Which printer to buy ?

[Tal Fucus]

I consider buying a new printer, to replace my Lexmark Z51 since the price
of the printheads is MUCH too high.
I won't buy HP for the same reason.

I think of buying either the Canon i250 (Or i320) or the Epson 43UX (USB).
they both sell for about 70-85$
The Canon printheads are much cheaper, but I've heard there is a seperate
printhead which tend to die.
I print sporadicaly. I can print several pages per day or not printing at
all for several days.

Any recomandation will be appriciated

Thanks,
Tal
(e-mail address removed)

 

[sinister]

I consider buying a new printer, to replace my Lexmark Z51 since the price
of the printheads is MUCH too high.
I won't buy HP for the same reason.

I think of buying either the Canon i250 (Or i320) or the Epson 43UX (USB).
they both sell for about 70-85$
The Canon printheads are much cheaper, but I've heard there is a seperate
printhead which tend to die.
I print sporadicaly. I can print several pages per day or not printing at
all for several days.

Any recomandation will be appriciated

Not directly what you're asking, but I just replaced my Lexmark Z53 with a
Canon i860. The Z53 was getting old and was leaving blank horizontal bands.
And as you pointed out Lexmark's pricing policy (viz, high marginal costs
for cartridges) sucks.

IIRC Canon printheads now last about as long as the printer. And Canon
seems to have the lowest marginal costs in the industry.

-S

 

[xNokia3390x]

I think of buying either the Canon i250 (Or i320) or the Epson 43UX (USB).

I have HP's and a Canon i560 on my primary computer, and an i320 on the old
one. I've gone months without printing on the i320 (although I try to print
every so often) and I've yet to have a problem. Keep in mind the lower end
"i" series Canons (such as the i250 and i320) use small cartridges - 9ml
black and 15ml color (3x 5ml each color) which can get expensive if you
print a lot. Let's see... My HP gives me 42ml of black for $25, or I can
get 9ml of black for $7 - obviously the HP will be cheaper. For color
printing there is a noticeable difference between the higher up Canons such
as the i560 and i860. So the question is: will you be printing mostly text
or mostly color?

 

[SleeperMan]

I consider buying a new printer, to replace my Lexmark Z51 since the
price of the printheads is MUCH too high.
I won't buy HP for the same reason.

I think of buying either the Canon i250 (Or i320) or the Epson 43UX
(USB). they both sell for about 70-85$
The Canon printheads are much cheaper, but I've heard there is a
seperate printhead which tend to die.
I print sporadicaly. I can print several pages per day or not
printing at all for several days.

Any recomandation will be appriciated

Thanks,
Tal
(e-mail address removed)

In any case, i would go for any model with separate ink tanks. They aren't
so expensive and you don't waste half-full tanks. I think low-end Canons are
not so cheap about ink than those from i560 above (Like Nokia said - they
use smaller tanks and as such long-term use is more expensive). Those models
beat any competition. And you can't miss even with cheapest i560, since
print is great even if you decide to print some photos every now and then.
Also if you print much, consider refilling, just if you do, get quality
inks, not some cheap ones.

 

[Gary Tait]

I consider buying a new printer, to replace my Lexmark Z51 since the price
of the printheads is MUCH too high.
I won't buy HP for the same reason.

You could re-fill them, or buy refilled after market carts.

I think of buying either the Canon i250 (Or i320) or the Epson 43UX (USB).
they both sell for about 70-85$

I think the I350 has superceded the i320.

The Canon printheads are much cheaper, but I've heard there is a seperate
printhead which tend to die.

Actually, no, the heads cost quite a bit, but are easily replaceable
and externally maintainable (without significantly disassembling the
printer), it is the ink carts that are cheap. Cared for, the heads
will last the life of the printer.

I print sporadicaly. I can print several pages per day or not printing at
all for several days.

That is my printing habit, and have had little problem with an i320.

 

[Tal Fucus]

You could re-fill them, or buy refilled after market carts.

