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Inkjet PrintersYou are here: Computers >> Inkjet PrintersUpdated November 2007The changing inkjet printer marketFor many years, printer manufacturers and retailers sold printers at or slightly above manufacturing cost. Retailers tried to make their profit by selling printer cables (never included with printers), paper, spare ink cartridges and service contracts or replacement agreements. Manufacturers made their profit by selling cartridges and specialty papers throughout the life of the printer. The market has now changed due to the proliferation of third-party inks. Experts say many after-market cartridges and refill kits produce inferior output and some can damage printers, but consumers are buying them, and therefore forcing manufacturers to make a profit on the printers themselves. As a result, prices are rising and budget models are disappearing from the market. (We discuss the quality of off-brand ink in our report on printer ink .) All manufacturers but Hewlett-Packard have significantly pared their lineup of general-purpose inkjet printers in favor of multifunction printers and photo printers. However, HP's inexpensive inkjet printers are almost never tested by professional reviewers. Canon is only making photo printers (including one inexpensive model). Epson sells one general-purpose inkjet. Lexmark offers two models at $70 and $35. Dell no longer sells its own brand of general-purpose inkjet printers. Laser printers are another factor affecting the inkjet printer market. Color laser printers have become affordable for consumers and monochrome laser printers are as cheap as inkjet printers. Reviews frequently recommend buying a monochrome laser printer if printing text will be your primary use. If physical space is not an obstacle, reviews say your most cost-effective option is to own a personal laser printer and a photo printer. See our related reports on monochrome laser printers and color laser printers . The ongoing shift in product lines from general-purpose to photo inkjet printers is undoubtedly an attempt by printer manufacturers to regain control of ink and paper sales. If you buy an expensive photo printer, you are more likely to buy the best ink to produce the best photo quality. Aftermarket manufacturers can emulate the original inks, but they can't clone the proprietary formulas any more than Coca-Cola's competitors can. Reviewers and photographers say that the printer manufacturers' high-margin specialty photo papers are also necessary to achieve true photo quality. Ink bleeds on plain paper, which obscures details. Ink can't soak into the specialty coated papers and the papers are made to dry instantly. Inkjet printers vs. inkjet photo printersGeneral-purpose inkjet printers print text, graphics and photos on a variety of paper sizes, including envelopes and 8.5 x 11-inch paper. The better ones quickly produce pages of sharp text, even at small point sizes. If you plan to print mostly text documents, a general-purpose inkjet printer will produce better quality than a photo printer will. Additionally, many general-purpose printers can produce good photographs as well as entry-level photo printers. Photo printers are engineered for printing pictures rather than text; they can print text documents, but usually at a slower pace and lesser quality than general-use printers. All but entry-level and high-end photo printers have small LCD screens that let you preview images and do some basic editing, cropping and color correction. Some have a dedicated paper tray for 4 x 6-inch photo paper. (This report covers full-size photo printers that can print up to 8.5 x 11 inches. See our report on personal photo printers that covers models that only print 4 x 6 or 5 x 7-inch photos.) To achieve a continuous tone, most full-size photo printers use six or more inks. In addition to the standard CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow and black) cartridges, most use light cyan and light magenta cartridges. Many HP photo printers use an extra gray ink cartridge. Higher-end Epson printers use red, blue, matte black, and photo black ink cartridges. Manufacturers have developed longer-lasting inks, and many models can produce prints that rival the output from photo labs. Some prints are predicted to last more than 100 years, according to testing. Keep in mind, however, that getting the best quality prints requires