It seems like portable printers will be the next, err, big thing. Japanese manufacturer Brother Industries announced the new MW-260 MPrint portable mobile printer, a super-thin printer that can print on A6-sized sheets over Infrared or Bluetooth, apart from wired USB interface.

The MW-260 printer boasts a 300 dpi x 300 dpi resolution and weighs in at just 550 grams. It is compatible with several operating systems including Windows 2000/XP/Vista and Windows Mobile 5.0.

The package includes a USB cable and AC adaptor. Expect the MW-260 MPrint portable printer to hit the markets in March 2007. The pricing info is not available yet.

Fujifilm unveiled the new Pivi MP-300 Mini Printer. About the size of your palm, the MP-300 can print out card-sized photos in under two minutes.

This compact printer supports PictBridge, so you can connect your compatible digital camera over USB or Infrared. The Fujifilm Pivi MP-300 Mini Printer is available for US $127.

Well known Phillips, at a recent prototype event in London called Simplicity, showcased the Drag and Draw; a tool designed for children for “painting” on walls using a “magic” brush, eraser, wand and laser projection bucket.
The laser bucket, follows the outline made by the specially designed pen; resulting in creativity without the mess, letting your child’s inner Picasso; bloom.

Via Phillips

Samsung has attained the second position among world’s laser printer engine manufacturers. It’s recently launched CLP-300 Series color laser printers are available to users now and ready for shipment. If you don’t have any space for the typical color laser printers, you can get the benefits of color printing by these smallest color laser printers that weigh only 30 pounds. The dimensions of the printers are 15.4" w x 13.5" d x 10.4" h.

To get affordable print outs at a relatively higher speed purchase your CLP-300. You can use these printers anywhere: at home, small/big business concerns. Even the students who are using ink jet color printers will love to use CLP-300 and CLP-300N Desktop Printers. Not only has their compactness allured people but its technology has also made it easier for a layman to use them.

There are feature easy to install toner bottles in the place of larger awkward cartridges. These elegantly designed two-tone printers feature beautiful color prints along with quieter operation. To use the printer is a child’s play. The Printer offers a print speed of 17 ppm black and white / 4 ppm color. It takes less than 14 seconds / 26 seconds (from Ready) to print out the first page (both in color and black).

Taking the meaning of a portable printer to the next level, Epson and design firm Industrial Facility have unveiled a new series of portable color printers called Colorio, and these printers run on batteries. The printer features a lid that doubles up as a paper tray, which is neat.

A hidden area behind the paper exit door reveals a plethora of memory card interfaces - for up to 19 types of cards. The printer is equipped with a 2" or 2.5" LCD that lets you preview images before printing.

IR printing from mobiles is also possible, and Bluetooth is available as an upgrade. The three models currently available in Japan are Epson Colorio E-300, E-500 and E-700. No word on its availability in other markets.

The new Epson PM-T990 Printer is an extremely nifty device as it lets one print high quality photo prints with complete ease. The T900 is also able to scan images making it truly multi-functional. One doesn’t need to be restricted to their digicams when it comes to printing images and the T-990 can also be hooked up to personal computers (via USB) and even television sets which is pretty rare.

The T990 is no ordinary printer as you see. It can also serve as an external storage device once hooked to a PC. One can also make CD labels with ease and the Color Rio technology ensures enhanced performance. One also comes across a small LCD which lets you preview and select images and it is compatible with PictBridge devices as well. No word on pricing or availability but looks like it shall remain in Japan for a while. For more info head over to the Epson Page

Brother International Corporation has launched a new printer which is a part of their Multi-Function Center line. The new MFC-845cw promises to be the ultimate wireless solution as it has built-in Ethernet, wireless 802.11b/g connectivity and 5.8GHz digital cordless handset technology, under its hood. The MFC-845cw is capable of color printing, color copying, color scanning, color faxing, PC Fax send and PhotoCapture Center technology (media card slots and Pict-Bridge interface).

Thanks to the onboard wireless capabilities one can hook the printer to a wireless router and share printing, scanning, faxing and media card access with everyone who is connected to the network. One great addition by Brother is the integration of a 5.8GHz digital cordless handset which gives users total flexibility and one doesn’t need to be chained to their printers for making calls!

The MFC-845cw has a print speed of up to 27ppm black and 22ppm color and it can print resolutions of up to 6000 x 1200 dots per inch (dpi). The photo tray can hold 100 sheets of letter or legal paper and 20 sheets of 4" x 6" photo paper. The printer also sports a 2.5" flip-up color LCD display and it also includes an Answering Machine and a Speakerphone. The printer will be available from October and would retail for around $249.99. For more info visit: http://www.brother.com/

After Pal and Snap now its! No these are not the latest crop of superheroes but are actually the new printers in the Epson PictureMate Series. The PictureMate Flash combines all the functionality of the PictureMate Pal and Snap and has some additional features to boost.

