The Kodak C300R - camera and mini-printer

About a month ago, I finally purchased a Kodak Minishot 3, 2 in 1 Retro Instant Digital Camera and Photo Printer - hereafter known as the C300R.  I bought it on Amazon with 6 cartridges of “film” for $130.  The main reason for the purchase is that the C300R is not only a camera with an instant printer, but it also functions as a Bluetooth-connected printer for my iPhone.  What better way to share photos with friends and family?  Also, I find using it to add images to my journal is very helpful.  

Anyhow. now that I have had the C300R for a few weeks, I am impressed with the quality of the 3”x3” prints.  One could compare this to either a Polaroid mini or one of those zink (zero-ink) cameras/printers, but in terms of use - it’s certainly more like a little Polaroid camera. If you use it as a camera, it does not save an image to memory to be looked at later. The image stays in the buffer until you either print it, or take another shot. The print process is actually rather fun to watch as it’s a 4-pass process using a small dye-sublimation printer that does 3 passes for the CMY colors, and a final lamination layer that protects the surface of the print.  As you see in the short video, it takes about 60 seconds for that to happen, and you end up with a print that’s supposedly good for at least 100 years. 

The C300R isn’t exactly tiny, but it’s also not large. It’s 4” x 5” x 1.125” and can easily fit into a large pocket or your camera bag. It weighs about 14 ounces.  The tiny lens on the front has a selfie mirror nearby.  It’s use as an instant camera is pretty straightforward - just point and shoot, and press the print button on the back.  I didn’t expect the camera to produce jaw-dropping prints - but it really does a very good job with the prints - better than a Polaroid mini, for sure. Plus, you can add borders or effects to the image before you print it. A fun toy, for sure.

The "used" YMC panels 

As a portable printer for your phone, you just need to download the Kodak Photo Printer app, connect to the C300R via Bluetooth, and then you select the images that you want to print.  Sharing could not be easier.  Since the prints are square, the best option is to take images on your phone in square format - which is what I normally do, anyway. You can do some cropping, etc in the app if necessary. It’s really a lot of fun to watch this printer work, and as each layer - Yellow, Magenta, Cyan, and Lamination takes place, it shows on your phone and the small LCD screen on the camera what’s taking place.

A box has three cartridges of 10 shots each

Each pack of “film” is self-contained with the 10 sheets of paper and the roll of thin film with the sequence of dyes for each image. As they get used up, they get rolled onto a small cylinder in the cartridge. So in essence, you have a long series of yellow, magenta, cyan, and clear rectangles.  Each one has a component of the image that you printed.  I a bit of curiosity, I tool a used cartridge and unrolled the film from the take-up spool, and then tried to scan each of those layers separately to remake the image.  The thin film is really difficult to handle, and I also tried manually stacking the 3 color layers together and then photographed that, reversed the image in my image editor, and voila - a rather unsaturated and slightly misaligned image. Such a process could be something that has applications for people that are more creative than I am.  I did make a black and white image just from the Magenta layer, and it reminds me of the “negatives” from the peel-apart Land Camera film, FP3000B.

manually layering the 3 colors on a light table,
photographing it, then inverting to a positive.

Just scanning the Magenta layer and converting to monochrome!

The C300R has a built-in battery that’s charged by attaching a USB cable (Type B?) to any USB power source.  Each cassette holds materials for 10 shots/prints, and the cost per photo is about 60 cents - which is pretty cheap compared to a Polaroid or Instax camera.

Overall, I think it’s a great device for anyone that would like to have an “instant” camera or a tiny portable printer. I don’t know how durable the C300R is over time, but like any digital device, it shouldn’t be abused. For the price, it’s pretty good value, and the supplies are not expensive.  If you don’t need the camera function, Kodak sells just a mini-printer (P300R) for about $100.  Another option might be the Canon SELPHY QX-10 printer, which also uses dye-sub technology and prints 2.7” square, but it costs as much as the C300R.  I can't really compare these to the "zink" cameras and printers, as I have not used them, but dye-sub prints are supposed to last a lot longer than the zink images.

Any of these tiny printers are useful tools for journaling, sharing photos at gatherings, or just having a small, tangible object to give someone.  When I took a photo of two women with their dog at a local brewery and gave them the print (which the images above are based upon), they were thrilled with the gesture, and wanted to know more about the C300R. The color rendition with the C300R is very good, and the glossy print that results is so much like a small Polaroid, but better.  As I stated in my recent Monochrome Mania issue 10 - it's a good idea to print  and share those smart phone images, and a mini-printer such as the C300R is a great way to do it.