Budget Photo Printers

Midlevel photo printers for hobbyists

If you're just looking to print snapshots, you might want to skip this section and head back to our pages on best printers overall. Reviewers say that standard inkjets do a fine job with family vacation photos and snapshots. We also have a separate report on dedicated photo printers that output only 4-by-6-inch and 5-by-7-inch prints. On the other end of the spectrum, the most expensive photo printers are designed for professionals and cost more than $500. In between the two classes of photo printers are midlevel units designed to meet the needs of hobbyists, scrapbookers and others who want quality pictures but don't require gallery-standard prints.

The Epson Stylus Photo 1400 (*Est. $275) compares favorably not only with inkjet printers in its same class but also with much more expensive printers. PCMag.com's review says photo quality is nearly flawless but the printer lacks speed and features.

Reviews, specifically those at CNET and Photo-i, point out that monochrome printing is a weak point. The other primary complaint voiced by reviewers is that the default profiles integrated with the 1400's drivers -- designed to optimize printing for specific papers -- are often inaccurate and named in such a way that makes it difficult to select the correct profile. Most reviewers had better luck allowing Photoshop to control color and creating their own paper profiles. The Epson 1400 printer does not offer an LCD preview screen or PictBridge option.

Like many high-end inkjet printers, the Epson 1400 has a large footprint, measuring 24.2 inches by 12.4 inches. The printer uses six ink cartridges; the Epson Claria inks are rated to last up to 98 years under glass or 200 years in a photo album. Replacing all six cartridges will run you about $95 or just under $20 per cartridge. Reviewer tests confirm that prints are smudge-, scratch-, water- and fade-resistant. The Epson 1400 inkjet photo printer can print directly onto CDs and DVDs made for that purpose.

As it did with the Pro9500, Canon has released an updated version of the well-reviewed Pro9000, the Pixma Pro9000 Mark II (*Est. $475), which boasts better speeds and color correction software. The inks and printheads remain the same. PrinterInfo.com's Richard Baguley finds that the Pro9000 Mark II is outperformed by the Pro9500 Mark II and the Epson Stylus Photo R1900 (see below), but it's also less expensive. Mike Pasini, writing for Imaging-Resource.com, calls the Pro9000 Mark II "our favorite printer" for its excellent photo quality, even on oversized 13-by-19-inch prints. Pasini finds that the Mark II is faster than the original Pro9000, and he is pleased with how little ink the printer seems to waste.

Critics who don't specialize in photo printers are also impressed. Simon Williams of TrustedReviews.com likes the speed and print quality, though he notes that the Pro9000 Mark II doesn't perform well with plain paper, and some images need tweaking with the included photo software for optimal results. PC Pro gives the Mark II a Recommended label, with reviewer Dave Stevenson saying that "the Pro9000's fantastic output was indistinguishable from that of a professional print service." He adds that overall costs would be cheaper than professional printing if not for the high sticker price of the printer itself.

The Epson Stylus Photo R1900 (*Est. $475) boasts reformulated pigment-based inks, dubbed UltraChrome Hi-Gloss2. Epson claims that the ink formula "reduces grain and dramatically improves color transitions." Rick LePage of Macworld says that the R1900's inks produce the best results in this price range and that, in tests, viewers consistently chose the R1900's prints over those from the Epson Stylus Photo 1400 and the Canon Pixma Pro9000. PopPhoto.com concurs. What Digital Camera names the R1900 an Editors' Choice and notes that it is unusually quiet.

But opinion of the Epson R1900 is not unanimous. Photo-i's Vincent Oliver experiences difficulty achieving a good color balance and cites poor monochrome printing and lack of a straight paper feed path as negatives. CNET describes a subtle improvement to skin tones and says the R1900 might interest photographers who regularly print large-scale photos of people.

The HP Photosmart Pro B8850 (*Est. $550) is judged by PC Advisor as second only to Epson's Photo Stylus R1900 in its price range. Compared to the more expensive HP Photosmart Pro B9180 (*Est. $650), the B8850 lacks the Ethernet port and the LCD status message screen -- instead using LED lights to indicate functional issues such as ink levels.

Shutterbug's Jon Canfield was one of the first reviewers to report critically on the Photosmart B8850. His findings are generally favorable, especially when it comes to color prints. Black and white prints are more problematic, with bronzing of prints created on gloss or satin photo papers. Still, overall he declares the B8850 photo printer a "great value for the money." Photo-i's Oliver is cautious in his assessment of a preproduction B8850 printer, but he concludes that the B8850 "holds a lot of promise."

As more critics have had a chance to test the B8850, the general assessments have become more positive. M. David Stone at PCMag.com says that other than a lack of a network connector, the differences between the Photosmart Pro B8850 and the more expensive B9180 are only of concern to professional photographers. He names the B8850 an Editors' Choice. PopPhoto.com's Andrew Darlow agrees, saying that "it's easy to mistake HP's new B8850 for the B9180." He also praises the B8850's color reproduction. Reviewers find that the differences in print quality between the B9180 and B8850 are negligible, so the B8850 provides a good alternative for those on more modest budgets.