Printer recommendations?

Bert Coules

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I looked in on this forum searching for advice on the merits or otherwise of different printers for digital photographs, and was surprised to find that most people seem to favour online print services or toddling off to Boots or wherever, on the grounds of both price and quality.

Is the quality obtainable from domestic-type printers really not that good? I see that several people have mentioned quite rapid fading of the image.

I noticed today the very reasonably-priced Epson R200, which has the added bonus of being able to print onto CDs and DVDs; but if I can get significantly better results from a professional service, online or not, perhaps that's the approach I should be going for.

Any thoughts will be gratefully received.

Bert
www.bertcoules.co.uk
 
I have an Epson Photo 830U and am extreemly happy with the results and would be quite happy to pitch them up against any proffessionally processed pictures. With all ink jet printers fading is a problem but I specifically chose Epson because they promise that if you use their premium paper then the photographs will not fade for 10 years
 
I have a Canon S900 which, in my opinion, gives me better results than I've ever had from so called professional labs. Printing with Canon Ink on Canon paper, they say that their photos will be light fast for 25 years. I doubt if any professional labs would guarantee their prints for longer than this.
 
I've got to agree about the Canon S900. It's a great printer, quick with 6x4 photo prints in 30 seconds and a full A4 in around 1 minute.
I have also just bought the Epson R200 and although it is quieter it is nowhere near as fast (would guess at around 2 minutes for a 6x4 print) and IMHO the prints are not as good. Very close, but an identical print printed on the Canon photo paper pro on the S900 compared to the R200 on Epson equivelent is just not as sharp or vivid. Don't get me wrong it is still very good, but when you put them side by side the S900 wins.
Oh well it looks like I'll be keeping the R200 as I don't have room for both printers and I need the direct to CD/DVD printing. Just need to put the Canon on the Classifieds now, but I will be sorry to see it go.

Mark.
 
Many thanks to everyone who's replied so far. One of the reasons I liked the idea of the Epson R200 was its CD/DVD capabilities, but I'm not sure if that feature is worth a trade-off in picture quality and speed for prints on paper (especially as I've not been able to find any printable CD-Audio blanks - are they actually available, does anyone know?)



Bert
www.bertcoules.co.uk
 
I had an Epson 830 and the print quality was very good. I then 'upgraded' to the 900 and was very disappointed in the print quality although the direct printing to CD/DVD was a handy feature. I now have a Canon i865 and the print quality is outstanding. Far quicker and quieter than the Epson's too.
 
Mallabey, can the Canon i865 print directly onto CDs and DVDs?

Are there any printers which combine top-quality paper printing with the CD/DVD function?

Bert
www.bertcoules.co.uk
 
Hi All, also looking to get a new printer but can't decide between the Epson R800 and the Canon i990. Anyone have either of these printers, any advice would be appreciated.

ASH1
 
Originally posted by Bert Coules
Mallabey, can the Canon i865 print directly onto CDs and DVDs?

Are there any printers which combine top-quality paper printing with the CD/DVD function?

Bert
www.bertcoules.co.uk
Yes to your first question. The good thing is, you load the CD/DVD from the front whereas some printers load from the rear.

Not too sure what you mean with question 2.
 
Mallabey,

Thanks for the info regarding the i865.

My second question wasn't well worded; I was wondering if providing the CD/DVD-printing capability somehow compromised a printer's performance as far as working onto paper or card went.

Up till now, the only CD/DVD printers that have been mentioned here seem to have been at the lower end of the print quality scale; I'm pleased to know that this doesn't have to be case.

Bert
www.bertcoules.co.uk
 
I've only had the i865 a few days but have barely used it so far. Having looked through the options for printing, you have different settings for printing photos, CD/DVD's, cards etc. As an example, I printed a couple of 6" x 4" photos and selected the wrong paper. As a result, the photo wasn't great at all. I changed the option to photo paper and the quality was, in my eyes, very close to photo lab quality. As with any printer, if you select the wrong kind of paper for printing, the results will be alot poorer than if you select the correct paper.
 
I had a demo from the canon 900 directly onto thier own glossy photo paper at a show last year, the results were outstanding, we almost bought four of them for our department, but instead opting for epson 2100's, just to say the Canon prints looked great, lovely high gloss finish, only problem is......they have been out in an office environment since last January, no daylight at all, and in December I shredded them as they has completely faded around the edges, so much for permanency?

The canon prints are useless for archiving......

We have been using HP970 with Premium Plus papaer for around four years now and none of those prints show any sign of fading as yet, also the new Epson prints on 2100 and photo paper are fine too, just a shame about the crap blacks and bad surface gloss on the epson material.

Best regards David
 
I use a now fairly old Epson 1270, and printing onto their glossy film (not paper, more like plastic) i have prints that have been framed and are in indirect lighting most of the day that still look 100% good after 2 years, and 2 A3 prints onto heavyweight matt that are in direct sunlight that also look great, after 2 years.

I have other non framed prints that have faded a bit over time (especially the glossy, gaining a horrible yellow colour cast) so now i swear by frames :)

Just my 2p
 
Absolutely correct SeaneyC, if you want archival results you have to use the correct media and preferably laminate or frame with UV glass.
These new Epson inks on the 2100/2200 and the inks that HP have for the new Photosmart printers are the exception, but it still will pay in the long run to look after them!

Best regards David
 
Another vote for the canon i865, if you go to the canon website you can upload a picture and they will print the piture on the printer of your choice and send it to you.
 
Oh yes and the cd printing is top notch.
 

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