Jason Dunn
09-22-2008, 03:00 PM
<p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/dht/auto/1221429456.usr1.jpg" border="1" /></p><p><a href="http://www.moo.com" target="_blank">Moo</a> is a delightfully quirky printing company based out of the UK with an equally quirky product that they call "<a href="http://www.moo.com/products/minicards.php" target="_blank">Minicards</a>" that are incredibly fun, especially for digital photographers. Minicards measure 28mm wide, 70mm tall, and they're printed with a matte laminate finish on 350g/m2 paper (think business card stock). The print quality is extremely high, with no discernible dot patterns that I could see. So what makes these little cards so much fun? Everything! First off, unlike pretty much every other printing process for cards that I can think of, they allow you to upload up to 100 images for your 100 Minicards. Or, if you want, you can upload only 10 images and you'll get 10 Minicards of each image - or any combination thereof (you get the idea). They have a great interface for pulling photos from your Flickr, Facebook, and other accounts, or you can upload images off your computer. If you dont' want to use your own photos, they have a variety of ready-made designs. On the back you can have up to six lines of text, and a choice of several small icons. I wish there were more icon choices though! <MORE /></p><p>Ok, so what do you use Minicards for? In my case, I wanted small, easy to carry photography contact cards. Sometimes when I'm out shooting, I might take pictures that other people will want a copy of - or, if I'm feeling really courageous, I'll ask people if I can take their picture. I wanted something to immediately hand to them that identified who I was, had an email address for contacting me at, and had the URL to my <a href="http://photos.jasondunn.com" target="_blank">photo site</a>. These Moo Minicards fit the bill perfectly: 100 cards cost only $19.99 USD, and I had a lot of fun picking out images I thought would fit the narrow aspect ratio of the cards. Some of my images look quite abstract now, which is cool!</p><p>I also ordered the Minicard holder for $4.99 USD. The holder, available only in white (sadly), keeps up to 15 Minicards, and a quick thumb swipe to the right or left opens the lid, and a quick thumb-press forward extends the card to someone else. That means I can take it out of my pocket and give someone the card, all one-handed. I'm 100% pleased with my purchase of the Moo Minicards, and if you've ever wanted contact cards that are less formal than a business card, these are a great solution. Moo also has a variety of other products, including stickers, postcards, greeting cards, and yes, even regular business cards.</p><p><em>Jason Dunn owns and operates <a href="http://www.thoughtsmedia.com/" target="_blank">Thoughts Media Inc.</a>, a company dedicated to creating the best in online communities. He enjoys <a href="http://photos.jasondunn.com/" target="_blank">photography</a>, mobile devices, <a href="http://www.jasondunn.com/" target="_blank">blogging</a>, digital media content creation/editing, and pretty much all technology. He lives in Calgary, Alberta, Canada with his lovely wife, and his sometimes obedient dog. He thinks Moo is one of the coolest companies he's ever ordered a product from.</em></p>