What printer should a newbie buy?

[OM2]

OK... so do I get an award for being the 1000th person to ask this question? OK... maybe not

I've done reading and from what I understand, the dark side... ooops I mean Canon are fighting back and stopping the refill gangs
I've no idea what the situation is on the Epson battle front

What would the general advice be to a new buyer who wants to refill?

Do all the modern Canons have anti refilling cartridges?

What's Epson doing for their part? I can't believe they would be standing still?

Let's dismiss one bit of advice: buy a really old model - lets assume for Joe Public this option isn't available

Would be good to hear what you guys have to say

Not sure if relevant, but my preference would be ALWAYS to buy Canon: because of always getting 2 trays + duplex printing on higher end models
Epson, look great... but think I'm right in saying they don't always have 2 tray?

Thanks


Omar

 

[l_d_allan]

If you are going to do enough refilling to justify getting a resetter, I would suggest checking CraigsList for a lightly used, local iP4500. It was the printer recommended to me by ghwellsjr.

Reasonably fast, excellent print quality with 1.0 pl ink droplets ... nearly as good as an 8-cart Pro 9000-2, imho. Uses easy-to-refill CLI-8 carts and 4 dye ink tanks. Uses a large 5-PGBK pigment tank for text. I didn't have any interest in an all-in-one. Very good backup for my Pro 9000-2.

If you want to be able to print 13x19" A3+, then you can get excellent buys on n.i.b. Canon Pro 9000-2 printers. They are bulky, however. For doing a large number of prints at a time, you get interrupted quite a bit because the PhotoCyan and PhotoMagenta carts tend to run out much sooner than the other carts.

YMMV.

 

[OM2]

thanks. that great advice. i'm looking for a Canon Pro 9000-2 myself now that u've mentioned it.

but... one of the things i mentioned was what NEW printer should one buy + assuming that u can't get a second hand one
i think i'm looking for an answer that everyone in the world can have
if we all went to buy second hand printers - there wouldnt be enough supply

let me know what u think

 

[fotofreek]

In our area the Canon Pro 9000-2 printers are readily available on Craigs list. They are new, in the box, unused printers that came with the purchase of a DSLR Canon camera, and the sellers just don't need them. They range in asking price from about $350 to $200, and I've seen a few in the $175 area.

 

[l_d_allan]

let me know what u think

The situaiton may actually be quite a bit different. My (uninformed) opinion is that the latest Canon dye printers are less suitable for refilling that the older CLI-8 and BCI-6 based printers. I don't think there is a resetter yet for the lastest printer family based on 226 carts. I believe the 221 carts have smaller ink capacity, and may be partially opaque. I think there are resetters for the 221 family.

I think many people tend to try a printer, and are disgusted/disappointed/frustrated when the first batch of ink runs out so quickly. They might try refilling, but give up because the first experience tends to be a BIG MESS. I see CraigsList ads for inkjets with several empty carts ... and I wonder how they can expect to sell a printer which can't do a nozzle check to confirm if it is working or not.

But you've already got two printers ... and the MP640 seems like a decent all-in-one. Why aren't you getting experience with it, and learning from using the heck out of it?

Perhaps you could indicate what kind of printing you want to do, and how much? What are you trying to accomplish?

 

[OM2]

thanks for the replies

i was only asking just out of curiosity
i bought my mp640 by chance - i would have purchased a new canon instead most probably
i'm glad that i didn't - at least with my mp640 i can refill easily

the answer i'm getting from ur replies though is: new canon printers - stay away - we can't reliably refill!
this is a little worrying!

what kind of printing do i do?
i sell on ebay. i print out invoices and labels and stamps. that's 98% of the printing i do

i need a reliable auto duplex printer AND a printer with 2 trays - one for invoices and one for labels

i've actually got another extra printer - another mp830
i bought from ebay for 0.01! (+ 7.50 to post to me)
i bought it so that it would hopefully rescue my current mp830 where the printerhead seems to have died!
but... i've cleaned my current printerhead and it's looking pretty clean and i can't see much wrong with it
so... the next step is to try it again see if i have any joy - but then i need to purge old inks cartridges i had

 

[l_d_allan]

the answer i'm getting from ur replies though is: new canon printers - stay away - we can't reliably refill!
this is a little worrying!

I haven't been participating on this forum that long, but my impression from reading a lot of archived threads is that since Canon started putting chips on carts (BCI-6 to CLI-8 perhaps?), there is a back and forth between Canon and refillers. Originally, the CLI-8 didn't have a resetter, but then somebody reverse engineered a resetter. Took months and months, if not a year or more. Classic example of Adam Smith's "invisible hand self-interest", imo.

I think it was the same for the 221 family ... eventually a resetter was reverse engineered. My impression from rumors is that a resetter for 226 family carts is "real soon now".

 

[The Hat]

OM2 new canon printers - stay away - we can't reliably refill!

That idea is completely wrong, older Canon printers are easier to refill, thats a fact.
But the newer generation of Canon printers can be refilled very reliably, but its not as easy as it was.

So far the refilling brigade have managed to be very resourceful and successfully refilled
everything that Canon has made despite their newer chip technology.

Its getting harder to beat the big boys but if we keep on buying their printers in time they too
can be cracked + the quality of the prints are getting much better, its win win..