Buy the Instax Mini Link 3 for real Instax prints in 15 seconds and about 100 prints a charge. Pick the Canon Ivy 2 for sticky-back prints at 58 cents against 91 cents.
The Canon Ivy 2 and the Instax Mini Link 3 are pocket printers that take photos from your phone over Bluetooth and hand you a wallet-size print. They cost about $100 each. What comes out is different. The Ivy 2 prints on ZINK sticker paper. The Mini Link 3 exposes a sheet of real Instax Mini instant film, the same film Fujifilm’s Mini cameras use.
What is actually different
The print is the first thing to decide on. ZINK, short for zero ink, holds the colour in the paper, so the Ivy 2 needs nothing but a pack of Canon ZINK paper. Its prints are borderless, 76 x 51 mm, with a peel-off sticky back. The Mini Link 3’s Instax Mini sheet is 86 x 54 mm with a 62 x 46 mm picture inside the white Instax frame. There is no adhesive, so for a journal you need glue or tape.
Colour goes to the Mini Link 3. Amazon buyers praise its vibrant, true-to-screen colour, and it has two colour modes, Instax-Rich and Instax-Natural. Reviewers agree the Ivy 2 makes some of the best ZINK prints in the 2x3 class, a clear step up from the original Ivy, though ZINK detail and dynamic range still trail dye-sub printers. Ivy 2 colours can lean cool, deep blues suffer, and Genaveve Bradshaw at TechGearLab found some prints look overly filtered. The Mini Link 3’s main complaint is the odd bad batch of film.
Speed is a clear gap: the Mini Link 3 prints in about 15 seconds, and Canon rates the Ivy 2 at about 50. Battery life is a bigger one: about 100 prints a charge on the Mini Link 3 against about 20 on the Ivy 2. Both charge over USB-C. The Ivy 2 fills up in about 45 minutes, the Mini Link 3 in about 1.5 to 2 hours.
The two quote close print resolutions: 313 dpi for the Ivy 2 and 318 dpi for the Mini Link 3. The Ivy 2 is the flatter printer at 119 x 84 x 20 mm. The Mini Link 3 measures 90 x 37.7 x 125 mm and weighs 210 g.
The apps lean in different directions. Canon’s Mini Print app can cut one photo into four or nine tiles that you stick together into a bigger picture. The instax mini Link app adds AR effects that buyers call gimmicky, and the printer has its own tricks: turn it upside down and hold the power button to reprint the last image.
Reviewers like both. William Harrel at PCMag called the Ivy 2 “an excellent smartphone companion for little on-the-go pics”, and Hillary K. Grigonis at Pocket-lint called it an excellent gadget for crafters. Isabella Ruffatti said the Mini Link 3’s improvements over the Mini Link 2 are subtle but it has very few downsides. On Amazon the Ivy 2 rates 4.6 out of 5 across 4,443 ratings, and the Mini Link 3 rates 4.7 across 742.
Paper and cost per print
The Ivy 2 is cheaper to feed. A 50-sheet pack of Canon ZINK paper was $29.00 at Amazon on October 5, 2026, which is 58 cents a print. Canon’s 100-sheet pack at $49.00 brings it to 49 cents. An Instax Mini twin pack of 20 shots was $18.17 at Amazon the same day, 91 cents a print.
That is 33 cents more for every Instax print. Over 100 prints the paper costs $58.00 on the Ivy 2 and $91.00 on the Mini Link 3, a $33 difference.
The printers themselves cost almost the same. At the October 5, 2026 price check the Ivy 2 was $99.00, shown as 17% off its $119.99 list price, and the Mini Link 3 was $99.95, its list price. With a 95 cent gap, the running cost is the only price difference that matters here.
Which one to buy
Buy the Instax Mini Link 3 for parties, gifts and prints people will hand around. It prints more than three times as fast on the rated figures, lasts five times as many prints on a charge, and gives you a real Instax print with the frame people know. You pay 33 cents more a print for that.
Buy the Canon Ivy 2 if the prints are going into a journal, a planner or onto a laptop. The sticky back saves glue, the tiling feature makes bigger pictures from small sheets, and each print costs 58 cents. Expect colour that can lean cool, a wait of about 50 seconds per print and a recharge after about 20.
