By Kara Soos
Review Roundup: Zink Technology Shrinks the PoGo Printer Into the Palm of Your Hand
The name Polaroid conjures images of excited young children shaking blank pictures until the film magically exposes (or if you're younger images of that Outkast video). Fast forward thirty odd years and thanks to the magic of asset sales, the name Polaroid lives on even though the original company no longer does. This time around, Polaroid is selling a portable photo printer that fits in the palm of your hand — PoGo. No shaking required.
The teeny PoGo printer marks the first to use of Zink's zero-ink technology, which we first covered way back in January 2007. To put it simply, the Zink technology embeds dye crystals right on the paper, which the printer head heats up and brings to life. With the PoGo, you can print photos from your camera phone via Bluetooth — or from a PictBridge-enabled digital camera via USB.
Now that the PoGo printer has finally shipped, we felt compelled to report on all the reviews out there, both amateur and professional.
PC World: Kids and Real Estate Agents Will Love It
"In the end, the PoGo's appeal lies in its mobility and its near-instantaneous picture production. Teens and tweens, in particular, will love this feature; and casual users and business folks (for example, real-estate agents who want to print pics of specific rooms for clients without delay) may appreciate PoGo's portability," says Melissa J. Perenson of PC World.
Gizmodo: We Hate Most Gadgets, But We Like the PoGo
"[T]he pictures are dry as soon as they develop, and you NEVER replace ink or toner cartridges. The prints are also waterproof, tear and fade resistant, and have an adhesive backing so you can stick them anywhere," comments Benny Goldman of Gizmodo.
Stuff.TV: Fun Though Flawed
"The print quality isn't the sharpest we've seen, but for pure convenience and, dare we say it, fun, it's great value. Even the paper ... is a lot cheaper than traditional instant film," writes Stuff.TV.
RISMedia: Bluetooth Phone Compatibility Not Complete (No iPhone)
"I was disappointed that it does not work with all Bluetooth phones. Jon Pollock, a Polaroid spokesman, said the PoGo is compatible with about 80 percent of the Bluetooth phones sold during the past two years. I tested it with 11 phones and was able to print from only five of them. One phone that's noticeably absent from the list of compatible phones on Polaroid's Web site is the Apple iPhone," lamented Etan Horowitz of RISMedia.
Wired: Uhm, We Told You Not to Shake It
"The heat-sensitive paper is well, rather sensitive. After my colleague printed out a pic of a Ferrari, he instinctively started shaking it to make it develop. Although the image was fully baked, the tight grip of his thumb and forefinger on the thermal paper actually discolored it slightly. Word to the wise: If you scoop up a PoGo, keep your shots away from moderate heat," advises Daniel Dumas of Wired.
Pixelated Image: Short Battery Life But One of a Kind
"Battery life could be longer, print quality could be much better, but if you NEED something like this — there's nothing else like it," acknowledges David duChemin of Pixelated Image.
jC Photography: The PoGo Has Hipster Written All Over It
"Think of this as really the new Polaroid print ... unexpected saturated colors with imperfect photos in general. I'd say its imperfections in terms of image quality is aesthetically cool," according to JJ Casas of jC Photography.
Tracy and Matt's Blog: Photos in Your Pocket
"[The PoGo prints] aren't going to compete with specialist photographic services or even the larger inkjet photo printers that you can buy these days but you have to remember this is a printer that fits in your pocket! When you consider that you can produce prints practically anywhere and any time then you begin to see where this little gadget will find its market," concedes Matt of Tracy and Matt's Blog.
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