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HP's voice-controlled Tango printer can be disguised as a book
Printers haven't really kept up with the times. Sure, you can print from your phone, but the devices aren't built for an always-connected world -- and let's be honest, more than a few of them are eyesores that can feel like '90s throwbacks. HP believes it can do better. Its newly unveiled Tango lets you print from wherever you are, and takes smart speaker commands from Alexa, Cortana and Google Assistant. If you'd like to print your calendar, you don't have to fire up an app or walk across the room. An Instant Ink service can automatically order new ink when you run low, too, potentially sparing you an unexpected trip to the office supply store.
Tiny microscope lets you see the smallest-ever inkjet prints
No, that's not an up-close look at a monitor. That's the world's tiniest color inkjet image made large, and you may not need it blown up to see it in the future -- if you're willing to lay down some cash. In a hybrid of scientific discovery and publicity stunt, Scrona and ETH Zurich have used nano-sized quantum dots to print a clown fish picture measuring just 0.000014 square inches across, setting a Guinness World Record for the smallest color inkjet image to date. You need a good microscope just to see it, in fact... and conveniently, Scrona is working on just that.
The best photo inkjet printer
This post was done in partnership with The Wirecutter, a buyer's guide to the best technology. Read the full article here. By Amadou Diallo After 76 hours of research and side-by-side testing with four different models, we found the $800 Epson SureColor P600 is the best photo inkjet printer for most people. It delivers professional-quality color prints, as well as black-and-white photographs that are as close to traditional darkroom prints as you'll see from any digital printer around. Its prints also last longer than anything you'd get from a typical online photo service. The P600 can print on a wider variety of media than the competition, and its LCD touchscreen control panel makes setup and maintenance easy.
This robot printer runs around the page laying down ink
Most pocket-sized printers are really shrunken versions of what you'd see on your desk. Rather boring, don't you think? Zuta Labs' upcoming Pocket Printer robot may liven things up a little. Instead of using an old-fashioned paper feed, it runs over the page laying grayscale ink. This Roomba-like approach isn't just a party trick, though. Besides leading to a very portable design, it lets you print on any size page you like -- if you need to get a legal form while you're at the coffee shop, you can.
Stack printer concept ditches the tray, eats columns of paper instead
Let's face it: even clever 2D printers aren't usually fun to watch. Mugi Yamamoto's Stack concept livens things up a bit, however. Instead of relying on a tray, the printer swallows paper from a column underneath -- like an animal that only eats company reports. The trayless design isn't just for novelty's sake, though. Stack is more portable than its conventional peers, and it's much less of a hassle to reload. Yamamoto has had a working Stack prototype for months, but he now tells Wired that he's looking for companies that could produce a commercial version. We're hoping that someone takes him up on his offer; it could add a little more excitement to our office printing jobs.
Kodak dropping out of the consumer inkjet printer business in 2013
More gloomy news from Kodak: the company just announced that it will stop selling consumer inkjet printers in 2013 and instead focus its efforts on commercial printing products. This decision hardly comes as a surprise: Kodak filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year and attempted to auction off a stockpile of patents valued at up to $2.6 billion. The company stated on Friday that it expects to take a $90 million hit due to its floundering inkjet business. Kodak's garage sale attracted interest from unlikely alliances in the form of Apple and Microsoft versus Google and Samsung, but reportedly only reeled in disappointing offers under the $500 million mark. Hoping to rebound next year as a "lean," mean, successful machine, we'll just have to wait and see what develops for this fallen photography frontrunner.
Lexmark announces detailed restructuring plan: 1,700 layoffs, inkjet business to be nixed
It's always a sad day when news come in of hard-working folks losing their cherished jobs -- and, unfortunately, today's one of those dismal days. In a detailed press release, Lexmark's let it be known it'll be be undergoing a company-wide restructure, but with the main focus being the exiting of the outfit's inkjet hardware development and manufacturing -- which, in the end, should save the printer maker about $95 million per year once the plan has taken place. Naturally, this doesn't come without any repercussions, as Lexmark's announced these restructuring actions will see around 1,700 worldwide jobs be lost; 1,100 of which are manufacturing positions, and also include the closing of an inkjet supplies manufacturing plant in the Philippines. Needless to say, we can only hope Lexmark sees better days. For now, however, you can peruse over the company's official word in the presser located right past the break.
Brother crams all-in-one functionality into a pint-size package for Business Smart series
Looking for a color inkjet all-in-one that won't use up all of your desk space? Brother's talking up its Business Smart line as a way getting a slew of features without the added office footprint. Aimed at small business owners, the line's first entry, the MFC-J4510DW, utilizes landscape printing and redesigned printer cartridges to help fit all of the requisite features into a smaller body. The peripheral does wireless and mobile printing, auto-two sided printing and features touchscreen controls. It's expected to hit the big office chains and Best Buys in October for $199, with more entries in the line following later this year. More info in the press release after the jump.
