Recommendations are independently chosen by Reviewed's editors. Purchases made through the links below may earn us and our publishing partners a commission.
*
August 28, 2007* – HP ups the ante in home photo printing by bringing the lab to the home. The HP Photosmart A826 Home Photo Center is their latest and largest compact photo printer. Featuring a 7-inch LCD touchscreen display, this printer enables users to easily preview and edit images and then print them from the 100-sheet internal print tray. With a street price of $249, the A826 makes it easier to print snapshots at home. Also announced were two compact photo printers, the Photosmart A526 and A626, which sell for $99 and $179, respectively. Users can add messages to their photos using the included stylus on the A626’s 4.8-inch color touchscreen. All three models will be available in September. The Photosmart A826 Home Photo Center is a unique design in home photo printers. The large, upright printer is like a miniature photo-shop print kiosk, with a large 7-inch LCD screen, 5.4 inches of which are for image viewing; the rest is devoted to menu buttons. The internal paper tray holds more paper than other compact printers, up to 100-sheets, enclosed within the printer to reduce frequent paper loading and the introduction of dust that comes with it. The large viewing screen is also perfect for slideshows. Both the A826 and the Photosmart A626 have interactive touchscreens for menu access and the addition of hand-drawing and messages to photos. Users can also personalize their photos by adding captions and frames, or fitting them into album page templates. In addition, the A826 and A626 provide a host of editing features, including red-eye removal, slimming, black-and-white and sepia, and solarization. These two printers can print passport, wallet, 3.5-by-5-inch, 4-by-6-inch, 5-by-7-inch, and panoramic photos. The Photosmart A626 has a large, 4.8-inch LCD display with a 3.5-inch viewing area that, like the A826’s screen, operates as a touchscreen, allowing users to access menus easily without additional buttons. Users can extend the A626’s portability with the purchase of an optional battery ($50), good for 75 photos per charge. The economy model, the Photosmart A526, includes a 2.4-inch LCD screen and prints 4-by-6-inch photos. Both smaller models, the A526 and A626, have optional carrying cases available. All three printers use HP’s 110 Vivera tri-color ink cartridges and can print at speeds as fast as 39 seconds per photo from PCs, memory cards, and PictBridge-enabled cameras (89 seconds in best quality). These three compact printers are also capable of wireless printing from Bluetooth-enabled devices with the optional adapter.