Photo quality printer

T

TC10284

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jan 8, 2006
Messages
213
I am in need of a photo quality printer for a user that isn't an expert at operating a computer. She would prefer it to be kind of small (limited space), or in other words, not exceptionally large. One feature she is interested in is printing directly from a flash memory card from a digital camera. She doesn't need it to be network capable, although if that is an option, don't hesitate to suggest. Not expensive, but not overly cheap either. I would estimate up to $150.

Can you guys suggest what brand/model to look into? Also, what kind of paper would she need?
 
I'm not sure if photo printers are in general such a good idea in terms of cost with the high price of ink.

I'd be willing to say that ordering prints online through a site such as snapfish / shutterfly / going through a local ( Walgreens, CVS, Walmart) may be cheaper. Though, I imagine volume of prints comes into play.
 
HP or Canon...Canon's colors are a bit more vibrant. HP's colors are more true to life. Both should have models that support your needs. And both are pretty good imo.
 
I like Canon, although I hear Epson are also very good.

If you get a canon, however, check which ink tanks it needs. Each printer uses different ink tanks (I hate that) and some are harder to find than others.
 
+1 for Canon.

Though it's not like your after (compact, card reader), I have the MP610. It has vibrant printouts and is really fast/quiet.

Have a looky here, maybe something that meets your requirements:

http://www.photo-printers.org.uk/
 
I agree, Canon printers have higher contrast and a little more saturation, and to me, look a little better. HPs have good color as well, but if you like vibrant colors, Canon is the way to go. HPs also tend to be slow in my experience, so if speed is important, then HPs are not for you.
 
I've sworn by my epson photo printers for like my last 3 i've had. I dont like HP's because most of theirs are a 2 cartridge setup. Black and a "Photo" cartridge. With this kind of setup you always....always end up replacing a photo cartridge that is really only out of one of the 3 colors. All three companies have setups that have 4 cartridges but over the years i've found the ink management to be the best on epson. The canons lay alot of ink on the page which can result in slightly better looking pictures but end up costing your wallet more in the end. The epson i have now is awesome and you can sit the prints next to ones from snapfish, walmart, walgreens, etc and it's difficult to tell which one is which if you don't know.

EPSON Stylus NX400 - $99.99 (Free Shiping)

That is the printer i have presently. I got it on sale one week at Best Buy for 69.99. As one user states in his review it will not print if one ink is completely dry(i'm guessing for quality purposes. ) The cartridges that come with the printer like all new printers are only trial cartridges and they will only have about 20% ink in them. The ones you purchase at the store or online will be 100% full. The morale if the story is like with all color inkjet printers since the very 1st ones were released keep a spare set of ink around.

As to the ink management mine is still running on the black and the magenta that shipped with the printer(i have spares on hand but it hasn't bled them dry yet so i haven't had to replace).

The small LCD is awesome and my wife who isn't great with computers can print straight from the card it's as simple as tell it what type of paper you're printing on and which pictures you want it to print. No interaction with the computer is nessecary. Although it does come with some software that will quickly remove red eye and allows for easy cropping and such.


Just my 2 pennies. Let the flaming begin.
 
One other thing to factor in your digital pictures are only as good as the camera they're taken with. Bad Camera = Bad Pictures. No exceptions.
 
Another vote for Canon. I bought my mother an MP610 and she's about as technically detached as anyone I know and she loves it. I enjoyed using it so I bought one myself. Pictures are fantastic, doesn't use a lot of ink. If you change several service options, it will even print on cd's.
 
TypeO said:
Another vote for Canon. I bought my mother an MP610 and she's about as technically detached as anyone I know and she loves it. I enjoyed using it so I bought one myself. Pictures are fantastic, doesn't use a lot of ink. If you change several service options, it will even print on cd's.
Click to expand...


Have you figured out how to print on cd's? The damn thing didn't come with a manual and I can't seem to figure it out :mad:
 
I got a nice deal on an HP C8180 that has been great. Something to consider.
 
I like Canon's, my friend likes the HP models, he has an 8250 which uses the 02 series ink, decent prices. The HP has slightly better photo quality then the pixma4200 I use but I like the duplex feature on mine. The quality of pictures on the canon is fine for me and ink usage is low. Both use separate cartridges for each color.
 
any HP deskjet. I have an old 800 series that totally owns at making photos :p
 
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