I tried to buy refilled inks with no luck. They don't print well, if at all.
Even the refilled ones are not cheap at all (About 25$ for the color ones)

I think the I350 has superceded the i320.


Actually, no, the heads cost quite a bit, but are easily replaceable
and externally maintainable (without significantly disassembling the
printer), it is the ink carts that are cheap. Cared for, the heads
will last the life of the printer.


That is my printing habit, and have had little problem with an i320.

Sorry, I was talking about the cost of the inks (Not the head). I know the
heads cost about the same as the printer, and I don't won't to have to
replace it if it will die after short time.

I'll sure consider for the i350 as well.

 

[Tal Fucus]

In any case, i would go for any model with separate ink tanks. They aren't
so expensive and you don't waste half-full tanks. I think low-end Canons are
not so cheap about ink than those from i560 above (Like Nokia said - they
use smaller tanks and as such long-term use is more expensive). Those models
beat any competition. And you can't miss even with cheapest i560, since
print is great even if you decide to print some photos every now and then.
Also if you print much, consider refilling, just if you do, get quality
inks, not some cheap ones.

Here (In Israel) the i560 costs about 250$, and is much too expensive for me
:-(
In the Office I have the HP 2000 which is superb one !!! We printed about
65,000 by now and still printing. Any refill (Black ones) last for about
1,500 pages. But this printer is too much too expensive (800$)

 

[Tal Fucus]

(USB).

I have HP's and a Canon i560 on my primary computer, and an i320 on the old
one. I've gone months without printing on the i320 (although I try to print
every so often) and I've yet to have a problem. Keep in mind the lower end
"i" series Canons (such as the i250 and i320) use small cartridges - 9ml
black and 15ml color (3x 5ml each color) which can get expensive if you
print a lot. Let's see... My HP gives me 42ml of black for $25, or I can
get 9ml of black for $7 - obviously the HP will be cheaper. For color
printing there is a noticeable difference between the higher up Canons such
as the i560 and i860. So the question is: will you be printing mostly text
or mostly color?

Here (In Israel) the i560 costs about 250$, and is much too expensive for me
:-(
In the Office I have the HP 2000 which is superb one !!! We printed about
65,000 by now and still printing. Any refill (Black ones) last for about
1,500 pages. But this printer is too much too expensive (800$)

I will print mostly colors.
The costs for the low end HP printers (Like 3325 3420 3650 3550) original
color inks is about 30$ and about 20$ for replacements ones.
Do you know how much inks in them ?

 

[Tal Fucus]

Not directly what you're asking, but I just replaced my Lexmark Z53 with a
Canon i860. The Z53 was getting old and was leaving blank horizontal bands.
And as you pointed out Lexmark's pricing policy (viz, high marginal costs
for cartridges) sucks.

IIRC Canon printheads now last about as long as the printer. And Canon
seems to have the lowest marginal costs in the industry.

-S

I'm not going to sell my house, car, wife and kids just for few drops of
LEXMARK inks
This won't happen with canon printers.
Lexmark refilled inks ain't chip too, and won't work as well.

Thanks for the info about the Canon printhead. That's the info I was looking
for.

Tal

 

[SleeperMan]

Here (In Israel) the i560 costs about 250$, and is much too expensive
for me :-(
In the Office I have the HP 2000 which is superb one !!! We printed
about 65,000 by now and still printing. Any refill (Black ones) last
for about 1,500 pages. But this printer is too much too expensive
(800$)

Well, here Canons are also way more expensive than in USA. I could get i950
in USA for the price of my i550 here... i did some calculation and found out
that i950 together with airmail shipping in Europe would cost me almost half
of the price than if i buy it here in local shop...( price of i950 in USA
about 270 $ or less, in Europe about 650 $)
But still i've got i550 and i'm very happy with it (so far...). Local guy
told me against HP, since carts are way too expensive, especially comparing
with Canon ones. I refilled mine first time now and i can't see any
difference, prints are fine so far, so i guess i'm lucky with ink supplier.

