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Printed photos look good but aren't as detailed or color-accurate as the pictures the ET-8550 produces, as this is a general-purpose printer. One factor to consider when choosing a printer is what type of printer you need. There are three main types of printers – inkjet, laser, and all-in-one. Inkjet printers are the most common type and are good for printing photos and basic documents. Laser printers are faster than inkjet printers and are good for printing text-based documents. All-in-one printers are a combination of a printer, scanner, and copier, and are good for people who need all of those functions in one device.
But you shouldn't have to compromise on output quality or convenience (though you'll probably need to fill its smaller paper tray more often). We think the former option looks sharper, but both kinds look great thanks to the Kodak's four-pass dye-sublimation technology. Dye-sub printing produces snapshots that surpass the zero-ink output of many compact photo printers. The Mini 3 Retro is also offered in three colors and its $156.99 starter kit comes with enough media for 68 prints (30-, 60-, and 90-pack refills are available). If you're on a rock-bottom budget and want to print up to 100 or so very nice photos each month, Canon has an all-in-one inkjet for you. The Pixma TS6420 is a printer/copier/scanner that uses black and tricolor cartridges and has dual 100-sheet paper trays, a drawer in front and a tray that pulls up from the back.
Best Dedicated Photo Printer
Plus, when you see the flawless quality of your prints, you will not be disappointed. While most cheap printers lack high-volume trays and multiple input sources, you should still pay attention to a machine's input options. Like other low-cost lasers, the P3012DW prints admirable text and tolerable graphics (no one buys a black-and-white laser to print photos). Its running costs disqualify it from high-volume office settings, but it's a first-rate personal desktop printer.
Here are the relative strengths and weaknesses of each kind of printer. Each family or home office has its own unique needs in terms of print and copy volume. Since we're focusing on cheap single-function and AIO printers here, this article assumes you won't be printing or copying more than a couple of hundred pages per month.
What about ink-tank printers?
PREMIUM TRAVEL-SIZED PRINTING – Compact, lightweight design fits in your bag or backpack without issue. Easily take this portable printer on all your photo-taking adventures. Print out unique, vibrant pictures during your travels with this handheld device. PCMag is obsessed with culture and tech, offering smart, spirited coverage of the products and innovations that shape our connected lives and the digital trends that keep us talking. Staples, on the other hand, is cheaper than Best Buy, and sometimes offers discounts or coupons. Once you’ve considered all of these factors, you can begin to narrow down your choices and find the best computer printer for your home.
When you use an all-in-one printer as a copier or scanner, speed and resolution matter. You also want to determine if it has a flatbed scanner or if the copier/scanner has an automatic document feeder for easily scanning multiple pages at once. In terms of resolution, higher is better, but for scanning black and white text-based documents, 300 dpi should be adequate. Your choice of printer depends on how much you routinely print—a few pages per month or dozens each day—as well as whether you want to print photos or two-sided documents. You also need to consider if you simply require black and white (often referred to as monochrome or simply “black” in the printer’s specs) output, or you want full color printing at your disposable. With six individual color cartridges—two more than a typical inkjet—the XP creates superb prints suitable for framing.
Photo Printing
We wholeheartedly endorse our highlighted printer models, but what if you’re still not sure which product is right for you? After all, your printing needs may differ from those of your neighbor. It's possible to buy a cheap printer for less than $50, but the faults of these bargain models frequently outweigh the savings. And, the truth is, a decent machine could cost you just a little more than $50. Even at the top end of the pricing scale, a high-quality multifunctional printer is remarkably affordable.
This might suffice in some cases, but not if you’re sharing your output with clients or colleagues. And if you’re printing full-page, full-color photos, the printer uses more ink than usual. Many of the latest inkjet printers now rely on high-capacity ink tanks, as opposed to individual ink cartridges. This is definitely a more economical option and eliminates the need of constantly having to swap out cartridges, as the ink tanks typically hold enough ink to last about two years. The Epson EcoTank Photo ET-8550 has a premium price, but it also is a premium all-in-one.
Kodak Dock Plus 4x6 Instant Photo Printer
It stinks to run out of paper in the middle of an important print job--so be sure to stock up on paper. I recommend plugging your printer directly into a wall AC outlet and not into a power strip or extension cord. Not the best pick for those hoping to scan documents or photographs.
Second, while they can be cheap to buy, they tend to saddle you with high ink costs for expensive replacement cartridges and wasteful ink maintenance cycles that are necessary just to keep the machine working. The typical consumer might spend $70 a year or more on ink cartridges, which can double the cost of ownership for a printer in as little as two years. According to our expert evaluations, inkjet printers have three fundamental problems.
(Pets and plants are enough of a commitment.) Any printer, by definition, can of course print. Not every printer, however, can help shuffle your old fax machine, copier, and flatbed scanner off to the great recycling bin in the sky. This printer is also very quiet and compact, so you'll hardly know it's there. Connect your smartphone or mobile tablet to the printer through your home wireless network, or use a direct connection to bypass the home WiFi to send your jobs. With the HP AiO Printer Remote mobile app, you can edit and manage your print jobs from the palm of your hand. For even more brilliant, borderless photos and prints, the HP OfficeJet 5260 comes with 2 free years of the HP Instant Ink subscription service.
To meet the average needs of a family—and for many small businesses—a full-color inkjet will be more economical and versatile. When rounding up home printers to test, we consider color inkjets, black and white laser printers, and high-performing color laser printers. The maximum capacity for many inkjets is as low as 100 sheets, and only a few can hold 500 or more sheets. In most cases you probably won't want to reload the paper more than about once a week, which for a 500-sheet capacity would translate to printing on roughly 2,000 sheets per month. Keep in mind that if you print mostly in duplex, each side of a sheet counts as a printed page for duty-cycle purposes.
Like most inkjets, in duplex mode the 9015e pauses between sides in order to let the ink on the first side dry before continuing to the second. However, the 9015e seem to take a longer pause than other printers we tested. Speed is an overhyped concern for home printer use, but staring at the “Ink drying, please wait” message gets to be a bit of a drag, especially with large print jobs.
Even if you purchase a top-of-the-line printer, how documents look depends on the type of paper you use with the printer. For most printing tasks, 8.5 x 11 inch 20-pound copy paper works just fine. It comes in reams of 500 sheets and works well with inkjet or laser printers.
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