By Steve Winter, special for wtop.com
LAS VEGAS — Finally, a chance for traveling business people and consumers to strike “I’ll print it when I get back to the office” from their vocabulary.
How many times do we find ourselves out in the field, knee-deep in a project, suddenly realizing we need to print, scan or copy a document?
While most people carry tablets, smartphones and laptops, few think to lug around a printer. Well, now, thanks to the folks at Minnesota-based Primera Technology, you can print multiple pages, even print in color.
“Until now, portable printing has never really been practical,” said Mark Strobel, Primera’s vice president of sales and marketing.
Strobel says current page-size portable printers are heavy and bulky. The smallest machines print only in black monochrome with low print resolution on old fax-style thermal paper that curls, fades in sunlight and scratches easily.
Strobel calls the new product — the Primera Trio, which was introduced at last week’s Consumer Electronics Show, in Las Vegas — “a true road warrior’s dream.”
He calls the Trio the world’s smallest and lightest portable all-in-one printer, since it prints, copies and scans.
The unit is roughly the size of a hardcover book, weighs just under three pounds and fits easily into computer bags, backpacks and briefcases.
Designed for business and leisure travelers, it scans and prints on standard paper, using Primera’s own proprietary cartridges.
It can process multiple documents at 14 pages per minute. It can print text, graphics and photo-quality images on plain paper with up to 4800 dpi print resolution. Postcards, invitations and 4″ x 6″ borderless photos can be printed by using a rear feed slot.
The sleek design keeps the size manageable. The top cover, for example, opens to reveal a built-in 10-sheet input feeder. A unique rotating print head is then moved to the “up” position so that the printer is ready for use. For traveling, the print head folds back down, caps itself to prevent drying out or leaking while in transit, and the top cover folds back into the case.
And of course, the product is battery-powered, so you can even print in the middle of the 14th fairway.
The product is available now for $399.95.
Editors Note: Longtime CES attendees Steve Winter and Kenny Fried are contributing reports from the show. In their day jobs, they are public relations professionals with Sage Communications. During CES they are not reporting on any of their clients’ products or those of direct competitors.
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