Epson PictureMate Snap PM240
Printer Review
By Mark Brezinski
Reviewed.com Editorial Staff
Published on September 06, 2007
The Epson PictureMate Snap PM240 is a compact, portable inkjet printer meant to be a mobile companion for those who want to print their photos on the go. The small, box-like printer features a carrying handle, a door on the top for protecting the controls and paper slot, and another door in the front to catch prints and protect the memory card slots. The Snap retails for $129.
The PictureMate Snap's control buttons on the printer's top surround a mediocre 2.5-inch LCD screen for image preview and menu navigation. Apparently, Epson will be improving this feature in forthcoming models. The top of the printer also houses the paper feed tray, which holds up to 20 sheets. On the back are ports for the power and USB cables, as well as housing for an optional battery. Unfortunately, the printer doesn’t ship with a battery. Dye-based cyan, magenta, yellow, and black inks come in a small cartridge, which slides into a slot below the battery compartment. Epson estimates that prints cost 25 cents each.
The Snap’s menu system is straightforward and easy to use, which is a good thing since you have to view it on such a small LCD display. The driver utility has two tabs for options such as cropping an image, fitting it to paper, color correction, and quality settings. The printer ships with ArcSoft Photo Impression 5, a simple image-editing software program with decent features. Power users will likely opt to invest in professional photo-editing software.
The PictureMate Snap prints 4x6-inch photos from a computer at 1.4 pages per minute, which is significantly faster than competitors like the Sony PictureStation FP90. However, performance is not as fast when printing large files from memory cards. Print speed is a feature Epson is also allegedly improving with its newer PictureMate models.
The Snap’s print quality performance was excellent, especially considering it’s a compact photo printer. Color accuracy was better than most mid-range consumer printers, while the range of reproduced colors was much better than other compact printers, but not as good as some multifunction inkjets. The Snap’s tonal range, which is important for ensuring good gradation of color on people’s faces, for example, was very good. It performed better in this test than even some professional printers, such as the Canon Pro9000. The Snap was also able to produce very good black-and-white photos.
The PictureMate Snap performed much better than competitors like the HP Photosmart A440, Canon Selpy CP730, and Sony PictureStation FP90 in every measure of print quality; it scored just slightly higher than the HiTi S400 and 731PS dye sublimation printers. Although the printer's speed scores were hampered by its difficulties with large files, it still scored higher than most compact printers tested. Even in the price category, this printers wins out.
The Epson PictureMate Snap PM240 is a small, portable inkjet photo printer that does its job very well. The printer’s lunch-pail-like design is well constructed for portability; an optional battery is available for true on-the-road perfomance. The Snap produces prints at a slightly lower price than its competitors. Those looking for a small, portable, high-quality, and affordable inkjet photo printer will be very pleased with the PictureMate Snap.For a more in-depth review, visit the Epson PictureMate Snap - PM 240 Review at our partner PrinterInfo.com
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