The Best Portable Photo Printers
Are you that friend who always takes a million pictures because you love displaying them all over your home and office? If so, then you definitely need a portable photo printer in your life. Much more compact and lightweight than a regular photo printer, this type of printer is designed to be easy to use and easy to transport everywhere, making it a total breeze to print high-quality photos right from your Android or iPhone. Of course, not all mini-photo printers are created equal; some print higher-quality photos, boast better connectivity and have more options for filters and frames than others. To help you make the most informed buying decision possible, we've rounded up the best of the best in portable photo printers.
Kodak Portable Photo Printer
Brilliant, bold, and detailed
The Kodak Portable Photo Printer is hands down, one of the coolest portable photo printers around. With nifty one-touch printing, you can print all your favorite photos directly from your smartphone. And the photos it produces are always high-quality, vibrant in color, and stunning in detail. Unlike with other mini-photo printers, the photos don’t run or bleed easily (a must-have feature). And, not to mention, the dock design is very innovative: it’s a charger and printer, all in one, so you can power up your smart devices while printing photos. Gone are the days when you had to transfer files to a computer or memory card. With this sleek, portable printer, all you have to do is plug in your Android or iPhone, press a button, and let the photo-printing magic begin.
Pros:
- One-touch printing is extremely convenient and an underrated feature of this printer.
- Despite it’s small size, this printer prints truly high-quality photos in brilliant color and detail.
- We absolutely love that the photos don’t bleed or fade, thanks to the D2T2 thermal transfer technology.
Cons:
- Unfortunately, this printer only prints photos in one size (4″ x 6″).
KiiPix Portable Photo Printer
Quality at half the cost
Boasting a fun, retro-fabulous design and full-scale functionality, the KiiPix Portable Photo Printer may be affordably priced, but it’s of a similar caliber as the more premium options. Apart from being an excellent value buy, this printer is super-easy to take with you on the go, since it neatly folds up flat and doesn’t require batteries or cords. It also allows you to edit and add fun filters to your photos, and the credit card size is perfect for your wallet or fridge. It also makes great gift photos. Talk about making forever memories.
Pros:
- We love how affordable this printer is, especially considering how good of a job it does at printing photos.
- Instantly producing Polaroid-style photos from your smartphone is a really fun feature, and helps set this printer apart.
Cons:
- There’s definitely a learning curve when it comes to operating this printer, and may require you to turn your phone’s brightness all the way up before printing.
Fujifilm Instax Smartphone Printer
Bring your photos to life
Impressively, the Fujifilm Instax Smartphone Printer can print any photo from your phone in just 12 seconds and can even print photos from your videos. This printer is also great to have on hand if you have a big batch of photos that you’ve been meaning to print since 100 photos can be printed continuously on a full charge. It’s also very easy to use, allowing you to zoom in or out, make collages and split prints, and easily customize your photos with up to 30 colorful frames. Not too shabby.
Pros:
- The wide variety of color options that this smartphone printer is available in is a huge plus. There’s nothing like a little color coordinating or accessorizing in your favorite colors.
- Being able to print wirelessly is huge, and this printer’s Bluetooth capability is perfect at producing pictures on the go.
- You can add fun frames, filters, and other adjustments to all your photos before printing, helping contribute to a fun experience every time you use it.
Cons:
- You do have to be very careful not to take the paper out of the printer until the photo is finished.
Canon Compact Photo Printer
Oh-so-sleek and tech-savvy
Easily one of the best portable photo printing tools that money can buy, the Canon Compact Photo Printer is your ticket to accessible, high-quality photos that can be printed on the fly, from anywhere. Unlike with most other mini-photo printers, with this Canon model, you can choose between multiple size options for photos: 4 x 6 inches, a 2.1 x 2.1-inch square, and even sticker paper. The sleek user interface makes this printer easy to use, with its intuitive control panel and tilting 3.2-inch LCD screen. Handily, you also have several printing options, so you can print photos from your phone using AirPrint, a memory card, and even Facebook and Instagram.
Pros:
- We really like the compact size of this photo printer, and feel like it’s the perfect middle-ground for the category.
- The wireless printing capabilities of this printer saves you the hassle of having to swap out different cables for different phones.
Cons:
- The price point of this printer may be a turn-off for some people.
Our Tips and Tricks
Printing out photos from portable printers isn’t always the easiest experience. To help make it better, we recommend resizing the photos to the appropriate size of your printer before trying to print them. For many portable printers, that size is 4″ x 6″, but you should double check with the one that you purchase. For people who want to be able to print on the go, find a printer that has wireless capabilities, such as Bluetooth connectivity. This will save you the time from having to set up the appropriate cables, or from having to make sure that you packed them with you every time you take your portable printer with you. Lastly, we recommend practicing with your printer at home when it first arrives; often there are a series of steps that you should follow to help make the printing process much smoother, and knowing what that process is will save you a massive headache when you’re in a hurry.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do portable photo printers print the same-quality photos as regular printers?
Yes, some portable printers are capable of producing the same-quality photos as traditional-sized printers, but the biggest difference is that many of them print smaller photos than the standard 4 x 6-inch or 5 x 7-inch prints.
Do I have to download an app to use a portable photo printer?
Some portable photo printers require that you download an app while others do not. Most options can connect to your smartphone via Bluetooth, so you can print photos super-quickly.
Why Trust Us
With the constantly shifting landscape in the world of technology, GameRevolution seeks to provide gamers and tech-enthusiasts with the information they need to select the right products for their needs. Since 1996, our experts have used their knowledge on all the latest gadgets – everything from headphones to standing desks – to help millions of people navigate specs and answer common questions.