Fujifilm shrunk down its on-demand photo printer to help pro photographers create mobile mini labs

The Fujifilm Frontier DX400W with prints on a white background; background expanded uses Adobe Firefly.

High-end photo printers destined for print shops are typically bulky, but Fujifilm has shrunk down one of its popular photo printers for use in mobile labs for on-site event photography printing. The Fujifilm Frontier DX400W is 30 percent smaller than the current model, yet adds two more colors and a higher ink capacity.

Fujifilm Frontier printers are compact inkjets designed for lab-quality images from a smaller printer, making them a popular option for professionals delivering on-site prints (such as at sporting events and amusement parks), as well as for mini-labs and retail shops.

The Fujifilm Frontier DX400W builds on the success of the DX100, a compact printer popular for event and tourism photography, where prints are sold on-site. One of the key changes on the DX400W is the ink. The printer adds two new colors designed to help improve color quality on the final prints, with the printer now using cyan, magenta, yellow, black, sky blue, and pink. Fujifilm says the new colors help create a more faithful reproduction of skin colors.

The DX400W prints on rolls, creating prints that are between 4in to 8in wide. A high quality 4x6in print is output in 20 seconds (Image credit: Fujifilm)

Despite being 30 percent smaller than earlier models, the DX400W increases ink capacity from 200ml to 250ml. That’s due in part because the printer uses pouches, rather than traditional tanks, a move that helps make the printer that bit more environmentally friendly.

The printer’s six-ink design pairs with what Fujifilm calls Image Intelligence, which automatically corrects things like underexposure, backlighting, and overexposure to produce more accurate prints.

USB and wired LAN connections allow the printer to be used in a variety of scenarios, from being permanently housed at a retail shop to mobile event photography. Printer maintenance is conducted from the front for easy access, while Fujifilm rates the printer's lifetime at 400,000 sheets, an uptick from the previous model's rating.

The Fujifilm DX400W is expected to begin shipping in September. The printer’s price has not yet been announced (the current DX100 model costs around US$2,300)

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