LF Printer Recommendations.

[Vectraat]

-Should be under $400 CAD (including taxes)

-Needs to print good color photos

-Needs to have a scanner 

-Needs to run on Win7

-Prefer to get something at London Drugs. 

Can you guys recommend some printers? 

Thanks

[mariushm]

Do you really need color? How often do you print color pictures? 

 

Strongly recommend a laser printer, less hassle and cheaper to refill. 

 

At your price... maybe look for Epson EcoTank models available in Canada, then check reviews to see if they're worth buying. 

 

Here in Romania, EcoTank L3250 is $263 and each 65 ml bottle of black , yellow , magenta and cyan are 10$ each. 

 

I see ET-2803 without ink on Amazon US for $200 https://www.amazon.com/Epson-Wireless-Cartridge-Free-Supertank-AirPrint/dp/B0BHXNP6B1/

... ink is $36 for a pack of the 4 inks you need.

[Vectraat]

13 minutes ago, mariushm said:

Do you really need color? How often do you print color pictures? 

 

Strongly recommend a laser printer, less hassle and cheaper to refill. 

 

At your price... maybe look for Epson EcoTank models available in Canada, then check reviews to see if they're worth buying. 

 

Here in Romania, EcoTank L3250 is $263 and each 65 ml bottle of black , yellow , magenta and cyan are 10$ each. 

 

I see ET-2803 without ink on Amazon US for $200 https://www.amazon.com/Epson-Wireless-Cartridge-Free-Supertank-AirPrint/dp/B0BHXNP6B1/

... ink is $36 for a pack of the 4 inks you need.

It's not for me, It's for someone else, and yes, they want color because they print high quality photo-like images. 

Also, from what I understand, an INKJET is the way to go if printing a combination of text, graphics and photos.

[mariushm]

6 minutes ago, Vectraat said:

It's not for me, It's for someone else, and yes, they want color because they print high quality photo-like images. 

They won't print high quality photo like images with a budget of 400$ canadian

They should go to a shop with a high end printer and print the photos they want. 

[Vectraat]

4 minutes ago, mariushm said:

They won't print high quality photo like images with a budget of 400$ canadian

They should go to a shop with a high end printer and print the photos they want. 

Yeah, I know the photos won't be perfect or even close to it on a budget like that, but I'd like to get something decent is all I'm saying. It's for my parents, they aren't tech savvy and just want to print some colored photos in the convenience of their own home. Their old printer used to be able to print some fairly nice looking photos--they'd buy higher quality paper etc.

[Aderalia]

On 4/20/2023 at 11:16 AM, mariushm said:

They won't print high quality photo like images with a budget of 400$ canadian

They should go to a shop with a high end printer and print the photos they want. 

I wouldn't say that.

If you don't mind buying more expensive cartridges Epsons Chlaria HD Inks are fantastic. Color gamut is almost as good as actual photos. Only downside is with Black and White images and they aren't as fade proof when put in light. Assuming they are printed on suitable paper.

 

Ecotanks or the canon equivalent are much cheaper to run but have higher upfront cost. Depending on how much they print considering an Ink subscription maybe an option.

If you want something with good image quality the bare minimum is CYMK (the K is black). Most printers wont use the regular black they use for text to print photos, that's why some have 2 different black inks.

 

If cartridges are OK i can recommend the Epson Expression Photo XP-8700, Epson Expression Premium XP-6100, Canon Pixma TS6350a

The first one is a somewhat proper photo printer using 6 colors (it only has a single photo black, which makes it less good as an office printer), best for photos, but again uses cartridges and not that great for anything else.

The second and third are "hybrids". They use both text-black and photo-black which makes them decent all-rounders. They aren't as good as Laserprinters when it comes to printing text, but they aren't to bad either and still over decent photo prints (much better than laser). If you only have one printer, that's what i would buy.

 

Or you can go with something like the Epson Ecotank ET-2820. That's an entry level tank printer that does not have a pigmented black. This means it wont be as good as an office printer but should do at least OK with photos.

 

If you want something from Canon, there is the Canon Pixma G650. However its print quality isn't anything to write home about (solid "meh" if you ask me), but probably better than the ET-2820.

 

 

Edited April 21, 2023 by Aderalia
forgot the quote