The PictureMate Flash has connectivity options like WiFi and Bluetooth (via an optional adapter) and also supports PictBridge devices. Thanks to the MicroPiezo(R) archival printing technology one is ensured of vibrant and long lasting prints which are smudge, scratch, and water resistant. Like all the models in the series this one too is equipped with a 2" premium photo viewer with a built-in tilt to view and preview the images before printing. The new printer is capable enough to print images in various sizes like U.S. passport size, jumbo wallet, 2" x 2", 3" x 3", CD proof sheets and portrait packages.

The new PictureMate Flash also offers the consumer the ability to save photos from a memory card to a CD via a built-in CD burner. This is quite a handy feature and the in-built burner separates it from the rest of the pack. Thanks to this one doesn’t need a computer for printing images and the burner can also read photos from both CDs and DVDs. Other features found on the printers include; cropping via the screen and crop buttons, images in color, black and white or sepia tones, Disney frame photo borders featuring favorite Disney characters and the Print by Date mode where one can select and print images date wise. The PictureMate Flash will also see a September release and would retail for $299. For additional info head over here

Another new PictureMate printer too debut very soon is the Epson PictureMate Snap which is a higher model when compared to the PictureMate Pal and has some additional features. This one too uses the MicroPiezo(R) archival printing technology and supports all kinds of PictBridge devices. One will also come across a 2" premium photo viewer with a built-in tilt to view and preview the images before printing and can also hook it up with Bluetooth devices via a wireless adapter.

The PictureMate Snap lives up to its name and prints 4x6 photos in as fast as 45 seconds! For some fun you can experiment via the various special modes like decorative Disney frame photo borders featuring favorite Disney characters. Another nifty feature is the Print by Date mode where one can select and print images date wise. Since this is a step up model this one has some exclusive and handy features like one-touch red eye removal, and WiFi connectivity.

The new Epson printer lets one indulge in unlimited cropping via the screen and crop buttons. One is also able to print images in various sizes like U.S. passport size, jumbo wallet, 2" x 2", 3" x 3", CD proof sheets and portrait packages (4 or 10 photos to a page). One can print their images in color, black and white or sepia tones. This one would be available soon and would retail for $199. For more info head over to the Product Page

Epson America Inc today launched three printers which are perfect for home usage and are a part of the highly successful PictureMate(R) Personal Photo Lab Family Series by Epson. We shall look at all the printers and let’s begin with the PictureMate Pal. This new model may just be your best pal (sorry for the pun!) as it offers both convenience and functionality.

The PictureMate Pal like all PictureMate printers uses MicroPiezo(R) archival printing technology for vibrant and long lasting prints which are smudge, scratch, and water resistant. The printer also supports PictBridge devices and is compact enough to be carried anywhere. This one is quite a speed devil and can print 4" x 6" photos in just 60 seconds. Via the onboard auto photo correction feature one is able to get accurate tones and the results are much faster when compared to an ordinary printer.

As a bonus the printer includes a 2" premium photo viewer with a built-in tilt to view and preview the images before printing. It also supports Bluetooth printing via an optional adapter and includes a number of layout options like BorderFree(R) 4"x 6" photos, photos with classic borders, traditional wallet-sized photos, mini wallets, and proof sheets. One can print their images in color, black and white or sepia tones. The PictureMate Pal will be available soon and would retail for $149. For more info check out Product Page

Dell unveiled its Dell Photo All-in-One 946 Printer recently which is versatile enough to appeal to a larger demographic. Be it students, professionals or even home users, the new portable printer will appeal to all thanks to its ability to scan, copy, fax functions and print speeds of up to 25 pages per minute (ppm) mono and up to 19 ppm(1) color.

Thanks to its portability one wont be restricted and can take the printer along them Dell ensures professional print quality results even when it comes to brochures and flyers. The 946 moonlights as a fax too and is equipped with a 50-sheet auto document feeder. One can also indulge in some wireless printing in conjunction with Wi-Fi-enabled Dell notebook computers and the optional Dell Wireless Printer Adapter 3300.