 

[Tal Fucus]

Well, here Canons are also way more expensive than in USA. I could get i950
in USA for the price of my i550 here... i did some calculation and found out
that i950 together with airmail shipping in Europe would cost me almost half
of the price than if i buy it here in local shop...( price of i950 in USA
about 270 $ or less, in Europe about 650 $)
But still i've got i550 and i'm very happy with it (so far...). Local guy
told me against HP, since carts are way too expensive, especially comparing
with Canon ones. I refilled mine first time now and i can't see any
difference, prints are fine so far, so i guess i'm lucky with ink supplier.

Thanks SleeperMan,

Here the Canon ink is cheap (Compering to Epson, HP, and Lexmark).
Original color costs about 11$ and replacement one costs about 5$
For Lexmark ink I'll have to sell the house, the car, my wife and kids. I
think it's a bit too much for few drops of inks

 

[Joel]

Well, here Canons are also way more expensive than in USA. I could get i950
in USA for the price of my i550 here... i did some calculation and found out
that i950 together with airmail shipping in Europe would cost me almosthalf
of the price than if i buy it here in local shop...( price of i950 in USA
about 270 $ or less, in Europe about 650 $)
But still i've got i550 and i'm very happy with it (so far...). Local guy
told me against HP, since carts are way too expensive, especially comparing
with Canon ones. I refilled mine first time now and i can't see any
difference, prints are fine so far, so i guess i'm lucky with ink supplier.

Well, how about this. Buy any printer with CIS (Continuous Ink System)
available, and spend between $100-150 depending on where and what CIS model
you buy and you have TANKS of ink which will last for months or years
depending on how often you print. Then pour about $50 worth of ink to the
bottles and it would last thousands of pages.

I just installed the CIS for my Epson Photo 900 and it took me about 10
mins to install, and I don't know how long I will empty (6) 135ml bottlesof
inks here. I paid $64 for the CIS (usually sell for around $100) without
ink, and $48 for (6) 135ml of ink (I can get little cheaper ink somewhere
else but not much difference so I ordered along with the CIS). And that's
it! for $112 + $$ S/H I woudn't have to worry about ink or refilling for may
be 1-2+ years.

 

[xNokia3390x]

I will print mostly colors.
The costs for the low end HP printers (Like 3325 3420 3650 3550) original
color inks is about 30$ and about 20$ for replacements ones.
Do you know how much inks in them ?

Those only hold 8ml of color and 10ml of black. Absolutely avoid them.
Would you be able to swing the HP 3820 or 5150? If not, I would go with the
i320. Out of the cheaper printers, that seems like the best one. Either
that or the i250. Printers and their consumables are expensive eh? I would
just keep an eye out for a good sale.

 

[LarryLOOK]

(USB).

I have HP's and a Canon i560 on my primary computer, and an i320 on the old
one. I've gone months without printing on the i320 (although I try to print
every so often) and I've yet to have a problem. Keep in mind the lower end
"i" series Canons (such as the i250 and i320) use small cartridges - 9ml
black and 15ml color (3x 5ml each color) which can get expensive if you
print a lot. Let's see... My HP gives me 42ml of black for $25, or I can
get 9ml of black for $7 - obviously the HP will be cheaper. For color
printing there is a noticeable difference between the higher up Canons such
as the i560 and i860. So the question is: will you be printing mostly text
or mostly color?

It's been reported here that the HP printers do not use the black cartridge
for black and white printing except in the draft or low quality settings. I
believe this is true and others can verify. Thus, you may wish to consider
this in your calculations. I have been a HP user, mainly because they seem
relatively trouble free in my experience and I'm happy with my photos using
the premium glossy photo paper.

 

[Bob Headrick]

It's been reported here that the HP printers do not use the black cartridge
for black and white printing except in the draft or low quality settings. I
believe this is true and others can verify.

