Looking to get a new printer, need info!

[Soccerman]

Hey there, we decided to get a new printer today. Our Epson Stylus Colour 600 is quite a good printer, though it's not very dependable (the print heads frequently get clogged for example, esp. when it's not used too often).

Has Epson changed that design in it's latest printers??

The only other company I've heard that is comparable to Epson quality printing, as well as supposedly better dependability is Hewlett Packard.

How is the Quality of printing? do pictures and text come out wet? that was one advantage that Epson has always had..

are each and every colour cartridge (spelling off?) replaceable? I mean, can I take out the blue and replace it, without having to take out all the other colours?? that's one thing I wish I could have done on the Epson (could have saved a bit, probably not too much, because I didn't ever use just one colour.

I was looking at the Hewlett Packard 932c, 935c, and 950c..

what are the differences between those?

what kind of software comes with them?

 

[zkmusa]

Soccerman,

I love both Epson printers and HP printers. Both are great brands, and they both have their advantages and disadvantages.

First, Epson:

You could probably say that Epson printers produce the best quality images. They are clear and sharp. Epson has always been a leader in color printing because of the photo-quality prints using regular cartridges (unlike Canon, which makes you buy a photo cartridge to print photo-quality images).

However, you sacrifice speed with quality when you go with Epson. They definitely print slower then HPs, but I guess that's a decision for you to make. Which is more important to you? Speed or print quality?

Another problem that many users seem to have with Epson printers is paper feeding. The paper tends to get jammed more often in an Epson printer then in an HP printer. Also, after a few years, the trays may become completely unusable, jamming paper all the time.

I have never heard about the print head problem, although I feel that that can happen with any printer, not just Epsons.

Now, HP

HPs have always been considered good quality printers, just like Epsons. They are famous for their print speeds (try setting the printer to economy mode, and then print... you'll be amazed at the speed). Also, ever since the 722C that came out 3 years ago, HPs have become very quiet printers. This is great if you work in a quiet office space.

3 years ago, with the introduction of the 722C, HP introduced a technology called PhotoRET II. This technology, which was co-developed with Kodak, reduced the droplet size which could therefore allow photo-quality printing at even 600x600 dpi. By keeping the resolution at which the printer printed at low, HP was able to not only produce gorgeous looking images, but also produce these images at incredible speeds. Nowadays, HP uses PhotoRET III technology, which reduced the droplet size even further. So, in terms of quality, HP printers rival Epson printers, producing excellent-looking images GENERALLY faster then Epsons.

To replace colors, you have to replace the whole cartridge, not just the individual color. I find this kind of annoying, but the cartridges generally last a long time before needing a refill.

Most HP printers these days produce the same looking images, and are just separated by speed. For example, the image quality of the 932c is identical to the 950c; the 950c is faster, therefore more expensive.

I have never really been impressed with the software that comes with printers. Most of the information you are looking for (including software) is available at their web site.

I hope this helped, Soccerman.

 

[Soccerman]

ahh thanks for your input!

it may be true the print head problem might not be to common (maybe we just don't know how to replace ink cartridges properly? Every time we have had a problem with a printer, it was becuase we messed up the ink cartridge installation). This last time we screwed up the cartridge installation by forgetting to remove one of the peices of plastic. I think the print head is now dry/clogged, so I pretty much can't print anything in Black (the colour one is fine though).

I'd much rather be able to fix the problem myself, but I don't know where I'd start! besides, I'd like to get a newer printer anyway (whether it's Epson or Hewlett Packard). I'll try Hewlett Packard I think this time, just so that I can say to my dad, 'they both suck, so which one do you want?' if the Hewlett Packard one turns out bad!

A repairman my dad talked to said that (I don't know if this is totally true or not) with Hewlett Packard printers, when you replace the ink cartridge, you replace the print head as well.

I always thought Epson was better quality wise, and I honestly don't mind somewhat slow printing (as long as it doesn't take WAAAYY too long .

I've never had a problem with the paper feed tray..

 

[bacillus]

if it's of any help, my epson 870 has worked flawlessly with excellent digital photo printing results & much quieter than my previous epson printer!