The Photo 946 Portable Printer can easily print up greeting cards and sharp photos from a digital camera without using a PC. In fact one can also print screenshots of their favorite games or other images and can create skins for their notebook computer lids. It is now available for $139 and the optional Dell Wireless Printer Adapter 3300 retails for $99. For more info visit: Dell

Dell has announced the availability of the new Intel Core 2 Duo processor in all XPS and Precision mobile workstations as well as select Inspiron and Latitude notebook systems. Since the Core 2 Duo processor is pin compatible with the Core Duo processor, manufacturers can easily upgrade systems without needing new system designs.

The following Dell systems will now offer the Intel Core 2 Duo processor immediately:

We talked about the CP720 Portable Printer and now let’s look at the Canon SELPHY CP730 Portable Printer which is a more advanced printer. The CP730 has a 2 inch LCD and is a perfect solution for those who are on the go. The printer is equipped with a high resolution 2 inch LCD and a 300 x 300 dpi (256 gradations/color) resolution. The printer measures 178.0 x 131.0 x 63.0 mm and weighs just below 1 kg!

Print Sizes include: Postcard Size, Large Size, Card Size and Wide Size and one also comes across some handy features like Trimming Mode, ID Phone Mode, Movie Print Mode, Print Effect Mode, Borderless Image Mode and My Colors Mode. It comes bundled with the following accessories: Paper Cassette, Standard Sheet/Ink Cassette, Compact POWER Adapter, POWER Cord, Cleaner Stick and a CP Printer Solution Disk.
No word on pricing or availability.

Website

Canon Imaging has launched another portable printer for its loyal consumers. The Canon SELPHY CP720 Portable Photo Printer sports a 1.5 inch color LCD and a 300 x 300 dpi (256 gradations/color) resolution. Since my knowledge of the Japanese language is limited, forgive me for the sketchy details. It can print images in different modes and sizes like :Postcard Size, Large Size, Card Size and Wide Size.

The printer measures 178.0 x 125.0 x 63.0 mm and weighs about 930 grams. It comes bundled with the following accessories: # Paper Cassette, Standard Sheet/Ink Cassette, Compact POWER Adapter, POWER Cord, Cleaner Stick and a CP Printer Solution Disk. No word on pricing or availability.

Website

Once again, XtremeMac has figured out ways for its IPod users to get more power. This time, it favors those who travel worldwide. Now available are the InCharge Traveler global charging kit and the Micropack portable battery and media dock.

The InCharge Traveler is designed for those who travel overseas. If you’re going to Europe, for example, you can use the InCharge on any outlet, and it will automatically adjust for 120 or 240 volts. As you go along in your car, you can use the 12V charger on the lighter. You can even recharge on the plane ride with the Empower adapter. All these chargers and four different adaptors come in a soft travel pouch.

The MicroPack is designed with a Lithium Polymer battery that can carry 80 hrs of audio play time, or 8 hours of video play time. The MicroPack can be recharged from any iPod charging station, and can sync and charge the iPod with Apple USB or FireWire cable. It comes with a carrying case, along with dual headphone jacks with individual volume control. So if you’re on a long flight with someone else, just put your iPod in its MicroPack between the two of you and enjoy the music or video!

These new products sound like good news for travelers who don’t want their iPod batteries to run out. The only snag would be that these products are so new, they might not be recognized by airport security. In an age where liquids are being confiscated, these products might be under scrutiny as well. So as you go through security, expect your InCharge Traveler or MicroPack carrying case to be inspected!

The InCharge Traveler is about $79.95 and can be viewed at the product’s website at: http://www.xtrememac.com/chargers/incharge.php.

The MicroPack is about $99.95 and can be view at the product’s website at: http://www.xtrememac.com/chargers/micropack.php.

With the advent of the digital photography revolution, portable printers are the next logical step. Kodak has added another portable printer in its growing portfolio and this one too promises to complement all the current crop of digital cameras. The new KODAK EASYSHARE G600 Printer Dock not only has an extremely compact form factor but also has a built-in handle to make it more travel friendly. The printer dock includes smart paper tray storage and can run on batteries too!

With a touch of a single button one can print images anywhere, anytime. In fact Kodak claims that the images can be printed in 60 seconds top! So it’s Print In 60 Seconds! Batteries can be recharged in 3 hours of time and the G600 can also be hooked up with PICTBRIDGE enabled devices and IMAGELINK print system compatible digital cameras. The printer sports a new G-series photo paper kit which is able to deliver top quality 100 borderless 10x15 cm (4”x 6”) prints. One can also print in sizes of 1, 2, 4 or 9 pictures on one 10 x 15 cm (4” x 6”) sheet. It will be available anytime soon and would retail for US $149.95.

