Choosing a Photo Printer

Instead of paying for prints at the local drugstore, you can invest in a photo printer that produces glossy, high-resolution pictures suitable for framing, sharing or scrapbooking. You'll have the freedom to make photos any time you want, and you'll gain complete control over the photo printing process.

Benefits of a Dedicated Photo Printer
Laserjet and inkjet printers are great for everyday use, but they're not optimized for photo printing needs. A dedicated photo printer gives you higher resolution and prints in standard photo sizes, rather than on 8 ½ x 11-inch letter-sized paper. Photo printers usually support higher resolutions than general-purpose printers, which enables them to create lab-quality photos.

The best photo printers include support for the memory cards commonly used in digital cameras. A standalone unit has photo editing software that performs common tasks, such as reducing red eye or cropping images, as well as a color LCD screen. These are ideal for those who don't have a computer or who don't want to tie up the computer with photo projects.

What these machines typically can't do is print letter-size pages. Compact photo printers typically make 4" x 8" prints, and some of these can make panoramic 4" x 12" prints. Professional-grade printers support larger sizes, up to 13" x 19", but these are out of the reach of most consumers. In deciding between a photo printer and a standard inkjet printer, you'll need to consider whether high resolution matters to you and whether you want to print documents as well as photos.

Image Quality
Photo printers use inkjet technology, which sprays tiny dots of ink onto specially designed paper. The more dots thrown per inch, the higher the resolution, which is measured in dots per inch. Resolution is always expressed as the maximum horizontal dots per inch by the maximum vertical dots per inch (DPI), such as 800 x 600, for example.

The key number in resolution is vertical dots per inch (DPI), which tells you how fine the image quality will be. A vertical DPI of 600 or more is a must if you want lab-quality photos. The horizontal DPI will tell you the maximum width of pictures that can be printed.

Many inkjet photo printers also include software that enhances photo quality by sharpening details or evening out color and tone. These enhancements can contribute to print quality as much as the printer's resolution. Look for adjustable settings rather than automatic ones to get the most control. You should also look for support of the RAW format, particularly if you have (or are considering) a digital SLR camera that doesn't compress images. This is an expensive feature that is less common on cheap photo printers.

Ink Cartridges
For many years, four ink cartridges were common on inkjets-one each of cyan (blue), magenta (red), yellow and black. Newer Epson and HP photo printers add two additional ink cartridges, light cyan and light magenta, that increase the number of colors that their printers can reproduce.

Ink cartridges are the hidden cost of photo printers, and comparison shopping can save you a lot of money over the lifetime of the printer. Compare the costs of cartridge replacement between similar printers from different manufacturers to find the best value. You can calculate the cost per print by dividing the cost of a cartridge by the number of photos it will print. Six-cartridge printers tend to get more photos per cartridge than four-cartridge models, depending on what you print. It's best to avoid printers that use a single, multicolor cartridge because you'll be throwing away good ink whenever one of the colors runs out.

Another thing to consider is the durability of the ink. Almost any ink can provide a good image, but some inks resist fading and water damage better than others. Unless you choose a particularly popular photo printer, you'll be limited to inks provided by the same manufacturer. Find out how well a certain brand's ink performs over time to make sure you get durable photos.

Additional Considerations
High-quality photos take a long time to print, so you won't find the same speeds that you'd expect from a standard printer. There's some variation in print speeds, but don't take manufacturer claims too seriously, as speeds are sometimes based only on black-and-white images or the lowest-resolution "draft" setting. Even if your printer is on the slow side, you'll still save time over a trip to the drug store.

Make sure that the memory cards your camera uses are supported. Most cameras use SD Flash memory, and photo printers should offer either a slot to insert the card or a means of connecting directly to your camera, such as a USB port.

A built-in LCD screen will let you see your photos before you print them. These printers also typically include photo editing software that lets you crop, resize and adjust the colors in your photos. These are all expensive features, but they're a must if you don't have a PC.

You'll also need photo printer paper, which is available in both glossy and matte styles. The photo paper you choose will have a significant impact on the quality and durability of your photos. If you decide to get a compact photo printer, you'll be limited in the sizes of photo paper you can use. Photo paper is available in popular sizes, such as 4" x 6", and you'll also find paper in greater lengths for panoramic prints.