Little Printer

November 29, 2011 9:42 AM

Berg London's Little Printer is a small, net-connected printer for your home that will print you a small, daily newspaper with content you add or subscribe to via a phone app.
posted by secretdark (68 comments total)

So... it's an RSS feed that uses paper?
posted by Faint of Butt at 9:45 AM on November 29, 2011 [5 favorites]

Nice Hitler hair.
posted by zsazsa at 9:47 AM on November 29, 2011 [3 favorites]

Cute, but the happy face guy is begging for a, shall we say, Charlie Chaplain mustache.
posted by Celsius1414 at 9:47 AM on November 29, 2011

Oh hey I just wrote this on Twitter: the next person to use a quaint piano riff for their adorable tech product demo is getting punched in the dick.
posted by The Whelk at 9:47 AM on November 29, 2011 [12 favorites]

It reminds me a lot of those mid-80's services that faxed you daily information, right down to the thermal printer.
posted by smackfu at 9:50 AM on November 29, 2011 [2 favorites]

Why?
posted by tommasz at 9:50 AM on November 29, 2011 [4 favorites]

It's a neat idea and a wonderful implementation, but I wonder outside of eating breakfast away from my iPhone when I'd ever use it. I think I'd get annoyed if friends send texts to me that printed out and wasted paper.

So awesome idea and execution, just not sure if I would use it after the novelty wore off.
posted by mathowie at 9:51 AM on November 29, 2011

If this could print on toilet paper, there'd be an opportunity for some real synergy here.
posted by PlusDistance at 9:51 AM on November 29, 2011 [27 favorites]

I would get this but cover the cutesy case with metal, cables and magnifying glasses so it looks like something from the set of Brazil.
posted by brundlefly at 9:51 AM on November 29, 2011 [7 favorites]

I can't get passed the fact that it just looks like a happy little Hitler.

This is awful.
posted by Malice at 9:52 AM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

It's only real purpose is to allow strict 1930s Time Restorationists a way to get IMs without breaking thier precious illusions.

They put a bakerlite cover on it or something.
posted by The Whelk at 9:53 AM on November 29, 2011

Can we just have a link to Kottke in Mefi's main menu?
posted by davebush at 9:54 AM on November 29, 2011 [2 favorites]

I would like to be able to text various items to it throughout the course of a week and then have it print up a shopping list on demand when I am ready to go to the store.
posted by Rock Steady at 9:55 AM on November 29, 2011 [2 favorites]

It reminds me a lot of those mid-80's services that faxed you daily information, right down to the thermal printer.

Yes! This is exactly one of the Promises of The Future that we used to hear about in the 1970s and 80s! Your own personalized newspaper printed out for you AT HOME! It's a miracle! Now where the fuck is my robot butler?
posted by briank at 9:55 AM on November 29, 2011


USER NR.: 49346

DATE: 29 NOVEMBER 2011

REF. NO.: 4052397

TO: METAFILTER, WORLD WIDE WEB, INTERNET

FROM: GRIPHUS

1980 CALLED AND IT WANTS ITS TELEX BACK
posted by griphus at 9:55 AM on November 29, 2011 [11 favorites]

Somebody had a meeting to come up with a product design and marketing scheme. After a few breakout sessions, they came up with a central mission question: "What if Apple made a fax machine?"

Rip off old Mac "hello" advert and hearken back to Mac smiley face. Oh, and put a Moleskine journal in to grab the hip, snail-blog crowd.

I suspect somebody had a few warehouses full of surplus cash register receipt paper and tried to come up with a product to get rid of it all.
posted by Celsius1414 at 9:57 AM on November 29, 2011

Think, if we lived in a universe where this thing was common, we could have police procedural shows where the cops come in to a dead man surrounded by ribbons and ribbons of unread little printer tape.