Casio Japn is set to launch a new cute line of portable photo printers. The PCP-120 which is expected to go on sale this August 25 can print both photos and postcards. It also comes built in with a keyboard for you type in a one line, haiku which then gets printed onto the photo. 5 calligraphic fonts are available. Layout is also possible via its 3.6-inch LCD display.

The printer doesn't require being hooked up to a computer for it to work. It has a built in card reader that accepts a variety of card formats including SD, MMC, miniSD, CF, xD Picture Card, Memory Stick Pro and Memory Stick Duo. It also can connect directly to a digital camera.

Printing resolution is pretty good at 2400x1200 dpi. The PCP-120 will retail for 50,400 yen later this month. A monochrome version is also expected to be released in October.

via Press Release

This is a new disk title printer from Casio, the CW-E6 which comes with a thermal copying system. It has a printing speed of 8 second with printing width and length of 16mm over 74mm. It will be able to print up to 8 lines of sentence in one swap. Disc Designer software is included in the package. Data will be transfer to the device via USB 2.0 connection and the device printer will do the rest. Don't worry about the supported language; it has a large database of 142,000 supported languages. CW-E6 weights 540 grams with the size of 154 x 126 x 68 mm. It will be available from August 25th with an open price of 10,290Yen which is about USD88.

[via casio]

The HP Photosmart A516 Compact Photo Printer is another printer from the stables of HP which will make its debut very soon. The A516 is extremely portable and compact with dimensions of 220 mm (w) x 113 mm (d) x 117 mm (h). The printer is able to print realistic 4 x 6-inch, passport and panoramic photos anywhere anytime as it weighs less than three pounds and features a 1.5-inch image display which lets you print images without a need of a PC.

The images printed are instant-dry, water-resistant and fade resistant and via the One-touch HP Photo Fix button users can enhance their images by removing red-eye, improving the sharpness, and adjusting settings like brightness, color, and contrast. Thanks to the fold-up design and optional HP Internal Battery one can carry this baby anywhere. The printer is both fast and cost efficient and can print 4 x 6-inch photos in 53 seconds for about 29 cents a print. Not only is the printer PictBridge but one can also print directly from devices like memory cards, iPods, flash drives etc.

The HP Photosmart A516 features the HP 110 Tri-color Inkjet Print Cartridge and one can print images in different modes including passport, 4x6-inch, panorama etc. The printer comes with the critically acclaimed HP Photosmart Essential Software and HP Photosmart Premier Software for editing and enhancing images further. Via the optional HP Bluetooth™ Wireless Printer Adapter one can print directly from camera phones, notebooks or other Bluetooth-enabled devices. The printer is compatible with Microsoft Windows® 98SE, Me, 2000, XP Home, Professional, x64 editions, Mac OS X v 10.3.9 or greater and would be available by August for $99. For more info check out HP

Another compact printer to be unleashed by HP very soon is the HP Photosmart A716 Compact Photo Printer which makes the PC dysfunctional when it comes to printing tasks. This printer too offers ultra portability thanks to the built-in handle and optional battery. The printer also sports a 2.5-inch color display which lets one view, edit, and print photos without a PC. The printer can print in a variety of sizes including passport, wallet size, 4 x 6-inch, 5 x 7-inch, and panorama.

The HP Photosmart A716 Compact Photo Printer is truly unique as it is able to store images thanks to the onboard 4GB of internal memory. The printer has dimensions of 251 mm (w) x 118 mm (d) x 128 mm (h) and weighs around 3.46 lbs. Via the One-touch HP Photo Fix button users can enhance their images by removing red-eye, improving the sharpness, and adjusting settings like brightness, color, and contrast. The printer is both fast and cost efficient and can print 4 x 6-inch photos in 39 seconds for about 29 cents a print. Not only is the printer PictBridge but one can also print directly from devices like memory cards, iPods, flash drives etc.

The HP Photosmart A716 Compact Photo Printer can print images in tones like Antique, sepia and vintage black-and-white and the video function lets you exhibit a slide show and photos and video clips on a TV set via the included remote. Thanks to the onboard memory one can save images to CD/DVDs without a PC by connecting to an external CD/DVD burner via the front USB port.

One can also print images on the new HP CD Tattoo media, and with frames and borders and enhance their images by onboard features like crop, zoom, layout and more. Not only is the printer PictBridge but one can also print directly from devices like memory cards, iPods, flash drives etc. The printer is compatible with Microsoft Windows® 98SE, Me, 2000, XP Home, Professional, x64 editions, Mac OS X v 10.3.9 or greater and would be available by August for $249. For more info check out Press release.