Researchers print a fully-functional OLED control circuit using an inkjet
Don't worry, this isn't about teaching bacteria how to climb out of a petri dish and follow a subway map. The picture above actually shows an OLED display control circuit that was quickly and cheaply manufactured thanks to the joys of inkjet printing. Its makers at UCLA start-up Aneeve Nanotechnologies also claim their carbon nanotube circuit yields better performance than traditional silicon counterparts and should therefore be considered a competing technology. On the other hand, it's also true that inkjet circuitry has been around in various forms for years, so we must return to the fundamental question: will we ever be able to afford one of these?
Engadget's holiday gift guide 2011: printers
Welcome to the Engadget Holiday Gift Guide! We're well aware of the heartbreaking difficulties surrounding the seasonal shopping experience, so we're here to help you sort out this year's tech treasures. Below is today's bevy of curated picks, and you can head back to the Gift Guide hub to see the rest of the product guides as they're added throughout the holiday season. Yeah, yeah... we know -- paper is so 20th century. But truth be told, there are still a lot of us that have use for the old-fashioned printed page. Whether you're a student who needs to output seven copies of that term paper, or an aspiring photog looking to cut down on professional printing costs, we have some thoughts on what to look for this holiday season. Perhaps you're ready to take those homemade Christmas cards to the next level? Print them yourself! Who doesn't love an early present? Read on past the break to see just what caught our eye this year.
Scientists make magic auto-origami using ink and light (video)
We've seen nano-origami and robo-origami, but nothing quite as rapid and simple as this. Researchers at North Carolina State University have figured out how to neatly fold plastic using infrared light and an inkjet printer. Deep black lines are printed onto the plastic sheets, which then absorb the light and cause the material to fold without anyone having to touch it. The wider the line, the greater the angle of each fold, so it's possible to set, say, a 90-degree bend for a cube or 120 degrees for a pyramid. What's more, by giving the lines different patterns, folds can be made to work in specific directions, potentially producing the most perfect, most hygienic bento box that's ever contained your lunch. Click past the break to watch the folding unfold.
Researchers use inkjet acumen to create wireless explosive sensor from paper
Meet Krishna Naishadham and Xiaojuan (Judy) Song. They're researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology, and those little devices they're holding may one day save you from an explosive device. This petite prototype is actually a paper-like wireless sensor that was printed using basic inkjet technology, developed by professor Manos Tentzeris. Its integrated lightweight antenna allows the sensor to link up with communication devices, while its functionalized carbon nanotubes enable it to pick up on even the slightest traces of ammonia -- an ingredient common to most IEDs. According to Tentzeris, the trick to such inkjet printing lies in the development of "inks" that can be deposited at relatively low temperatures. These inks, laced with silver nanoparticles, can then be uniformly distributed across paper-based components using a process called sonication. The result is a low-cost component that can adhere to just about any surface. The wireless sensor, meanwhile, requires comparatively low amounts of power, and could allow users to detect bombs from a safe distance. Naishadham says his team's device is geared toward military officials, humanitarian workers or any other bomb sniffers in hazardous situations, though there's no word yet on when it could enter the market. To find out more, careen past the break for the full PR.
Engadget's back to school guide 2011: printers
Welcome to Engadget's Back to School guide! We know that this time of year can be pretty annoying and stressful for everyone, so we're here to help out with the heartbreaking process of gadget buying for the school-aged crowd. Today, we have printers on our minds and on our desks -- and you can head to the Back to School hub to see the rest of the product guides as they're added throughout the month. Sadly, most of your professors probably still expect assignments to be turned in on dried-up wood pulp. And, while that doesn't mean you'll have to remaster the fine art of writing in cursive, you will need a printer to put your (carefully proofread and thoroughly researched, of course) prose on paper. Jump past the break for our recommendations, and another opportunity to enter our back to school giveaway. Simply leave a comment below to be entered to win, and head over to our giveaway page for more details.
Canon PIXMA iP4920, MG5320 bring filters, 'creativity' to photo printing
Canon's just released a pair of new PIXMA printers that seem to rely on your lack of Photoshop knowledge. For the PIXMA MG5320 Wireless All-In-One and iP4920 Inkjet Photo Printers, functionality is pretty straight forward, but the outfit's hoping to reel you with the promise that the pair brings "creativity to a whole new level." That "enhanced creativity" comes in the form of "Fun Filter Effects," a set of elementary photo filters, like Fish-Eye and Toy Camera, and the ability to add soft focus and blur backgrounds. What's more, the MG5320 also allows you to print sans-PC from the company's PIXMA Cloud Link. If fisheye functionality is enough to get your creative juices, and cash money, flowing, the iP4920 and MG5320 are now available for pre-order for $100 and $150, respectively, at the source links below. A rather uninspiring press release awaits you after the break.
