SnapJet: A portable, open source Polaroid printer for smartphones

Re:SnapJet: A portable, open source Polaroid printer for sma... by joshstrange on Monday November 24, 2014 @03:04PM (#8654452)

Let me start by saying I really like the idea of a portable color picture printer. That said the idea of scanning in a picture I have digitally to print it seems a roundabout way to approach this problem. A few google searches revealed this [0] which is a small printer made by Polaroid to do just that (Note: it's a little older and does not work with iPhone but does work with some Android phones). It's $130 (not though Amazon and not prime) and has 4.5 stars (I skimmed the low reviews and I'd bet SnapJet would suffer from the same issues: battery life, picture quality, streaking after a few uses). It would appear that Polaroid is no longer in the stand-alone mobile printer business as they don't list the product on their site and it's only on reseller/auction sites now.

I find it hard to believe that the team behind SnapJet can deliver a product as good for close to the same price as Polaroid. Also I'd bet that Polaroid had a good reason for pulling the plug on their mobile printers (Demand, quality issues, high printing costs, etc). This seems like a very high risk KS (not that there are a large number of "sure thing" KS projects but still).

Lastly I see no mention of printing over BT/BLE which is the only reason I would buy it.

[0] http://smile.amazon.com/Polaroid-CZA-20011B-Instant-Mobile-P...

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Re:SnapJet: A portable, open source Polaroid printer for sma... by martey on Monday November 24, 2014 @03:44PM (#8654635)

> Lastly I see no mention of printing over BT/BLE which is the only reason I would buy it.

The Kickstarter page - https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/snapjet/snapjet-a-slim-... - has more details:

"We've also included an OLED display, USB, and BLE connectivity. So all the tinkerers and photographers out there can control exposures, hack, and reprogram the SnapJet."

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Re:SnapJet: A portable, open source Polaroid printer for sma... by joshstrange on Monday November 24, 2014 @03:45PM (#8654643)

See my earlier reply on that sentence: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8654227

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Re:SnapJet: A portable, open source Polaroid printer for sma... by kclayton on Monday November 24, 2014 @04:29PM (#8654842)

Hey joshstrange, You can't print over bluetooth--this connectivity is for control of the printer's scanning mechanism. It also allows reprogramming or custom exposures. SnapJet uses an analog method of obtaining the image because it simplifies the device electronics and mechanics. This translates to ease of use and yields good picture quality. It also tackles compatibility issues. Compare its function to the impossible instant lab--this is a similar device that uses a larger lens system instead. SnapJet isn't meant to function exactly like a traditional printer, but instead as an extension for your smartphone to recreate the fun of Polaroid photography. We're also stressing the open source aspect. It's a fun gadget that works in a simple way so people can hack and improve upon it.

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