Laser VS Inkjet

Charles Schuler wrote:
> <Clint S.> wrote in message
> news:4m0eo2d7bshhnm9bspj6tpopn9mldaatum@4ax.com...
>> Hi Folks,
>>
>> I know we've all had this discussion before but, I have a friend that
>> wants
>> to print-out his pictures taken with his Nikon D2X. He's leaning in the
>> direction of a 9 color inkjet but I think he should consider a color
>> laser.(For cost reasons) I would appreciate any and all comments and
>> direction you can send my way to help him in his decision.
>
> Color lasers are not very good for photographs.

The dynamic range on a color laser is very limited compared with even my
$100 OfficeJet. They don't print on glossy. (There's laser "glossy"
paper that's not glossy.) There's a significant difference in the
quality of the two types of printers, and it's not one of those "you'd
have to be an expert to tell the difference" deals either.
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet 

On Mon, 18 Dec 2006 16:16:15 -0500, Cynicor
<j...tru.p...in DeleteThis @speak.ea.sy.net> wrote:

>Charles Schuler wrote:
>> <Clint S.> wrote in message
>> news:4m0eo2d7bshhnm9bspj6tpopn9mldaatum@4ax.com...
>>> Hi Folks,
>>>
>>> I know we've all had this discussion before but, I have a friend that
>>> wants
>>> to print-out his pictures taken with his Nikon D2X. He's leaning in the
>>> direction of a 9 color inkjet but I think he should consider a color
>>> laser.(For cost reasons) I would appreciate any and all comments and
>>> direction you can send my way to help him in his decision.
>>
>> Color lasers are not very good for photographs.
>
>The dynamic range on a color laser is very limited compared with even my
>$100 OfficeJet. They don't print on glossy. (There's laser "glossy"
>paper that's not glossy.) There's a significant difference in the
>quality of the two types of printers, and it's not one of those "you'd
>have to be an expert to tell the difference" deals either.

My concern is that he won't be happy down the road with the cost per print
because of the high priced ink tanks that hold very little ink. My
suggestion to him was to look into sub-dye or color laser printers however
I'm not sure what kind of quality the newer color lasers are producing.
I've read some reviews online that suggest that the newer color lasers are
pretty dang close to the more expensive 9 tank ink-jets and cost far less
down the road to maintain.


Your Portion Of Light

Whether you are a brilliant flame or
but a tiny spark matters not-for the world
needs whatever portion of light is yours to give.
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet 

<Clint S.> wrote in message
news:4m0eo2d7bshhnm9bspj6tpopn9mldaatum@4ax.com...
> Hi Folks,
>
> I know we've all had this discussion before but, I have a friend that
> wants
> to print-out his pictures taken with his Nikon D2X. He's leaning in the
> direction of a 9 color inkjet but I think he should consider a color
> laser.(For cost reasons) I would appreciate any and all comments and
> direction you can send my way to help him in his decision.
>

IF the budget does not allow for an excellent printer, and if it is not
absolutely essential that you have your prints at once, consider uploading
the images to www.dalelabs.com. You will receive real photo prints, on real
silver halide paper, just like back in the film days. I prefer these so
much over inkjet prints that I do not bother owning an inkjet printer at
all.

The only drawback is that you must wait for the prints to arrive by mail.
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet 

"jeremy" <jeremy RemoveThis @nospam.com> writes:

>IF the budget does not allow for an excellent printer, and if it is not
>absolutely essential that you have your prints at once, consider uploading
>the images to www.dalelabs.com. You will receive real photo prints, on real
>silver halide paper, just like back in the film days. I prefer these so
>much over inkjet prints that I do not bother owning an inkjet printer at
>all.

>The only drawback is that you must wait for the prints to arrive by mail.

Not necessarily. Many of the local photo-oriented stores (this is
Vancouver BC) now accept images for printing on their minilab
electronically. You can upload images to their website, or take a
CD-R or flash media to the store in person to get the data into their
system. They print, and you can pick them up in person (or have them
mailed).

For the place I've used, turnaround is usually a few hours for 4x6
prints. They claim a day for large prints. Still not as fast as owning
your own printer, but good enough for many purposes.

