August 13, 2007 – Zink Imaging has announced it will release an integrated digital camera and printer product later this year. Zink Enabled products promise to combine a digital camera with a built-in printer for mobile printing on-the-go without the use of ink ribbons or cartridges.
“These first products showcase some of the key advantages of ZINK™ Enabled products - printers small enough to go anywhere, even inside of a digital camera,” states the company website.
The camera-printer has 7-megapixels, a 3x optical zoom lens, and a 2-inch display monitor. The camera has various Scene modes, a flash, an integrated rechargable battery, and accepts SD media. The camera-printer prints full-color 2x3-inch prints onto borderless sticky-back paper using color dye crystals activated by heat.
In January, Zink commissioned a study conducted by Godfrey Research to access the potential for mobile printing in U.S. and Japanese markets. In the study, Zink priced the test concept digital camera-printer at $199 for the camera-printer and $1.69 for a pack of 10 photo paper sheets.
According to Zink, the study showed there is a strong demand for portable printing. “Combined demand in the two countries could total 10 or more than 12 million units,” stated the Zink study.