MIT researchers revolutionize solar cell printing, fold the power of the sun into your everyday home (video)
Wouldn't it be neat if you could power a few gadgets around the house with some tastefully chosen, solar cell-embedded curtains? Alright, so this MIT-pioneered tech's not quite that advanced yet, but it's destined to have a Martha Stewart Living future. By eschewing liquids and high temperatures for gentler vapors kept below 120 degrees Celsius, researchers were able to cheaply print an array of photovoltaic cells on "ordinary untreated paper, cloth or plastic." And here's some additional food for thought -- the vapor-deposition process used to create these cells is the same as the one that puts that "silvery lining in your bag of potato chips" -- science, it's everywhere. Despite the tech's home furnishing friendly approach, this breakthrough printing technique can't be done with your everyday inkjet, but it will make the cost of solar energy installations a bit cozier. Its flexible durability aside, the cells currently operate at only one percent efficiency -- so you might want to buy those drapes in bulk to see a real bottom line kickback. Foldable paper video demonstration after the break.
Oregon engineers roll out cheaper, less wasteful solar cells with inkjet printer
It looks like the push to turn the inkjet printer into the next great manufacturer of solar cells has found another proponent in a team of engineers at Oregon State University. That group of resourceful researchers claims to have created the world's first "CIGS solar devices with inkjet printing," thus giving birth to a new production process that reduces raw material waste by 90 percent. CIGS (an acronym for copper, indium, gallium, and selenium) is a highly absorbent and efficient compound, especially suited to creating thin-film solar cells. The team has used inkjet technology to pump out a CIGS ink with an efficiency of five percent, and a potential efficiency of 12 percent; apparently enough to produce a "commercially viable solar cell." Unfortunately, the group has yet to announce plans to bring the ink to our desktop printer -- so much for that backyard solar farm. Full PR after the break.
ArtPro Nail Printer V6.1 hands-in (video)
As good old-fashioned girly men, we're always looking for excuses to get our nails done, so our heartfelt thanks go out to Guangzhou Taiji Electronics and their ArtPro Nail Printer line. You put a couple of white base coats on, stick your hand inside, align the desired image to your nail, and hit print -- and an inkjet head (we saw a Lenovo cartridge inside) goes to work. A few seconds later, you're ready to seal the deal with clearcoat. A simple idea, well-executed and highly satisfying. Video of our experience inside the future of the beauty industry after the jump. %Gallery-113563%
Researchers tout progress with 'skin printers,' hope to one day treat battlefield wounds
We've already seen that living tissue can be printed using what amounts to a bio-inkjet printer, and some researchers from the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine now say they've made some considerable progress that could bring the technology one step closer to use on the battlefield. Specifically, they've been able to speed up the healing of wounds on mice using a "printed" swath of tissue and completely heal the wound in three weeks, whereas an untreated wound did not heal itself in the same time period. Of course, there's no word on any plans for tests on humans just yet, but the researchers do plan to take one more step in that direction by moving on to tests on pigs next.
Brother's AirScouter floats a 16-inch display onto your eye biscuit (video)
First announced in July, Brother's updated AirScouter wearable display is finally getting its first live demonstration at Brother World in Japan. The prototype Retinal Imaging Display (RID) projects safe, fast-moving light directly onto your retina that appears to the viewer as a 16-inch display floating transparently at a distance of about 3 feet. The tech used by Brother was harvested from its own optical system technologies found in laser and inkjet printers. Brother plans to launch the AirScouter for industrial uses in Japan where the glasses could overlay operating manuals onto machinery, for example. Later, Brother plans to adopt its RID tech into consumer products worldwide making for a more immersive (and practical) augmented reality experience.
HP Photosmart e-All-in-One with ePrint now on sale: iPad printing, solved
We don't cover many printers on Engadget because, frankly, they're boring. So there must be something really special about HP's Photosmart e-All-in-One D110a, right? Indeed, it's the first of a new line of web-connected printers from HP to feature ePrint, the ability to email messages with attachments (Microsoft Office documents, PDFs and JPEG image files to name a few) to the printer from any device including smartphones and tablets -- no driver or app required. That's a pretty big deal. The $99 802.11n WiFi inkjet features a 2.36-inch touchscreen and prints at a rate of up to 29 ppm black (at up to 600 dpi) and up to 23 ppm color (at up to 4800 x 1200 dpi on photo paper). Scans are captured at resolutions up to 1,200 dpi (optical). It also prints directly off the web or via USB and SD / MemoryStick Duo cards if that's your thing. Sorry, no fax in this all-in-one but it is PC and Mac compatible and will work with Google's forthcoming Cloud Print service when Google sets it free in the fall. Expect to see higher-end printers from the e-All-in-One series launch in the next few months including the $149 Plus e-All-in-One with 3.5-inch display (worldwide in August), $199 Premium e-All-in-One with 4.3-inch display (worldwide in September), and $299 Premium Fax All-in-One (worldwide in September) with, you guessed it, integrated fax.
