Which inkjet?

[inkjetter]

Sorry, another one of these posts.

Please comment and rate the following printers. I am looking for a digital camera and inkjet printer for printing out photos and general-purpose print-outs that may need some colour on them. My budget is about $300 or under or so for the printer and $400 for the digicam.

Canon Pixma iP4000
Canon i9900 (too expensive, I think)
Canon Pixma iP5200R Inkjet Photo 802.11b/g 9600X24
Hewlett Packard Deskjet 6940
Epson Stylus Photo R340
HP Officejet Pro K550dtn Printer
HP Photosmart Photo Printer (PS8250)
HP Deskjet 460WF Printer w/ Battery

It is preferable that the printers are compatible with Linux distros without too much trouble.

I will probably order from TigerDirect (Canada's) as I'm in Canada. They seem to give the best selection comparatively. I wasn't going to order anywhere else since they should be cheaper compared to the shipping/handling charges I'd incur from some American company, right? I finally realize the selection/prices from Futureshop/Staples (Business Depot) is awful in comparison. Any decent printers (from Tigerdirect) that I ommitted? The place has a lot of selection for HP printers. I am wondering what the best one (for under 400 bucks) is.

Thanks in advance to all who reply, advise and offer recommendations. It's really appreciated. Also, keep in mind I'm googling and reading reviews I find on the web. But, I'd like current reviews and recommendations and I find such forums are good resources for that. I do appreciate your time. Thanks.

 

[Osage]

The answer to your question may depend on your printing volume and how much you value the various tradeoffs you are making. But from my standpoint, which is economy in printing through refilling or using third party prefilled cartridges, I would still lean towards the choice I already made---the pixma ip4000.

While various six or more color printers may beat the ip4000 slightly on photo printing, they also somewhat stumble as a general purpose printer---but if you do want a pretty good six color printer consider the Canon i6000d---available last time I checked at outpost.com for about $100 USD. But both those printers are unchipped Canons--the ip5200 is very good printer but its still a chipped Canon-- and you lose the ability to use third party prefilled cartridges---a chipped Canon can still be refilled---but its added problems that are best avoided.---but that could change if a chip resetter comes on the market--an if and when question.

HP printers tend to be fairly reliable but not good on economy---epson printers tend to be poor on reliability and prone to clogging---or should I say in MHO on both makes. And forget any inkjet made by Lexmark or any inkjjet labeled dell--those suckers will eat you out of house and home.

No inkjet printer using dye based ink is going to excellent on fade resistance on photoprinting. But lots can be done with the photopaper you choose and how you store the print. A pigment based ink is more archival but will tend to look muddy and less dynamic--but to get a pigmented ink its either SOME epsons and their problems or a new Canon printer---the pro9500 I think---that is both unproven and is likely to come with both chips and a price tag that will bust the bank.--and for what its worth--and I will not swear to it--I think the R series epson you mention does not use a pigmented ink.

But I got a ip4000 for my wife some time ago------and its a choice I do not regret.---but if you want the ip4000 printer engine in an all in one format---look at the MP 750, MP760, or the MP780. With the MP 780 being still being readily available--and that printer can print, copy, scan, and fax--and non-chipped to boot.

Just my take on your question---other may have different opinions.

 

[inkjetter]

Thank you for your recommendations. I was a little concerned that no one was going to reply! ;-) Unfortunately, most stores are moving to the chipped printers, I think, and the IP4000 is hard to find. Shipping charges increases the price so I'm looking at the multifunction printers. I read a review on the MP760. It's a clearance item at Staples (near where I live) for 200 bucks plus change. Is that a good deal? I also found a 780 at Futureshop for a bit more $$. It's a good idea to go with one of these? The cartridges are widely available and affordable? (Plus no chips to worry about, right?).

I agree with you, I think it's a good idea to go with economy and buy one of these cheaper printers until the chip problems are resolved (chip resetter) and it's cheaper to replace the cartridges.

 

[Osage]

Run don't walk to said Staples and snap it up. The MP 760 has the ip4000 printer engine, is likewise non-chipped, and is paired with a very good quality scanner. The MP 780 has the fax the MP760 lacks, but you then don't get as good a scanner in the tradeoff.--better scanner vs. having a fax---its your call there.

But you will only see a big difference in scan results when you are scanning small object like 35mm slides and prints. So its somewhat your call there---and if you buy a multifunctional mail order you will find it costs a small fortune to ship.---------in my case I needed the fax---and I was lucky enough to locate a used MP730--which is sorta a one generation back MP780 without the BCI-6 photoblack--and shipping was twice the purchase price.

But as I reread your post I see I ignored your Linux driver question---and not sure there--best check on that question with any printer you are considering.

 

[inkjetter]

Update: unfortunately, the local Staples is out of stock on the 760. They did an inventory check for the other locales and it looks like it's not available anymore. So, my option is to order online, find another store that has it or buy the 780 and pay a bit more (25 bucks) and have the fax option. Is it worth it? The sale (this time, the printer is at Future shop at a cheaper price than Staples) ends on the 1st of June.

I found a website in which the author claims to have a linux driver. I was only hoping to find a printer which would offer one since I intend to learn linux in the future. I've already tried a debian distro and wanted to install one again at some point. That's why I mentioned preference for a printer having the option.

Update #2: I'm currently considering a HP Photosmart 2575 AIO Inkjet Printer. It's getting good reviews on PriceGrabber. If anyone reads this and has experience with this printer, I'd appreciate any feedback, positive or negative. I found the printer for 2 hundred bucks.

I like the 780 though but the linux combatibility is weak at best. Perhaps, Canon will provide drivers at some point (by the time I'd need it?), though? It's not a make-it-or-break-it issue but would be nice. I like the affordability and convenience of the ip4000/MP760/MP780 cartridges, however. I don't know if it's worth it to go with a HP if it'll be more expensive to operate as it will be a while until I use Linux more often. I'll probably have a dual boot or have Linux on a 2nd machine anyway. Decisions...decisions...

 

[websnail]

Can't give you any solutions or info as far as the linux drivers go for the MP models but I would have thought your best bet in that area is to consider going for a seperate printer and scanner making sure each is supported.. I'd see the all-in-one as being the achilles heel but I'm basing this solely on gut feeling and educated guesswork rather than any hard info.

Good luck in the search...

 

[easyrefill]

Looking at the driver support randomly at one of my Epson printer. I see Alpha, MIPS, Intel and Power PC.

On the Epson Web site, only Windows and Mac are listed.
Checking out the Canon site, only support for Windows and Mac are listed.
HP - MS DOS, Windows, Mac.

Linux support will be difficult. I remember setting up Windows print server to print from Linux PC. You may have to set the printer spooler to "raw". I used to know more about this back from doing IT support. I can't remember after not doing it for sometime.
The best way is to keep it simple and use a Window PC. It will take too much time to make it work.

 

[roytje]

Hello Inkjetter,

At my website you can easily find reviews for some of the printers you mentioned. There ou can also calculate your printing costs to decide what printer is the best for your situation.