How long will they last? Simply put, longer than you or me. In a scientific test, metal prints created by the dye-sublimation process were found to retain color balance as much as 4 times longer than archival photographic paper.
Leland H. Carlblom, Ph.D, Senior Scientist at R&D Coatings Inc, concluded the following:
“White MetalPrints panels imaged with 6 color SubliJet IQ inks were tested for color fade and color balance by an industry accepted, accelerated test protocol which utilizes a Xenon Arc Test Chamber to simulate interior daylight conditions. Three different long lasting silver halide/dye photo papers were concurrently tested for comparison. Image lifetime for the MetalPrints panels, as defined by the test protocol, was 2 to 4 times that of the long lasting photo papers.”
For the full article please see, Xenon Light Stability Testing by Leland H Carlblom.