Whether you are a professional photographer or just a hobbyist who likes to have hard copies of your clicks, a 4×6 photo printer is what you might need for creating the albums of your printed photos.
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If you are looking for an all rounder portable, compact, and an affordable 4×6 photo printer, then we highly recommend the Canon SELPHY CP1300.
However, if you are looking for compact Inkjet that has offers one of the best photo printing solutions, then we recommend HP Tango. You can subscribe to HP Instant Ink scheme and literally print your photos for Free.
Be sure to check out other printers in this article as well since each of them has a few tricks up its sleeves.
Continuing On…
4×6 is a common size for photos and also a standard size for digitizing 35 mm films. The size is also very cost effective due to the way the paper is cut.
Here we will have a look at the best 4×6 photo printers. Some of these are portable while others are compact desk printers. However, they have one thing on common, they are great printers for photos.
Image | Product Name | Type | Connectivity | 4x6" Prints | Legal/ A4 Size Print | Battery | Check Price |
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Portable Snapshot Printer | WiFi, WiFi Direct, Thumb Drive, SD Card Slot | Yes | No | Yes (Optional) | |||
Portable Snapshot Printer | Dock, WiFi, WiFi Direct, Thumb Drive Support | Yes | No | No | |||
Compact Inkjet Printer | WiFi, WiFi Direct | Yes | Yes | Detail | |||
No products found. | Compact Inkjet Printer | WiFi, WiFi Direct | Yes | Yes | Yes (Optional) | ||
Portable Snapshot Printer | WiFi, WiFi Direct, Thumb Drive, SD Card | Yes | No | No |
List of Best 4×6 Photo Printers
If you are looking for a 4×6 photo Printer we can help. We have selected the following printers as the best 4×6 photo printers for your convenience.
- 1Canon SELPHY CP1300 – Affordable and Portable – All Rounder
- 2Kodak 4×6” Instant Photo Printer – Portable 4×6 Printer
- 3HP Tango Smart Home Printer – Smart Home Printer
- 4CANON PIXMA iP110 – Compact InkJet for Photos
- 5Epson PictureMate PM-400 – High Quality Compact Photo Printer
Short Reviews of the Selected Printers
Let’s take a look at short reviews of the selected printers.
1. Canon SELPHY CP1300 – Affordable and Portable – All Rounder
- Not only will your photos be instantly dry,...
- Enjoy the simplicity of connecting your...
- The sleek, portable design lets you bring the...
- With the tilting 3.2 inches LCD screen it's...
Canon Selphy CP1300 is an excellent portable option for photo printing.
The best part about this printer is that despite being affordable, it adds a multitude of features as compared to the Kodak Instant Photo Printer.
For starters, it comes with an optionally battery pack so you can print photos any where any time.
Furthermore, it also comes with a 3.2″ LCD for previewing the photos before printing. This is excellent when printing via its memory card slot or from the Flash Drive.
As such, you can connect this printer to your mobile phone, or you can print through an SD card or simply connect it to your Facebook account or other cloud services.
The printer can combine the various photos into a beautiful collage and take out the print. Canon Selphy is a smart choice for having fun with your photos.
All in all, as the name suggests, if you want to preserve your selfies and other quick photos, then this is one of the best 4×6 photo printers.
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2. Kodak 4×6” Instant Photo Printer – Portable 4×6 Printer
- ONE TOUCH PRINTING: Convenient printer dock...
- HIGH QUALITY PHOTOS – Fast, Easy System...
- MAXIMUM DEVICE COMPATIBILITY: Dock features 5...
- SIMULTANEOUS CHARGING: Power Up to Two Smart...
This is one of the most famous 4×6 photo printer for those who are always on the go.
Travelers and adventurers would love a device where you can instantly print out your photos to share with your friends.
Kodak Instant Photo Printer allows you to do just that.
The printer creates the standard 4×6 size of photos. It preserves your memories forever and keeps your albums updated with some latest clicks.
This printer comes with a top mounted dock where you can connect your phone and print directly. The dock support both Android as well as Apple phones.
The great thing about the dock is that it simultaneously charges your device as well.
If you have a tablet instead, it comes with an external cable port for connecting larger tablets.
Also, despite being small, it does have it own WiFi Direct functionality. So you can connect your devices and print directly via the network.
Finally, it also offers flash drive support. So you can save up your photos on a memory stick and print directly via the drive.
A great quality of this Instant printer is its lightweight and compact style. It’s small so it can be easily carried along while you are on the go.
The printer works effortlessly with just one touch. The picture quality is fairly great. You cannot compare the quality to dedicated large photo printers, but nevertheless, for its size the photos are excellent.
The only drawback is that despite being a portable printer, it does a require a power source.
Kodak Instant Printer is one of the best 4×6 photo printers for those who want a high quality portable solution.
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3. HP Tango – Smart Home Printer
- The world's first smart home printer – If...
- Voice-activated, hands free printing– From...
- Ink delivered to your home: get your first 4...
- Print and scan from virtually anywhere –...
HP Tango offers remarkable printing options.
One of the central features of this printer is the HP’s Paid-For ink replacement scheme.
With this scheme, you technically get to print all your 4×6 photos for Free, for the entire lifetime.
HP will keep on sending replacement inks as your print photos. However, this scheme is only limited to printing via the phone and not through a computer. Secondly, this scheme does not cover printing full size A4 documents.
This printer does not have any USB connection and literally discourages you to use the computer.
It even has a copier, but to copy, you need to scan the document via the app on your phone. The integrated cloud services like Dropbox or Google Drive will then print the scanned photo.
