Does a universal printer exist?

[Ears]

I'd like to buy an inkjet printer to print directly onto suitable CD-Rs. The printers that seem to do this are aimed at photo printing. Fine.... except that I've picked up that some of these printers aren't too good when used for general purpose, plain paper printing. Since I'd like to be able to do that too, I'm wondering - do I buy two printers or one? I.e. one for photos and CD-Rs and one for general use, or does a truly universal printer exist?

All advice gratefully received.

Ears

 

[embguy]

Welcome to the forum.

Canon iP4500 can do printable CD or DVD. It does the regular printing very well too. It uses PGI-5 and CLI-8 cartridges. Search this forum, you will find lots of information on this printer and its cartridges.

Not all iP4500 comes with the CD holder. But the one that I purchased in Canada cames with the CD holder. I understand that some iP4500 does not come with the CD holder. But you can buy one from eBay and you need to activate the CD printing before using the holder.

 

[fotofreek]

embguy's response was excellent. I would just add that the the plain paper setting uses the black pigmented cartridge which gives sharper text on plain paper, whereas the photo settings use dye based inks. The exception for plain paper setting ink use is with the automatic duplexing function. The printer then uses dye based inks which still give a reasonable text output but not as good as single sided printing with the plain paper setting. The CD printing function and included CD holder are available outside the US. If you are in the US, as embguy mentioned, you can buy the tray on eBay and activate the CD printer function.

 

[stratman]

Ears:

The two main printers that fit your bill are Epsons and Canons. Epsons come ready to print on CD/DVDs out of the box in the USA. Canon decided to not pay requisite royalties and, therefore, are able to print CD/DVDs but require a workaround - a CD Tray (found on eBay), software (free or payware) and a settings modification in the printer done with buttons on the printer. A removal of a snapped on peice of plastic is required as well. While this may seem daunting, it is not. In fact, it is really easy! Directions for the number of past and present Canon printer capable of printing on CD/DVDs can be found at http://pixma.ulmb.com/. If you buy anywhere else in the world, then Canon is ready to print on CD/DVDs out of the box.

So why a Canon over an Epson. Personal choice, of course. But each has their stregnths and weaknesses. Epson may be better at photos but is weaker at text. Canon is nearly as good with pictures and is much better with text. Epson wastes a lot of ink during cleanings and primings, not that big a deal if you refill yourself. Canon wastes less ink on maintenance. Both brands have CISS kits available for a variety of models, though several Canons, primarily the All In One models, are not CISS kit friendly. One more thing is that Epsons needed to print something more frequently (at least once a week) than Canons or risk premature printhead failures. I have let my Canon MP830 sit turned off for 3 weeks without printing anything, then used it without any problems.

There are other differences, like ink monitoring and ease of refilling, but for most casual enthusiasts, you will not go wrong with either brand as long as you take care of the printer.

 

[Manuchau]

One more thing, though...

Many Epson inks are pigmented inks, and are more permanent with less fading than Canons. While I prefer Canons in general, if you need more water resistance or colourfastness, then Epson's pigmented inks may be for you...

 

[Ears]

Thanks for the advice. I'm in the UK and as far as I know most appropriate printers come ready to print CDs out of the box (but I'll check). Canon and Epson were top of my list so it's encouraging to see that I'm looking at the right brands.

The only problem over here is that the printers available from these manufacturers change faster than I can keep up with!

 

[stratman]

As embguy touched on, if looking at Canon's, look for a printer that uses PGI-5 and CLI-8 cartridges since they store more volume of ink than the newer versions and they are "see-through" so you can more easily refill and visualize the ink in the cartridge.

While at your local computer store, just pop the lid open and look at the cartridges installed (once they swing into view) if the cartridge type is not clearly marked on the advertising with the printer.

Another way to figure it out is to go to your country's Canon website and look at the printer data listed.