buying expensive photo papers and the manufacturers' inks. Most reviews overrate the importance of features relative to print quality. In particular, we only found one review that doesn't consider an LCD display and direct-from-camera printing to be an advantage. However, consumers who care enough about photo quality to buy a photo printer are likely to want to see pictures on a large monitor to make sure they are sharp and in focus before printing. LCD preview screens add to the price, but it's hard to find a mid-priced photo printer without one. Best general-purpose inkjet printersExcept for two models apiece from Lexmark (see above) and Epson, HP now has a monopoly on general-use inkjet printers (as opposed to photo printers or multifunction printers). Reviewers rate four similar HP inkjet printers as the best choice for people who primarily want the text quality and versatility of a general-purpose inkjet printer with the ability to also print photos. The four printers have the same output quality and speed, but features vary. The HP Deskjet 6940 (*est. $110) is the base model. CNet.com's Felisa Yang explains, "The HP Deskjet 6940 is network ready, has a PictBridge port for PC-free photo printing, [and] is compatible with both Windows and Mac PCs." It is capable of full-size borderless printing. The HP Deskjet 6980 (*est. $150) adds built-in Wi-Fi (802.11b and g) connectivity. Any computer on a wireless home or small office network can print to it without being connected by cable. Printing is generally slower over Wi-Fi. HP also sells versions of both printers that include an extra tray and are capable of two-sided printing (called duplexing). Those are the HP Deskjet 6940dt (*est. $165) and the HP Deskjet 6980dt (*est. $190) . This modular approach is great for consumers, who can pay for what they need and avoid paying for features they won't use. This approach also extends to ink cartridges. HP sells specialty six-color photo (*est. $25) and gray photo (*est. $25) cartridges (not included with the printers) for those who want better photo printing. These same cartridges are used in HP's entry-level photo printers (discussed below). Except to the extent that ratings are based on features, reviews of any of these printers equally apply to all of them. CNet.com's Felisa Yang summarizes, "The HP Deskjet 6940 isn't a top-of-the-line inkjet, but with its affordable price, networkability, and decent print quality, it's a good choice for students in a dorm room and budget-conscious home office users." In his Computer Shopper (UK) review, Simon Handby adds, "The DeskJet 6940 has the lowest running costs we've seen from an inkjet, making it a Best Buy." PC Magazine concludes, "Whether you're looking for a high-end home printer, an ink jet that's suitable for sharing in a home office or small office, or one that you can use as a personal printer in any size office, the HP Deskjet 6980dt color ink jet printer is a strong candidate. It's a little slow for the price." The magazine rates it an Editors' Choice. Handby says, "Text was black and tidy, while colour graphics looked lively and solid." Yang reaches a similar conclusion about text quality, but is less impressed with image quality. Jamie Bsales raves about "stunning" photo quality in a SmallBusinessComputing.com review: "If you need to print photos as well as everyday text and graphics, forget about adding a dedicated photo printer." In Computer Buyer's tests, the HP Deskjet 6980 printed about six text pages per minute in normal mode, and 11 ppm in draft mode. Computer Shopper achieved just 5.6 ppm with text in normal mode, but PC Pro reached 21 ppm. The differences prove that your mileage will vary. We've included the HP Deskjet 6980 (*est. $150) in ConsumerSearch Fast Answers, since many people with home networks will appreciate the Wi-Fi connectivity. But if you don't need that feature, the HP 6940 (*est. $110) performs on par. If you need duplex printing, the HP Deskjet 6940dt (without Wi-Fi) and HP Deskjet 6980dt (with Wi-Fi) are top picks. The new Epson Stylus C120 (*est. $90) hasn't been reviewed yet. HP claims that a couple of its printers are the fastest inkjets ever made. Epson is doing the same with the C120. The manufacturer claims speeds up to 37 ppm black and 20 ppm color. Given that marketing strategy, and in spite of the low price, we see this as primarily a business printer. If you need a straighter paper path