Also I feel in order to really use this product I'd have to install it in the mouth of mounted deer head or something and then greet it as a person "What is the news Mr. Deer!" and generally just go off my nut before the whole thing made sense.
posted by The Whelk at 9:59 AM on November 29, 2011 [19 favorites]

And mad props to griphus for using his actual MF user number in his Telex. I applaud your dedication to your craft, sir.
posted by Celsius1414 at 10:01 AM on November 29, 2011

My theory is that the printer thing is vapor-ware intended just to get press for the daily digest iPhone app. Because no one cares about iPhone apps nowadays, so you need a hook.
posted by smackfu at 10:03 AM on November 29, 2011

Can we just have a link to Kottke in Mefi's main menu?

For what it's worth, I actually found this via their blog. I'm a big fan of BERG London's work.
posted by secretdark at 10:03 AM on November 29, 2011

I've never in my life seen something so profoundly stupid and adorable at the same time.
posted by Awakened at 10:05 AM on November 29, 2011 [2 favorites]

I think it's lovely. Maybe a bit too whimsical, but I imagine sticking it in a different case wouldn't be too hard.

I'm curious about the price, though - you need the 'bridge' thingy plus the Little Printer itself, which makes me suspect it'll end up being pretty pricey. I'd defo get one for £40, but wouldn't be surprised if it was triple that.

Here's the project by Tom Taylor that inspired the Little Printer (itself inspired by a blog post by one of the BERG folk, confusingly) - a second hand thermal printer hooked up to an Arduino that polls a Sinatra web app for stuff to print out.
posted by jack_mo at 10:11 AM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

now I'm just thinking about all the inappropriate cases you could put it in.
posted by The Whelk at 10:12 AM on November 29, 2011

So this post is an advertisement for a stupid product that isn't even available yet?
posted by DU at 10:14 AM on November 29, 2011 [2 favorites]

Let me guess. Custom thermal paper rolls, but they're more than happy to sell more of them to you after you run out. Ka-ching!
posted by formless at 10:14 AM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

Somebody make a dedicated Twitter printer that looks like the old stock tickers in the movies. MeMail me for the PO Box to send my royalty checks, TIA.
posted by entropicamericana at 10:16 AM on November 29, 2011

Finally! At last, a gadget I never want to own!
posted by bearwife at 10:16 AM on November 29, 2011 [6 favorites]

And mad props to griphus for using his actual MF user number in his Telex. I applaud your dedication to your craft, sir.

Pfft. His Ref. No. is 5 off! 5!
posted by Rock Steady at 10:16 AM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

PS: It will be called the Twickr.
posted by entropicamericana at 10:17 AM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

I suppose you need this primarily in cities like London where there's no broadband network (or indeed, any phone coverage) when you're in the local metro.

<ducks-and-runs/>
posted by the cydonian at 10:17 AM on November 29, 2011

I think this is charming. But since when is it ok to launch hardware as a beta product?
posted by Kwine at 10:22 AM on November 29, 2011

I also think this is charming, and I have wanted an automatic print-my-relevant-information-out machine/script/something for forever. It might not be strictly necessary given the existence of smartphones…but I find it pleasing.
posted by silby at 10:26 AM on November 29, 2011

This is like InstaPaper, but with real paper.
posted by jquinby at 10:28 AM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

So this post is an advertisement for a stupid product that isn't even available yet?

No, it's a chance to discuss this stupid little product that isn't even available yet. Also, to point out that it has an adorable, clean-shaven Hitler on it.

Who's a cute little Hitler? YOU ARE! YES YOU ARE!
posted by bondcliff at 10:29 AM on November 29, 2011 [3 favorites]

I'm curious about the price, though - you need the 'bridge' thingy plus the Little Printer itself, which makes me suspect it'll end up being pretty pricey.

And the original project was based on using a used thermal printer and hacking it. New thermal receipt printers are surprisingly expensive (like $200) so I wonder how low they can get the price.
posted by smackfu at 10:30 AM on November 29, 2011

I think this is charming. But since when is it ok to launch hardware as a beta product?

What with Kickstarter and the relative ease with which you can get a Chinese factory to fabricate a limited first run of a product (or make it yourself with a 3D printer) I think beta hardware is going to become increasingly common.

