Going Wireless with Bluetooth Printers

So you bought a laptop with Bluetooth technology, assuming (rightly so) that you'd begin making the gradual transition to being completely wireless. Whether you travel a lot or just work out of your home, doing away with all the wires and extra cables can cut down on your hassle and increase your efficiency. Plus it's just pretty neat. The problem is, when you bought your computer, you found yourself without any bluetooth accessories. So you got a mouse. That was cool. You got a new Blackberry, and that was pretty neat. You really want to show off the strength of your productivity, though? One of the coolest types of Bluetooth add-on out there, Bluetooth capable printers are the ultimate in wireless chic. You can press print, and your document flies across the room, and out it comes! Okay, maybe yours truly finds it more fascinating than you, but Hewlitt-Packard's HP DeskJet 450wbt, available for $350 at Amazon.com, is one of the finest first generation Bluetooth-compatible printers, delivering excellent quality and ultimate portability.

At 8.0 pounds, the HP DeskJet 450wbt isn't too much to take with you on the road. If you're traveling on a business trip and need to produce documents to accompany a presentation, the standard slot-loading black and white printer might not have everything to offer that you need; the HP, though, produces professional quality documents in black and white and in color, and at pretty good resolutions, too. The big paper tray can accommodate multiple sizes of paper in addition to photo paper, label kits, and transparencies. I tried out the HP DeskJet 450wbt to see if it delivered on its promise to produce clear transparencies; at 2400 x 1200 dpi, it did a fantastic job with some pie charts and graphs that just jumped off the transparency with stunning color.

For home use, the HP 450wbt has three printing modes, depending on what you're using it for: draft, normal, and best. Draft, of course, is a lesser quality print mode, but it delivers surprisingly clear print at 9 pages per minute, particularly with monotype fonts. Normal mode looks perfectly clear, and this would be perfect for any students writing papers or business folk turning in regular reports. I've hardly ever had to use the "best" mode just because the quality on "normal" is so good. That said, "best" handles resumes quite nicely. Again, the printer can accommodate a wide variety of paper and media, including high brightness paper for optimized clarity; at the maximum black resolution of 1200 x 1200 bpi, the HP DeskJet 450wbt can hang in there with any laser printer. Save the money and the trips to Kinko's and print it at home.

As for its portability, the only thing you might find as a drawback is the printer's size. Again, at 8.0 lbs., it's not so heavy that it's out of the question to pack it with you in your suitcase, though it certainly won't fit in your laptop back. The Bluetooth technology is fast and efficient, though, and the long-life lithium battery doesn't need frequent charging, especially if you're not running heavy print jobs. Furthermore, the HP 450wbt is compatible with Mac and Windows PCs alike, so you certainly won't have to worry about it not working with your system. Of course there's no printer cable included in the box because you don't need one! The best part of this device is the absolute freedom it delivers: freedom from wires, freedom from electrical outlets, freedom to take it wherever you take your laptop and still be able to produce professional quality documents in color or in black and white wherever you may be.