Dave
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet 

<Clint S.> wrote in message
news:4m0eo2d7bshhnm9bspj6tpopn9mldaatum@4ax.com...
> Hi Folks,
>
> I know we've all had this discussion before but, I have a friend that
> wants
> to print-out his pictures taken with his Nikon D2X. He's leaning in the
> direction of a 9 color inkjet but I think he should consider a color
> laser.(For cost reasons) I would appreciate any and all comments and
> direction you can send my way to help him in his decision.

If he can afford a D2x, he can afford a good inkjet...

David J. Littleboy
Tokyo, Japan
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet 

"Dave Martindale" <davem RemoveThis @cs.ubc.ca> wrote in message
news:em732v$a66$2@swain.cs.ubc.ca...
> "jeremy" <jeremy RemoveThis @nospam.com> writes:
>
>>IF the budget does not allow for an excellent printer, and if it is not
>>absolutely essential that you have your prints at once, consider uploading
>>the images to www.dalelabs.com. You will receive real photo prints, on
>>real
>>silver halide paper, just like back in the film days. I prefer these so
>>much over inkjet prints that I do not bother owning an inkjet printer at
>>all.
>
>>The only drawback is that you must wait for the prints to arrive by mail.
>
> Not necessarily. Many of the local photo-oriented stores (this is
> Vancouver BC) now accept images for printing on their minilab
> electronically. You can upload images to their website, or take a
> CD-R or flash media to the store in person to get the data into their
> system. They print, and you can pick them up in person (or have them
> mailed).
>
> For the place I've used, turnaround is usually a few hours for 4x6
> prints. They claim a day for large prints. Still not as fast as owning
> your own printer, but good enough for many purposes.
>
> Dave

I've tried local printing at a few places, and I was dissatisfied with the
results vs. online printers that process at their own location and send the
prints to me by mail.
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet 

<Clint S.> wrote in message
news:4m0eo2d7bshhnm9bspj6tpopn9mldaatum@4ax.com...
> Hi Folks,
>
> I know we've all had this discussion before but, I have a friend that
> wants
> to print-out his pictures taken with his Nikon D2X. He's leaning in the
> direction of a 9 color inkjet but I think he should consider a color
> laser.(For cost reasons) I would appreciate any and all comments and
> direction you can send my way to help him in his decision.

If he's hell bent on a color laser, have him sell the D2X since he won't be
getting the most out of it. Cololr lasers are OK, but not even close to the
quality of even a low price ink jet. This is a no-brainer.

>
> Thanks Much!!
>
> Clint
>
> Your Portion Of Light
>
> Whether you are a brilliant flame or
> but a tiny spark matters not-for the world
> needs whatever portion of light is yours to give.
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet 

I think a colir laser can be good for many purposes, and for everyday use I
think they are quite satisfying. It depends on if we are talking high
quality prints or not. There are several advantages with a color laser,
speed and cost are two big ones. With a color laser you don't need expensive
paper.
Besides, inkjets are so cheap nowadays that you can get both and use the
inkjet for extra luxury purposes, like large prints for framing and such.
I think the Xerox 6120 is an excellent printer, it has also got PostScript
if you need to proof stuff for offset printing.
http://www.office.xerox.com/color-printers/phaser-6120/enus.html
Otherwise Minoltas look-alike is probably as good and cheaper.

