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My name is Mike Yawney. I have been reviewing tech products for over 15 years. Most of that time has been spent in front of the camera, talking tech and reviewing everything from smartphones to video games on one of Canada's most popular national morning television programs. We like how simple it is to set up and use the Mini Link 2, although it’s a bit of a shame that it recharges via the slower and older Micro USB port rather than the more widespread USB-C connector. Superior Photo Quality: The Kodak Mini 3 Retro utilizes 4PASS technology, which allows you to print flawless photos in just a few seconds. As the photos are printed on layers of color and laminated, they are protected against fingerprints and water. Photos last over a 100 years! The Hi-Print wasn’t the fastest printer that we tested for this guide. However, it isn’t slow enough to be irritating, either. Although the Hi-Print didn’t offer the best image quality of all the models we tested, its prints were still crisp and largely true to the digital photos we used during testing.
As such, the bulk of our testing is based on real-world use. What kind of batteries are used? Are they easily rechargeable or replaceable once depleted? Does it use instant film or printer paper, and what are the cost-quality implications? How good is the connection to your phone or other smart device? Is the printer simply portable, or is it actually practical to use while on the go? How to choose the best portable printers We then used both smartphones to snap a large variety of photos to test with our lineup of portable printers. On the Galaxy S21 Ultra, we took photos with the 108MP wide-angle camera, along with the 10MP telephoto lens. On the iPhone 12 Pro Max, we tested shots taken with the phone’s 12MP camera system. Once the shooting was complete, we selected an image from each of the following groups: We’d also suggest looking at the battery life of the printer, as it determines how many prints you can make before recharging. Look for printers with long-lasting batteries and consider whether they use standard batteries or rechargeable ones. We also noticed the printer’s companion app was an almost identical clone of the Kodak Mini 3 Retro’s app. The only distinguishable difference is that it was missing the Kodak logo.We’ve enjoyed printing out our top snaps with this model, and it’s super easy to use via the app. It is a bit of a shame that it still charges via the now-outdated Micro USB port rather than USB-C (the newer Mini Evo has transitioned to the newer USB-C connector) but that’s more of a minor downside than a dealbreaker. It’s easy to get intensely serious about photographic kit and technique but, sometimes, photography should just be fun," says our own Matthew Richards. "There’s certainly a lot to be had with the Instax Mini LiPlay. It continues the decades-old tradition of truly instant photography, where you can take and share pictures anywhere and everywhere, capturing and preserving treasured memories on the fly." The Instax Mini LiPlay is not marketed specifically as a portable printer, so this one may be easy to miss. Instead, it's one of a new breed of hybrid digital instant cameras that offer the functionality of an instant camera, a digital camera, and a portable printer in the same device. The Instax Link Wide connects to your smartphone or tablet using Bluetooth, and is operated using the eponymous app for iOS or Android. The “mini” and “square” sizes are the most popular, and we especially like the mini for making images that are ideal to keep in our wallet. We have a handful of snaps printed from the Mini Link 2 that we keep with us wherever we go, but this versatile image size is also great for a scrapbook or for pinning up on your fridge using magnets.
There are plenty of more powerful image editing apps out there. Still, having these options built into the app is a nice touch. You can even use the app to capture new photos, without having to switch over to your smartphone’s camera interface. The app would see the printer and tell us it was connected. Then, when we tried to print a photo, it produced an error. The problem? No printer was connected. The Mini 2, which connects to your phone via Bluetooth to retrieve photos and print them, is an easy way to print wallet-sized photos at home or on the go. We began each test by determining ease of setup and compatibility with iOS and Android devices. We connected each printer to a Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, and an iPhone 12 Pro Max. Others used Zink technology. Zink paper is embedded with dye crystals that change color once heat is applied.
Solid Value for Small Snaps
Unlike the wider one, we think this is slim and light enough to stash in your bag and bring on your travels, and the bigger square size works well for a wide range of shots including landscapes, portraits, close-ups and more. At 4.5” x 3.0” x 1.0”, and 7 ounces, the LifePrint 2x3 Hyperprint was by far the smallest and lightest we tested. It was also the fastest by far, taking around 30 seconds to print a photo. Some of this speed comes from using Zink (Zero-Ink) technology that combines the ink and photo paper.
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