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Epson PictureMate Pal PM200 News Release Summary:
Epson Builds on Success of PictureMate® Personal Photo Lab Family With New Printers That Deliver Even Better Image Quality, Speed and Ease of Use
PictureMate Pal, Snap and Flash Offer Professional Quality 4" x 6" Photos That Consumers Can Easily Print Themselves

LONG BEACH, Calif., Sept. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Building on the phenomenal success of the PictureMate personal photo lab line, Epson America Inc. today announced three new printer models, which enable consumers to easily print professional looking 4" x 6" photos themselves at home or wherever they choose, with or without a computer. The newest PictureMate printer line, which includes PictureMate Pal™, PictureMate Snap™ and PictureMate Flash™, boasts several improvements over the previous generation, including features that make it even easier to print the best looking photos with no tradeoffs.

The PictureMate line, which has consistently been a top choice among consumers for small format photo printers, uses Epson's exclusive MicroPiezo® archival printing technology to produce beautiful and affordable prints that resist fading far longer than traditional film processed prints. In addition to being fade resistant, this ink technology ensures that PictureMate prints are smudge, scratch, and water resistant. Thanks to improvements in the ink set, all three models produce photos that have even greater clarity and detail than the previous generation and resist fading up to 96 years in a glass frame and about 200 years in a photo album.(1)

Designed as the perfect printing accessory for digital cameras, PictureMate supports all popular memory cards, as well as direct printing from PictBridge cameras. And with its compact size, handle and PC-free capabilities, PictureMate can be easily moved from room to room or wherever people are gathered.

"The PictureMate lineup has been so successful because Epson addressed all the barriers consumers had to printing photos at home, such as quality, ease of use, affordability and print durability," said Grace Huang, product manager, Consumer Imaging Products, Epson. "Now we have made the most successful snapshot printer even faster, with more vibrant image quality so that users will find it even easier and more enjoyable to use."

PictureMate Pal
PictureMate Pal features a fast print speed of as little as 60 seconds for a 4" x 6" photo(2) to save consumers time. It also has a new auto photo correction feature that corrects colors for dark backlit and washed-out photos, adjusts skin tones, enhances the richness of scenery, and sharpens photos. This feature is like having a trained photo lab technician in the printer to fine-tune each image automatically. Additionally, PictureMate Pal features a 2" premium photo viewer with a built-in tilt to easily preview and select images to print. PictureMate Pal also supports wireless printing with an optional Bluetooth adapter.

With or without a computer, PictureMate Pal features a variety of layout options, including true BorderFree® 4"x 6" photos without the inconvenient tearing or unsightly perforations that some other printers require, photos with classic borders, traditional wallet-sized photos, mini wallets, plus handy proof sheets. It also offers the ability to print in color, black and white or sepia tones. An easy-to-navigate control panel simplifies the process.

Pricing and Availability
The PictureMate Pal, Snap and Flash will all be available in September 2006 for $149, $199 and $299, estimated street prices, respectively. PictureMate comes with a one-year limited warranty in the United States. More information is available at http://www.mypicturemate.com/.

Accessories
For convenience and affordability, Epson will offer two PictureMate Print Pack options for this new generation. The first option includes 150 sheets of glossy 4"x 6" photo paper and a photo cartridge for an estimated street price of $39.99. The second option includes 100 sheets of matte 4"x 6" photo paper and a photo cartridge for an estimated street price of $34.99. Both packs are supported by the PictureMate Print Pack Satisfaction Guarantee.(3)