Epson PictureMate Charm Digital Photo Printer

Portable and easy to use, the Epson PictureMate Charm portable photo printer also puts out some fantastic photo prints. There are some basic on-board photo-editing functions, though a somewhat clunky interface makes them a bit hard to find and understand. Like other portable photo printers, a battery and Bluetooth interface are both optional, which is a shame. I like the internal print cartridge a bit more than the Selphy's dye-sublimation pack, though I preferred the Canon Selphy 790's handy bucket-style case.

If you're looking for a portable photo printer, there are only two decent choices to consider: the Canon Selphy line, or the Epson PictureMate Charm. Though they use different technologies to print (the Selphy 790 uses dye-sublimation while the PictureMate uses a mysterious "Advanced MicroPiezo), they both put out fantastic digital photos.

The Epson PictureMate Charm has an edge in terms of speed, but only slightly. The 4x6 print took 54 seconds to print, while the Selphy took just over a minute (the latter's dye-sublimation printing uses several passes for each photo, while the Charm does it all in one shot). Both have a few on-board photo editing options, such as red-eye removal. The Charm's interface seemed a bit more clunky and it took a few passes through the Menu button to find all the options, compared to the Selphy. The Charm can print without being attached to a computer (it accepts mini-SD cards as well as Memory Stick Duo), and its tiltable LCD screen, while small, was a nice feature to have.

Like the Selphys, it would be great if Epson included the battery and the Bluetooth adapter. If you want to go truly portable, you'll need to spend another $49.99 for the battery and $39.00 for the Bluetooth adapter (both are cheaper than Canon's accessories, though the battery was out of stock at the Epson online store when I checked). Ink and paper come together; on Epson's site a pack cost $37.99 for "about 150 glossy photos." Since the paper is included, I'm not sure what the "about" part is, but I suppose it depends on how fast the printer goes through particular ink colors.

Disclosure: Review samples were provided by the manufacturer. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.