HP 7960

[Art]

I have an HP 7960 and have printed photos here and there before. Recently I
printed 148 photos in a row. Using a brand new cartridge 57 and 58, they
both ran low enough to affect print quality after 108 prints. Is this
normal? If so, is there anything I can do to reduce the ink usage.

If this is normal, doing the math in my head, we're basically talking

58 $35.00
57 $25.00
Kodak Paper $25.00

$85 for 100 4x6 prints. That's .85 per print. Walgreens advertises .29 per
print from my memory stick. Am I better off taking them there?

Also, I noticed if the ink runs low it doesn't stop the print job to warn
me. It just prints in a blue, or purple, (or whatever hue). This waste's
alot of phot paper. Any way to set it to stop the print job when the ink
warning appears?

I use it as a stand-alone printer from my memory stick (Sony).

TIA,

Art

 

[Andrew Rossmann]

[This followup was posted to comp.periphs.printers and a copy was sent
to the cited author.]

I have an HP 7960 and have printed photos here and there before. Recently I
printed 148 photos in a row. Using a brand new cartridge 57 and 58, they
both ran low enough to affect print quality after 108 prints. Is this
normal? If so, is there anything I can do to reduce the ink usage.

If this is normal, doing the math in my head, we're basically talking

58 $35.00
57 $25.00
Kodak Paper $25.00

$85 for 100 4x6 prints. That's .85 per print. Walgreens advertises .29 per
print from my memory stick. Am I better off taking them there?

Also, I noticed if the ink runs low it doesn't stop the print job to warn
me. It just prints in a blue, or purple, (or whatever hue). This waste's
alot of phot paper. Any way to set it to stop the print job when the ink
warning appears?

I use it as a stand-alone printer from my memory stick (Sony).

Inkjet photo printing is expensive, no matter what. $0.85/print is
actually decent. $1.00+ is more normal.

You could consider refilling your carts, or using remanufactured
carts, although there is no guarantee on ink quality. You can also try a
cheaper paper.

Other than using a lower quality print mode, there is little you can
do. I think some drivers have an 'Ink Volume' option that might help,
although it will probably result in lighter prints.

The Walgreens prints are probably cheaper due to volume, volume,
volume, and may even be a loss-leader to get your business.

 

[Douglas]

I hardly think 85 cents for a 4x6 is the norm!It can get that high but most
decent inkjets will do it for about half of that.You might check out the
Epson PictureMate.A 4x6 printer.It costs 29 cents per 4x6 for ink and glossy
paper.

[This followup was posted to comp.periphs.printers and a copy was sent
to the cited author.]

I have an HP 7960 and have printed photos here and there before. Recently I
printed 148 photos in a row. Using a brand new cartridge 57 and 58, they
both ran low enough to affect print quality after 108 prints. Is this
normal? If so, is there anything I can do to reduce the ink usage.

If this is normal, doing the math in my head, we're basically talking

58 $35.00
57 $25.00
Kodak Paper $25.00

$85 for 100 4x6 prints. That's .85 per print. Walgreens advertises .29 per
print from my memory stick. Am I better off taking them there?

Also, I noticed if the ink runs low it doesn't stop the print job to warn
me. It just prints in a blue, or purple, (or whatever hue). This waste's
alot of phot paper. Any way to set it to stop the print job when the ink
warning appears?

I use it as a stand-alone printer from my memory stick (Sony).

Inkjet photo printing is expensive, no matter what. $0.85/print is
actually decent. $1.00+ is more normal.

You could consider refilling your carts, or using remanufactured
carts, although there is no guarantee on ink quality. You can also try a
cheaper paper.

Other than using a lower quality print mode, there is little you can
do. I think some drivers have an 'Ink Volume' option that might help,
although it will probably result in lighter prints.

The Walgreens prints are probably cheaper due to volume, volume,
volume, and may even be a loss-leader to get your business.

--
If there is a no_junk in my address, please REMOVE it before replying!
All junk mail senders will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the
law!!
http://home.att.net/~andyross

 

[xNokia3390x]

If this is normal, doing the math in my head, we're basically talking

58 $35.00
57 $25.00
Kodak Paper $25.00

$85 for 100 4x6 prints. That's .85 per print. Walgreens advertises .29 per
print from my memory stick. Am I better off taking them there?

I have an HP Photosmart 7350 which uses the 57/58 combo of cartridges. If
you get about 110 pictures from a set of cartridges (I'm still on my
original cartridges from January 2003 and I estimate to have printed about
65-85 4x6 prints..ink is getting low) I'll try and calculate my costs.

#57 color - $25 (sale)
#58 photo - $20 (sale)
100 sheets 4x6 HPPPP paper - $18 (sale)
= $63 or $0.63/picture

If you get your supplies on sale (ie. use coupons to buy ink, get free after
rebate paper when it's on sale etc..), it can be a bit more reasonable. I
use HP Premium Plus Photo Paper (10mil or 11.5mil) so that is pricey, but
worth it IMO. I print photos sparingly so for the convenience, that price
is fine. Instant gratification can be priceless . BTW, I use only OEM
cartridges because the lightfastness and accuracy of the color is very
important to me. Call me a fool, but if I'm going to pay, I'll pay just a
little bit more to get the quality I want.