Printer to recommend?

[carolw]

I'm looking for a new printer. Don't need it to print larger than 8 1/2x11, since major print jobs we send out to a lab. We need a good, basic printer that does a good job with photos but which is easy to use without a lot of fussing. Looking online I see canon and hp the most frequently. Some years ago I had an epson but had so much trouble with clogged heads that I've never wanted to get another. Appreciate any suggestions!

[chauncey]

If you're in the USA...ya can't beat Cosco.

[inkista]

I like my Canon Pixma Pro-100, but it's probably bigger (can do 13x19 prints) than you want. It's also more expensive than it used to be. It used to go for $400 with a $250 mail-in rebate, so it ultimately cost $150. But now it's only got a $150 rebate on it.

It's been very easy for me to use with ICC profiles. I print from Lightroom with the Canon Printer Studio Pro plug-in. The wi-fi was very easy to set up, and communication issues over wi-fi have been rare, and the DVD/CD printing is a bonus feature for me. I do not, however, use this printer for text, as I tend to use my laser printer for documents, and the inkjet solely for photos.

[DanK]

Like Kathy, I use a Canon Pro-100. I used to use and still have the predecessor Pixma Pro 9000II. Both are excellent, as long as you are OK with dye-based inks, which are less archival (but IMHO less prone to clogging) than pigment inks.

Both of these can be had for very little money. Canon often bundles them with cameras, and people who don't want them then sell them. For that reason, you can usually find 'used' ones, often in unopened boxes, for very low prices.

What is your location? (It would be helpful if you would add that to your profile.) That might have a bearing on how easy it is to get one of these inexpensively. For example, in my area, you can buy an unopened Pro 100 with 50 sheets of paper (Canon often bundles that too--I got 100 sheets) for $150.

[carolw]

That's 2 votes for the canon pro-100 with some very helpful info. Thanks! We are in Columbia, SC., have an excellent Best Buy &, of course, online sources.

[chauncey]

I suggested Cosco for this very reason...Printers

[Shadowman]

Your specifications on quality are minimal and only concern is with ease of use so any printer will do, the only other thing to consider are replacement ink cartridge costs.

[carolw]

RE quality, we definitely are concerned for good quality photos, so I disagree that any printer will do. We just are not sophisticated technically enough to deal with printers that require that level of expertise. Nor do we have a budget to allow 1 printer for photos and another for text. Is it realistic to look good photo quality in an all in one? We have an old scanner that should also be replaced ☺.

[Donald]

Epson is now, albeit arguably, the clear leader in terms of the specialist photo printer, but going down that route does really mean having two printers, which you say is not an option for you at the moment. My reading suggests Canon is the leader in terms of printers that are good enough for photo printing and are efficient and economical for documents as well. The difference is likely to be in terms of the number of ink cartridges used. But you have to accept that the photo quality from such a printer is not going to match that of the specialist unit.

For the photo/document printers, I think it's about 5 cartridges that seem to be used. The specialist photo printers have more; e.g. my Epson R3000 has nine cartridges (although I use a bulk ink system and that cuts costs considerably).

[davidedric]

Hi,

Faced with the same decision a few months ago, I opted for the Canon MG7550 all-in-one. I am very happy with it both as a photo printer and a general printer and scanner. As with most photo/general printers it has a large black cartridge for documents, and adds a grey to the usual CMYK for photos.

It prints up to A4, equivalent to your 8 1/2 * 11.

The only oddity is that although it has two trays, the lower one can only take A5 which is approximately 6x8, so mixing A4 documents and photos means changing papers. It's no big deal for me, but something to be aware of.

I opted to connect via WiFi, which works well but did take a little while to set up, and obviously gives more flexibility in where you put the printer. Otherwise, just usb it.

Dave

[DanK]

Until I got my first dedicated photo printer, I printed using a Canon 6-ink multifunction printer that is no longer made, the MP 970. The prints were very good, and I think a few of the ones I have on the wall may still be from that. The main drawback was that other paper manufacturers didn't provide ICC profiles for it, so if I had wanted to use a range of papers, I would have had to pay for profiles. However, if you print with Canon's papers, this shouldn't be an issue. I still use the printer for office printing and scanning.

Last I looked, a few years ago, Canon had two series of multifunction printers. One was designed more with photo printing in mind. YOu should check this if you go that route.

[Shadowman]

RE quality, we definitely are concerned for good quality photos, so I disagree that any printer will do. We just are not sophisticated technically enough to deal with printers that require that level of expertise. Nor do we have a budget to allow 1 printer for photos and another for text. Is it realistic to look good photo quality in an all in one? We have an old scanner that should also be replaced ☺.

