ColAura Color Photo and Label Printer,White

Wow! Don’t waste your money on any other sticker printer that you want to print in color! I bought a few different printers to do crafts with my daughters and I didn’t like any of them. I bought this as an upgrade, even though it wasn’t that much more expensive and I love it! Printer quality is top-notch. I have had no issues with connecting and printing from my cell phone and my tablet!!! That was a big issue with the other printers I had, they would they would freeze up. This one does not freeze up! I don’t write many reviews, but I felt I needed to for this device because it is so cool! It’s making the crafting easy and fun and instead of focusing on trying to work the printer we are focusing on the crafts!! Worth it!!

When we first heard about this--and saw the footprint, I felt like I was missing something, as between the comparatively small size (somewhere between the size of Big Mac & Double Big Mac) and lack of complicated control panel, this isn’t what comes to mind when you think “full color, photo quality printer”. Now that we’ve spent the better part of today putting this through its paces, it’s all clear--and very cool. First, this is one of those ZINK photo printers so it prints photo quality without toner or ink. Unlike other color printers, with Zink all the “color” is in the paper--not sure what that means or how it works, but I don't know how a 747 stays up in the air either and that doesn't stop me from getting on a plane. Anyway, in terms of easy both using it and getting it to work & play well with wifi etc, this reminded me a lot my Brother PC labeler, except;This prints full color, photo quality labels from my phone as well --which is great for on site tweaks as it means I don't have to boot up my laptopThis prints those photo labels up to just about a foot and a half long (and depending which tape you use up to 2” wide)--which comes in handy as we create experiential POS for retail and trade show exhibits--and as of 3 months ago, the on-premise ‘presence’ for certain liquor brands--all “highly rectangular” stuff (shelf talkers, table tents, booth signage) that needs lots of rounds of testing & (on location) fine tuning-- that always needs to look like the final finished printed piece. Until now we’ve been spending a small fortune on getting this done -- and that’s without the rush charges--This not only fits in my laptop messenger bag It even prints those ZINK labels pre-scored so peeling off the adhesive back is easy and doesn't take its toll on your nails, teeth...or the label. The PC interface also has pretty much the same options as our existing P-touch so multiple prints and all those other handy features are there. If you’re looking to print 8x10 or 5x7 or 3x5 prints--- stick with your whatever, though if you’re like us, and need a photo quality (aka “professional” quality) full color printer, between the VC500W’s Zink-based, print quality, the compact size, and the same hassle-free easiness as our P-touch labeler, this is our new MVP Most Valuable Printer.

I considered all the reviews when I bought this printer, and I've also been impressed with Brother's other label printers such as the QL-800. Naturally I didn't think it was much of a gamble.However I don't think these Zink labels are ready for showtime or small business use unless you use a 3rd party adhesive to make sure they absolutely stick down.Because of the Zink paper's multiple layers, the label is simply too thick to properly adhere to any curved surfaces, and the natural spring-tension of the paper will ensure that any edges on rounded surfaces will pull up when you turn your back on them.Unless your application surface is completely clean and flat WITHOUT any surface texture, you will probably have issues with the edges peeling up. Because the labels are in a tight roll already, they might also want to spring up on you even if you have a flat surface.This brings me to the other issue with these: Water resistance. I stuck a printed label to the outside of my car just for giggles, but because it was misting slightly the label was completely destroyed after my drive. The colors had run, the surface had turned to a rough shaggy effect. If this were on a hot sauce or jam jar that had gotten slightly wet, I don't think the results would be good.There are other technologies and machines that I think are much more suited for the task, even if they have to use ink cartridges.

I watched a review on youtube before buying it and the video showed a pixelated text and not great image quality. Not sure what they were doing but the one I have prints HQ text with great image quality. It is not professional portrait image quality but it is pretty great for mysterious magic paper. Recommended for the price.