for mixed media and high volume, the C120 seems to be the best alternative to an HP inkjet printer. Budget inkjet printersReviews indicate that sub-$100 printers generally require sacrifices in quality, speed and durability. Reviewers also struggle with recommending inkjet printers that sell for $50 or less. It's an ethical issue described by several reviewers. When a pair of replacement cartridges cost as much or more than the printer itself, then for all practical purposes, the printer is disposable. With disposed computer products already consuming too much space in landfills, no one wants to encourage the purchase of products that can exacerbate the problem. In spite of that concern, reviewers acknowledge that the Canon Pixma iP1800 (*est. $50) is the best value among sub-$100 printers. Tom Warhol of PrinterInfo.com describes several qualitative issues such as poor color accuracy, but concludes, "Users can hardly go wrong with a $50 photo printer from Canon, despite the print quality drawbacks we've highlighted. The decent quality, good software and driver interface, and simple operation should make it appealing for the budget conscious." In his PC Advisor review, Brian Chen echoes Warhol: "The Canon Pixma iP1800's ability to produce very good photos was impressive for a printer at this price." PC Magazine's reviewer, M. David Stone, says the Pixma iP1800 is compact, surprisingly fast, and photo and graphic quality are also better than you would expect for the price. Poor text quality is one of the issues he mentions. Other reviewers find much to criticize, too. The printer is expensive to use, although it consumes very little power. Blacks are not vivid (because it's a photo printer, text quality is not Canon's focus). The iP1800 inkjet printer has no output tray, which means it must sit where printed pages can land on a desk or table. The budget inkjet printer lacks features such as an LCD preview screen, slots for memory cards or a PictBridge port for direct printing from cameras. The 90-day limited warranty may be hard to criticize for a $50 printer, but it adds to the image that this is not meant to be a long-life printer. Large retail chains have frequently advertised the Canon iP1800 inkjet printer as a give-away (after rebate) if you buy another computer product, such as a laptop or monitor. That's probably why you can find many Canon iP1800 printers for sale on eBay. Canon and retailers still sell the Pixma iP6310D (*est. $50) , but we suspect the product will soon be discontinued. It costs $100 when purchased directly from Canon, but several dealers are selling it for half that price. At the same price, it's a much better value than the Canon Pixma iP1800. Black resolution is much higher, it has 50 percent more nozzles, it's faster, the limited warranty is a full year and it can print directly from a camera. If you're considering the Canon iP1800 and the Canon iP6310D is still available, go for the iP6310D. The Epson Stylus C88+ (*est. $80) , and its predecessor, the Epson Stylus C88, have been on the market for a long time. Though we've seen no professional reviews of the Epson C88+ inkjet printer, user reviews are mixed. In an older report, PC World gives the older C88 only a middling score and says that it requires photo paper to produce decent output, even for text. The Epson C88+ and Canon Pixma iP1800 have one advantage not mentioned in reviews: a gentle arc paper path. That path is far less likely to mangle envelopes, peel address labels or jam card stock than any of HP's inkjet printers, all of which have sharp 180-degree U-turn paper paths. Hewlett-Packard sells five inexpensive inkjet printers. Only the HP Deskjet D4260 (*est. $70) is tested in professional reviews. The HP D4260 inkjet printer earns good ratings in two reviews. Text quality is good for the price, but photo quality is below average. CNet.com's Yang says it's faster than the Pixma iP1800, but print quality isn't quite as good. The HP D4260 has a status display and a print-cancel button, but no other features. A one-year limited warranty is an advantage over the Canon Pixma iP1800 (with a 90-day warranty). Optional upgrade cartridges are available for photo printing or high-capacity use. Best inkjet photo printers with LCD displaysAlmost all printers in the $100 to $300 range have LCD displays and features for directly printing from digital cameras. That's simpler and more convenient than off-loading