The question for most consumers and businesses today is not whether to incorporate color, but when and how. This article will help you focus in on your printing needs and compare the strengths of various HP color printers based on those needs. HP's extensive line of color printers includes five different categories: Personal Inkjet printers, Business Inkjet printers, Color Laserjet printers, Large Format printers, and Photo printers. Once you have identified which color printer best suits your needs, you can now make an educated decision on which to purchase. Additionally, we have listed our recommendations for best HP color printers within each category.
Personal inkjets
Lower acquisition price
Higher cost per page than business inkjet or color LaserJet printers
Designed for personal use (higher intervention and lower duty cycle)
Small footprint
Special media flexibility for photo paper, greeting paper, glossy media, etc.
For one individual, or a department with few requirements for color printing, a low cost personal Deskjet will be the best choice. The low initial cost, along with the flexibility to print on a variety of media, will satisfy the vast majority of color printing job requirements. For example, in a small company, the sales and marketing manager might have a color Deskjet for promotional materials.
We Recommend: HP Deskjet 5650
Business inkjets
Offers the lowest color cost per page among HP color printers
Higher duty cycle for power users or shared printing
Lower cost per page with HP's modular ink delivery system
Special media flexibility just like the personal inkjets
For a larger company or a company with more demands for color output, a personal printer will not handle the workload. While a manufacturing company may use color printing rarely, an advertising agency or design firm will use color far more often.
Moving up to a business inkjet color printer provides the same media flexibility for print jobs but lowers the printed cost per page by using advanced technology like HP's modular ink delivery system. In fact, HP business inkjet printers, provide the best value per color page among HP's printers.
We Recommend: Business inkjet 2800
Color LaserJets
Most durable print outs
Print quality less dependent on media type
Lowest cost per monochrome page among HP's color printers
High duty cycles
Color LaserJet line scales from personal to network printer use
Highest supplies yield for fewer interventions
Generally has higher performance (speed)
Large companies demand more output of all kinds, and higher demands for color output on standard-size paper may be addressed with a color LaserJet printer. Additionally, the LaserJet family offers lower costs per monochrome copy than the business inkjet, so you can save on your standard office printing as well.
>We Recommend: HP Color LaserJet 3800n
Large format printers
Handle oversized printing needs, up to 60" wide
Exceptional line quality plus photo-quality images
Support a wide-range of standard and specialty media for indoor and outdoor printing
Multifunction solutions available for a complete copy/scan/print solution
Choice of models that support local, shared, and centralized deployment
Designed to help reduce costs and improve productivity by bringing large-format color printing in-house
Productivity and communication within and across departments can be enhanced by the addition of large format printers:
Oversize output in meetings facilitates interaction and provides focus
Posters and banners grab attention
Presentations and signage persuade clients and impress visitors
Layouts and drawings are vital to engineers, designers, and facilities managers
In-house capability saves money vs. outsourcing and delivers just-in-time capabilities to accommodate last minute requests, changes, or improvements. Your choice of large format printer will be based on the size and content of your images, the number of pages you expect to print, your network and connectivity needs, and your need for additional large format functions such as scanning and copying.
We Recommend: HP Designjet 70
Photo printers
Printed photos rival traditionally processed digital photos
Provide direct photo printing with or without a PC; slip a memory card from a camera into the printer and print your photos+
Up to 9-ink printing reduces grain for clear, sharp photos
Optional automatic two-sided printing accessory (not included) on some models saves up to 50% on paper cost and office file space
Connect easily to your network with a USB external print server like the HP Jetdirect 175x or 310x series
Photo printers can be useful across several areas of your organization, from marketing to internal training. If your organization needs to communicate with images, photo printing can make those images rival film images and get the message across more effectively.
For a complete review of how digital photos can impact your business, and to help you decide if you need to include photo printers on your network, visit the Digital Photography and Your Business site linked at right.
We Recommend: HP Photosmart 8050
