I am buying a new Printer

Any suggestions or recommendations?

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

The other Foo thread about the cost of toner cartridges has made me focus on my requirement for a new printer. The one I have is a Canon S630 ink jet and it is now more than five years old so it doesn't owe me anything.

I only use it occasionally. I probably only print out an average of about a page or two per day and sometimes I can go for three or four days without using it. Because of this and it's age I seem to need to run the cleaning cycle almost every time I use it.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a replacement? I also use it for printing out family photographs. The cost of replacement cartridges would be an important factor in my decision and I would spend up to about £200.

[Patrick Taylor]

I haven't studied this recently, but last time I did there were inkjet printers with five colours of ink instead of three (plus black, of course). They required a different sort of paper that would produce prints that would not fade for 100 years. I think it was an Epson printer suitable for what are referred to as Giclee prints. For photographs I'd go for one of those, as fading pictures aren't much use for archive type images. Laser printers, apparently, can't match the quality of an inkjet for photographs.

[aspdaddy]

I just got an HP PSC 1410 for less than £100, its a colour printer/scanner/photocopier all in one. The cartridges are included and replacement are mid-priced. If you have branded cartridges then you can refill them yourself with quickink 3 or 4 times.

I do the photos at the supermarket now for 5p a print, just take them in on a usb drive. Much cheaper and better quality than any home printer.

[cmarshall]

Photographs -> Inkjet. No-brainer.

I would recommend almost any of the Epson printers, but they sell on the "razor blade" model. The printer is a loss leader, but they more than make up for it in consumables. I read somewhere that the most expensive material in the world by weight is Epson inkjet ink.

I would suggest getting TWO printers: One for documents, and one for photos. I'm not sure if these all-in-one units are any good. I use two printers myself. I'd never use my Epson R2400 for documents, but, man you have GOT to see the photos it prints. I use a cheap HP laser for my documents. You can get B&W laser printers for less than $100 these days, and color ones for less than $300. The cartridges ain't cheap, but I just replaced my first toner cartridge after over a year of heavy use.

[j_h_maccann]

I'd say, anyone except HP. I've gone through two recent generations of HP inkjet printers, and both times the HP driver software has been extremely buggy and caused no end of problems by trying to insinuate itself everywhere. By contrast, a recent Epson install was entirely clean, no driver difficulties at all. I don't think that HP knows how to write drivers.

[inbound]

I read somewhere that the most expensive material in the world by weight is Epson inkjet ink.

LOL

Did you read that on a refill website?

I'm off to swap my half-full printer cartridges for a variety of precious metals and stones...

[grandpa]

I would recommend the HP Business Inkjet 1200. It is the best printer I've used in the last several years, and is finally on it's last legs - leaving vertical streaks through my images. But this printer has gone through hundreds of thousands of pages, in the the harshest environment I could ever imagine, with very few problems. I can't make the same claim for any other HP or Epson that I've used, and I'm hoping that I can replace it soon with the same model. There's nothing NOT to like about this printer, IMO.

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

I'm hoping that I can replace it soon with the same model.

You'll probably find that it is no longer available.

[grandpa]

It's still around. Currently unavailable from the manufacturer, but available. I have the extra paper tray (250 sheets) and the duplexer. Not sure if that is standard or optional. Changing the ink is quick and easy - something one might consider if they are getting older and grumpier. Here are the specs [shopping.hp.com].

<add>
I'm not so sure this printer, or any inkjet would be real good for full page images or photos, laser is where you need to go for that. But I use mine to produce a product catalog full of smaller images and the quality, aside from age factors, has been good. I generally print about 30 to 40 images on a full sheet, front and back. Besides the catalogs it gets used heavily with day to day operations - invoicing, shipping labels, scan labels, etc.

[Patrick Taylor]

I wouldn't personally use an inkjet printer for shipping labels. I've found the ink tends to smudge, even after 24 hours. This does not happen with my laser printer. But I'm sure an inkjet beats a normal laser printer for photographs.

When looking for a printer I would also consider the feed system. I don't like the way my HP inkjet printer takes the paper round a drum. This frequently causes a paper jam.

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

I just ordered an Epson Stylus DX7000F. Here's hoping I made the right decision but it was based mostly on the cost of cartridges.

[Patrick Taylor]

Looks great, irrespective of cartridge cost. I want one. Over the years I've found the Epson paper feed system to be superior to HP's, which doubles back around the drum and scrunches up ink-blotted paper unless the paper is pristine and perfectly aligned.

[edited by: Patrick_Taylor at 11:45 pm (utc) on Jan. 15, 2007]

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

New printer just installed - superb quality!

[grandpa]

Great! Can I have your old one? ;)

[BeeDeeDubbleU]

You can, but it is no longer working. For once in my life I got my timing (almost) right. The old printer had been playing up and a couple of days after I placed the order for the new one with Amazon it gave up the ghost.

Perhaps it was miffed at the threat of being replaced? :)