Community Newsletter: Q&A: Photo inkjet printers vs. color laser printers
- 11/9/07 8:26 AM
Kodak printer
by snavelyz - 10/27/07 9:09 AM In reply to: photo inkjet printers vs. color laser printers by aqw8326Kodak's printer was designed by whole bunch of ex-HP hardware enginner. The printer technology is about 5-8 years behind.
Kodak wants to compete with HP in making money with inks, so they lower the price of the inks. The inks themselves are based on Kodak's long history of excellence in Chemical Technology, but the ink delivery system is still 5-8 years old.
I do not know how long Kodak will alst with such low ink price.
Inkket vs. Color Laser printers
by PJCrowley - 10/20/07 12:56 PM In reply to: Photo inkjet printers vs. color laser printers by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Cheap inkjet printers (less than $100) aren't that great with photos, and the cheapest color laser printers are not good for photos either. However, the most expensive home inkjet printer is still less than the cost of a color laser printer that prints high quality photos. If photo printing is key, you are likely to need at least the second or third tier up in color laser printers rather than the lowest cost models.
Cost per page is somewhat more for color laser, but you do not waste ink cleaning the print head. You also never have expensive paper printed with just red and yellow because the cyan ink ran out.
You cannot get high quality paper for a color laser printer. There are textured papers that look like canvas for ink jet printers. If this is important to you, you can only do this with an inkjet printer. However, you can print on real glossy paper with a color laser printer.
The biggest advantage of a color laser printer is reliability. You print something and it comes out, 100% of the time. If you print only occasionally you will have to clear (or replace) the ink cartridge or print head each time you print. Inkjet printers work fine when used consistently only. Color laser printers can be left alone for a month and immediately print perfectly.
The biggest downside with a color laser printer is photographic printing. Yes, the quality can be acceptable for many purposes but one of the six-color inkjet printers will produce photographs vastly superior to almost any color laser printer less than $1000.
costs per print
by wazzer - 10/20/07 5:13 PM In reply to: Inkket vs. Color Laser printers by PJCrowleyCheap inkjet printers (less than $100) aren't that great with photos, and the cheapest color laser printers are not good for photos either. However, the most expensive home inkjet printer is still less than the cost of a color laser printer that prints high quality photos. If photo printing is key, you are likely to need at least the second or third tier up in color laser printers rather than the lowest cost models.
or use the laser for proofs and then have photo print at walmart or the like on their higher end printers
Cost per page is somewhat more for color laser, but you do not waste ink cleaning the print head.
and you do this a lot?
You also never have expensive paper printed with just red and yellow because the cyan ink ran out.
And you never check print ink levels both the HP 5100 and MP 160 give this information as part of the print process.
You cannot get high quality paper for a color laser printer. There are textured papers that look like canvas for ink jet printers. If this is important to you, you can only do this with an inkjet printer. However, you can print on real glossy paper with a color laser printer.
Have you really looked there all kinds of paper available for each and more type coming out all the time
The biggest advantage of a color laser printer is reliability.
Based on use of the laser I do not find them to be so -till jam much better -this goes double if you are without a/c or in a humid area.
You print something and it comes out, 100% of the time.
Unless it jams
If you print only occasionally you will have to clear (or replace) the ink cartridge or print head each time you print. Inkjet printers work fine when used consistently only.
This for me at least is a non problem, I print every day.
Color laser printers can be left alone for a month and immediately print perfectly. Unless it jams
The biggest downside with a color laser printer is photographic printing. Yes, the quality can be acceptable for many purposes but one of the six-color inkjet printers will produce photographs vastly superior to almost any color laser printer less than $1000
I am sure of this however no one printer is THE ALL-A-ROUND winner.