The HP Photosmart A430 Portable Photo Studio Series is a one stop solution to all your printing needs. This complete photo system carries the tagline of ‘snap, touch and share and is able to print brilliant 4 x 6- inch borderless prints anywhere, anytime. The printer has been designed for everyday use and thus has a highly intuitive user interface which includes options for editing, printing, red eye removal etc.

The A430 is able to print wallet size photos, 4 x 6-inch photos or third-party stickers and includes options for cropping and rotating images. The on board One-touch HP Photo Fix button removes photographic nightmares like red-eye, makes blurry images sharper and also improves brightness, color and contrast of images. The A430 is extremely easy to use and one just needs to dock the camera into the printer and then just select the print option. One cool feature is the video function which lets the user exhibit a slide show and photos and video clips on a TV set via the included remote.

The HP Photosmart A430 features the HP 110 Tri-color Inkjet Print Cartridge and comes preloaded with the HP Photosmart Express Software for editing and enhancing the images. Users can also opt for the HP Bluetooth™ Wireless Printer Adapter which lets one print directly from mobile devices like camera phones or other Bluetooth enabled devices. It is compatible with Microsoft Windows® 98SE, Me, 2000, XP Home, Professional, x64 Editions, Mac OS X v 10.3.9 and greater. They would be available by July and the prices range from $229 - $329.

The HP Photosmart A430 Portable Photo Studio Series includes:
HP Photosmart A432 Portable Photo Printer – compatible with all HP Photosmart R- and M-series Digital Cameras
HP Photosmart A433 Portable Photo Studio – ships with the HP Photosmart M425 Digital Camera
HP Photosmart A434 Portable Photo Studio – ships with the HP Photosmart M525 Digital Camera
HP Photosmart A436 Portable Photo Studio – ships with the HP Photosmart M627 Digital Camera

The Sony DPP-FP55 is small enough to be carried everywhere including social gathering like birthdays, anniversary etc and it also features a 2 inch display to make on site editng,zooming etc much more easy. This actually means that now you don’t need a PC to access your digital images and important tasks like red eye removal, cropping, image editing can be done on the printers it self.

If you want a more photo centric printer then you can also opt for the FP35 model as it supports PictBridge (TM) which means that now you can print your precious images directly from the digital camera and no 3rd party software or appliance is needed. Both the printers use the latest Sony technologies to deliver the best possible result. Like all Sony printers these two also use dye-sublimation technology that ensures a continuous coorl tone for each print and produces 256 shades for each of three dye colors -- cyan, magenta and yellow. Each Picture Station print is preserved with SuperCoat 2(TM) laminate which protects photos from fading.

While the Sony DPP-FP55 printer will be available in July for about $150, the Sony DPP-FP35 model will be available in September for about $100. The SVM-F40P Print Pack is available for $25, the SVM-F80P Print Pack is available for $30, and the SVM-F120P Print Pack is available for $35. Both PictureStation models and the Print Packs will be sold online at sonystyle.com, at Sony Style stores (www.sonystyle.com/retail) located in high-end shopping malls throughout the country, and at authorized dealers nationwide.

JVC-Victor has announced the launch of the new JVC SP-A220 series of portable speakers. The SP-A220 comes in four main colors: Blue, Pink, Silver, and White. Further, each colored speaker in turn comes with four changeable body panels.

The JVC A220 is a compact stick-type unit (16.6cm length, 4.0cm diameter, 145 grams) and comes with a convenient carry pouch. It runs on 4 AAs-sized batteries which is sufficient for about 15 hours of playback. There's a built-in amplifier with a bus boost circuit.

The JVC SP-A220 goes on sale on the 1st of February, 2006. Pricing is yet to be announced. Production is slated to be 3000 units per month in the initial phase. A stand is thrown in as part of the package. www.jvc.com

Capable of printing about 92 characters per line, you have the option of printing onto thermal paper or labels. The printer features attractive fonts that can be controlled by software. The company is targeting route delivery and field sales applications, where a portable printer is definitely handy and does the job quickly.

Bluetooth-enabled PDAs and mobile phones can simply pair up with the Advantage BT4 printer and start sending print-jobs. It is priced at US $495, it can be ordered online from Advantage Route System's online store.

Capable of printing about 92 characters per line, you have the option of printing onto thermal paper or labels. The printer features attractive fonts that can be controlled by software. The company is targeting route delivery and field sales applications, where a portable printer is definitely handy and does the job quickly.

Bluetooth-enabled PDAs and mobile phones can simply pair up with the Advantage BT4 printer and start sending print-jobs. It is priced at US $495, it can be ordered online from Advantage Route System's online store.