Photo printer ideas?

[gooner4life]

Hi Guys and Gals,

I'm looking around for a Digital Photo printer, ideally one that has a card reader and an LCD screen so that I can print 4x6 photo's without having the PC on, it would be a bonus if it had an A4 tray as well as a 4x6 paper tray but it is essential that it has a 4x6 tray seperate as sheet feeders on printers are notoriously crap and the paper always seem's to get fed in at awkward angles unless it is A4.

Obviously looking for this as cheap as possible as well but not only for the unit itself but for replacement ink's.

Also are there any photo printers that use seperate cartridges? so that if Cyan runs out you dont have to bin the cartridge wasting yellow and magenta?

I have just bought a Canon Pixma ip5200. So far, it is behaving brilliantly. It has 5 colours in separate tanks, so you only replace what's been used. There are two blacks, so you use different formulations of black depending on whether you're printing photos or documents. The dots produced by this printer are a tiny 1 picolitre (your average HP manages only 5 picolitres) - those in the know say this kind of resolution means you simply don't need expensive six-colour printing, which is mainly a scam to get you to buy more ink anyway.

It does not have an LCD screen or card reader. I really wanted one of these, until I realised how much slower printers run when working directly from a card. If you're wanting to print more than one or two pictures you're as well to boot up the PC and deal with them that way.

It does have a covered paper cassette (able to hold A4 or 6x4), which slots into the bottom of the printer, as well as the usual top-loading arrangement most printers have. You can keep both sources stocked with your choice of paper and print to whichever is appropriate automatically.

So far, I can't fault it. It's currently best-priced at £159 (Johnlewis.com or in store) and if you buy and claim before 30 January, Canon are giving away £30 of paper samples.

[gooner4life]

Thanks Chris, the reason I want one that has a card reader and screen is because it will be used in the main by my mother who enjoys taking digital photo's but doesnt actually have access full time to a PC, she then spends an absolute fortune in Boot's getting digital prints from the Kodak Picturemate machine.

[gooner4life]

I'm looking at the HP Photosmart 8250 does anybody have any reasons why i shouldnt buy this printer? I've heard that prints take a long time to dry with HP printers?

---------- Post added at 17:54 ---------- Previous post was at 17:53 ----------

Also Chris, if you can take your printer back or get John Lewis to price match PC World have the IP5200 for £116.70

http://www.pcworld.co.uk/martprd/sto...&category_oid=

[zeus9876]

I have an HP 8150 and it has superb print quality and i dont think it takes any longer with this for the ink to dry than any other printer.

[tabatha]

HP PSC2355...Had mine for 10 mths...excellent IMO...has all you asked about...
About £100 I believe, if you shop around

[gooner4life]

Thanks tabatha and zeus much appreciated