pictures to a computer before printing. However, it limits quality and control. The LCD displays on cameras and inkjet printers are too small for most people to discern if pictures are sharp and in focus. For that, you usually need a full-size computer monitor. Serious photographers are likely to want more editing capabilities than the printer alone can provide. Even a relatively minor adjustment, such as rotating an image a couple of degrees to straighten it, often requires computer software. Thus, consumers have a choice between simplicity and convenience, and quality and control. This section covers models with displays; the next section covers higher-end inkjet photo printers, which generally do not have LCD displays. The HP Photosmart D7360 (*est. $140) inkjet photo printer receives the largest number of reviews. While reviews are mixed overall, all agree the HP is a solidly good home photo printer with a unique touchscreen LCD. This HP inkjet photo printer is cleverly designed to function as simply as a self-service drugstore photo printing machine. It has a 3.4-inch touch-activated color preview screen -- large enough to get a pretty good idea of what you're printing. CNet.com's Felisa Yang says it "is very responsive and easy to navigate." TrustedReviews.com's Simon Williams agrees that it's "more than a gimmick." PC Magazine's David Stone concludes, "It's the perfect interface for computer-phobes, who can use the D7360 strictly as a standalone photo printer." Reviewers rave about the HP Photosmart D7360's ease of use. This inkjet printer uses six individual ink cartridges. It can print directly from a PictBridge-enabled camera, memory card or USB flash drive loaded with HP software. Reviewers note that editing options are limited (but, most people will use their computer for editing anyway). For example, you need to use a computer to get a white border around a picture; by default, printing is borderless. Maximum resolution is software-enhanced 4800 x 1200 dpi. PC World's Paul Jasper says the software bundle is the best in the business. Reviews of print quality differ, however. Jasper says it's "merely good." Stone says the quality of black-and-white photos isn't great; color photos are generally convincing, but "oversaturated and a little dark." On the other hand, reviewers from PC Pro, Personal Computer World and TrustedReviews.com consider print quality excellent. Reviewers do agree that text quality isn't very good. PC Magazine's M. David Stone says some fonts are hard to read at normal sizes. Several of the sources that praise output quality note that paper is important. HP's Advanced Photo paper is recommended. HP claims the Photosmart D7360 is the fastest printer in the world, but CNet.com's Felisa Yang says it's only fast when printing text, and slow at printing 4 x 6 photos. PC Pro says it's slow at printing text. The Epson Stylus Photo R380 (*est. $100) isn't as widely reviewed, and unfortunately, it has not been directly compared with the HP D7360 inkjet photo printer. Shutterbug has the best review, which includes print reproductions and screen shots. Reviewer Jack Neubart overcomes biases against direct printing and printing on CDs because of his test experience. He enthuses, "Given the price, I couldn't ask for more." The PC World and CNet.com reviews are not as enlightening. CNet's Felisa Yang says it produces "great print quality." Without explanation, CNet rates it higher than comparably priced competing photo printers, while PC World gives it a middling score. Like the Hp D7360, the Epson R380 features a 3.5-inch color LCD viewer with PictBridge printing from cameras and cell phones, along with printing from memory cards. It has six individual ink tanks. A bypass feed lets you print more easily on cardstock or other heavier papers. Resolution is up to 5760 x 1440 dpi, and dot size can be varied down to 1.5 picoliters, which makes for smooth color gradations. In addition, the Epson R380 photo printer can print directly on specially coated CDs and DVDs. This may be the best printer in its class and price range, but reviews are not conclusive enough to make that case. Each reviewer offers different criticisms, but all agree that photo quality is very good, and the printer is inexpensive. Best inkjet photo printersInfoTrends/CAP Ventures conducted a survey of photography professionals in 2004 and found that 85.6 percent said they would most likely purchase