 

[Mday]

<< A repairman my dad talked to said that (I don't know if this is totally true or not) with Hewlett Packard printers, when you replace the ink cartridge, you replace the print head as well. >>



that is true.

take a look at the cartridge, and you'll know what i mean ;-)

 

[chuckieland]

Canon is pretty good brand too

 

[Mday]

HP does have modles with individual color cartridges, but those printers are not the cheap ones...

Canon has one as well, i saw a canon printer that i liked, with individual color cartridges... i forget the model. but i saw printouts on photo paper, and it was sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet... i also saw it print, so...

--

epson has a problem which i do not know if they fixed yet... their prints were extremely prone to discolorization due to the reaction of their cyan colored ink with ozone (O3)... so cyan is like GONE, which makes images orangish... like i said, i do not know if the problem is gone... but epson prints are sweeeeeet too ;-)

--

soccer, do you reaaaaaaaaally care about what software they come with?

with respect to different numbers, for the most part, the difference is in the printing speed. of course since companies like to create their own numbers which make no sense to us, there are differences with respect to their printing technology, so this year's models are better than last year models, for the most part.

remember, when you go color inkjet, companies like epson, and HP make money from the ink cartridges and specialty papers...

--

speaking of ink, i do recommend AGAINST refilling cartridges for the most part. you can do it maybe once or twice per cartridge, but cartridges get old... so... and do it for BLACK only. i'll say that these refill inks are of lesser quality that the real thing, i've tried them. also, it's gonna be a mess, get some gloves and a lot of PAPER towels...

 

[heng1028]

How about a Lexmark Printer?

 

[AMB]

I would consider the two mainstream printers to be HP and Epson.

I've had two Epsons, the 400 and the 860, both of these have worked well for me!

aMb

 

[zkmusa]

heng1028... Lexmark makes good printers, also. However, don't be fooled by the low printer price. Their cartridges are VERY expensive, around $50 for a color cartridge. In comparison, HPs generally are around $35-40 for a color cartridge, and epsons are $30 - 35.

Why are Epson cartridges so &quot;cheap?&quot; It's because they use a technology called &quot;MicroPiezo Technology&quot; which means, when you get a new cartridge, you aren't replacing your whole printer practically, you are only replacing the ink. With other companies' cartridges, you replace the ink AND the print heads.

Epsons have been using MicroPiezo technology for at least 5 years now, so every Epson model should have it these days.

 

[rmblam]

I have had Lexmark printers for years and I have never paid over $35 for a print cartridge. My compaq IJ900 uses the same cartridges as my new Lexmark z52. 1200x2400 DPI resolution 15ppm black, 8ppm color. Best printer for the money IMO. You get new print heads with every cartridge change as mentioned. I like the newer Epsons too though. They tend to clog and streak with lack of use though.

HP printers never impressed me. Too many moving parts to fail. The HP business printers are highly rated. Many friends using the consumer models have gone to Epsons or Lexmark though...

 

[dcdomain]

I would recommend against filling your own cartridges, one of my friend tried and screwed up his Epson 800 printer. He's not an idiot either...

I've owned two Epsons and a HP so far. The HP was the first printer I ever bought and is still going strong. The second printer I ever bought, the Epson 600 died on me a little while ago, so I bought a 660. I'm a big fan of Epson products (because of the exposure of what they are capable of back in high school, my school had the top of the line Epson printers and scanners at the time). However, HP has proven to me the durability of their printers.

In short, I don't think you can lose with either brand, I'd suggest grabbing the one on sale/rebate at the time.

 

[Soccerman]

Why are Epson cartridges so &quot;cheap?&quot;

they're not that cheap where I live! then again, I've never compared them against others before.

basically the biggest problem with Epson printers is simply if you make a mistake when installing the ink cartridge (colour or black), you basically have to send it to the repair shop to get the print heads replaced/cleaned. that's the ONLY problem Epson has (hey I'd be buying one if my dad wasn't so worried about that).

yeah I don't really care TOO much about software, but I'd rather not have to rely on shareware programs all that much for touching up.

as for speed, it doesn't matter too much.