/Lars


"Clint S." <clint45 RemoveThis @gmail.com> skrev i meddelandet
news:vi2eo25a0pjgo8r52db0cbl8b0g6cqu5i4@4ax.com...
> On Mon, 18 Dec 2006 16:16:15 -0500, Cynicor
> <j...tru.p...in RemoveThis @speak.ea.sy.net> wrote:
>
>>Charles Schuler wrote:
>>> <Clint S.> wrote in message
>>> news:4m0eo2d7bshhnm9bspj6tpopn9mldaatum@4ax.com...
>>>> Hi Folks,
>>>>
>>>> I know we've all had this discussion before but, I have a friend that
>>>> wants
>>>> to print-out his pictures taken with his Nikon D2X. He's leaning in the
>>>> direction of a 9 color inkjet but I think he should consider a color
>>>> laser.(For cost reasons) I would appreciate any and all comments and
>>>> direction you can send my way to help him in his decision.
>>>
>>> Color lasers are not very good for photographs.
>>
>>The dynamic range on a color laser is very limited compared with even my
>>$100 OfficeJet. They don't print on glossy. (There's laser "glossy"
>>paper that's not glossy.) There's a significant difference in the
>>quality of the two types of printers, and it's not one of those "you'd
>>have to be an expert to tell the difference" deals either.
>
> My concern is that he won't be happy down the road with the cost per print
> because of the high priced ink tanks that hold very little ink. My
> suggestion to him was to look into sub-dye or color laser printers however
> I'm not sure what kind of quality the newer color lasers are producing.
> I've read some reviews online that suggest that the newer color lasers are
> pretty dang close to the more expensive 9 tank ink-jets and cost far less
> down the road to maintain.
>
>
> Your Portion Of Light
>
> Whether you are a brilliant flame or
> but a tiny spark matters not-for the world
> needs whatever portion of light is yours to give.
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet 

Clint S. wrote:
> Hi Folks,
>
> I know we've all had this discussion before but, I have a friend that wants
> to print-out his pictures taken with his Nikon D2X. He's leaning in the
> direction of a 9 color inkjet but I think he should consider a color
> laser.(For cost reasons) I would appreciate any and all comments and
> direction you can send my way to help him in his decision.

Laser printers aren't suitable for photographic printing by the very nature of
how they work - they don't provide anywhere near the same resolution in color,
and they don't blend colors well, since each color is printed and fused
separately. They're great for color GRAPHICS, but not for photos. Cost isn't a
consideration, because I can pretty much guarantee he won't be happy with the
outcome.

But if he really wants to be sure, tell him to take his pictures to a store like
Staples or something, where they sell both, and have the store do some demo
prints for him - the difference be obvious very quickly.
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet 

On Dec 18, 4:09 pm, Clint S. <> wrote:
> Hi Folks,
>
> I know we've all had this discussion before but, I have a friend that wants
> to print-out his pictures taken with his Nikon D2X. He's leaning in the
> direction of a 9 color inkjet but I think he should consider a color
> laser.(For cost reasons) I would appreciate any and all comments and
> direction you can send my way to help him in his decision.
>
> Thanks Much!!
>
> Clint
>
> Your Portion Of Light

Lasers are poor for color printing mostly because of the way they put
colors on paper, by dithering, the size of the dithering is so large it
is very visible. TRhe minimal laser is the Xerox Paser series, and to
print photos with these you need a lot of memory which isn't cheap.
Even the top end lasers can't compete with low end inkjets.
If your friend is using a D2X he needs a serious printer. Start looking
at the HP B9180, uses ink tanks, 33ml, and has replaceable heads. There
is a review on Luminos Landscape. A step up from that would be the
Canon Ipf5000 and the Epson 4800, both use ink tanks and print to
17inches x any length, again check Luminos Landscape for reviews. The
minimal printers are the Epson R1800 or Epson 2400, but both have the
hassle of little cartridges, the HP B9180 should have lower ink costs
for about the same initial price. I used to do large format printing
commercially, I have to say good inkjet printer have gotten quite easy
to use since I bought my big printer 8 years ago. profiles are
available for most papers, the printers are self calibrating, all good
stuff. Right now my choices would be 1. Canon Ipf5000, HP B9180, and
the Epson 4800. The only reason the Epson is last is it can't handle
both glossy and fine art papers without dumping ink.
Costs, inkjets vary between $1.25 and $2 per 8x10, I would say the
Epson 2400 and R1800 maybe a little more. Get the best buy you can on
brand name inks, no nmae inks are not worth the hassle and they often
screw up profiles etc. A good place for inks is Atlantic Exchange,
www.atlex.com.