an Epson printer. Macworld's Rick LePage writes, "Photographers, graphic artists, and imaging specialists want consistent color, print longevity, efficient ink usage, and support for many different types of papers, and Epson has long been the market leader in this category." Canon and HP are challenging Epson, and in the higher price ranges, reviewers say some photo printers are competitive. Reviews continue to recommend Epson photo printers, but many down-rate them for lack of speed or features, which are irrelevant when print quality is the sole consideration. Higher-end Epson photo printers have no direct-printing options: no memory card slots, no LCD preview screens and no PictBridge support. Epson's position is that photo enthusiasts will want to perfect photos on their computers before printing, and users confirm that in dozens of owner-written reviews at Amazon.com. The Epson Stylus Photo 1400 (*est. $320) compares favorably with much more expensive printers. You can see that for yourself in photo-i's outstanding review. Color photos of cotton thread are reproduced for the Epson 1400 along with other photo inkjet printers. You can see slightly finer detail in the higher-end Epson printers and the $550 HP Photosmart Pro B9180 (only with red-based colors in this instance), but the Epson 1400 is very competitive and considerably cheaper. Text enlargements reveal that the Epson 1400 inkjet printer doesn't approach laser quality, but readability is satisfactory. In his Popular Photography & Imaging review, Michael McNamara says, "Despite its six inks, the color gamut is actually larger than that of the eight-ink Canon Pixma Pro9000." In Shutterbug magazine, David Brooks concludes that it outperforms pretty much anything else. PC Magazine's review says photo quality is nearly flawless, but somewhat down-rates the printer for lack of speed and features. CNet.com editors give the Epson photo printer an excellent rating, but say black-and-white prints aren't as good as those from the Epson Stylus Photo R2400 (*est. $770) . The major disadvantage of the Epson R1400 inkjet printer (and with many high-end inkjets) for most people is the footprint. The Stylus Photo 1400 is capable of printing 13 x 19-inch pages, so it measures 24.2 inches wide and 12.4 inches deep. The printer uses six ink cartridges: cyan, yellow, magenta, black, light cyan and light magenta. The Epson Claria inks are rated to last up to 98 years under glass or 200 years in a photo album. 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. The Epson Stylus Photo R800 (*est. $375) is the least expensive model that uses Epson's UltraChrome inks. Resolution is 5760 x 1440 optimized dpi, and dot size is 1.5 picoliters. The R800 can print on banner paper with a special input tray. PC Magazine rates the Epson R800 at 4.5 (5 is tops), saying, "With eight ink cartridges, including red, blue, and two variations of black, the Epson Stylus Photo R800 offers a large color gamut and true photo quality. It's also designed for easy printing on CDs and DVDs and can function as your single, all-purpose printer." Matte black ink and gloss optimizer cartridges are also included. Note that the review is more than three years old. CNet.com's review is from the same vintage, but CNet has updated its rating (now 8.0 out of 10). Many CNet readers give it an average rating of 7.1/10. Four users who bought lemons bring down the average. The Epson Stylus Photo R1800 (*est. $480) prints on paper up to 13 x 19 inches, and it can print up to 13 x 44 inches in panorama mode. The R1800 has an identical feature set to the Epson R800, including eight UltraChrome Hi-Gloss pigment inks. Several reviews commend the Epson R1800 for its speed. Most say the Epson prints an 8 x 10-inch photo in about two minutes and a 4 x 6-inch print in about one minute. Epson says the R1800 is twice as fast as the cheaper Epson 1400. Speed and inks are the two differences. Two reviewers had a little trouble with the R1800's print nozzles, which needed to be cleaned after a few days of inactivity. Nozzle clogging is often said to be the downside of Epson printers. Macworld likes the Epson R1800 so much that it doesn't list any points in the "cons" section of its review. PC Magazine gives the Epson Stylus Photo R1800 a rating of 4.5 (5 is tops), saying that photos are of true lab quality. Professional photographers who review the printer for StevesDigicams.com and photo-i