What if a printer could fit in your pocket and print on almost any surface? That’s the question that has more than 12,000 backers pledging more than $1 million to push the PrinCube from prototype to production. At less than 3 inches on the longest side, the PrinCube is a single-line mobile color printer. Startup TheGod Things says the palm-sized printer is the smallest mobile color printer to date.
The PrinCube is a handheld printer — instead of inserting a sheet of paper into the printer, the user moves the PrinCube across the paper line by line. Because the printer sits on a surface instead of using a paper tray, the PrinCube can print on multiple surfaces besides paper, including cardboard, leather, metal, plastic, fabric, wood, textured surfaces, and even leather for a custom temporary tattoo.
The PrinCube prints one line — up to 0.56 inches — at a time. The multi-line feature allows users to create 9.8 feet of content, separated into individual lines by moving the printer. The ink cartridge lasts long enough to print more than 415 A4 pages.
The color inkjet printer connects to the PrinCube app using Wi-Fi to create designs and send them to the printer on the go. By sliding the printer on the surface, the pattern is printed.
While not the first printer to have a tiny form factor by sitting on the paper itself and printing one line at a time, the PinCube is the first color printer of its kind and is also the lightest color printer to date, the startup says. The printer measures 2.8 x 2 x 2.7 inches and weighs about 5.6 ounces.
The PrinCube uses a single cartridge and launches with standard ink that washes off with soap and water and semi-permanent solvent-based ink that washes off with alcohol and similar cleaning solvents. The printer is charged via a USB Type-C port, with a battery life estimated at six hours of continuous printing.
TheGod Things, based in New York and Shenzhen, China, has already raised more than $1.8 million on Indiegogo for production. If production is successful – watch out for pitfalls – early backers can get PrinCubes for pledges starting at around $100. Ink cartridges cost $29 for standard and $39 for semi-permanent. The startup plans to start shipping the PrinCube before Christmas.
Categories: GAMING
Source: newstars.edu.vn