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Tour
Front
The front of the A440 printer dock looks something like a small radio because of its rounded edges and flared design. The outer edge of the front shows a glossy white shell, but most of the front is taken up by a large light gray door with corduroy-like stripes across it. In the center of the door is a chrome HP logo plate, and the HP Photosmart A440 product name is listed in the lower right corner. At the very top of the door is a long skinny lip that doesn’t protrude much, but serves as a sort of handle to open the door. When the door is opened, a few components are revealed: a PictBridge-compatible USB port in the upper left corner, a latch that locks the door to the printer’s body in the center, an output slot near the bottom, and an ink cartridge door on the right side. This door has a diagram molded into the inside that shows how to load and remove the cartridge, which is basically just pushed in and pulled out.
 Back
The back of the printer dock has a similar design to the front. The back door is the same size, design, and color as the front, except for a small cutout on the top right for two jacks: the USB-to-computer jack on the top and the power supply port on the bottom. This door, which serves as the dock’s input tray, has no lip or handle to open it because it only opens automatically when the front door is opened. It also only opens about an inch, enough for the user to slide the paper into it. A flimsy paper holder can be pulled out via a handle at the top of the back door and extends about an inch-and-a-half from the very top of the door.
Left Side
The left and right sides of the printer dock are identical. Both have a wider base and a skinnier top and a glossy white, featureless finish.
Right Side
The right side of the HP Photosmart A440 printer dock isn’t very interesting. It has a glossy white shell and flares 3.5 to 4 inches from the top to the bottom.
Top
The top of the printer has a boom-box–like look to it, except for the main housing's glossy white finish. There is a door in the middle that looks like it could be for cassette tapes, but it opens wide to reveal the HP Photosmart's docking port. Above this door is a small handle that attaches on both ends of the central door and can be moved backwards to lie flush with the dock’s top. The handle is rounded on one side and flattened on the other, which makes for a fairly uncomfortable carrying experience; the sharp edge digs into the hand a bit. On the back left of the printer top is the circular power button. The other controls are located in front of the cassette-like door on a light gray surface. There is a red-eye removal button on the left side, a cancel button to its right, and a print button almost in the center. The print button is the only button of this set to actually stand out: it is larger and backlit with a green LED. To the right is a small "back" button with a warning light in the shape of an exclamation point above it. A large multi-selector control sits to the right of both of these; this contains the typical four directional arrows and the central Menu/OK button. On the far right is a small LED that indicates the charge status of the Photosmart M437 camera’s batteries.
Interior
The HP Photosmart A440 doesn’t bare all when its doors are opened. With the front panel/tray opened, the output rollers can barely be seen in the skinny slot. The printer cartridge door is the only real look inside and that is just a small cavity for the single cartridge to fit into. At the back are the electrical contacts that connect to the cartridge. The back input tray opens, but reveals little of the interior because it opens to only about a 5-degree angle.
Components
Display (5.00)
 The Photosmart M437 or the M537 digital camera serves as the display for the A440 printer dock. No specs were reported on the camera LCD’s resolution, but it was certainly serviceable for viewing images. The display has a good side-to-side angle of view, but minimal from top to bottom. Without an HP digital camera, this printer won’t make much sense. It can print from computers, which provide on-screen previews. But for consumers with other digital cameras, this printer doesn’t have memory card slots or a preview to see images that are loaded via the USB/PictBridge connection.
Paper trays (5.00)
The back door opens not quite an inch wide and acts as an input paper tray. It has one edge guide that shrinks the width from 4 inches to about 3.5 inches. This paper tray can hold up to 20 standard 4x6-inch sheets or up to 10 panorama-sized 4x12-inch sheets. The front door of the HP Photosmart A440 pops open to reveal the slim output slot. The door itself acts as a paper tray of sorts, although there are no edge guides or sides to keep the prints from sliding around. The shape of the door is diametrically opposed to the shape of the print as they eject from the printer. The Epson PM240, although it doesn’t sport the best output tray either, has a door that roughly corresponds to the shape of the print, and it props up at an angle to hold the prints. The A440’s door doesn’t prop up; it folds down a full 90 degrees, so pictures basically fall out of the printer onto it.
CD burner (0)
This tiny printer doesn’t even have a display screen, so a CD burner is out of the question.
Battery (0)
The HP Photosmart A440 is lightweight and portable, but it can only function with its power supply. HP does not sell an optional battery, so users are limited to places with power outlets.
Power supply
The A440 comes with a power supply that consists of a skinny cable and a thick plug.
Internal memory (0)
The HP Photosmart A440 doesn’t have internal memory, which is not surprising for a compact photo printer.
Multi-tasking (0)
This is simply out of the question for this little toaster.
Hard Drive (0)
The A440 does not come with a hard drive.
Accessories (8.00)
The HP Photosmart A440 comes as an accessory itself to the HP Photosmart M437 and M537 digital cameras. (Or is it the other way around??) Those cameras cost $109 and $129, respectively, and differ only in LCD screen size (the M537’s LCD is a half-inch larger). The A440 printer comes with a USB cable, but HP sells USB cables as extra accessories, too. HP also sells two carrying cases for $20 and $30 that are probably a good idea for users who will tote this device around often. It is lightweight and portable, but it isn’t very sturdy so a good case would keep it pristine longer. The HP Photosmart A440 is compatible with 5-ml HP 110 tri-color inkjet printer cartridges that run about $20 a piece, and it comes with a 2.5 ml ink cartridge. Camera accessories include SD cards and printer chargers.
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