Dell Wasabi (Print on inkless paper)

[castwind]

Hi all,
Saw that there is a new mobile printer from Dell, named Wasabi, and that it prints without ink. The magic is in the crystals inside the paper. I thought it might be useful to carry around and show others what I had just taken. I think you can also just connect an USB cable from your camera to the printer and the printer will just print (Pictbridge).

So will you buy it? Why not?
Some links to it: Dell website




How useful do you think this product is for events? I can imagine bringing 5 of these to an event and print on the spot for the customers.

[serametin]

seem like a cool gadget to get.

but the only thing that i wish for, is to have a bigger size of the print instead of 2" x 3" (50 x 76.2mm).

[castwind]

Oh yah... bigger prints are always good. But I think this is meant to be a fun product, and they made the paper to be sticker based, so you can print and paste it in your scrapbook, or something like that...

[edesign]

this is something that have came up before from
polaroid pogo and fujifilm pivi. but its still cool tho!

[castwind]

I think I will get one... Can bring to party and print....

[edesign]

Originally Posted by castwind I think I will get one... Can bring to party and print....

do you think there is a sample for people to look at?

[cflee]

Hmm, it's about 40-50¢ per print at 2x3".

The bigger problem is that it's only up to 15 prints per battery charge!

[fatjp]

Where to buy the paper. I cant find in dell website.

[Umeiko]

This looks really cool!! I can bring it along when I travel to rural area and can print out the photos to give to the people whom I took their portraits! Lovely!

[castwind]

Hi cflee, yes, the cost per print is 40-50cts.

Hi fatjp, I think they missed out on the paper. Idiots! But I like idiots and will give them chances. Quite a strong supporter of Dell, have their laptops and monitor at home. =) Will write to them and see how long they take to fix this mistake. I am going to order one, but only after they fixed the problem...

[hannson]

Here's pricing I found on their website:

Dell (TM) Wasabi Photo Paper - 2 Pack (24 Sheets) [add $11.77]

Dell (TM) Wasabi Photo Paper - 4 Pack (48 Sheets) [add $20.33]

Dell (TM) Wasabi Photo Paper - 8 Pack (96 Sheets) [add $37.45]

Which works out to between: S$0.39 to S$0.49, excluding depreciation costs of the Wasabi unit.

[hannson]

More info:

Limitations of Printing With the Wasabi PZ310 Mobile Printer


Obviously, the Wasabi is designed for fun on-the-spot printmaking and isn't intended for serious high-quality photography. With that in mind, there are some very specific limitations to using the printer that you should keep in mind when evaluating the results of your photographs.

File Size and Type

The Wasabi can only print JPEG images and they cannot be any larger than 12 megabytes in size. This should accomodate most all cell phone cameras but it may be necessary to limit the size of your photos or download them to a computer and re-size them before printing.

Proportion and Shape

The Wasabi prints on Dell-branded Zink photographic paper which is 3 inches by 2 inches. The image will be printed to fit on that paper size and may be cropped by the printer in order to fit. You may need to compose your cell phone pictures to allow space for the printer to crop the image. This cropping will usually occur along the long edge of your cell phone pictures, if it occurs at all.

[hannson]

More info:

Nearest competitor could be SELPHY CP780 which prints bigger (for 4"x6" photos).. but if portability is your thing Wasabi sounds good... because it's about 8 times smaller (excluding charger).


Battery and Charger seems like a pain though:

Apparently the battery lasts for 15 shots
each picture takes about 30 secs to print (Selphy CP780 will print 4R in under 50 seconds)



Tech Specs
Capacity ....................Weight
450 mAh ....................1 Oz

Average Run Time ....................Battery
15 Prints per charge ....................450 mAh Battery

Dimensions (WxDxH) ....................Product Type
2.25" x 1.18" x 0.43" ....................Laptop Battery

Recharge Time ....................Technology
1 Hour ...............................Li Polymer

Voltage Provided ....................Max Recharge Cycles
7.4 V ........................................500



Charger dimension is: (3-3/8" x 2-3/4" x 1-1/4")

[Trillium]

Wow, thanks for the detailed battery specs of Wasabi.

It seems like Wasabi designed for portability. Maybe that's why they compromised on battery performance.

As mentioned by Umeiko, in rural areas, it would be nice to be able to give the person a picture you just took (kids, old people). I think they would love it! Well worth the $0.50 for the cost of the paper.

Too bad my DSLR doesn't have bluetooth which means I need to bring a USB cable along (along with a spare battery)...

[engr]

But the batt is big problem man.. nice gadget really. I wouldnt mind having one too. Oh, but there is a DC jack so it might be possible to operate on AC to Dc pwr.

[Umeiko]

Originally Posted by Trillium Wow, thanks for the detailed battery specs of Wasabi. It seems like Wasabi designed for portability. Maybe that's why they compromised on battery performance. As mentioned by Umeiko, in rural areas, it would be nice to be able to give the person a picture you just took (kids, old people). I think they would love it! Well worth the $0.50 for the cost of the paper. Too bad my DSLR doesn't have bluetooth which means I need to bring a USB cable along (along with a spare battery)...

$0.50 is worth it. I always wanted to give them their photo because they are so obliging and will pose for you.

The only problem with Wasabi could be, I don't know how to tell them they have to wait for 30s for the photo to print (language barrier). :P

[shahrulesa]

The price is cheaper buying from Malaysia. RM509. Around SGD210. I guess less the GST

[hannson]

Originally Posted by Umeiko $0.50 is worth it. I always wanted to give them their photo because they are so obliging and will pose for you. The only problem with Wasabi could be, I don't know how to tell them they have to wait for 30s for the photo to print (language barrier). :P

easy as you're printing.. go greet them and talk about the weather.. by then... it's printed

30s is not too long if you say hi.. my name is.. xxx.. and i'm from... xxxx... thanks for letting me take your photo.. i'm sure you look great... etc etc

[hannson]

Originally Posted by engr But the batt is big problem man.. nice gadget really. I wouldnt mind having one too. Oh, but there is a DC jack so it might be possible to operate on AC to Dc pwr.

interesting!!! with a DC jack.. there are possibilities for external power supply

but still.. it's going to be quite limited.. have to be selective on who you give the photos to

[hannson]

Originally Posted by Trillium Wow, thanks for the detailed battery specs of Wasabi. It seems like Wasabi designed for portability. Maybe that's why they compromised on battery performance. As mentioned by Umeiko, in rural areas, it would be nice to be able to give the person a picture you just took (kids, old people). I think they would love it! Well worth the $0.50 for the cost of the paper. Too bad my DSLR doesn't have bluetooth which means I need to bring a USB cable along (along with a spare battery)...

i think u're right.. it's going to be tough to power up something and yet.. keep it portable.. which means.. a shorter battery life.. very tough decision...