Inkjet Printer Information

All the models reviewed in this report are consumer-grade inkjet printers or regular-size photo printers. Wide-format inkjet printers are professional rather than consumer products, so they aren't covered here. Information about them can be found at LargeFormatPrinters.org. On the opposite end are mini-printers, which specialize in printing 4-by-6-inch photos. We cover these in our photo printers report.

PCMag.com reminds readers, "If you don't need color, you'll find some monochrome laser printers in [the same price range as inkjets] with faster printing speeds than the inkjets here and better quality for text and line graphics." Even if the printer costs more initially, long-term costs are much lower. Monochrome laser printers are covered in a separate report on the ConsumerSearch website.

Color laser printers are also covered in a companion report. These don't print photos as well as inkjets, but they are good for graphics and are cheaper to use than inkjets.

Multifunction printers, also called all-in-one printers, are covered in a separate report. These models can print, scan, copy and fax from one device. Standalone printers usually have superior print quality to multifunction printers.

Another alternative is to use a third-party printing source. Many retailers have self-service photo printing machines and/or will print your preformatted photos from a CD or removable camera media. You can also upload photos to many web-based services that will print your pictures and mail them to you. Reviews say these options are cheaper than printing at home. Quality will vary depending on the printer and paper used by the service. See our report on digital photo printing.

Many owners are interested in cutting ongoing printing costs by using third-party ink in their printers. Our report on printer ink discusses costs and quality of aftermarket and name-brand ink.

Memjet: The latest in inkjet technology

Memjet is a new inkjet-printer technology that could significantly change home printing. According to PCMag.com's M. David Stone, Memjet technology powers printers with "small-sized mechanical and electronic elements… [consisting] of an array of individual microchip segments, with 6,400 nozzles in each 20 mm-long chip, and as many chips needed for the width of the particular printer." The result of this technology is a machine that can print documents at one page per second, and 4-by-6-inch photos at a pace of one every two seconds.

No one is sure if the technology will live up to the hype, but PC World's Danny Allen says Memjet technology will revolutionize inkjet printing if it does. Memjet technology made a splash at trade shows in early 2009, but as of this update, there has been no news of printer manufacturers incorporating it into upcoming models.

PCMag.com's article "The True Cost of Printing" shows the cost-conscious reader how to calculate the long-term cost of a printer.

For those interested in online forums, Digital Photography Review hosts a forum where users can discuss printers and printing issues.

Manufacturers' websites offer more detailed specifications on individual printers:

Canon

Epson

Hewlett-Packard

Lexmark