MixBook Photo Book Review
Mixbook is super easy! It was a matter of uploading my photos, choosing the template and size of the book I wanted and then just pluggging in my photos, moving them around, adding captions and then hitting print and I was done! Lain Ehmann, scrapbook lover, layoutaday.com
My Mixbook Review
Mixbook.com is a website that allows you to create custom photo books, calendars, and cards for free. The photo books feature hand-stitched covers and archival-quality, FSC-certified pages. You can use one of the many designs provided on the website, or you can start entirely from scratch and crop, move, rotate, zoom, and pan to your heart’s content.
Mixbook.com also allows you to enter text, create backgrounds for your photos, and/or add stickers. You can upload photos directly from your computer or from a number of other websites, including Facebook, Picasa, and Flickr.
The array of products that you can create using the tools on Mixbook.com includes:
- Photo books
- Birth announcements
- Invitations
- Cards
- Yearbooks
- Digital Scrapbooks
You can even invite others to contribute to a project you’ve initiated on the website.
Is Mixbook Worth It? – Key Features and Benefits
I would use Mixbook to create a photo book, calendar, or card for the following reasons:
- They have a huge variety of templates from seasonal (i.e Valentine's, Winter, Fall, etc), to Weddings, Baby, Holidays, Travel, Family, and almost any event and occasion you can think of.
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My work is automatically saved whenever I change pages. This means I won’t be faced with the frustration of redoing my work if I forget to hit the “save” button.
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I like being able to use photos that I’ve already uploaded on another website, like Picasa, Facebook or Flickr. This saves me time.
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I appreciate the fact that Mixbook uses archival quality, FSC-certified materials. This means my photos won’t degrade with the passage of time.
- I can enter my own scheduled events on a calendar I customize. This makes it even more personal.
I think one of the greatest features is the ability to invite others to contribute to a project. No matter how far apart they are geographically, siblings can design a photo book to give as a gift to their parents. Coworkers can provide individual contributions to an album or calendar to give as a gift to someone who is retiring.
How to Use Mixbook – Tutorial
Mixbook.com Cons – Disadvantages
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It took several minutes for me to upload three photos from my computer. This seems inordinately long.
- When you’re working on a project, the “Help” button simply takes you through a short nine-page tutorial on what you can do using the tools on the website, but doesn’t address a specific problem you may be having. There is a live chat feature, but it’s available only from 9 A.M. to 5 P.M. Pacific Standard Time, Mondays through Fridays.
What Companies Might Be Better Than Mixbook.com?
Key competitors of Mixbook are:
- Snapfish (Read review and get Snapfish coupon code)
- Kodak Gallery
- Shutterfly
- Winkflash
- York Photo
How Does Mixbook Compare To Other Photo Books Sites?
I looked at a couple of other merchants that are in direct competition with Mixbook.com.
The first was Snapfish, a division of Hewlett-Packard.
Mixbook vs Snapfish
You can upload photos from your computer onto the Snapfish website, and Snapfish will create an album for them, or you can use the website’s tools to customize your own album. You can also use photos that you’ve previously uploaded on Facebook or Flickr, just as you can on Mixbook.com. You can upload photos on Snapfish much faster than on Mixbook. It took 13 sec for Snapfish to upload my photo comparing to 26 sec it took Mixbook to upload the same photo.
I could find nothing on the Snapfish website that indicates that the album materials are of archival quality, however. There are a number of photo products on Snapfish.com that are not available on Mixbook.com, such as jewelry and accessories, blankets and throws, and home décor.
Snapfish allows you to return your purchase if you’re “ever” dissatisfied for a replacement or for a full refund plus 10% off your next order. Snapfish even pays for you to ship the item back to the company. Mixbook indicates that you should contact them if you are dissatisfied with your purchase, and that they will do their best to make it right, but there is also a “no returns” statement on the Mixbook website.
Unlike Snapfish, Mixbook gives a volume discount
Mixbook vs Kodak Gallery
The second merchant I investigated was Kodak Gallery, a fully-owned subsidiary of the Eastman Kodak Company. As was the case with the other two merchants, you can upload photos to create your own personalized album, calendar, or card. Papers used for the photo albums are made with inks containing no hazardous chemicals. Like Snapfish, Kodak Gallery offers more photo products, including iPhone cases and wall décor, from which to choose than does Mixbook. KodakGallery.com has a 30-day return policy. If you are unhappy with your product, you can return it for a replacement, account credit, or refund.
What Is the Cost?
The cost of the products on Mixbook.com varies. Calendars begin at $19.99. Some styles of wedding invitations are as low as 39 cents if ordered in a high enough quantity. Other representative prices are:
- 6” x 4” Mini Landscape Photo Book, soft cover (20 pages) = $6.99
- 12” x 12” Deluxe Square Photo Book, hardcover (20 pages) = $49.99
- 14” x 11” Coffee Table Landscape Photo Book (20 pages) = $54.99
- Vintage Floral Wedding Invitations, 5’ x 7”, Portrait Flat, Premium Matte (25 cards) = $47.25
- Colorful Seasons Calendar, 12” x 12” = $29.99
- 3.5” x 5” Thank You Cards, Uncoated Basic Stock (20 cards) = $20.80
Pages can be added to the photo books for an additional cost. Cards can be purchased in lesser or greater quantities than what is listed above, but the smaller the quantity, the higher the price per card. The shipping cost varies with the product. Budget shipping to destinations within the continental U.S. ranges from $2.99 for cards and stationery to $9.99 for a 14” x 11” Coffee Table Landscape Book. That being said, Mixbook.com was offering free shipping on all their items on the day I visited the website.
Mixbook.com guarantees that its products will be free from manufacturing defects and states that if you are unsatisfied with the quality of your purchase, you should contact the company within 30 days, using the form provided on the website. However, the website also contains the statement that the company will not accept returns since the products are customized for the individual consumer.
What Are Others Saying? Testimonials – Feedback – Comments
There are several testimonials on Mixbook.com from customers who praise the quality of the photo books they had purchased. Reviewers on external websites who purchased photo books from MixBook.com seem to agree. However, those who had ordered cards were less than happy with the quality, and there were a number of irate customers who did not receive their orders in a timely fashion.
Any Promotional Coupons for Mixbook? How to Buy at a Discount
As affiliates of Mixbook, we regularly check for coupon codes and promotional deals that work so that you will get the best prices. If there are any Mixbook coupon codes or discounts available today you will find them at the top of this page.
annoymous says
Coupon Code
Thanks for the codes.. will surely use them. 🙂