reach the same conclusion: both agree that it's overkill for the general public. photo-i's Vincent Oliver explains, "It is a printer for the advanced hobbyist or photographer who wants to sell photographs or needs to produce high quality exhibition prints." Both reviewers acknowledge that Canon and HP offer serious competition. CNet.com says the Epson R1800 produces "excellent color photo quality." Its rating is only topped by the much more expensive Epson Stylus Photo R2400 (*est. $770) . The Epson Stylus Photo R2400 uses Epson's UltraChrome K3 inks. Wilhelm Imaging Research rates these inks to last 108 years (for color) and 205 years (for black-and-white) without fading, when printed on Epson's UltraSmooth Fine Art paper and kept under glass. The new inks differ from Epson's regular UltraChrome in that there are three black ink cartridges: two shades of gray, plus either a matte black (for use with matte paper) or photo black (for glossy paper). PC Magazine says the Epson is especially notable for its beautiful black-and-white photos. Text printing is good, but slow. Photos print fairly quickly, about 1:17 minutes for a 4 x 6-inch print. According to CNet.com's Lori Grunin, the Epson Stylus Photo R2400 is expensive, with a large footprint, "but when your images mean everything to you -- especially if they're black-and-white -- then the R2400 is the printer to own." Unlike the lower-end models, the Epson Stylus Photo R2400 does not print on CDs and DVDs. American Photo rates the Epson R2400 as an Editors' Choice saying it compares it favorably with inkjet photo printers from Canon and HP. Epson targets both the R1800 and R2400 for archival use. The company touts a straight-through paper path for thicker media as a benefit of the R2400 and direct-on-disc printing as a distinguishing feature of the R1800. Epson implies that the R1800 is best for color prints and the R2400 is best for black-and-white prints. The HP Photosmart Pro B9180 (*est. $550) is the company's second inkjet photo printer targeted for the so-called "prosumer" market (that's the top step in the consumer line, but below the professional line). Professional photographers are extremely impressed with it. photo-i gives the HP Photosmart inkjet printer a Golden-i award, which it says "is awarded to a product that meets the needs of a digital photographer and produces unrivalled excellence." Reviewer Vincent Oliver concludes, "I shall be using it as a benchmark for all future printer reviews -- well at least until Canon or Epson come up with something better." Personal Computer World, TrustedReviews.com, PC Magazine, Macworld and others also give the HP Photosmart Pro B9180 rave reviews and top scores. The Photosmart uses long-life archival inks rated to last up to 200 years. CNet.com itemizes strengths and weaknesses; one weakness is "rather large 4 pl [picoliter] droplets." Another is exaggerated speed claims by HP. While most reviews of the higher-end Epson printers criticize them for lacking computer-free photo printing and related features, the same lack is never addressed in reviews of the HP Photosmart Pro B9180, a strange omission. If you're deciding between the Epson R2400 and the HP Photosmart Pro B9180, the lengthy reviews in photography magazines and on photography enthusiast websites describe many differences that may matter to you. The HP includes network connectivity and a Photoshop plug-in driver. Reviewers are wishy-washy about saying one absolutely produces better color photo quality. For example, Macworld's Rick LePage says, "When pressed, we think Epson has a slight edge in print quality and color fidelity over both HP and Canon." A couple of reviews cite imperfections in the authenticity of black-and-white photos produced by the HP photo printer. That's one key area of performance where the Epson appears to be better. But according to PC Magazine's M. David Stone, the HP Photosmart Pro B9180 is the better value, "standing toe-to-toe with the Canon Pixma Pro9500 and Epson Stylus Photo R2400 on output quality and features." The two top Canon photo printers also draw numerous accolades from reviewers. We found a dozen reviews of the Canon Pixma Pro9000 (*est. $410) and all but one are strongly favorable. PrinterInfo.com has one of the two best reviews, and is the dissenter. PrinterInfo.com's reviewer Tom Warhol says the Pro9000 is good, but the more expensive Epson Stylus Photo R2400 has much better