Minolta X-700

The X-700 was introduced in 1981 as Minolta’s top-of-the-line manual focus SLR system camera. The premier member of the long-lived X-series, the X-700 featured much of the same construction and design found in earlier X-series machines, such as the XG-M. But while it shared many of the X-series cameras’ core components, it differentiated itself in one, big way; inclusion of Program auto-exposure mode. The camera was an immediate success, being promptly declared the European “Camera of the Year” by EISA. Photogeeks everywhere rejoiced. For the first time, Minolta was offering a camera with features to rival the likes of Canon’s AE-1 and A-1, machines that were simply decimating the competition with their mass appeal.