72 of 81 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
The new Epson PictureMate Snap vs the older PictureMate Deluxe, December 15, 2006
This review is from: Epson PictureMate Snap 4x6 Photo Printer (Office Product)
I just puchased the PictureMate Flash which is the same as the Snap except it has a built in CD burner. After corresponding with Epson I will probably be returning the Flash. According to Epson Web Support the new PictureMates have gone back to using dye based inks and use 4 color inks. I quote from Mark A of the Epson Connection "The new PictureMates, which includes the Flash all use dye based inks and are four color".
Epson now advertises about the prints from the new PictureMates in the following way "Best of all, prints from PictureMate Snap will last generations, and longer than traditional, film-processed photos. Each print is smudge, scratch, water and fade resistant for convenient, worry free handling."
Whereas the replaced PictureMate Deluxe used 6 color inks that according to Epson are "Then, print using superior 6-color archival pigment inks, for photos that will stay brilliant for years longer than any other digital printing option. In fact, they outlast traditional film-processed photos as much as 2-4 times longer. And, they last longer than prints from other dedicated 4" x 6" photo printers by as much as 25 times¹. All this, and they're even water and smudge-proof for worry-free handling."
In short the older PictureMate Deluxe used 6 color pigment ink that is "water and smudge-proof for worry-free handling" while the new PictureMates use 4 dye inks which are "smudge, scratch, water and fade resistant for convenient, worry free handling".
The older PictureMate prints are claimed to be "water and smudge-proof" the new PictureMate prints are "smudge.. and water resistant".
Is this a big deal, I think it is. If your like me, I like to display my pictures on the refrigerator and show them around at the dinner table when we go out to eat. No longer are the pictures water proof and dye inks fade quicker in the sunlight then do pigmented inks.
In the past when Epson printers were the only pigmented ink 4X6" photo printers I would recommend them hands down over the dye ink printers because of the permanence of the prints, now Epson has gone back to dye inks and 4 colors. I would check out other manufactures before buying an Epson portable snap shot printer because many of the other manufactures offer more conveniences such as printing both 5"X7" and 4"X6" and now offer as good if not better picture quality.
The PicureMate Deluxe as of today December 15, 2006 is still offered by Epson on line with an instant rebate bringing the price to $89.99 an excellant buy for an excellant printer.
The Epson PictureMate Deluxe with its 6 pigmented inks produced great color long lasting sharp prints. My wife loves the simplicity and ease of use and the GREAT pictures the PictureMate Deluxe produces. If you want great prints that won't fade easily in daylight get one of the PictureMate Deluxes before they are gone.
In favor of the new PictureMate Snap and Flash they are said to have the ability to take red eye out without using a computer, a nice feature if you are using your flash on a point and shoot camera to take pictures.
I have not tested this feature on my new Flash and it would be interesting to know if anyone has experience using the red eye removal feature.
I have given the new PictureMates a 3 rating because I now find them to be on average with other comparable printers, unlike the predecessor PictureMate Deluxe which I would rate as a 5 because its pigmented ink was far superior over other manufactures using dye inks.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great little printer, March 6, 2007
This review is from: Epson PictureMate Snap 4x6 Photo Printer (Office Product)
I've had this printer for almost a month and just love it. I've already printed over 130 photos on it and they look great. The things I like about this printer are:
-small & light (I took it to my parents one day and printed out photos we took right there and then for them.)
-can print 3 ways: directly from printer with memory card, by attaching the camera to it or hooking up the printer to the computer
-great quality prints
-allows you to add borders and print wallet size photos
-print packs come with paper and ink so you are not running out of one or the other
This is a great printer for scrapbookers since you can print the photos you need right away. I use it to print pictures of my son that I send to family and friends.
The only negative experience I had with this printer was after I used the intial cartridge that came with it and replaced it with a new one. The first few pictures I printed came out with lines so I had to clean the print heads. I ended up having to clean them 3 times in a row before it started printing correctly. I was a little disappointed since at that time I had only used it for 2 days and printed about 20 photos on it. I haven't had any issues since and I've printed quite a bit on it and plan to do alot more. This is a great little printer that prints excellent quality prints.
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Convenient, good output, but deficient, April 22, 2007
This review is from: Epson PictureMate Snap 4x6 Photo Printer (Office Product)
It is easy to use and produces good output but it has one fault that may be a deal killer for some. It does not recognize SD cards of over 1 GB. I thought it was DOA when it wouldn't recognize my SD card, so I called Tech Support. They said that that's just the way it is. This "feature" wasn't mentioned in any reviews or writeups. Who wants to limit themselves to 1 GB cards anymore? I won't return it because who knows what undocumented "features" the competition has - but I'm not real happy!
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