Panasonic KX-PX20 Compact Photo Printer Review

Setup/Drivers and Software

Out of the box* (7.00)*The Panasonic PX-20 comes with the basic equipment, including the paper cassette, power cord, AC adapter, starter kit (ink cassette for five prints and five sheets of postcard paper), installation CD, quick start guide in Spanish only, and paper manual. Also included is a video cable and remote control.

Setup* (8.00)*The KX-20 sets up in less than ten minutes, including the software installation. The process is simple, and prints can be made from memory cards within 5 minutes of taking it out of the box. Once all the tape is taken off, the user needs to fill and attach the paper cartridge. These devices tend to be delicate and need to be attached just so. The Panasonic cartridge is better constructed than others, notably the Canon Selphy print cartridges. The ink cartridge is a much simpler affair to install. Just open the door on the right, then slide it in. It locks in place and the door can be closed. Printing can begin. **Manual/Quick Start Guide*** (6.50)*The quick start guide is only available in Spanish, while the Operating Instructions are only available in English. Both are illustrated with diagrams and screen shots. The Operating Instructions provide enough information for the user to reference as a guide to printing or troubleshooting. **Drivers and Administration*** (6.50)*The printer driver for the PX20 includes three tabs. The Basic Settings tab has a status window on the left that displays a graphic showing the printable area of the paper and what portion of the image will be cropped, if any. Below this is a list of all the possible settings and image adjustments possible in the driver and their current settings. On the right side of the Basic Settings tab are the choices for page size, printer paper size, orientation, number of copies, and borders.

The Image Adjustment tab provides the user with options for adjusting the image using an Auto Mode feature, with selections for Off (no Auto adjustment), Auto, Soft Skin, Indoor, Vividness, and Night Scenery. A preview window on the left displays two versions of the same sample fruit stand image. The lower version displays an example of any change in settings. Manual adjustments for Density and Balance are found in the box to the right, with settings for brightness, saturation, contrast, and sharpness possible. A color grid shows to the right, and users can select a particular color square to adjust the color of the image in that direction.

 The Effect drop-down box below density/balance and color grid gives options for changing the image to a monochromatic color scheme of warm, cool, or sepia. Other effects include cool or warm color palette, soft portrait embossed heart, and concave and convex spheres. A Show Preview box allows users to select viewing of previews for the first page or all pages. The About tab displays information about the printer and the driver versions.

Software* (0)*The KX-PX20 ships with no software. Any computer printing needs to be conducted with existing software programs on the host computer.