Which means that early adopters are going to have even more semi-functioning crap in their cupboards, but some interesting and unusual products might come to light that would never have made it off the drawing board in the past.
posted by jack_mo at 10:36 AM on November 29, 2011

I'm putting this on the list right after Pet Rock.
posted by tomswift at 10:36 AM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

Which means that early adopters are going to have even more semi-functioning crap in their cupboards...

Well, at least it'll match the cupboards.
posted by griphus at 10:38 AM on November 29, 2011

I bought a Chumby (http://www.chumby.com/). People at work still make fun of me. This would be worse.
posted by DigDoug at 10:38 AM on November 29, 2011 [2 favorites]

It's a bit silly.

But those three blue navigation buttons at the top of the site might well be the most entertaining thing I've found on the web today. It's like changing the station on my first TV.

Click
*grin*
Click
*grin*
Click
*grin*
Click
*grin*
Click
*grin*
posted by dowcrag at 10:41 AM on November 29, 2011 [2 favorites]

wow DigDoug. Now I have to make fun of you. Why did you open yourself up to this?
posted by Think_Long at 10:44 AM on November 29, 2011

i bought a Chumby too, but only used it for a couple months until the iPhone came out and sort of replaced it.
posted by mathowie at 10:46 AM on November 29, 2011

Am I alone in finding this insanely useful? I would love to be able to email my grocery lists to myself and print them out on a wee slip of paper.

Followup question: am I alone in making grocery lists in email and printing them?
posted by El Sabor Asiatico at 11:14 AM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

It's an update to the Game Boy Printer except it is not for printing horrible resolution black and white digital photos or the random Pokemon you caught in Gold/Silver.

Overall reaction: meh.
posted by JoeXIII007 at 11:19 AM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

I read Kotke's post and then half a dozen others that all seemed to be in love with the idiotic thing. I don't get it. If you already have a smart phone, why the hell would you want to print out news feeds? Look at your phone, there they are. I also love that it needs it's own "BERG Cloud" to connect to a dongle that you plug into your router. Just what everyone needs, another network to administer.
posted by octothorpe at 11:31 AM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

This is monstrously stupid. First, the format makes this useless for anything except the daily sudoku puzzle, which is the most prominently displayed item on the site. The "content" consists of headlines from the guardian. Presumably the biases and prejudices of Guardian readers are so deeply ingrained that all they need is the headlines and they can fill in the rest of the story based on stereotypes, platitudes, and cliches.

I can almost see the value of a "one-sheet" printing service, a single letter sized (sorry, "A4") sheet of paper with some substantive information on it, akin to the front page of the journal, but which included the weather or my to-do list for the day. That would actually be more efficient and time-saving than clicking through the 5-6 apps on my phone to get the same info.

But this? This is worse than a Twitter feed.
posted by Pastabagel at 11:41 AM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

I hear that you can download ringtones to it of either 9 pin or 12 pin dot matrix sounds.
posted by furtive at 12:03 PM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

RT @Pastabagel But this? This is worse than a Twitter feed.
posted by griphus at 12:05 PM on November 29, 2011

"Yes! This is exactly one of the Promises of The Future that we used to hear about in the 1970s and 80s! Your own personalized newspaper printed out for you AT HOME!"

Back in 1991 it occurred to me that what people need is a personalized newspaper printed out at home using erasable, reprintable paper. That's the only way that sort of thing would work. Otherwise, it would consume far more paper than anyone would want to either pay for or have to dispose of.

There's lots and lots of things that people would still like to read and look at via a hard copy but only temporarily. I have no idea why there's apparently no serious development effort for erasable printer paper.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 12:27 PM on November 29, 2011

My version will hire unemployed people to line the streets along your path to wherever you go in the morning. And they'll be dressed in Victorian street urchin/newsboy costumes. And they'll cry out your specialized news stories as you walk along, passing the baton precisely from one to the next as you approach each one.

