Cell Phones That Print Pictures?

ZINK Imaging, a Waltham, MA-based Polaroid spinoff, hopes to make printing from a digital camera or cell phone immediate and easy–without ink. Bypassing ink and the bulky cartridges that hold it, the company has been able to make ultraportable printers that fit in the palm of your hand. ZINK claims that its printers can even be made small enough to be integrated into mobile phones. The company presented the printer at DEMO, a coming-out conference for technology companies in Palm Desert, CA, running from January 30 through February 1.

ZINK’s trick is to use special photo paper. Each sheet of paper, which will cost 20 cents, has microcrystals embedded in it. The ZINK printer heats the paper, “activating” the crystals to reveal color. According to the company, the images are “high quality, long-lasting, and durable.”

The company expects to launch products–mobile printers and fully featured seven- megapixel digital cameras with ZINK printers inside–by the end of the year. Check out the AP article here.

Thanks to TR’s senior editor Erika Jonietz for the updates from the DEMO floor!