color accuracy. Reviews at Imaging-Resource.com, Steves-Digicams.com, photo-i, PC Magazine and others all rhapsodize about the Canon Pro9000. It's compared favorably with more expensive printers in some cases. All reviewers agree that it is at least a good printer, and certainly very good in its price range. Imaging-Resource.com reviewer Mike Pasini commends the Pro9000's "vibrant color, fast printing, and versatile media handling." However, he notes that both the Epson and HP competitors produce much better black-and-white photos. Popular Photography & Imaging reviews the Pixma Pro9000 and the Epson Stylus Photo 1400 (*est. $320) in one recent article. Reviewer Michael McNamara enthuses about both printers, but neglects to compare performance. However, the now-cheaper Epson earns slightly higher performance scores. The Canon Pixma Pro9000 has eight ink tanks, two separate paper paths and the ability to print on paper up to 13 x 19 inches. The top-of-the-line Pixma Pro9500 (*est. $800) uses pigment-based inks, and adds matte black and gray cartridges. Considering its premium price (or perhaps because the price sets a high standard), the Canon Pro9500 receives surprisingly cold reviews. The reviewer at photo-i comments: "The Pro 9500 probably won't entice Epson and HP owners to trade in their printers, especially at the price point Canon has set." A reviewer at What Digital Camera agrees: "The Pro9500 is beautifully designed and built but slow and expensive, and print quality fails to match that of Epson and HP." PrinterInfo.com gives the edge to the Epson Stylus Photo R2400 (*est. $770) , which produces better black-and-white prints. Macworld and PC Advisor both recommend the HP Photosmart B9180 or Epson's Stylus Photo 1800 over the Canon Pro9500. Business-oriented photo printerThe Canon Pixma ip4500 (*est. $125) is unique inkjet printer. It's a photo printer with the versatile paper handling capabilities of a mid-range laser printer. It has PictBridge, but no LCD display. It includes two paper trays. Canon suggests loading one with plain paper and one with photo paper. The top-loading tray can handle labels, envelopes, post cards and other difficult-to-feed media. The printer is also capable of duplexing (printing on both sides of a page). Dave Stevenson of PC Pro calls the Canon Pixma ip4500 "a brilliant performer, particularly in terms of photo image quality." He adds that it is a "superb value." However, Stevenson notes the printer is slow. CNet.com's Felisa Yang found flaws in each aspect of print quality, but concludes that it's good all around. Both reviewers rate output quality over other Canon printers. The target market for this inkjet printer appears to be a small office that prints photos in volume, such as a real estate office. Portable inkjet printersPortable inkjet printers are a compact and lightweight option for use with laptops. They can run on battery or AC; some even have an optional adapter to run off a car's cigarette lighter. Reviews say that portable printers can't match the speed of desktop printers and cost much more both to buy and to run. They are made for low-volume use. Many portable printers are Bluetooth compatible, which means that they will work with a wireless adapter and can receive input from a PDA. Full-size portable inkjet printers accept regular 8.5 x 11-inch paper. If you are interested in portable photo printers -- which only print on 4 x 6 and smaller paper -- see our companion report on personal photo printers . If you don't want a photo-centric printer, your choice is limited to the HP Deskjet 460 series. HP offers four variations of the 460. The base model HP Deskjet 460c (*est. $220) doesn't include a battery; the Deskjet 460cb (*est. $265) does. Other variations add Bluetooth or Wi-Fi wireless printing capability. PC Magazine rates the HP Deskjet 460cb as an Editors'
Choice. M. David Stone summarizes, "The HP Deskjet 460cb offers speed
and quality good enough for a desktop and reasonably good paper handling." However,
he feels it's heavy for a portable printer. Stone favorably
compares the HP Deskjet 460cb with the
Canon Pixma iP90
(now the iP90v, *est. $205)
, which Canon markets as a photo printer. Stone is unhappy with
the weight of the Canon. However, the iP90v weighs much less than the original
iP90 he reviewed. Important features: Inkjet printersAlong with print quality, consider the following when shopping for an inkjet printer.
