G+_Eddie Foy Posted June 23, 2015 Share Posted June 23, 2015 I'm looking for a photo printer. >~$200 US. (Been a laser snob for decades) Small format is fine. (even preferable) Mainly looking for cheap consumables and print quality. Not to be a highly used printer. I've had inkjets in the past and if let sit for a while always got clogged up and and a bear to clean/clear out) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Stephen Rusboldt Posted June 23, 2015 Share Posted June 23, 2015 I also don't use my printer very much. My last 2 Epson inkjets clogged up in 2 years and I could not clean them. So I have switched to Brother Laserjet. I have no recommended inkjet, but I will not purchase another Epson. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Stephen Rusboldt Posted June 23, 2015 Share Posted June 23, 2015 Wayne, are the print heads part of the cartridge or part of the printer? Cleaning the print heads is probably easier if they are part of the cartridge. And if you can't clean the heads, you get new heads with new cartridges. But that makes the cartridge more expensive. So, I think most print heads are part of the printer. Most people leave their printers in standby mode. I think the printer should automatically run a head cleaning process when the printer has been idle. The printer manufacture would know what the length of time should be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Jason Marsh Posted June 23, 2015 Share Posted June 23, 2015 Eddie Foy I'd stick with laser if it's not going to be used often, for reasons you're already familiar with. The "DRM" cartridges are really a pain to me. When I was printing a lot I used off-brand ink and never had problems with color or print quality. That's gotten harder nowadays by the greed of the manufacturers of printers. Why can't they just sell me a decent printer and I'll pay what it's really worth, and have choice of consumables vendor? Works great for oil, gas, filters, paper products, computer components, repair parts, etc.. I went a year or two without a printer because I just don't need to print very often at all. When I did need to print, I'd take a thumbdrive next time I was going by Staples. That worked fine until the spousal acceptance factor dropped below zero ;) We now have an Epson WF2540 AIO that works great, but I'm back to replacing cartridges every six months whether their expended or just dried up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Brian Festa Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 Cannon selphy it's awesome 4x6 dye sub printer. I use it all the time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Brian Goossen Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 1) I love Epson. I think they make the best printers and they do a good job pushing knowledge learned from the top printers down to the cheaper ones. BUT you will get clogged heads and buy stupid expensive ink. 2) Are you printing only photos on it? If so consider an online/mail prints to you service. Mpix.com is my current favorite. Good prices and high quality. A 4x6 is $0.29... Good luck in your search! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Joel Symons Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 I have the Canon mg6150, it's still kicking even though I bought it in 2010. Cheap cartridges on ebay, good photos, duplex printing and it prints on discs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Eddie Hughes Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 For small format prints, (wallets up to 13x19) I use an epson r3000 with a continuous ink system. I got a great deal on it and I would recommend it for the extra cash. I also do event printing and I use 3 sublimation printers...Kodak 6800 for 4x6's and 6x8's, Kodak 6850 converted to print 5x7's, and a shinko 1245 for 8x10's. Honestly, if you aren't going to print often and don't want to waste ink or the time to maintain an ink system I would go with the sublimation printers because they use ribbon instead of ink and are a little over the $200 price range you have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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