Printers: one for photo and general printing needs?

[Malladine]

Is this possible? I'm looking for a inkjet printer (as colour lasers are !< $1000 right?) which can print good quality photos and also print out general webpages, docs, etc. Will any photo printer such as this: http://store.yahoo.com/upsource/849577.html work alright, or are the photo printers too specialized?

 

[isaacmacdonald]

Just watch the inks. Traditional dye based inks fade substantially faster than chemically produced photographic prints. Epson's c82 uses hybrid inks that supposedly last longer. I'm running an archival pigmented-ink printer. I can attest that the prints are basically everlasting. You can soak them in water, leave them in direct sunlight, they never fade, never run.

 

[Malladine]

Does it print photos well, is it overkill for standard prints and how much?

 

[techfuzz]

I have the younger sibling of the i950, the i850. I picked it up a couple months ago and couldn't be happier. The colors are great, just make sure you use the Canon photo paper when printing photos. Don't use another brand (HP, Kodak) or anything generic. I printed a picture and compared it with a regular film photo. I can't tell the difference unless I get really really close ( < 3 inches) between the photos. It does a great job on just printing web pages and forms. The i950 I think is a little faster and has another ink well or two.

techfuzz

 

[jackschmittusa]

In my opinion, inkjet printers are too exxpensive to operate for general printing of docs, web pages, etc.. You can buy a decent monochrome laser printer for the price of about 5 black inkjet cartridges. Even the starter cartridge in the laser will print more than the 5 inkjet ones. You can get a decent inkjet printer for about $150us that will be fine for photos. In the long run (short run if you do a lot of general printing) it will be far more economical to buy one of each printer.

 

[Malladine]

it will be far more economical to buy one of each printer.

That actually sounds like a good idea!

$150-200 for a photo inkjet (I think I will pick up the i950, thanks Techfuzz) and another $150 for a mono laser (any recommendations there? I'm thinking Samsung). 2 small printers instead of the huge expensive pos we have now (Brother MFC7000...*sigh* and we don't even use the fax etc. And the scanner sucks)

Anyway, cool, thanks all

 

[techfuzz]

Originally posted by: jackschmittusa
In my opinion, inkjet printers are too exxpensive to operate for general printing of docs, web pages, etc.. You can buy a decent monochrome laser printer for the price of about 5 black inkjet cartridges. Even the starter cartridge in the laser will print more than the 5 inkjet ones. You can get a decent inkjet printer for about $150us that will be fine for photos. In the long run (short run if you do a lot of general printing) it will be far more economical to buy one of each printer.

I can buy an entire set of ink jet wells (black, cyan, magenta, yellow) for < $30 that will last me 300-500 pages at 5% coverage depending on the color. The black cartidges last the longest because it is a larger tank than all the rest. $30/4 = $7.50 * 5 cartidges = $37.50 to print 2500 pages which you'll see is the duty cycle for the HP LJ1000.

The HP LaserJet 1000 costs about $180 and can print 2500 pages at 5% coverage per toner cartridge (@ $60 each).

$37.50 < $60

In addition you're suggesting he buy 2 prints, each @ $150 a piece for a total of $300. How is your solution more economical for someone who wants to print out general webpages/docs and good quality photos?

techfuzz

 

[Malladine]

Where do you buy your inkjet cartridges for the i850 techfuzz? I didn't realize they were that cheap now.

 

[techfuzz]

Originally posted by: Malladine
Where do you buy your inkjet cartridges for the i850 techfuzz? I didn't realize they were that cheap now.

I haven't had to buy any yet because I haven't run out. I just did a quick search on the web for BCI-3e ink wells which is what the i850 and i950 use. The BCI-3e ink wells are commonly use with a LOT of printers.

techfuzz

 

[Malladine]

Ah, awesome

Edit: Techfuzz, would printing simple .doc files and webpages really be feasible with the i950?

 

[techfuzz]

Originally posted by: Malladine
Ah, awesome

Edit: Techfuzz, would printing simple .doc files and webpages really be feasible with the i950?

What do you mean by feasible? If you just print a couple pages here and there or a 20 page paper for your english composition class, it will do just fine. If you're planning on printing much more than that or planning to run a small business, you might opt for the additional monochrome laser printer. It depends on how much you're willing to spend?

techfuzz