With the Olympus P-330 home photo printer, you can take all those photos you made with your digital camera, or downloaded from the Web, and print them on real photo paper. You can also capture stills from any video device, edit them on TV, and add them to your photo collection in just a few minutes.
This printer comes with an overwhelming array of accessories and cables, yet we were able to figure out which accessories fit into which slots without consulting the owner's manual. (However, we do recommend that novices read the owner's manual before attempting setup.) We simply plugged in the printer, attached the parallel cable, and inserted the paper tray and ribbon cartridge. Then we dropped in the CD-ROM and followed the setup wizard on our PC.
Next, we tested the printer's features. We started our favorite image-editing program, opened a previously scanned 24-bit color photo, chose the Print command, and waited. After two minutes of mysterious humming, the printer produced a great-looking new photo. At arm's length, the quality of the print was astonishingly true to the original. Closer inspection revealed definite pixelation, but the output was still much better than a print on coated paper from a good quality ink-jet printer.
We also attached an S-video cable (not included) from a DVD player to the P-330, and connected the composite video cable from the P-330 to a monitor. Looking at the P-330's controls, we intuitively guessed how to select the video-input signal and how to capture a still shot from the DVD player. We pressed the P-330's Print button, and the photo printer produced the image two minutes later.
The P-330 impressed us with both its sophistication and its simplicity. It's fun to use, and if you enjoy digital imaging, but miss the feel of photographic paper in your hands, then this photo printer makes a great companion for your digital camera.
Pros: - Includes accessories to get started right away
- Intuitive setup
- Mac- and PC-ready right out of the box
Cons - No quick start card
- Slow printing
