Fujifilm Instax Share SP-1 review

[borge]

Hey, after owning this printer for a little over a year I decided to just do a write-up about it in case anyone is on the fence of getting one of these portable printers. Anyway, here it is:

http://indergaard.net/2016/02/20/fujifilm-instax-share-sp-1-review/

 

[Out to Lunch]

Thanks for sharing. Here you'll find an overview/tutorial from the Fuji Guys of this product: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UB495lTlFgw

 

[JoeV]

Interesting review. I don't normally travel with a smart phone, and have a Fujifilm X10, which doesn't have Wifi. Can you transfer images to the printer via a USB cable?

~Joe

 

[Trius]

Interesting review. I don't normally travel with a smart phone, and have a Fujifilm X10, which doesn't have Wifi. Can you transfer images to the printer via a USB cable?

~Joe

I had the same question, but reading the specs it looks like WiFi only. I've thought of getting one of these for some projects I have in mind, so that I can give prints to subjects. It looks like I will have to transfer photos from an SD card to my iPhone, then print from the SP-1.

 

[marcr1230]

ok - I bought it this morning based on this post, had been looking at it on and off for a while

Amazon same day delivery is amazing. Side note, this is the #1 photo product on Amazon, I checked whether it was available locally in one of the 6 area Best Buy stores - available for in store pickup next Wednesday ( today is Saturday)

anyhow, received it this evening - instructions not good but not very necessary
main thing - this printer creates a Wifi network,
1) download the Instax Share app
2) put batteries , film/paper cartridge in , turn on printer
3) connect to printer Wifi
4) open app, settings --> printer password is 1111
5) select a photo from the phone's roll and print

1st print - darks a little too dark, brights a little too bright, color fidelity ok - but not perfect
prints small and not the sharpest

Edit - after 4 prints, I've decided the printer tends to overdo the highlights , shadows and mids ok
so I just toned down the highlights and good to go

I can see going thru a lot of "film" with this - need to buy in bulk

overall - easy to use and certainly will be a hit among recepients of the prints - if only for the novelty
of getting a quick hard copy

That's my 20 sec review

 

[jarski]

been eying SP-1 recently. am traveling a lot and like the aspect of being able to print photos on road. thx op for review, found other one too that could be useful: link. having Fuji camera would be neat, so could dev raw and print it, all without any other devices in between.

 

[newsgrunt]

it's a great ice breaker.

 

[Vince Lupo]

I had an SP-1 printer for exactly one month and hated it. Terrible print quality, and I was actually embarrassed to hand these teeny prints out. After one month of ownership, I sent it back to B&H for a full refund. I replaced it with a Canon Selphy CP910 with the battery adapter kit, and am much much happier. True, it is more of a lump to carry around than the SP-1, but it gives a very nice 4"x6" dye-sub print, it has an SD card slot (so you could use it with other cameras besides a Fuji), as well as a USB plug (you could hook it up to your laptop if you wanted), and it is cheaper than the SP-1 (paper and ink too).

Might be worthwhile to look into other portable printers before buying an SP-1.

 

[jarski]

thx Vince. Canon Selphy's have been other option been also curious. yes print is much bigger, while printer can still be called portable. Instax has that ice breaker appeal newsgrunt mentioned, Selphy more for paying customers?

 

[Vince Lupo]

thx Vince. Canon Selphy's have been other option been also curious. yes print is much bigger, while printer can still be called portable. Instax has that ice breaker appeal newsgrunt mentioned, Selphy more for paying customers?

I think the Selphy is for people you don't know who bother to give you the time of day to be photographed. I bought the Selphy specifically when I travel to New Mexico on my own (I go every year), and all of the time I am photographing someone out there, I don't know them and they don't know me. With the SP-1, I felt like I'd be giving someone this teeny little business card-sized print, and not a very good one at that. To me (and this is strictly my opinion), it didn't seem like an appropriate 'thank you' for letting me photograph them and giving me the time of day. The 4"x6" print from the Selphy looks like a real print, and a pretty nice one at that. The folks really appreciated it, and felt like they were getting something of real value. People would actually offer to pay me for the prints.


Don't know if you've ever seen the SP910 in action, but even the process is entertaining!

