The latest Instax printer is an expensive upgrade but well worth it

FujiFilm’s Instax Mini Link 3 is a much-loved $100 accessory Travel magazine several. I often paste a printed image next to my handwritten thoughts to preserve a moment in time. However, prints produced by instant film can be soft and muddy – which is a novelty $169.95 Instax Mini Link+ Promises to improve.

The big upgrade is the new design print mode. It’s supposed to make complex text and illustrations clear and legible, but I didn’t see much of an improvement, despite it being a big selling point. However, I’ve found that the enhanced processing within the Mini Link+ improves contrast, color and sharpness to reveal more detail in a wider range of images, and I think this is more important for most people.

From my testing, I think the new Mini Link+ is definitely an upgrade, but don’t expect it, or any Instax instant film printer, to work wonders, especially for photos that are only 62 x 46 mm (2.44 x 1.81 inches).

All FujiFilm Instax printers use Instax Mini instant film which typically costs around $100 $30 for 20 sheetsor about 67 cents per photo. To print, you need to download the “Instax Mini Link” app available for iOS and Android.

The app is packed with features that let you visualize your photos in real space using virtual reality and use the printer as a remote camera shutter. It also helps you organize your photos; Imagine your prints in frames, on shelves, or as a collage on the wall; And beautify it with texts, stickers and filters. You can even link your Pinterest account if you want. I suppose it’s fun, but I’m not 12 – I’m a grown man, dammit, and I just want to print photos in my iPhone’s photo library, and do it fast!

To do this, I first have to import the image into the Instax Mini Link app, press Print, choose either Simple or Design mode, then wait 20 seconds for the print to arrive. The Mini Print promises “smooth tones for everyday photos” and produces softer images that, overall, are still an improvement over most anything the Mini Link 3 can print. Design Mode is exclusive to the Mini Link+ and why you’ll want it.

I tested the different modes with a variety of images and generally found that design prints made on the Mini Link+ were superior for faces, landscapes, high-contrast photos, and macro shots of nature. Everything, really, other than the text-heavy illustrations, where I didn’t see any obvious improvement.

For example, look at my stupid face. High-light photos were prone to blowout when printed on the older Mini Link 3. The Mini Link+’s simple, design prints handled lighting better, with improved contrast, more eye detail, and more accurate skin colors and textures.

In the example above, everything in the Mini Link 3 print is very soft and blends together into a blurry mess. The Mini Link+ once again delivers improved contrast, with visible textures on rock faces and tree branches and improved colors throughout. The barn’s wood slats, individual tree lines, and wheel details appear sharper in the design print, with less saturation on the large pine tree on the left.

Here, the Mini Link 3 struggles to depict snow as anything other than a white tinge, whereas you can make out individual snowflakes and depth on the Mini Link+ Design print.

In this example, the Mini Link 3 flattens the sky and removes texture from the distant mountain. Greens and blues are most brilliant with simple, design prints, while the separation between pieces of pebbles and blades of grass is more pronounced in design mode.

In this Spotify screenshot, Design Mode sharpens letters and artificially enhances white text with a black outline, most noticeable on the letters “a” and “s.” Simple mode does not do this. Broad strokes make letters stand out.

I find surprisingly little difference between these illustrations printed by the Mini Link 3 and the Mini Link+, even in design mode. Strange because this is where the new FujiFilm printer is supposed to excel. However, they all look good enough for hobbyists, and anyone looking to spice up a magazine or decorate a room.

After printing 15 photos over the past few days, the Instax Mini Link+’s battery is still at 80 percent. The battery charges via USB-C, and if you’re in Europe, the FujiFilm NP-70S battery can be user-replaced when it is no longer rechargeable.

From my testing, I think it’s clear that if you want the best image quality available in an Instax printer, the $169.95 Mini Link+ is the one to get. It also makes it worth the upgrade for some Mini Link 3 owners, as long as you don’t expect enhanced printouts of text-heavy illustrations.

But its price puts the Mini Link+ in direct competition with dye-sublimation printers such as Canon Selfie QX20 Resulting in sharp, accurate prints with better resistance to water and fading. Otherwise, the Mini Link 3 is still a great printer for the price, and the soft, choppy images it prints are worth $100.

Photography by Thomas Ricker/The Verge