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Tomy xiao digital camera has built in Zink printer, the spirit of Polaroids
Like just about everyone else, we miss the Polaroid film format; maybe it's just nostalgia, but we enjoyed having something we could hold on to (and shake) after taking a picture. Polaroids may be dead, but the basic concept lives on -- remember Zink, that company whose technology prints digital photos on the spot without ink? It's joined forces with toy-maker Tomy to make the xiao TIP-521, a digital camera with a printer built in. The xiao has a modest five megapixel resolution, so we might wait and see how Polaroid's own Zink camera turns out, but in either case we're stoked the tactile experience is back.[Via Market Watch]
Zink portable printer camera shipping late 2007
We're still not entirely convinced how effective Zink's portable digital camera / printer combo will be, but at least now we have an expected ship date. Zink has updated their site to say that their "digital polaroid" will be shipping in late 2007, which will hopefully mean a fall release date. Zink has also released some of the Integrated Digital Camera and Printer's specifications, which aren't altogether that interesting -- it has a 7 Megapixel CCD, 2-inch display, and SD memory card slot, just so ya know. All we care about is how good the printer is on this chunky combo unit.[Thanks, Piper]
ZINK bringing printers to your handheld gadgetry
Although you probably haven't shaken a Polaroid picture in quite some time, a bit of that allure is reportedly headed to your handhelds, as Massachusetts-based ZINK looks to deliver a pocket-sized printer that can be "embedded in any device" and shoot out photos sans ink. The sensational sounding product will initially be used to print 2- x 3-inch color photographs, and interestingly enough, won't require a single drop of liquid to form the images. In ZINK's system (another pic after the break), "images are created when a heated printer head comes into contact with a sheet of specialized paper," which is actually a polymer containing three crystalline layers. Varying temperatures and pressure points create the pixels of color, and just in case you figure out your latest printout doesn't showcase your eye color as well as you'd hoped, it's recyclable. The company's first offerings will likely be offered in a $99 standalone format or as a $199 camera / printer hybrid, while the snazzy paper will run you $19.95 for a pack of one hundred, but we're definitely holding off on this here invention until we see just how impressive (or not) the printed results actually are. [Warning: PDF read link][Via CNET]
Brother's MPrint MW-260: boring B&W printing in the palm of your hand
While those compact photo printers are all well and good, they don't really compete with the incredible amount of teensy tiny in this new MPrint MW-260 from Brother. Fortunately for them, they do something useful, while MPrint can only churn out black & white A6 papers of questionable value. We're sure the enterprising businessman or resourceful secret agent could find a use for the thing, especially with Bluetooth, IrDA and USB connectivity, and compatibility with PCs and several flavors of Windows Mobile, but we'll probably just stick with writing things on our arms for now. Specs aren't shabby though: 300dpi, 20ppm, 0.73-inches thick. No word on price or availability, but it's unlikely we'll be seeing this one outside of Japan.
