Best printer for color photo printing in $150 - $200 range

[legocitytruck]

What is the best option for printing color photos in the $150 to $200 dollar range? At this price point, would color laser or inkjet be a better option? Speed is less important than quality for me.

 

[itisaniceday]

I recommend this Brother MFC5860CN InkJet All-In-One Color Printer

It is on sale now, the decent price for it is only $75 instead of $139..Good Price, Brother quality, Does what it says

 

[legocitytruck]

Thank you for the suggestion. I wonder if their are any others?

 

[Paperdoc]

I've been very happy with an old Epson PictureMate printer. So old, in fact, that it has been superseded long ago by a newer line of Epson units. I have read some user comments that the older ones turn out better results than the newer (can't confirm that), so I've actually bought two more through eBay (either used lightly or old stock but unused) to replace one that broke down and have a duplicate. These are 4" x 6" ONLY dedicated photo printers. If you are looking for the ability to make larger prints, forget this idea. But if it meets your needs, they make great color prints that are indistinguishable from photo processors (I always buy the glossy paper) and are claimed to last for 100 years if not exposed to high light levels. They use ink jet printing technology, and the amazing thing is that they are absolutely impervious to stray water. Right out of the printer they are dry, and you could even smudge a wet thumb across the fresh print and not disturb it! Supplies are sold as packages of one ink cartridge plus 100 sheets of paper, OR two cartridges plus 270 sheets. I find one ink cartridge actually makes about 160 prints, so I buy the occasional package of paper only to keep it in balance. Cost per print is about 30¢, but you can find packages at discount that gets you down closer to 20¢.

I also have a Canon 3-in-one printer (scan, print, copy, no FAX) that does a great job.

I highly recommend ink jet over color laser, although my experience with laser is limited. If you go the route of multi-purpose ink jet 8½ x 11, make SURE to get one with at least a black ink cartridge separate from color, because you will use black much more and replacing it separately is best. I have an older HP unit with one black and one 3-color cartridge. Better is completely separate ink cartridges - my Canon has individually replaceable Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black carts for color work, plus a large different black for text-only work. For the very best color photos, some prefer a system with a couple more separate cartridges containing lighter versions of Cyan and Magenta to render lighter tones more accurately. For example, my dedicated Epson PictureMate units (which do NO text work and hence don't need extra black) have six colors in the ink cartridge.