From Michael Carr,
Your Guide to Digital Cameras.
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The Epson PictureMate Dash PM 260 compact photo printer does one thing, and it does it truly well. This miniature, compact "personal photo lab" truly is just that, delivering amazing and impressive 4"x6" photo prints.

On the downside, you'll need to remember to buy your own USB cable if you want to connect to your computer (it isn't in the box). Also, expect to pay $35 to $40 in refill packs featuring both paper and ink, although they do provide either 100 or 150 prints. That means you'll pay 37.5 cents per print for all this convenience.

Epson PictureMate in its Simplicity

The most genius thing about this photo printer is that it focuses on doing one task -- printing gorgeous 4"x6" pictures from your digital camera. Because it isn't worried about distracting things like printing documents or different paper sizes or different paper types, it does that one task amazingly well.

If you are looking for a printer that has lots of bells and whistles and performs a wide variety of printing tasks, this isn't the printer for you.

If, however, you want to take pictures, pop out your memory card, pop it into a printer, and get photo lab quality prints in seconds, this is for you.

Epson PictureMate Photo Printer's Ease of Use

The PictureMate can actually be pulled out of the box, with not a glance to the instructions, put together and you can be printing in just a couple minutes. This is really one of the more intuitive and easy to use gadgets out there.

The printer cartridge is a large rectangle that slides into the back. The front cover is opened for sheets to exit, and the top opens to reveal a handy, large, flip-up 3.5-inch LCD screen and paper feed. The memory card slot is easy to find on the front.

Once you have pictures loaded, you can use the screen to browse images (and set how many photos to display on screen). Directly in the printer, you can choose different layouts like borderless, wallet or proofsheet. You can remove red eye, lighten or darken photos, convert a photo to black and white, do automatic photo correction, and more.

This printer is, stated simply, enjoyable to use. There's a lot to be said for that when so many printers can be quirky, complicated and difficult to master.

Print Quality with the Epson PictureMate Dash

The print quality is quite impressive, and certainly not discernible from your typical chain store or drug store print. A photo grabbed immediately off the printer doesn't smudge or feel wet to the touch like some photo printer prints do.

As part of the testing, I converted a color photo to black and white and then printed. Many photo printers (and even some commercial photo labs) do a poor job of black and white printing, but this print was immaculate and colorless.

The photos are also made of archival quality, according to Epson, resisting fading for up to 96 years in a frame or 200 years in a photo album.

Portability of the Epson PictureMate Dash

This compact photo printer is built and designed for portability, whether you want to take it to grandma's house on Christmas day or along on your vacation.

The entire printer closes into a box featuring a handle.

The size is:

• Weight 5.3 lb
• Storage 9.1" x 6.5" x 8.7" (W x D x H)
• Printing 9.1" x 13.6" x 10.5" (W x D x H)

You can also buy an optional rechargeable battery for printing on the go, which is enough power for an estimated 120 photos or four hours standby time.