Although both of Canon’s latest printers are almost identical, the ES3 takes the big brother label by sporting 1gig of on board memory for storing photos, additional clip art and photo frames and a larger LCD. They both feature a 15-in-1 memory card reader, a 3.5-inch LCD for previewing photos (3.0-inches for the ES30), are PictBridge compatible (this allows you to connect a camera and print from it), and use Canon ink and paper cartridges.
I guess they’re available now (Amazon has them) and will go for $200 for the ES3, and $150 for the ES30. I don’t see the appeal, but they do look oh so Euro. Plus the cartridges probably cost an arm and a leg.
The biggest scam in home computing has to be the printing. Sure printers are cheap, but you’ll fork over your kid’s college fund to print the family album. Plus, it’s a total pain to manage since half the ink cartridges get clogged and don’t last that long. ZINK technology, or Zero Ink technology, removes the ink and bundles it in a piece of paper. No word on cost just yet (probably not cheap, though), but Polaroids got a mobile printer using the technology. Here’s how it works:
ZINK Paper™ is at the heart of ZINK™ Zero Ink™ Technology. ZINK Paper is an advanced composite material with cyan, yellow, and magenta dye crystals embedded inside and a protective polymer overcoat layer outside, enabling true ink-free prints. Before printing, the embedded dye crystals are colorless, so ZINK Paper looks like regular white photo paper. A ZINK-enabled device uses heat to activate and colorize these dye crystals.These crystals, named Amorphochromic™ crystals, represent an entirely new class of molecules, invented by ZINK Scientists through a rigorous discovery process. The properties of each dye crystal were finely tuned to achieve the color palette and image stability required for beautiful, full-color digital prints. ZINK™ scientists also invented a way to activate each of the crystals independently using heat pulses of precisely determined duration and temperature to achieve any color under the rainbow. The printing process is now radically simple.
Looking for rugged, waterproof paper? Toughprint makes both Laser and Inkjet paper which is 100% waterproof, resists crumples and tears, and can easily be wiped clean. Perfect for printing maps for outdoor use or printing out those indestructible marketing flyers.
Of course at about $1 / page I wouldn’t go too nuts.
There’s a handheld inkjet printer coming out this holiday season that will let you directly print on a variety of surfaces including: fabric, wood, polymer clay, wallpaper, and other surfaces. Uh… neat?
The hand-held printer will ship with a disc containing 40 designs, a black ink cartridge, a docking station, and 2 9-volt batteries. You can download additional designs with twelve additional discs available for $29.99. Ink cartridges will come in black, green, and red and sell for $39.99. Each cartridge should print up to 5,000 inches.
The printer was developed by Xyron and will ship in December ‘05 for $139.99.
Are you thinking of all the wonderful possibilities? Making your own wardrobe? Your own wallpaper? Yeah, it’s pretty lame.