Good luck
Tom
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet 

"Aaron" <aaron.TakeThisOut@fisheyegallery.com> wrote in message
news:slrneoftb6.hmr.aaron@thebailiwick.com...
>
> Let me also recommend White House Custom Color (www.whcc.com). Their
> prices are second-to-none and their customer service is tops. They
> serve a slightly more professional audience than most of the digital
> shops online (AdoramaPix, Shutterfly, etc. come to mind). Your friend
> might consider all of the above. I warn that Shutterfly has never
> shown me superb output, although AdoramaPix has.
>

I'd second that. We just used them for the first time for some client
images, and they were great. And an improvement over Mpix, as far as ease
of use.

--
Skip Middleton
www.shadowcatcherimagery.com
www.pbase.com/skipm
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet 

I have a Minolta 2400W color laser. Frankly I bought it because I
had gone through three inkjets all of which loved to dry out and all
became expensive consumers of ink carts and maintenance. One of the
three did OK one did good and the last one did very good. So now I
have the color laser and I am thrilled with it. It does almost as good
as the best inkjet. It did cost more, but has required no maintenance
and even if I need to replace the toner next week, I will be happy.

If I have something I want and it does not produce the quality I
want for that particular use, I can send my file to a local commercial
printer and go pick it up.

It has proven to be much faster, and far less trouble than any of
the inkjets.

Talk Ink Jet to me when they become as reliable.

On Dec 18, 4:09 pm, Clint S. <> wrote:
> Hi Folks,
>
> I know we've all had this discussion before but, I have a friend that wants
> to print-out his pictures taken with his Nikon D2X. He's leaning in the
> direction of a 9 color inkjet but I think he should consider a color
> laser.(For cost reasons) I would appreciate any and all comments and
> direction you can send my way to help him in his decision.
>
> Thanks Much!!
>
> Clint
>
> Your Portion Of Light
>
> Whether you are a brilliant flame or
> but a tiny spark matters not-for the world
> needs whatever portion of light is yours to give.
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet 

And lo, Clint S <> emerged from the ether
and spake thus:
> Hi Folks,
>
> I know we've all had this discussion before but, I have a friend that wants
> to print-out his pictures taken with his Nikon D2X. He's leaning in the
> direction of a 9 color inkjet but I think he should consider a color
> laser.(For cost reasons) I would appreciate any and all comments and
> direction you can send my way to help him in his decision.
>
> Thanks Much!!
>
> Clint

For *cost* reasons? Can he be serious? A 9-color inkjet is much more
cost-effective than a laser printer, at least for the first few
hundred prints, just by virtue of the start-up cost for a laser
printer that would even come *close* to the quality of an inkjet (and
those are few and far between, especially in the consumer arena.)

The only non-inkjet printers that can produce respectable photo output
are: dye sublimation printers (basically ink jet technology but with a
twist, and costly), so-called "wax jet" or artistic wax printers such
as the venerable Phaser (now owned by Xerox), which are costly to buy
and to operate, and of course the completely unattainable Giclee,
which would be absurd to own for home use, unless your friend is
moderately wealthy and somewhat of a spendthrift.

There are printers to suit every need within the Canon and Epson
lines, some of which I've used, others of which I haven't, but overall
the price/performance ratio of inkjet is hardly anything to laugh at.

Notes on cost:

1. Always use your printer's branded ink. Third-party inks are a waste
of time and money. It may appear to be a cost savings, and they
will claim their performance is comparable, but they're full of
@#$*.

2. By sticking with Canon/Epson, your friend will be able to
experiment with third-party artistic inkjet papers tested for those
major brands and available from such fine shops as Red River Paper
Company (www.redrivercatalog.com). I have used their papers for
years and have always been satisfied. They do not test their papers
for other brands of printers.

3. A six- or nine-color inkjet is somewhat more cost-effective than a
color laser because you can replace 1/6 or 1/9 of your ink at a
time, running each individual tank to its absolute terminus. Color
laser printers almost exclusively use quad-cartridge CMYK systems
(although some throw in a fifth color). This somehow translates
into a cost savings, but I'm not a mathematician.

I actually can't think of any reasons your friend should consider
color laser if what he wants are photographic prints.

--
Aaron
http://www.fisheyegallery.com
http://www.singleservingphoto.com
 >> Stay informed about: Laser VS Inkjet