The Epson SureColor SC-P900 is the big sibling to the P700 we reviewed above. The range of four black or gray inks produces rich and deep monochrome prints. Print longevity is rated as 400 years for black and white and 200 for color. For glossy color and black & white photo output, the XP-970 also loses epson inkjet printers out to the more specialist Canon PIXMA Pro-200 printer. The Epson is smaller, lighter, and less expensive to buy, but has dearer ink costs. Yes, it is rather expensive for an inkjet, but Epson’s bottled ink is not, so you will soon see that money back if you plan to print lots of large photos.
The 17 x 22” maximum size produces prints that won’t get lost on the wall. Paper as thick as 1/20th of an inch load via the completely flat front path. There are some attractive features on the Epson SureColor P700. For instance, there’s a clear panel above the print head so you can see your print’s progress. It has a roll-feed attachment that allows prints of up to nearly 33 feet (10 m) in length.
We will be testing the Epson EcoTank ET-2720 soon so we can give you a more accurate idea of its photo printing performance. Wirecutter is the product recommendation service from The New York Times. Our journalists combine independent research with (occasionally) over-the-top testing so you can make quick and confident buying decisions. Whether it’s finding great products or discovering helpful advice, we’ll help you get it right (the first time).
They use the usual four (CMYK) ink cartridges to good effect. The pigment is quicker drying and longer lasting while the dye is brighter and works well with high gloss media making it more desirable for photos. Best photo printer for quality
A step up from Canon’s 5-ink printers, this model goes one better with six separate ink cartridges. Along with the usual mix of pigment-based black and dye-based CMYK, it features an additional ‘photo blue’ ink for more vivid photo output with even smoother graduations.
Be aware that it ships with less-than-full ink cartridges. Speed is a crucial measure for office printers, but print speed is almost a nonissue for these devices. Output quality matters much more, and even today’s slowest photo printers offer tolerable speeds of two minutes or less for a 4-by-6-inch print in our tests. Of course, advertised or rated speeds are typically slower than real-world speeds, and (as we note in our reviews where applicable) wireless printing tends to be slower than USB or Ethernet.