Heading to Europe for a couple weeks, and when I get back I'm gonna have to get a new inkjet printer. The old one had that very irritating problem, where there were "extra parts" after a repair, and it's not quite right. After many years of loyal service, no complaints here. It was an HP 7550

I've been out of the market on them for so long, I don't have a clue what's good out there any more, so I figured I'd ask what everybody likes. The color will be used mostly for photos, I have an excellent laser for regular printing.

Considering an all in one, but doesn't really matter. Good photo quality, up to 8 1/2 by 11, won't cost an arm and a leg to replace the ink, and if possible a straight through paper path (as most of the issues were heavy stock and bending around the paper path).

Cheap is better, something under $150 or so.

Figured experience from people I believe is way better then mystery reviews you read online.

I have been researching this myself after discovering that my trusty HP PSC 1210 apparently lacks a driver or something that prohibits it from working with my new Apple Airport Express (though it works just fine if I hardwire it into my Macbook, but that would defeat the purpose of the wireless network).

Anyway my budget and requirements are pretty similar though I definitely want an all-in-one to replace my 1210. After doing some research and receiving a ridiculous "trade in trade up" offer from HP I have concluded that the HP OfficeJet 7310 is probably the best model for my needs. It is currently on sale at officemax for $199 (reg. $399) which appears to be a good price compared with comparable units. The HP website claims that the unit was tested and and supposedly works with an airport. The unit took some early hits from CNET reviewers but the later reviews are mostly good.

I am not too thrilled about replacing a perfectly functional printer but I've gotten good mileage from it over the last 3 years at an orig cost of $90. And no doubt can get some $ for it on craigslist or a nice donation receipt.

My advice to you would not to be penny wise and pound foolish by getting a cheapo printer that won't work with a wireless network as you will probably want one that does before the next one expires.

P.S. For those who care yes I have been through the Mac and HP support boards and various message forums - have tried about a 1/2 dozen fixes but none worked.

I think you'll likely end up with as many recommendations as there are people who reply to this thread

I'm personally off HP inkjets, I just found them to be a little cheap the past few years and the photo quality on the last photosmart I had wasn't great.

Conversely, I've become a huge fan of Canon's iPixma line. They do make an all in one, and its quite nice. I've recommended a few to some family lately who have been very pleased. They don't sacrifice print quality at all. Unfortunately, I think (even without screens) they tend to run about $200.00.

But for $150 you can get one this is solely a printer that will pump out great photos.

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8703e/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104)

Cordelli,

In my company we use Epsons and they seem to print out great photos and due to the multiple ink cartridge system the cost of ink is a lot less because you are replacing just the catridges that you use. With HP or the other manufacturers you replace a whole if one of the colors empties. The epsons have been really reliable and they are work horses.

One of my favorite printers is the portable Canon. Fast and great pictures. The quality is as good as a non portable. Is a bit expensive but they are great.

Kodak has announced they will be selling a new series of inkjet printers with much cheaper ink than HP et al.

IMHO, the best printers, bang for buck, are Brother laser B&W. Save the inkjet for photo printing in color. IJs are very pricey on a per page consumable count.

Be aware of the fact even Epson models use multiple ink cartridge system, some models give false signal of empty ink. There is a Class action lawsuit against Epson because their printers would notify user that ink cartridge was empty when it wasn't and halting use of printer forcing them to buy a new cartridge.

You can check the website and avoid to buy those "faulty" models:

http://www.epsonsettlement.com/

Lists of Epson Printers: http://www.epsonsettlement.com/Printers.htm

I've traditionally bought Epson inkjets for personal use and special applications in businesses. IMO they're the best I've used for that sort of thing. I happen to think HP consumer Inkjets are crap from my experience. When I was running an IT department several years ago we just bought the things in bulk and threw them out when they (frequently) broke. It was cheaper than trying to fix them.

I dont disagree with that at all... in fact sometimes you can toss them out rather than buying new ink (its actually cost effective!). But arn't most inexpensive inkjets in that category now? Not really an argument against Epson (which are great)...just making conversation.

Something I'm just now exploring are CIS or continuous ink systems. Basically you replace the internal ink cartridges with some faux tanks connected to tubes which run to ink reservoirs. They are surprisingly inexpensive (like around $50 - $100) to retrofit and the ink lasts a lot longer. The picture quality also take a nice bump since the ink is of a lot higher quality. But its probably not a great idea for a multi function printer...

A new feature that wouldn't have been available to you cheaply years ago is wireless printing. My HP C6100 all-in-one lets me print from my notebook 'puter anywhere in the house - very nice when checking in online and such.

HP's are generally fast (far faster than even a couple of years ago) and at least okay on ink cartridge cost; and there are now generic equivalents at Depot/Max/Staples where you can save a bit.

The biggest disadvantage to HP, in my opinion, is the outrageous amount of bloatware the CD tries to install along with the printer driver. Say no to everything you can (you can always install later if you really need it) and turn off the automatic software update bloatware.

hmmm current crop of printers at my house:

Older Lexmark E210 laser printer. Works geat but toner cartridges are beginning to cost more than printer!

HP deskjet 5650 - excellent looking documents, prints great photos, prints better blacks than the C5180

Canon mp830 AIO - fantastic unit! Prints great, scanner works really nice with Adobe Acrobat Pro

HP Photosmart C5180 - got this because the new house is big and wanted a network-capable printer to have upstairs. Works great! The networking is terrific though it does require you to run the HP software on each machine you want to use with the printer (you don't have to install the HP Photosmart software) because the drivers search your network for attached printers. You can also use the printer to scan and send the image to any of the computers on the network. Black printing isn't as crisp as the HP 5650 even though the C5180 has 6 individual ink cartridges.

Still soldiering on with an HP Business InkJet 2230 that is now 6 years old and working wonderfully. I despair for the day I have to replace it. It's *so* much better than anything sold currently as far as build quality goes...

I second the Canon recommendation.

I switched from HP to Canon printers a few years ago and have been quite pleased- no software conflicts with WinXP and IE7, and far better photo quality (better ink, too, used to have fading probs with the HP).

My latest is the PIXMA MP530, which I got from amazon.com for about $170 (no shipping, no tax). I love the duplex printing and separate ink tanks for colors and photo blacks. The ink isn't cheap, but separate tanks help, and the photo color is much better than with 1 tank for color.

I also like the scanner feature (1 less cable) and PDF software. Haven't used the fax feature yet.

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/co...&modelid=13371

There's also the recently revived thread Should I buy a color laser printer? If you look for rebates, you can some of the models mentioned for under $250 (like $249).

The laserjets are intriguing, but I do enough photo printing that I don't think that will serve the purpose. Though that doesn't mean I won't add one at some point at those prices. I just need to get the same model in the office so I can take their almost out of toner cartridges

Price on the HP 7310 is down to $179 at Office Depot this week. HP must be trying to blow out these puppies

I have a separate photo-only printer which works great (HP 616) so I will only be using this one to print word docs, email and internet pages.

HP is also being sued over the "empty" ink cartridges, no doubt I'll get a worthless coupon some day for a few bucks off. though I just got a $66 check from the Microsoft antitrust settlement so I can't really complain.