Lexmark unveils first printer/CD burner combo

Lexmark P450

Lexmark has unveiled the first printer with a built-in CD burner for storage, which is designed to be used without a PC.

The P450 is an inkjet printer that produces 4in x 6in prints from common media card formats. A built in video panel displays the pictures before printing, and the files can be burnt onto a CD for long-term storage.

"People can now save and organise their digital photos on CD, print from a cell phone, view their photos on a television and much more," said Najib Bahous, vice president of Lexmark and president of of the vendor's Consumer Printer Division.

The company believes that this year will see a boom in the printing of digital photographs at home.

Analyst firm GFK has predicted that the market for home photo printers will grow by 41 per cent this year, spurred by the wider use of better quality cameraphones.

Canon recently released a range of photo printers to cope with the anticipated demand for home photo printing, and HP released a batch of similar printers in the summer.