What I suggest is making a CD or diskette with some of the things that you normally print and ask the sales guy/girl to do a sample print on several of the display printers and compare the out put with you own eye. and then based on the examples see which one looks the best and use the manufacture estimate of sheet per cartridge, sheets until failure, you come up with a price per sheet, AND don't forget the cost of repacing the drum in your laser printer [since you replace the print head with each ink replacement --you get the equivalent or drum replacement.
inkjets
by wazzer - 10/20/07 2:34 PM In reply to: Photo inkjet printers vs. color laser printers by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Peopl have been refilling inkjet cartridges for a while and for some time now it is easier to do so the cost per cartridge is going down. AND GRANTED THE LASER cartridges are reloadable but still cost more. Overall, I would say the costs are about the same. I have two inkjets on my machine right now, HP5100 abd a Canon mp160. I have acess to a laser on the network. I USE THE LASER FOR MAKING REAL PHOTOS. And I use the HP5100 for labels, envelopes, and othe special printing needs. The canon prints out very nice crisp letter fonts. Until the laser can match real world useage costs I will keep my inkjet thankyou.
Inkjet Refilling coming to a hault by manufacturers??????
by wds21921 - 3/22/08 8:11 PM In reply to: inkjets by wazzerI'm not sure if anyone else has noticed this lately but the new cartridges by HP, Lexmar, Canon and Epson are coming with "count chips" on them to semi-record or allow an inkjet cartridge to only be refilled a few times.
Once an electrical charge has been made (by contact) it will only allow a few times before the contact points are burned up by the printer. This prevents anyone from being able to refill a cartridge more than 2-5 times. Sometimes a few more refills but more often than not only 2-3 times.
This is due to the fact most of these companies profit so much by there "branded" ink cartridges.
I would be more than happy to debate this with any printer companies reps if they would dare come on here.
What we're seeing here is pure and simple greed and price gouging to consumers. The same tactics auto manufacturers like Ford, GM and Chrysler used in the 1970's. "Using any components other than OEM will void your warranty".
The exact same statement being used today by the printer manufacturers even though high quality companies like Cartridge World make superior and clean re-manufactured cartridges.
As a consumer, I'm sick and fed up with paying these outrageous prices for ink when the manufacturers are now limiting our resources (legitimate ones I might add) that can provide us with equal or even better quality products than the OEM are willing to do.
Colour Lasers vs. Photo Inkjet
by Shaun R - 10/20/07 5:13 PM In reply to: Photo inkjet printers vs. color laser printers by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Edward H,
If you are considering a laser, be aware that if the printer is left on all the time, it emits harmful chemicals into the air that can be very damaging to your health. someone may have posted this already, but please be aware of this. If you make sure it goes off when you finish using the computer, and you only turn it on when you need to print, you should be right.
harmful chemicals
by steve_ripley - 10/26/07 7:16 PM In reply to: Colour Lasers vs. Photo Inkjet by Shaun RAs far as I have been able to tell, ALL currently offered laser printers, BW or color, go into "sleep" mode almost immediately after printing. So they do not emit ANY chemical while they're just sitting waiting for the next job.
According to Harvard University's Operations Services:
"Excessive emissions from photocopiers and laser printers are rare if the machines are
properly maintained. Their average emission rate is ten to one hundred times below the Permissible Exposure Limits. However, if personnel are exposed to excessive emissions, they may experience symptoms such as irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, as well as coughing and dry facial skin."
I have personally been in an environment where a laser printer was continuously pumping out pages for up to half an hour (hundreds of pages per event). Only under such conditions could I detect the symptoms listed above, and recovery was within an hour.
The health risk is quite minimal.
Ink Jet vs. Laser Jet
by theirusername - 10/20/07 5:15 PM In reply to: Photo inkjet printers vs. color laser printers by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I've always used ink jet. Yes, I know the ink is expensive. But the reason I've never switched is that the color copies on the laser jet aren't as good & certainly not as fast as ink jet. I've always used HP, I guess because all my computer, digital camera, etc is HP. I used HP in the hospitals, so I was more familiar with it, & they make sure all of the peripherals work with all of the other peripherals, so there is no incompatibility issue.
Except for the HP Officejet Pro L7780 All-in-One printer: I've had 4 of these so far, & each one has experienced "hardware failure". I returned 3 to the store I purchased them from. But unfortunately, they were past the 30 day warranty for the 1st return, so I couldn't get my money back. The last return was through HP, & it was a real hassle!!! I had to give a credit card number for them to even pick up this one, even though the website offered to issue a call tag for defective equipment, then when they received your equipment, they would send you a replacement. I thought I was updating to this printer, but it's not better than the 5600 series I had before this one.