Truth be told, this printer offers an experience ahead of its time. If you are an avid smartphone user, then this is certainly one of the best 4×6 photo printers
You can read more about this HP Instant Ink scheme here.
Related: How To Reset An HP Printer
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4. CANON PIXMA iP110 – Compact InkJet for Photos
No products found.
Canon Pixma iP110 is another great option if you are looking for a compact printer for your 4×6” photos and also print other documents.
The printer offers convenience combined with high-quality prints of photographs.
The printer features AirPrint, Google Cloud Print, or Canon Print App for your convenience. On top of that, it has WiFi, Wireless PictBridge support as well as the option to have a battery pack installed.
What truly makes this a great photo printer, however, is that offers a 5 ink system instead of the conventional 4. The more color ink cartridges you have, the better would be the gradient capture. This in turn results in better looking photos.
The printer is capable of printing borderless 4×6 photos in approximately 53 seconds. It also gives you the opportunity of PhotoPrint+ that allows you to edit and print photos from everywhere with internet access.
While this is not as portable as the two reviewed above, if you are looking for quality of prints at a budget then this is one of the best 4×6 photo printers.
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5. Epson PictureMate PM-400 – High Quality Compact Photo Printer
- This printer is designed for use with Epson...
- Beautiful borderless photos - easily print...
- Ultra compact design - lightweight, portable...
- Total Wireless solution - Print from iPad,...
Epson PM-400 is a compact printer that delivers beautiful 4×6” photo prints.
Like most snapshot printers seen here, this printer is fairly small and relatively easy to carry around.
It has a robust support for WiFi connectivity with your Android or Apple devices.
Customers have basically loved this printer for its ease of use. Secondly, they love the print quality despite and the minute details in the photos that it can capture.
While this does produce great results, it is also the most expensive printer in this list. Therefore, there is a trade off.
Another huge issue this printer is that it only includes a single Cartridge. So if you ever run low on a single color, you will need to replace the entire cartridge. You can learn how to get more ink out of a cartridge to make it last longer.
Therefore, if you print a lot of documents and if you start to run low on black ink, know that you will need to invest in an entirely new cartridge despite having a full color tanks.
We would recommend that you use this printer ONLY for photos.
The efficient printer can print a 4×6” photos in as fast as 36 seconds. The printer combines photo quality and longevity. The prints are smudge, scratches, or fade resistant.
The printer can print directly from any cloud service or through its wireless system.
Epson PictureMate is a series of printers that specializes in printing photos. If you want high quality prints, then this is one of the best 4×6 photo printers.
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People Also Ask (FAQs)
Things to Consider While Buying One of the Best 4×6 Photo Printers
Here are a few things that you might like to have in your photo printer.
Type of Printer
As for photos, an inkjet printer is an affordable option. They are also easy to maintain. Though heat printers offer more high quality for photos but they are more expensive.
Resolution
Print resolution the quality of your picture. Choose a printer with 4800× 1200 dpi or even higher for a perfect photo appearance.
Size of Printer
Size of printer matters, especially if you want to take your printer with you while traveling. You can carry the printer to picnic spots and parties for having fun and creating some prints on the spot.
Compatibility
The printer should be compatible with the device you use. It should be compatible with your smartphone so you can take out the print. Photo Printers these days offers Bluetooth and wireless compatibility with smartphone and iOS devices.
Choosing from the Right Paper
Different types of papers are available for printing photos.
Glossy Paper
the paper has a shine and appears brighter. The print looks high quality and more vibrant with the shine of paper.
Matte Paper
Matte Paper does not have a shine but represent the true color of the picture.
Extra shine can cause some distraction to sight, and if you want more serious pictures, then the matte paper is more suitable. Using matte paper is one way to increase the quality of prints by subtly highlights the fine details.
Canvas
The canvas paper is suitable if you want to frame your photo prints. It’s a top choice photo paper with a professional look.
The paper looks like matte, as it also does not have any inner gloss or shine, but it shows better color and contrast and has superior quality.
Art
Art paper is for professionals who want to show the photo results to the world. It gives a classic textured look to photos.
Pearl or Luster
These papers have a premium finish. These are also called semi-gloss paper. It’s a high-quality paper that combines the qualities of matte and satin photo papers.
Metallic
As the name suggests, a metallic paper gives off a metallic gloss to the photos. These papers often give a chrome-like finish to your photos and give high-quality sharpness and clarity to printed photos.
These are more expensive papers for photo printing. However, you can use it on occasions when you want to gift the printed photos or use them as a decoration.
Conclusion
Here we looked at the best 4×6 photo printers. We looked at highly portable printers like the Canon SELPHY CP1300 and the Kodak Instant Photo Printer that you can easily carry around.
We also looked at compact Inkjet printers that offer dedicated photo printing solutions. HP Tango certainly stood out the most with the HP Instant Ink scheme.
The only relative drawback here is that most the printers here are generally quite expensive. An average printer can cost a fraction of the upfront price. However, they most have a high ink cost that makes operating them expensive.
All in all, the printers reviewed here are dedicated photo printers. They are designed to interface with your mobile devices and utilize several common printing apps. As such, they are highly recommended for photo enthusiasts.
Andrew White is the founder of TechGearoid, a leading technology review & information website that is designed to help consumers make better decisions when it comes to their IT purchases. As a specialist tech writer (nerd) with over 10 years of experience, he enjoys writing about everything there is to do with modern technology & the newest market innovations. When he isn’t providing value for his readers, he’s usually drinking coffee or at the beach. Andrew lives in Sydney, Australia with his wife and family.