A very good SOHO printer
Written: Feb 12 '04 (Updated Feb 15 '04)
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Pros: Quick, quiet and great pictures
Cons: Expensive ink cartridges but there is a workaround
The Bottom Line: Buy it at Costco at $140 (with coupon) and enjoy!
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| captm19's Full Review: Hewlett Packard Photosmart 7760 Drop-on-demand The... |
This printer replaces my aging Epson Photo 700 so it at least had to match the photo print quality. I am glad to say it does and surpasses it greatly. I have printed some dozen or more 8x10's and 4x6's using various papers from HP, Kodak, Epson and Office Depot brand. All pic's came out very good with the HP being a little better. The printer is very quiet, more so than the 700 and equal to an Epson 890. The unit use two cartridges at one time out of 4 that are available. There is one for color, black, photo and photo black & white. The black & white one is specialized for black & white photo printing. I have a collection of scanned 120 sized black and white negatives. Compared to the 700, there are more subtle shadings on the grays. On identical photos, using the same paper the HP's look more professional with a sense of depth. The main color cartridge is never removed except to replace it when it runs out. The other three cartridges swap places with each other according to your use. The printer is usb only and you do not need to turn on your computer to use it. It has another usb port in a section to the right of the LCD screen where you can plug in a compatible camera or insert any of varied memory cards presently available. Once inserted, the unit wakes up and a menu presents itself on the LCD screen (which is nice and bright) presenting you with choices of which picture to print, of what size and quality. The unit can print 4X6's by means of tray that resides inside the regular paper feed. You load the 4X6 paper in the tray and slide a lever that inserts the tray into the printer. A bit mechanical but it works fine. The software is very easy to set up and is very detailed on what type, size and quality you want the photo to come out as. It has corrections for digital cameras, red eye elimination, sharpness, etc. You can set it from how much ink is used to how long the paper dries before it is released. Paper is inserted face down and is well sheltered from dust. Regular text printing is way better than either my 700 or the 890's. It nice and sharp with good dark contrast. Of course the paper you use effects the results so don't expect great printing from cheap, less than 80 brightness recyled paper. The only drawback is, of course, the ink cartridges. They are the most expensive of all the inkjets only because you get a fresh print head with everyone. However there is a solution. What I did was get two sets of all the cartridges. Then I went to an ink supplier like CarrotInk, etc, and got refill kits for each of the 4 different cartridges. The first set I use for general usage, you know quick prints, proofs, etc. When I want to print the final picture I switch out the first set (the refilled ones) for the second set. With the print heads being with the ink cartridges, I will not damage the printer by using non-oem inks. I save bucks and have great results. Not bad eh!
As a final item, place the printer on a sturdy section of your desk and not on those printer stands that also hold paper. This unit does shake a bit when it's called to fling the the print heads from one side to the other quickly.
I recommend this printer without hesitation. If I print in draft mode it is surprisingly very quick. Is this the very best that's out there? No, it is not but it is one, if not the best price performance inkjets out there. I got mine at COSTCO with a $30 off coupon off their low $170 price. So for $140 I got a top inkjet that has an LCD screen, doesn't need a pc to print pic's, takes in all the media cards and is very reliable.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 140
Operating System: Windows
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Epinions.com ID:
captm19
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Member: Miguel Jimenez
Location: Portland, Oregon
Reviews written: 7
Trusted by: 1 member
About Me:
Merchant, naval reserve and Master of dredge on west coast, marine instructor, IT specialist.
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