Best Portable Printer for Your Travel Journal? HP Sprocket vs Fuji Instax vs Polaroid Zip

When it comes to traveling and documenting your travel stories, there are many different things you need to think about. What camera do you take? What kind of lenses? What kind of memory card. But there is one thing that most people don’t think or are confused about, the kind of portable printer you should use. You could have the best camera and lenses, but if your printer isn’t good, you’re not going to have pictures you can share with people. In this blog, I will look at some of the most popular portable printers on the market and how they compare to each other.

A portable printer is a great travel companion if you wish to start your travel journey. Your camera roll features a handy feature that makes it convenient to print your photos into your book, as well as an almost inevitable need to choose the best pictures from hundreds you take. Taking a step back, recognizing that less is more, and being present are some takeaways from our mini-lesson.

How Do I Choose the Best Printer?

To determine the best portable printers, we should outline the criteria or parameters. Whenever you travel, you need a printer that is easy to operate and a film that is readily available. Your trip journals primarily consist of photos created on portable photo printers, so you want them to look good. As you plan your travel journal, you need to consider how you will use them, and what your desired look and feel will be.

Here Are the Differences Between the Printers

In order to compare the quality of the prints across all portable photo printers, we cover every aspect of each top portable printer brand’s models.

FujiFilm Instax (Fujifilm Instax Mini Printer)

Instax photos are very popular. I’m sure you’re familiar with the small Instax cameras whose pastel colors and terrible print quality are known to everyone. That’s right. You need to be about 2 inches away from your subject to take a good photo with an Instax camera. Nevertheless, do not become discouraged. Taking pictures with an Instax printer is another thing entirely.

Benefits of the Fuju Film Instax Photo Printer

No doubt, Fujifilm Intax print quality is superb. It will give you the perfect vintage lool without losing the color quality of the photo. Therefore, you can print a photo of yourself at the Grand Canyon’s rim or backpacking on Iceland’s black sand beaches.

The photos will look exactly as they did on your camera roll. So, you must say that this mini printer itself is quite powerful. By single clicking, it will give you ten photos within no time. Rather than physically pushing out the exposed film, the app processes the print faster than the printer.

Do you know the best part of this? It’s easy to find. In case you are traveling and in need of a refill, you can pop into any Target or drugstore and get it.

Recommended: Best Printers for Art Prints, Artist, And Graphic Designers in2022

Drawbacks of the Fuju Film Instax Printer

You may say that these photo prints are a little bulky. When we consider the white border, the photo prints are large. Consequently, it takes up a lot of space in your travel journal or trip book.

Moreover, if you want to stick the photos into your travel journal, you will need tape or glue while planning the journey. So, it will be hectic because of the over-packaging checklist of your journey. And the plastic packaging for 10 exposures needs to be larger than normal because the film needs to be shielded from light (or else it will expose).

Polaroid Zip and HP Sprocket (Mini HP Printer)

The Polaroid Zip and HP Sprocket are pretty similar printers, so I’m just classifying them together. The best thing about both portable printers is using self-adhesive, sticker-backed paper known as Zink paper. So, You can now print a photo, peel the back, and enjoy it! 

Apart from that, there are many other best sticker printers on the market. Their print sizes vary.

Just paste that into your trip book or travel journal and save every precious moment of life in it. 

Nowadays Portable photo printers are at their peak sales and you should also check the top polaroid printers of 2022 in the market.

Benefits of Polaroid Zip and HP Sprocket

These portable printers give you perks for your journey and it is also smaller than the Fujifilm Instax. Everyone now prefers sticker paper, so it will give the edge. Now, you don’t have to remember to pack the tape or glue and scissors while going to travel.

In addition, I like how the film comes in packs of 50 and doesn’t have a lot of excess packaging like Instax refills do. It is due to Zink Paper. As the Zink paper heats up, the pigments in the paper are activated, resulting in the printing.

Also Read: List of Epson Printers Convertible to Sublimation Printers in 2022

Drawbacks of Polaroid Zip and HP Sprocket

Unfortunately, the print quality is not very good. As a result, colors tend to appear muddy or washed out, and the overall effect is distinct, not in a cute Instagram filter kind of way, but rather in a peculiar Oompa Loompa way.

The printer can overheat because it uses heat to develop the print, thereby slowing down the printing process even more. Moreover, printing one picture from a Polaroid Zip printer will take 55 seconds. That means a quite slow process.

Read: Can You Sublimate on Glass? A Complete Glass Sublimation Guide

Final Thoughts

Although the concept of the sticker pictures from HP and Polaroid makes sense on the road, the print quality is a little low for me to overlook. In that case, I recommend the Fuji Instax Printer. Of course, you need to carry adhesives, tapes, and stickers with your travel luggage. However, you will take those on your travels anyway. Because it will give the best print quality and with charming and shiny colors. That’s why you love the photos, and you will get the film easily from any store, so it’s an obvious choice for me.

Keep clicking and save all remarkable moments of your life in your Travel Journal!

Read: Does CVS Print Documents? (Print Types, Cost, and Much More)