Printer resolution and cost of ownershipManufacturer resolution specifications are misleading. For years, HP printers had lower resolution (expressed in dots per inch -- dpi) than competing products. Dot patterns from HP 600 x 600 dpi inkjet printers were visible to the naked eye without magnification. HP argued that dot quality was more important than quantity. Epson said dot size was a key to quality. The truth is that all these factors affect print quality. Resolution is important, but the bottom line is that you can't use it as a factor in comparing brands. Manufacturers are no longer publishing actual resolution specifications. Instead, they are stating maximum "optimized" resolution. That's a software "enhancement" that puts more ink on the page, but obscures detail. Dot size is equally controversial. Imaging-Resource.com explains, "Smaller droplets have their technical hurdles, too. The smaller they are, the more likely misplacement will affect image quality and the effects of air resistance." One truth that is revealed in reviews is that paper makes more of a difference than anything else. The combination of a $100 printer and premium photo paper will produce better pictures than an $800 printer can produce on plain paper. Another controversial topic is cost of use. We found many review sources that partially base ratings on cost of use, but few of them explain how they calculate it. Tom's Hardware admits, "This is a very fuzzy number because the density of ink and color on any one printed page is likely to be different from that on another page." Your favorite font might use twice as much ink as another font with the same point-size. At best, cost-of-use measurements are a snapshot. Reviews praise printers that use separate cartridges for each color. Using separate cartridges means that you don't throw away any unused ink, as you do with a single multicolor cartridge. However, you do throw away a lot more plastic. Inkjet printers use all four (or more) colors to create every color and shade. In the real world, owners of multi-cartridge printers report that each cartridge tends to run out of ink at about the same time. High-end photo printers mix ink differently, but all of them use separate cartridges, including specialty cartridges. Cartridge costs can be deceptive. Some cartridges hold less ink than others, so they appear to be cheaper, but they may cost more per ounce than a more expensive cartridge. Cartridges from HP and Lexmark cost more because they contain print heads, but they do provide a fresh print head every time you change inks, which can keep your printer operating more smoothly. Fixed or semi-fixed print heads can become clogged (especially if the printer sits idle for weeks at a time), sometimes needing to be replaced. Replacing heads is expensive, especially if it requires professional service. Canon lets you replace the nozzles yourself (albeit at a hefty cost), while Epson requires that the printer be serviced. If you print rarely, letting weeks go by between prints, the ink in your cartridges will dry out and need to be discarded. Before throwing your old cartridge in the trash, see if it can be recycled -- some communities have recycling programs. Several companies will buy old cartridges, and sometimes charities and schools will collect used cartridges to raise money. Some companies provide postage-paid mailers for people to send in old cartridges. Office supply stores have constantly varying policies, but most accept used cartridges for recycling and will offer a token gift or credit in exchange.
Our Consensus Report shows how many times products are top-ranked by reviewers included in our
* Also see our Comparison Chart.
General-purpose inkjet printers are disappearing from the marketplace in favor of photo printers. With the exception of Hewlett-Packard’s Deskjet 6000 series, the few current general-purpose inkjets do not receive many favorable reviews. The HP Deskjet 6980 and HP Deskjet 6940 share a print engine, but have different features. The new Epson Stylus C120 is intriguing, but has not yet been reviewed. Epson steals a page from HP’s marketing book by calling it the fastest inkjet ever made. Canon and Epson introduced new photo printers in the past two months. These models are just beginning to be reviewed, but so far, reviewers haven’t determined that any of them are the best in their class. Instead, the HP Photosmart D7360 continues to be recommended thanks to its good photo quality and ease-of-use. The most expensive printers are reviewed the most often. If print and photo quality matters most, reviewers say you can’t do better than the Epson Stylus Photo R2400. The HP Photosmart Pro B9180, Canon Pro9000, and Canon Pro9500 each have champions who think those printers rival the top Epson. Many say the Epson Stylus Photo R1800 is just as good as the R2400 for color, but not black-and-white photos. The Epson Stylus Photo R800 and Epson Stylus Photo 1400 fall into more affordable price ranges with little sacrifice in quality.
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All the models reviewed in this report are general consumer 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 x 6-inch photos. We cover these in our photo printers report. PC Magazine 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 they are also 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 consideration, mentioned in several reviews, 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 upload photos to many web-based services. They will print them 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 after-market and OEM ink. PictureCorrect.com is an excellent source of product information. PC Magazine's article "The True Cost of Printing" shows the cost-conscious reader how to calculate the long-term cost of a printer. College Buying Guide.com has a simple buying guide for anyone. TrustedReviews.com offers a helpful, up-to-date "Digital Photography Tutorial – Photo Printing." Australian PC World offers an "Inkjet Printers Buying Guide" PCPhoto magazine has a good article entitled "Think Ink" 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: Advertisement
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Inkjet Printers Reviews |
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* Pricing information is approximate as of the time this report was written and is based on observed market selling prices and/or list prices. Actual selling prices may differ.
