Minolta 16 miniatur camera with flash bracket ( 6 shutterspeeds)

Minolta 16 refers to a line of 16mm sub miniature cameras made by Minolta between 1955 and 1974. The negative size was 10×14 mm for the earlier models, later, a larger format, 12×17 mm was adopted, using single-perforated 16 mm film. It was possible to load your own cassettes, and also develop the film using a special developing tank with a spiral insert for 16 mm film. The Minolta 16 can be traced back to the Mica Automat built by Konan in 1947. Minolta bought out Konan in the early 1950s and continued producing cameras under the Konan name for several years. The first camera labelled Minolta 16 rather than Konan 16 was the Minolta 16 Automat of 1955. The Minolta 16 used a newly designed film cassette which was not compatible with the Konan models.

The first Minolta 16 camera was the 16 Automat (1955), which was almost identical to the Konan 16 Automat. It featured a fixed-focus 25mm lens, apertures from f/3.5 to f/11, and shutter speeds from 1/50 to 1/200 plus bulb. Film advance was via a Minox-style push-pull housing.

The 16 was the second Minolta 16 model, introduced in 1957. Basically a more streamlined Automat, it was modified to allow for slip-on filters and close-up lenses and had fewer shutter speeds. It was available in six colors in addition to the standard chrome. This was followed three years later by the 16 II, which appeared identical to the 16 but featured an improved lens and expanded shutter speed and aperture ranges. There was also a version of the 16 II with a built-in transistor radio, which was sold as the Sonocon 16 MB-ZA starting in 1962