That is generally not true. It is true that the black pigmented ink is not
compatible with photo paper and is not used when photo paper is selected. It is
also true that better graphics generally results from using the color cartridge
(with its much smaller drops) for graphics. Most recent HP printers have
settings in the drive to allow printing with just the black cartridge if
desired, even in "best" mode.

Regards,
Bob Headrick, not speaking for my employer HP
..

 

[Tal Fucus]

Those only hold 8ml of color and 10ml of black. Absolutely avoid them.
Would you be able to swing the HP 3820 or 5150? If not, I would go with the
i320. Out of the cheaper printers, that seems like the best one. Either
that or the i250. Printers and their consumables are expensive eh? I would
just keep an eye out for a good sale.

Thanks for the info xNokia,

The HP 3820 and 5150 are cost about 90$, and I will take them into count.
How much ink do they hold ?

 

[Tal Fucus]

That is generally not true. It is true that the black pigmented ink is not
compatible with photo paper and is not used when photo paper is selected. It is
also true that better graphics generally results from using the color cartridge
(with its much smaller drops) for graphics. Most recent HP printers have
settings in the drive to allow printing with just the black cartridge if
desired, even in "best" mode.

Regards,
Bob Headrick, not speaking for my employer HP
.

Do the HP printers use the black ink while using graphics or normal paper
(Thtat's what I mostly do) ?

 

[SleeperMan]

It's been reported here that the HP printers do not use the black
cartridge for black and white printing except in the draft or low
quality settings. I believe this is true and others can verify.
Thus, you may wish to consider this in your calculations. I have
been a HP user, mainly because they seem relatively trouble free in
my experience and I'm happy with my photos using the premium glossy
photo paper.

From my observation, my canon (i550) uses black if printing pure text and as
you say, in low or draft mode. If you think again, you can't get light grey
from black ink...
And of course, black is used for darkening,too.

 

[SleeperMan]

Well, how about this. Buy any printer with CIS (Continuous Ink
System) available, and spend between $100-150 depending on where and
what CIS model you buy and you have TANKS of ink which will last for
months or years depending on how often you print. Then pour about
$50 worth of ink to the bottles and it would last thousands of pages.

I just installed the CIS for my Epson Photo 900 and it took me about
10
mins to install, and I don't know how long I will empty (6) 135ml
bottles of inks here. I paid $64 for the CIS (usually sell for
around $100) without ink, and $48 for (6) 135ml of ink (I can get
little cheaper ink somewhere else but not much difference so I
ordered along with the CIS). And that's it! for $112 + $$ S/H I
woudn't have to worry about ink or refilling for may be 1-2+ years.

That's nice info. I never heard of it yet. I wonder, where are ink tanks and
i guess you have tubes running - where, since head is moving?
Nice indeed...

 

[Old Nick]

On Thu, 25 Dec 2003 22:45:22 +0200, "Tal Fucus" <[email protected]>
wrote something
.......and in reply I say!:

My experience, and what I read here, is that with Epson, you use it or
lose it. I had heaps of trouble with HP's drivers and paper feed. I
was told that Canon is good for sporadic use.

That is what I was told. I will believe it when I see it.

I have an Epson C61. It was "cheap". But I have had so much trouble
and expense with inks that it's a waste, and the printer price no
longe matters. If I printed every day, it may be different.

I consider buying a new printer, to replace my Lexmark Z51 since the price
of the printheads is MUCH too high.
I won't buy HP for the same reason.

I think of buying either the Canon i250 (Or i320) or the Epson 43UX (USB).
they both sell for about 70-85$
The Canon printheads are much cheaper, but I've heard there is a seperate
printhead which tend to die.
I print sporadicaly. I can print several pages per day or not printing at
all for several days.

Any recomandation will be appriciated

Thanks,
Tal
(e-mail address removed)

**************************************************** sorry
remove ns from my header address to reply via email

I was frightened by the idea of a conspiracy that was
causing it all.
But then I was terrified that maybe there was no plan,
really. Is this unpleasant mess all a mistake?