Look ma, no ink! (This is just the coolest)

Polaroid CZA-10011B: A new breed of portable photo printer

(Let’s just call it the PoGo. I had a cat named PoGo once, really.)

One of the problems with lightweight digital photo printers is that they run through ink like crazy. That can really add up fast if you print lots of snapshots. But the Polaroid PoGo uses ZINK technology–which stands for Zero Ink Printing Technology (cute name). Yellow, magenta and cyan dye crystals are embedded right into the paper. Activated by heat, the crystals form prints without a drop of ink.

Just like the old days of “shake & bake” Polaroids, you get a decent quality photo printed out in under a minute–anywhere! Thanks to built-in bluetooth technology, you can pull this baby out of your pocket and wirelessly print 2X3 inch borderless prints of those awesome party pictures sitting on your cell phone. The device itself is smaller than a 3×5 index card and weighs only 8 ounces, which makes it one of the few truly portable photo printers on the market.

The PoGo printer comes with ten sheets of ZINK paper, but that’s not nearly enough once you open the box and start using this nifty tool. So, it’s a good idea to grab several packages when you get your printer. The sheets come out dry. They’re waterproof and smudge-proof. And the best part is you can make them sticky-backed! So you can adhere them directly into a photo album, greeting card or stick them to a business card magnet and hang them on your fridge or locker.

You can use the Polaroid PoGo with your digital camera and many cell phones. Unfortunately, it’s not compatible with all mobile devices on all networks. So, if you’re planning to print pictures from your phone, make sure it’s on the list.

The PoGo is reasonably priced under $50. Shoot, I paid $100 for my old Polaroid camera back in the 80’s. So, this gadget feels like a steal.