What to do
by beau511 - 10/21/07 11:04 AM In reply to: Ink Jet vs. Laser Jet by theirusernameI have just been to a computer major store in Canada, the HP color laser jet 1600 is at $189 cda.
The ink black is $110cda and color $120 (each need 4)
I have just checked my printer and the black is at 24% and color at 45%.
I hate to throw away a working printer but what can I do?
Claude
Color Laserjets are great, but the photo quality...
by kelasings - 10/20/07 5:23 PM In reply to: Photo inkjet printers vs. color laser printers by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I do a lot of work that requires me to have both laserjets and ink jets. I have had a whole lot of Epson printers over the years and I currently have 4 that I use regularly as well as 2 mono laserjets and 1 color laserjet. I can tell you truthfully that the color laserjet photo quality is just not comparable to inkjet photo quality right now. The issue is the way that inkjets deliver their ink to the paper (or other media you are printing on i.e. cds, etc). The droplet size helps to bring a clarity and depth to a photo that color lasers just can't currently reproduce. Color lasers do well with graphic items but not as well with photos. If you are going to get a color laser, I would suggest getting a quality machine, but, I wouldn't encourage you to get rid of your inkjet just yet.
how to figure costs
by wazzer - 10/20/07 6:45 PM In reply to: Color Laserjets are great, but the photo quality... by kelasingsexample:
cost of macnine 500.00
cost of cartridge 30.00
number of sheets 5000 * est from mfg
number of actual use 4000 based on what you are using
note: ream = 500
number of months til replace or upgrade machine
so lets use 530.00 for machine
and we print say 250 sheets a month [I consider that way low for what I print]and in 8 months we get another machine
530+[{[8*250/5000}* 30.00}] should guve a basic cost per sheet
and if anyone out there knows a better or more accurate way please post that.
All cost issues aside consider the printing that you need a law office will need a laser print or true letter quality print for the court, So some print demands will side step the cost issue.
Understand your real needs and match the printer that fits the need.
also really count your use, how many times a month do you use a package of paper count that as 500 sheets.
Phaser
by mchinsky - 10/26/07 7:05 PM In reply to: Color Laserjets are great, but the photo quality... by kelasingsTake a look at a photo on a Xerox Phaser 8560. The difference form inkjet is almost unnoticeable. It is a little worse, but barely.
like you just said
by easyman55 - 10/21/07 4:01 AM In reply to: Photo inkjet printers vs. color laser printers by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Here here vista for ever come on manufactures get it together
inkjet vs laser dump both
by larry-alto - 10/27/07 12:10 PM In reply to: like you just said by easyman55Offhand I would say to dump both of them. You have to check out Xerox Phaser solid ink printers. These things are amazing, they can print high photo quality on plain bright white paper. The printers are pantone certified. Xerox (Tektronics) had problems with the ink when they first came out with these printers, but we have a 8560 and they seem to have resolved the issues. The printers start around $800, but if you're picky about your prints or running a small office this is the perfect printer. The cost per print is the same as toner which is considerably less than ink jet.
The second thing I like about this there are no cartridges. You drop the solid ink into the printer and the whole thing disappears. A lot less waste with these printers. We even have software from Xerox that emails us when the ink starts to get low.
xerox phaser 8560
by True_Reviewer - 11/6/07 11:25 PM In reply to: inkjet vs laser dump both by larry-altoI have phaser 8560, and i would not recommend them for home use. Why?, 1. You have to leave this printer on 24/7, otherwise it will use a large amount of ink (print head cleaning cycle) the next time you power it on, and if you leave it off for a few days I guarranty you that one of the print head nozzle will be clogged and needs more print head cleaning (1 cleaning cycle will use at least half of your ink sticks). 1 pack of color sticks (3 sticks) cost $92. Okay you decide to leave the printer on 24/7 a let it go on power saver mode, it uses 45 watts! while on power saver mode.
2. Not good for photo prints,even on photo resolution mode. Photos looks grainy.
Otherwise this printer prints really good B/W text and colored graphics. It does prints fast too at 30ppm color or B/W.
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