 

[Huss]

While that Canon printer gives impressive looking results, it is hardly portable in the way the SP-1 is. I can put the Fuji printer in a jacket pocket. And I can hold it in one hand (or even have the opening sticking out of my pocket) for it to operate. I don't have to put it on the ground, a table etc to use. Plus, it's not all about image quality, but the joy that comes to people's faces when they watch the print develop in front of their eyes.
There really is nothing like holding that print and watching the development process.
I actually have found the small size of the images to be a bonus, and people can put them in their purse or wallet without damaging them. The moment you give out a bigger print, the recipient has to figure out how to carry it w/o damaging it.

So yes, while the Canon does have image quality advantages, the Instax has very real advantages of its own.

 

[newsgrunt]

For those who don't have the same access to equipment that we in the West do, the Instax mini prints are enough to make grown men smile. I made prints for Cuban baseball players recently and I can't begin to tell you how happy they were to have the photos. When Syrian refugees started arriving in the West, again, the mini prints, this time printed thru the Share app brought huge smiles from the kids.

With the prevalence of digital cameras, most people don't receive prints and even if you give them your email, you rarely hear back. A print made on the spot is a valuable and cherished keepsake.

 

[Vince Lupo]

While that Canon printer gives impressive looking results, it is hardly portable in the way the SP-1 is. I can put the Fuji printer in a jacket pocket. And I can hold it in one hand (or even have the opening sticking out of my pocket) for it to operate. I don't have to put it on the ground, a table etc to use. Plus, it's not all about image quality, but the joy that comes to people's faces when they watch the print develop in front of their eyes.
.

Yup, no question the Canon is larger than the Instax, definitely not pocketable (unless you're wearing a coat with those 'saddlebag' pockets ), but it does fit perfectly into my Tenba Small Messenger bag, along with my camera body with three lenses. Additionally, the Selphy will work with any camera that takes an SD card, so if you have other cameras besides a Fuji, it will work with them too (the USB connection is also a plus). And to watch the manner in which the Selphy prints (dye-sub, so it lays the image down in the the 4 layers of color) is pretty magical too.

Here again, I thought the SP-1 was a great idea and complement for the X100T (which I also have and love), but after having used it for a month, it just didn't add up for me. Ultimately, I chose to carry a bit more bulk for a larger and better quality print.

I think the other thing that got me, as I recall, was the cost -- when I bought the SP-1 two years ago, it was $172 (I've since seen it for $129 at B&H). The current replacement for the CP910 is the CP1200 at $99.99 (with the battery adapter it pushes the price to $148.99). But then the paper/ink prices are a bit different -- 54 sheets with the corresponding ink cartridge for the Selphy is $17.99, for the SP-1 it's $12.28 for 20 shots. In the long run, I couldn't see the extra cost for the Fuji instant film/paper as being worth it, particularly when compared to a printer that can produce larger prints with (as I personally see it) better image quality.

So I guess it all comes down to what's important to you -- if the small and pocketable size of the SP-1 is important, then it's an attractive option. But if you're willing to sacrifice the printer's pocketability for a larger and (maybe) better print quality - and save money over the long haul on the print materials - then the Selphy may be one to check out.

 

[Art Vandalay]

Love mine. Use it with the x100T or with the iFone app. They're all over my office...people are always blown away that they're 'polaroids.'

 

[jarski]

greetings Fuji SP-1 users. so I got the printer also, but first results are quite underwhelming unfortunately. awful lines appear visibly in the photo, and darker the tones, more visibly they can be seen. I tried two different film packs with similar results.

what u think is my printer broken somehow, surely this cannot be normal?

orig jpeg of lower photo:

 

[marcr1230]

The lines are in no way normal - you have a defective product or film

the quality of the printed images from the SP-1 is not super high, it can be good and it can be fun to use and to hand out pictures, it is not meant to replace more traditional ink jet printers, even the small portable ones.

greetings Fuji SP-1 users. so I got the printer also, but first results are quite underwhelming unfortunately. awful lines appear visibly in the photo, and darker the tones, more visibly they can be seen. I tried two different film packs with similar results.

what u think is my printer broken somehow, surely this cannot be normal?

orig jpeg of lower photo:

 

[Huss]

Yep your printer is defective.

 

[jarski]

will do some additional testing, but yes it seems so. too bad cannot return it in store where I got it anymore. does someone know are these things meant for repairable in some Fuji repair shop?