I recently bought an HP OfficeJet K5400. A lot of printer for the under $125. that I paid for the tn version (extra paper feeding tray). But if you do a lot of duplexing, get the one with the duplexing unit. Flipping the stack and running it back thru doesn't work well on this, but I've done it. There is no function in the software driver to do it, but there is on all their printers that don't have an available duplexing accy - draw any conclusions. And the current Acrobat reader can help with duplexing. As .PDFs are mainly what I need duplexing for, then I can get by. It's much cheaper to get the machine with the duplexer than to buy it later...
It does much better on photos than what you might glean from the several reviews I've seen. There is an Advanced Settings screen that allows you to adjust ink delivery volume. They default to a fairly low setting to make the cost per page look better, but adjust up one notch for photos. At least that setting works fine here. Photo printing is much slower than it was on my Canon iP4300, but the quality is plenty good for me - probably not for a pro or prosumer, but they wouldn't even be considering this type of unit anyway.
Drawbacks: big, noisy and sometimes misfeeds (particularly when I try to duplex
) like all HP inkjets it seems... It misfeeds less when I let the one-side printed stack set for a good while and riffle it a few times before trying to feed it thru for the other side. HP inkjet users should train themselves to be expert rifflers
. All HP paper feeders seem to like thin paper better (20# or less), but you really need thicker for duplex to avoid bleed thru. Staples SKU 554638 24# seems to work well here. The K5400's manual comes as a .PDF on CD, so you will learn right away about manual duplexing. The cartridges for this have large or very large ink volumes and the OEM ones are expensive, but clones are available that make ownership reasonable for individuals. And you can always refill.
It seems that TechOnWeb.com or Provantage.com have the best prices on these - shipping is cheaper on TOW. But check the price search engines like Froogle or PriceGrabber, etc. anyway. And perhaps Dealighted.com may have a lead on a better deal. And always check for a discount code.
Oh, the prices at TOW have gone back up from the pre/post-Christmas period - the one I got is now nearly $50. higher, but still a good deal for a printer that comes in a 24x20x20 inch carton. The one for the duplexing models might be even larger though you don't need to get the extra paper feed tray. The dn is the one with only the duplexer (only available from Staples, I think) while the dtn has the duplexer and extra tray. The prices at Provantage are even better than at Christmas - $20. cheaper even. You can get the tn for less than the base model...
.bh.
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