Where to buy
Canon Ivy 2 Mini Photo Printer$99.00 (list $119.99)Check price on Amazon
Instax Mini Link 3$99.95Check price on Amazon
Specs side by side
Same on both: Instant photo printer · Current.
| Spec | Canon Ivy 2 Mini Photo Printer | Instax Mini Link 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Launched | 2022 | 2024 |
| Film or media | Canon ZINK 2x3 sticky-backed photo paper | Instax Mini |
| Print size | 76 x 51 mm | 86 x 54 mm |
| Image size | n/a | 62 x 46 mm |
| Film cost per shot | $0.58 | $0.91 |
| Power | Internal rechargeable lithium-ion battery, USB-C charging, roughly 45 minutes to full | Internal lithium-ion battery, USB-C charging, approx. 1.5 to 2.0 hours to full charge, 3W consumption |
| Shots per battery / prints per charge | 20 | 100 |
| Print resolution | 313 dpi | 318 dpi |
| Print time | 50 s | 15 s |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth 5.0 only | Bluetooth |
| App | Canon Mini Print app (iOS and Android) | instax mini Link app (iOS and Android) |
| Dimensions | 119 x 84 x 20 mm | 90 x 37.7 x 125 mm |
| Weight | n/a | 210 g |
| Colours | 2 (Pure White, Blush Pink) | 3 (Clay White, Rose Pink, Sage Green) |
| Street price | $99.00 (checked October 5, 2026) | $99.95 (checked October 5, 2026) |
| Amazon rating | 4.6 (4,443 ratings) | 4.7 (742 ratings) |
| Buy | Check price on Amazon | Check price on Amazon |
Specs from manufacturer pages; prices and ratings checked October 5, 2026.
What reviewers and buyers say
Canon Ivy 2 Mini Photo Printer
Published reviews of the Canon Ivy 2 Mini Photo Printer:
- “Canon's improved Ivy 2 Mini prints good-looking photos and stickers at competitive running costs, making it an excellent smartphone companion for little on-the-go pics.” (William Harrel, PCMag, 2023-01)
- “An excellent gadget for crafters as well as anyone who wants to print, and stick, photos right from a smartphone.” (Hillary K. Grigonis, Pocket-lint, 2024-09)
- “It offers a great deal of enjoyment and proves to be budget-friendly without any extra maintenance costs, with consistent performance, speedy printing and a feature-filled app, though some prints look overly filtered.” (Genaveve Bradshaw, TechGearLab, 2023-09)
Amazon buyers rate it 4.6 out of 5 across 4,443 ratings.
Praised for: much better colour and detail than the original Ivy, very small and light, smaller than a phone, USB-C charging, full in about 45 minutes, app tiling splits one image across four or nine sheets, peel-and-stick backing for journals and planners. Criticised for: ZINK output still trails dye-sub rivals on fine detail, colours can lean cool, and deep blues suffer, about 20 prints per charge, Bluetooth only, phone only, no computer printing, lists higher than the Kodak Step for similar output.
Instax Mini Link 3
Published reviews of the Instax Mini Link 3:
- “The compact and colorful Fujifilm Instax Mini Link 3 printer makes it simple to convert digital snaps into charming, wallet-sized Instax Mini prints, though PCMag still recommends the dye-sublimation Canon Selphy CP1500 as its Editors' Choice for portable printers overall.” (PCMag, 2024-08)
- “The Instax Mini Link 2 was already very good and, while the Mini Link 3's improvements are subtle, it's a great option with very few downsides.” (Isabella Ruffatti, 2025-04)
- “It's just enough of an upgrade to make you want to get it, especially for printing physical portfolios rather than relying on social media.” (Chris Gampat, 2024-08)
Amazon buyers rate it 4.7 out of 5 across 742 ratings.
Praised for: easy setup and fast Bluetooth pairing, vibrant, true-to-screen color, compact enough to carry everywhere, USB-C charging is a welcome upgrade. Criticised for: occasional bad batches of film hurt print quality, AR/Instax AiR Studio features feel gimmicky, still costs more per print than Zink or dye-sub rivals.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Canon Ivy 2 better than the Instax Mini Link 3?
For most people, no. The Instax Mini Link 3 prints in about 15 seconds against 50 for the Ivy 2, lasts about 100 prints a charge against 20, and prints on real Instax Mini film. The Ivy 2 is the better choice for sticky-back prints for journals and planners, and it costs 58 cents a print against 91 cents.
Do the Canon Ivy 2 and Instax Mini Link 3 use the same paper?
No. The Ivy 2 prints on Canon ZINK 2x3 sticky-backed photo paper, 76 x 51 mm, which carries the colour in the sheet and needs no ink. The Mini Link 3 exposes Instax Mini instant film, an 86 x 54 mm sheet with a 62 x 46 mm picture inside a white frame and no sticky back.
How much does a print cost on the Ivy 2 and the Mini Link 3?
About 58 cents on the Canon Ivy 2, from a 50-sheet pack of Canon ZINK paper at $29.00. About 91 cents on the Instax Mini Link 3, from a 20-shot Instax Mini twin pack at $18.17. Both were Amazon prices on October 5, 2026. Canon's 100-sheet pack at $49.00 brings the Ivy 2 down to 49 cents.
Are Canon Ivy 2 prints stickers?
Yes. Canon's ZINK paper for the Ivy 2 has a peel-off sticky back, and the Canon Mini Print app can also split one photo across four or nine sheets that you stick together into a bigger picture. Instax Mini film from the Mini Link 3 has no adhesive.