Schneider-Kreuznach Xenar — 75mm f/3.8 fixed taking lens fitted to Robot compact cameras
The Xenar 75mm f/3.8 is a Tessar-formula lens from Schneider-Kreuznach's Xenar family, best known as a fixed taking lens on Robot-brand compact cameras, the German clockwork-driven rapid-sequence cameras used for consumer and specialist work from the 1940s onward.
As a fixed lens on a leaf-shutter body it has no interchangeable bayonet of its own, being permanently coupled to the camera's shutter and film-advance mechanism. It follows the four-element Xenar formula common across the range, favouring compactness and cost over maximum speed.
Its modest aperture and simple construction give the workmanlike rendering typical of mid-century Tessar-type lenses: good centre sharpness stopped down, with softer corners wide open. On the small-format Robot bodies it suited candid and documentary shooting over shallow depth-of-field work.
Because the lens is fixed to its host camera, buyers are effectively evaluating the whole Robot body; used values are driven by the camera's collectability. Check the shutter fires at marked speeds, that the lens is free of fungus or haze, and that the film-advance mechanism still functions.