Suggestions Needed for New InkJet Printer; My HP1220cxi is Not Working Correctly

[ssmithBH]

I currently have an HP 1220cxi inkjet printer (parallel and USB1.1 connections) and am having nothing but trouble with it. I have it plugged into my primary USB (2.0) hub, yet I still can't get two-way communications and several programs have trouble printing to it (Quicken 2003 Premier, TurboTax 2002 Premier, etc.). I have downloaded and reinstalled the print drivers and software from HP with no success. So, while I like the ability to use paper sizes up to tabloid (11x17), it doesn't matter much if it won't print to begin with.

If you have any miracle fixes, that would be most appreciated. Otherwise . . .

I need suggestions for a new inkjet (can't justify the expense of a laserjet; printer volume is just not that high). I want good quality text and graphics, both B&W and color. Also, I want good photo printing (only use this occasionally; if my wife and I ever get into digital photography, we'll get a dedicated photo printer).

Your suggestions welcome!

Scott

 

[tenoc]

Try plugging directly into a USB slot on the CPU. Or use a good bi-directional cable with the parallel port.

 

[Comp625]

HP 5550. $130 at most stores. Fast speeds. Good print quality on text and images. Black Cartridge Model 56 = $20, Color Cartridge Model 57 = $35, Photo Cartridge Model 58 = $25.

Color is a bit expensive but it's priced the same as many other HP color cartridges. Black is VERY cheap (especially for the amount of ink they give you). This printer will let you print out photos using the photo cartridge as well -- incase you want to try out digital photography in the future.

HP 3820. $100 at most stores. Good speeds. Good print quality on text and images. Black Cartridge Model 15 = $30, Color Cartridge Model 78 = $35.

Cartridges are a bit expensive but you can probably get 'em cheaper at a Walmart or something. Another good-quality budget printer.

 

[pm]

I had a lot of problems with my recent HP6122. I believe that I traced them back to having older HP drivers on the machine for an HP 960C printer. If you owned an HP printer before, make sure you have deleted all of the older HP files. This, however, was not enough to fix it for me. In the end, I decided that I probably needed to wipe out Windows and reinstall it, and, since I'd won the 6122 in a contest at work, I just brought it into work. The printer works fine. Just not on the computer with the older HP 800 and 900 series drivers.

As far as printers, the Canon i850 for $150 is my recommendation. Takes 4 ~$10 9mL individually replaceable cartridges. With generic cartridges from www.weink.com you can fill the thing for about $25.

 

[techfuzz]

Originally posted by: pm
As far as printers, the Canon i850 for $150 is my recommendation. Takes 4 ~$10 9mL individually replaceable cartridges. With generic cartridges from www.weink.com you can fill the thing for about $25.

I second the i850. Wonderful printer, cheap ink prices compared to HP and Lexmark, and good quality printing either B/W or color.

techfuzz