That's a lot better.
posted by Naberius at 12:39 PM on November 29, 2011 [4 favorites]

Naberius: Are you taking subscriptions? Because I have cash.
posted by IAmBroom at 12:46 PM on November 29, 2011

Yeah, we're taking pre-orders now, and the service will go into live Beta after Romney wins the 2012 elections. I figure there ought to be plenty of starving and desperate middle managers at that point.
posted by Naberius at 12:53 PM on November 29, 2011

El Sabor, I actually agree! My wife would be able to send it things that she wants me to do, and then each weeknight/Friday night I could just tear off the current "Honey Do" list and get cracking. Awesome!
posted by wenestvedt at 1:01 PM on November 29, 2011

Or, you know, invest in a pencil and scrap paper. Crazy talk, I know, but it's got hipster cred. ;)
posted by Celsius1414 at 1:09 PM on November 29, 2011

ok, I can do without pics of dogs and sudoku but yeah I could use this for to-do lists and punch lists. I make lists of steps for things all the damn time, so often I wrote an app on google app engine to handle it for me. I would not mind a mini hard copy with checkboxes I can tick. Only problem with this is that it uses thermal paper so I would not want to touch anything it spits out.

They should resurect the technology behind the Commodore 1520 plotter. Yes, I know it is just a standard plotter, but bring back plotters!
posted by Ad hominem at 1:36 PM on November 29, 2011

Printing foursquare checkins? Seriously?

I really wanted this to be a joke, ridiculing all the "i can't read on a screen" jerks who don't give a fuck about the environmental impact of paper. But sadly this appears to be an actual thing they're going to ship next year :(
posted by finite at 1:41 PM on November 29, 2011

I have no idea why there's apparently no serious development effort for erasable printer paper.

*cough*
posted by dhartung at 1:43 PM on November 29, 2011

*cough*

That dude is the baddest motherfucking paper scientist on the planet.
posted by Think_Long at 3:29 PM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

I'm surprised it isn't coal powered. Of course the truly rich will still have their news hand printed on vellum by their butlers.
posted by doctor_negative at 3:57 PM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

I would want this if I didn't have a Kindle. Kindle+Instapaper has totally filled that niche of stuff-that-I-bookmark-but-never-actually-read-because-I'd-rather-read-a-book-than-look-at-a-monitor.
posted by roll truck roll at 4:23 PM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

On further reflection, the real value in this might be less about articles and more about email and social media. I enjoy being able to spend an evening away from the computer. When I open it to check email, I inevitably spend an hour on it. The idea of a quick paper update after dinner is unavoidably attractive to me, environment be damned.
posted by roll truck roll at 4:27 PM on November 29, 2011

man I hope you guys like BPA
posted by danny the boy at 4:47 PM on November 29, 2011

Once you've covered your fridge in printouts, you could scan them and archive them.
posted by carter at 5:02 PM on November 29, 2011 [8 favorites]

HP teamed up with Dilbert in the 1990s to deliver a daily print-at-home newspaper that had a crossword, Dilbert cartoon and I think some NYT headlines. lame.
posted by bystander at 9:40 PM on November 29, 2011

man I hope you guys like BPA

We're pretty cool with it.
posted by alby at 11:54 PM on November 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

I did this myself a couple years ago with an arduino and a receipt printer from my college's surplus shop. It wasn't a thermal printer, though, and I couldn't justify buying a new ink cartridge after mine ran out. I didn't and still don't have a smartphone, so every morning, it would automatically print my google calendar events for the day. It was great while it lasted, worked like a charm even with my tenuous setup involving brass thumbtacks, duct tape, and corrugated cardboard (no soldering iron or proper breadboard). Plus the "chug-a-chug-a" noise made me feel like Edward R. Murrow was waking me up with important news from London every morning.
posted by LiteOpera at 6:21 AM on November 30, 2011 [2 favorites]

Eh. I read everything on my monocle monitor anyway.
posted by weirdoactor at 4:14 PM on November 30, 2011 [1 favorite]

That dude is the baddest motherfucking paper scientist on the planet.

"Paperless office? You can take my dead trees from my equally dead hands. Xerox, bitches, that's what up."
posted by Ogre Lawless at 10:57 PM on November 30, 2011