Perhaps I should have written "you didn't specify quality of print". Here is a good list with comparative measures. http://printers.toptenreviews.com/photo-only/
Also, consider operating system you use as some printers may not have drivers for different operating systems (Mac, Linux). I've purchased printers that didn't have available drivers for newer operating systems. One of my older printers never did supply a correct driver and I had to make due with a driver for another model. Of course, they don't tell you that bit of information in the manual so...

Also, I've yet to see any printer that didn't give users some type of headache, so be prepared to visit manufacturer's website or forum for helpful hints.

[rpcrowe]

I use two printers...

The Canon PIXMA Pro 9000 Mark II for all my color printing, as well as for my B&W photos and a low priced Brother Laser printer for my B&W document printing. If I were needing a photo printer, I would get a new old model like the 9000 MKii or a new Pixma P100 (either of which can be had very inexpensively. If I wanted to print B&W documents in any quantity, I'd get another Brother laser printer.

I like the Canon because it has not clogged ever. I used an Epson 1800 printer which would, if I did not use it frequently, would frequently clog at the ink nozzles. I use Canon OEM inks.

I also like the Canon Printer Plug In for my Photoshop CS6. I use this for all of my printing and it has been great (for me)...

I use the Brother, which cost me a bit over $100 USD several years ago because of the speed and economy as well as the quality it delivers. It also has a fairly small footprint (which is something I cannot say about the Pixma Pro 9000 Mkii). I use a third party toner (I have not had any problems with that) and my B&W documents end up costing less than two cents per page (less when I print in duplex mode). This is nice when I want to print the entire manual for a piece of gear. A lot of gear is coming out with the manuals on PDF. I may be old-time, but I like to have a hard copy manual. A several hundred page manual will cost me just a couple of dollars to print. I then have it spiral bound at a print shop.

I also need to print out numerous documents for my dog rescue activities. Using any inkjet printer to print large quantities of print documents would be cost prohibitive in ink and quite time consuming.

BTW: I doubt if Best Buy would have the "best price" on a Canon Pixma Pro 100 or Pixma Pro 3000 Mark II. Your best buy would probably be from B&H or Adorama (if buying new) and eBay if buying a new but, pre-owned printer since they were virtually "given away" in packages with Canon cameras/lenses.

[carolw]

Perhaps I should have written "you didn't specify quality of print". Here is a good list with comparative measures. Also, consider operating system you use as some printers may not have drivers for different operating systems (Mac, Linux). I've purchased printers that didn't have available drivers for newer operating systems. One of my older printers never did supply a correct driver and I had to make due with a driver for another model. Of course, they don't tell you that bit of information in the manual so...

Shadowman, I don't see the list you refer to - or did I miss a link or attachment? Thanks for the info.
Also, I've yet to see any printer that didn't give users some type of headache, so be prepared to visit manufacturer's website or forum for helpful hints.

[carolw]

Oh yeah, just found the link. Thanks.

[carolw]

Great information! Thanks so much for all your thoughts. This will be very helpful!

[motordrive]

I'm looking for a new printer. Don't need it to print larger than 8 1/2x11, since major print jobs we send out to a lab. We need a good, basic printer that does a good job with photos but which is easy to use without a lot of fussing. Looking online I see canon and hp the most frequently. Some years ago I had an epson but had so much trouble with clogged heads that I've never wanted to get another. Appreciate any suggestions!

I recently purchased a Canon Pixma Pro 10 using pigment inks. I'm still working with the color management thing but by and large my prints are not bad but not perfect yet. Is anyone else out there using the Canon Pixma Pro 10 or the Pro 1. Both use pigment inks. It would be interesting to hear another persons situation using one of these printers. By the way, I'm a rookie on this forum and this is my first post here. I noticed the post I'm responding to is dated June 2015. Been awhile.

[Shadowman]

I recently purchased a Canon Pixma Pro 10 using pigment inks. I'm still working with the color management thing but by and large my prints are not bad but not perfect yet. Is anyone else out there using the Canon Pixma Pro 10 or the Pro 1. Both use pigment inks. It would be interesting to hear another persons situation using one of these printers. By the way, I'm a rookie on this forum and this is my first post here. I noticed the post I'm responding to is dated June 2015. Been awhile.

I don't personally use the Canon but there are a few members who do, but a good reference text for any printer is:

Uwe Steinmueller/Juergen Bulbins's "Fine Art Printing for Photographers: Exhibition Quality Prints with Inkjet Printers". The authors cover a range of printers, papers, software, and methods of evaluation.

[jacsul]

Signed onto this thread, I too, would like to update from my MP830...

[davidedric]

Hi Jack.

Can you say what you are looking for. Do you need a multi function like you r current printer, or a dedicated photo printer? Do you want to print to 8x11 1/2 or larger?

Dave