Review: Epson’s PictureMate: Falling in Love Again With the 4×6

Rumors of the demise of the venerable 4×6-inch print have been greatly exaggerated. We know this to be true because we’ve been making hundreds of them on Epson’s new PictureMate Charm portable photo printer lately and they’re just as cool as they always were.

The fact the “Charm” does a nice job with the prints doesn’t hurt the equation either. Epson continues to add features to the PictureMate line making the units even more portable and easier to use. The Charm certainly weighs in on both those fronts as minutes after removing the product from the box you’re in 4×6’s up to your ankles.

Notice we said ankles and not earlobes, as speed is not one of the unit’s highlights. Print speeds we experienced were typically about a minute but the quality was such that we overlooked the wait. When you consider the nature of how consumers will use the Charm, print speed isn’t as big a factor, as the unit is built to be taken anywhere for times when just a few prints are required. You’re certainly not sitting in front of this one to do 300 vacation photos – unless you simply don’t get out much.

Colors reproduced nicely and flesh tones looked sharp and natural with a nice balance between darks and lights in the pictures we printed. The units’ on-board editing options were basic and the red-eye reduction seemed to struggle unless the eyes in question were in the middle of the frame looking forward. This feature didn’t seem to work well with anything close to the edges or subtle red-eye situations. 

However, if you are so inclined to attach the Charm to your computer, Epson includes a far more robust editing program, Easy PhotoPrint, that offers a deeper well of editing, customizing and printing options.

One of the reasons operation is so simple is the fact the unit does one thing, and one thing only – 4×6’s. A 20-sheet input tray for just 4-by-6-inch media flips up on the units’ flat top surface. Two media slots are hidden behind a pop down front panel that accepts CompactFlash, Memory Stick, SD Card, and XD-Picture Card. A PictBridge port is located in back. Epson includes a Bluetooth option as well at a cost of $39.

A small 2.5-inch, tiltable color LCD is located right by the paper tray and offers a row of eight buttons with clearly marked functions. In other words, the printing of said 4×6’s is largely idiot-proof.

The ink cartridges are a snap to remove and replace as one cartridge contains the necessary grouping of inks – B, C, M, Y. For about $38 for the PictureMate 200 Series Print Pack you can produce up to 150 photos so you’re looking at roughly 25 cents per print – a price that stacks up well versus other models on the market.

Bottom line here….hey, a printer with a handle that actually makes great 4×6 prints for a $150 – what’s not to like?