 series, the I-2, the Flip, the Now, the Now+, the Lab, the OneStep 2 and the OneStep+. The 600 series is the vintage family that ran from 1981: the OneStep 600, the OneStep Close-Up 600, the Sun 600 and Sun 660, the Impulse and Impulse AF, and dozens of licensed variants. To identify one, Polaroid says most have a number in the 600 range in the name, and the film door carries a sticker naming the film the camera takes.
If you are choosing a vintage body to shoot 600 film in, Dan Finnen’s guide to buying used Polaroid cameras says that when in doubt, cheap box-type Polaroid 600 cameras are usually the way to go for most people. He names the OneStep Close-Up 600 as the budget pick and the Impulse AF as one of the best plastic box-type 600 cameras Polaroid ever made.
Can you mix them
600 film in a modern i-Type camera: yes. Polaroid’s support page says 600 film is compatible with Polaroid i-Type cameras, and the 600 product page names the I-2, Flip, Now, Now+, Lab, OneStep 2 and OneStep+.
i-Type film in a vintage 600 camera: no. Polaroid’s i-Type product page states it is not compatible with vintage Polaroid cameras, and the support page gives the reason. Without the battery in the cartridge, the camera has nothing to run on.
The rule only runs one way: a 600 pack goes in anything modern, while an i-Type pack goes only in a camera with its own battery. If you own a vintage 600 body and a Polaroid Now, buying 600 film for both is simpler than keeping two stocks, and it costs an extra $1.01 a pack on the modern camera.
Where SX-70 film fits
SX-70 film is the third Polaroid film at this print size, and it is not interchangeable with the other two. It is rated ASA 160, which Polaroid describes as roughly a quarter the sensitivity of 600 film, so it needs a lot more light. Everything else matches the other two: 8 photos a pack, a 107 x 88 mm print, a 79 x 77 mm image, 10 to 15 minutes to develop. Like a 600 pack, it carries a battery to power the camera.
Polaroid lists SX-70 film as compatible with two cameras, the vintage SX-70 and the modern I-2. Its support page adds that all folding-type Polaroid cameras use SX-70 film, except the 680 and 690 SLR models. The Flip, the Now and the Now+ are not on that list.
You can shoot 600 film in an SX-70 body, but only with a neutral density filter, which Polaroid describes as a pair of sunglasses for the camera. Polaroid gives two ways to fit one: a filter that installs on top of each film pack before it goes into the camera, or a filter lens such as the one in the MiNT SX-70 lens set. A lens filter makes the scene look darker while you are framing, Polaroid warns, which makes focusing harder.
Stock and price are both worth checking before you buy an SX-70 body. Polaroid’s own product page says demand means SX-70 film will be out of stock from time to time. It is also the priciest of the three: $21.99 for 8 shots at B&H, about $2.75 a shot, and Polaroid’s own store sells it in multipacks only, at $62.99 for 24 shots.
For a modern Polaroid, then, i-Type is the cheaper pack and 600 is the pack that also fits a vintage body.
Sources
- Polaroid support: what film do I use with Polaroid cameras: the missing battery in i-Type packs, i-Type not working in vintage cameras, 600 film working in i-Type cameras, SX-70 being roughly a quarter the sensitivity of 600, all folding cameras except the 680 and 690 using SX-70, the film-door sticker, and Go film being the smallest format.
- Polaroid Color i-Type Film: battery-free, ASA 640, 8 photos, 107 x 88 mm print, 79 x 77 mm image, 10 to 15 minute development, the camera and printer compatibility list, “not compatible with vintage Polaroid cameras”, and the $18.99 single-pack price.
- Polaroid Color 600 Film: contains a battery to power the camera and flash, ASA 640, 8 photos, the same print and image sizes and development time, and the compatibility list including the 600 series, I-2, Flip, Now, Now+, Lab, OneStep 2 and OneStep+.
- Polaroid Color SX-70 Film: ASA 160, contains a battery, 8 photos, same sizes and development time, compatible with the SX-70 and I-2 only, and Polaroid’s own warning that SX-70 film goes out of stock from time to time.
- Polaroid Color SX-70 Film Triple Pack: the $62.99 price for 24 shots.
- Polaroid support: what does a neutral density filter do: using 600 film in an SX-70, the two ways to fit a filter, and the warning that a lens filter darkens the viewfinder.
- PCMag, Polaroid Flip review by Jim Fisher: the Editors’ Choice verdict quoted above.
- Dan Finnen, guide to buying new and used Polaroid cameras: the recommendation to start with a cheap box-type 600 camera, and the OneStep Close-Up 600 and Impulse AF picks.
- Our own product records in
src/data/products/: camera and film prices and cost per shot, all checked against Amazon, B&H and polaroid.com on 10 September 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use 600 film in an i-Type camera?
Yes. Polaroid lists 600 film as compatible with the I-2, Flip, Now, Now+, Lab, OneStep 2 and OneStep+ as well as the vintage 600 series. Both films are rated ASA 640, so a modern camera exposes them the same way. The 600 pack costs about a dollar more, and the battery inside it goes unused in a camera that already has one.
Can I use i-Type film in a vintage 600 camera?
No. Polaroid's own i-Type film page says it is not compatible with vintage Polaroid cameras. A vintage 600 body has no battery of its own and draws power from the film pack, and i-Type packs are battery-free.
Can I use 600 film in a Polaroid Now?
Yes. Polaroid lists the Now and Now+ among the cameras 600 film works with. It is the same ASA 640, the same 107 x 88 mm print and the same 10 to 15 minute development time as i-Type. The differences are the unused battery in the pack and about 13 cents more a shot.
Why is i-Type film cheaper than 600 film?
Polaroid does not publish a reason. At the last check a single 8-shot pack of Color i-Type was $18.99 and a single 8-shot pack of Color 600 was $20.00, so $2.37 a shot against $2.50. The one difference Polaroid documents between the two packs is that 600 contains a battery to power the camera and its flash, and i-Type is battery-free.
Is the picture quality the same?
Polaroid publishes the same numbers for both films: ASA 640, a 107 x 88 mm print with a 79 x 77 mm image area, 10 to 15 minutes to develop, and 100% Polaroid chemistry. Polaroid does not list any difference in the emulsion.
What about SX-70 film?
It is a third format at the same print size, rated ASA 160, which Polaroid calls roughly a quarter the sensitivity of 600 film. Polaroid lists it as compatible with the vintage SX-70 and the modern I-2 only. You can put 600 film in an SX-70 body with a neutral density filter. SX-70 film was $21.99 for 8 shots at B&H, about $2.75 a shot.