Photo printer and what it is eaten with

The main quality of a classic photo printer is the ability to print both colour and monochrome photos. However, not all colour printers are capable of this. Both inkjet and laser families have models designed to print text, as well as charts and graphs on plain office paper. But glossy photography is too tough for them. Therefore, when buying, you should make sure that the chosen model meets your requirements.

Wealth of Choice: Finding an Alternative

The market offers three main options for consumer photo printers:

  • Inkjet - the best option, which has won the recognition of professionals. The price of the device starts from $50. The main disadvantage is expensive consumables and a relatively small resource of the original (i.e., made by the manufacturer) refueling. On the other hand, when using a continuous ink supply system (CISS) and high-quality compatible (not branded) consumables, the cost of prints is reduced tenfold without losing quality.
  • Laser and LED printers have proven themselves in office work, but, despite the assurances of the developers, the quality of photo printing is not up to inkjet counterparts. In addition, they are demanding on paper quality. And if in the case of an inkjet machine, the use of cheap paper is fraught with only a poor-quality print, then in laser devices this negatively affects the mechanical component of the printer. The lower price threshold of such devices starts from $200.
  • Sublimation. Basically, these are portable printers, whose buyers are willing to overpay for the ability to transport them from place to place. The price of such devices (and the quality of printed photos) is at the level of laser printers in the low-cost sector. Therefore, in the eyes of most users, sublimation printers are more of an expensive whim than a really necessary device.
  • The fourth variety, solid ink printers, which can compete with laser and sublimation printers, due to the high price (more than 1000 USD) should be attributed to office, and not to household devices.

Format and portability

Most low-cost printers are designed to print A4 images. Usually, these are stationary devices designed to be connected to a PC. But today, the direct print function has become the norm, when the printer receives a picture for printing not from a computer, but from a camera’s memory card or a USB flash drive. This principle is also used in portable models designed exclusively for printing photographs. Usually, such devices support printing format A6 (a quarter sheet of A4) or slightly larger (for example, 10 x 20 cm). They are compact, they can be carried with a failure and not experience any inconvenience. However, before printing a picture, it is worth viewing it on the monitor screen. Most users do just that. Therefore, before deciding to buy a portable printer for $100-200, you should consider whether it is better to buy a full-fledged A4 photo printer for the same, or even less, amount?

Manufacturer and print quality

Professional photographers unanimously argue that there is no alternative to inkjet printing today. Therefore, further we will focus on the choice of an inkjet device. Leading manufacturers in this industry include Epson, Canon, HP. At the same time, the model lines of each of these companies have their own characteristics. Epson models, for example, are distinguished by high colour quality, unattainable by most competitors. But the payoff for quality is the impressive price of consumables and the device's increased sensitivity to ink quality. Any changes in their composition (for example, when changing the brand of ink) can cause malfunctions of the print head. Canon printers are more resistant to the “surrogate” - if the tested ink suddenly disappears from the sale, switching to a new series will not cause serious problems and will give the user time to evaluate its advantages and disadvantages. Photos from Canon are distinguished by high image clarity, and their cost is lower than that of Epson. Photo printers from HP produce soft, "velvet" prints. This is a minus in the case of panoramic compositions, but in the case of portraits, where a high naturalness of skin tones is necessary, it is a virtue. But you will definitely need HP branded photo paper, otherwise the quality of the pictures is not guaranteed.

Colours of rainbow

Station wagon

When choosing a model, you should pay attention to the number of colours that the printer uses in printing. Standard combinations are four (one black and three colour) and six (black and five colour) cartridges (or compartments inside one/two cartridges). Six-colour printing allows you to get more subtle colour transitions, but, on the other hand, requires strict monitoring of the purity of each colour. The four-colour version is more economical and even in low-cost models allows you to get a good result. Therefore, six-colour models can be recommended to professionals. If the user does not have high requirements, you can get by with a cheaper option for four colours. Moreover, the print quality of standard model series is noticeably improving every year. It is worth noting that it is impractical to require the printer to print only 10x15 cm photo cards. Models that meet these requirements are quite expensive, and devices that support the A4 format are in no way inferior to them. In addition, they are cheaper and offer more features, for example, printing standard documents or photos in the size of 20x30 cm. And if there is no real need for a portable device, you should opt for standard serial photo printers.