Shiny New Gadget Of The Month: Pocket Sized Printer

So, what’s about the size of a deck of cards and prints instant photos from your smartphone – with no ink needed?

Yes, there is such a thing, and if you guessed the new Polaroid Zip, you’d be right.

Selling for $199.99, it prints full-color 2x3-inch prints with an optional peel-off sticky backing. Each print costs about 25 cents and they look okay, all things considered – just don’t expect ink-jet print quality.

How does it not need ink? It uses Polaroid’s Zink zero-ink paper, embedded with cyan, yellow and magenta crystals. They turn into the appropriate colors when activated by a heat process. And since there’s no ink, there’s no stickiness, smearing or waiting for photos to dry.

Connect to your smartphone via Bluetooth, then just shoot and print!