Question Want a new home printer. Are any of the Ecotank options better than this HP I have?

[jm88]

I have had a HP Envy Photo 7658 for like 4 or 5 years now and it works fine. I don't use it that much and have an Instant Ink subscription so I don't have to worry about ink drying out. I probably average 50 sheets a month or so. I need something for all in one use and to print in color when needed and to print the occasional photos (just a few once in a while because if I need a bunch, I will do them at the store where they come out nicer). My main complaint is the blacks on the photos always look a little funky (like when you hold it at an angle, it doesn't look glossy and sort of stands out, if that makes sense). I only pay $5-$6 a month for the ink so $60 a year seems worth it rather than buying cartridges that will dry out and be wasted. I like the ADF because I scan documents sometimes, but I also have a Brother all in one laser so I can use that for scanning and printing black and white. To get to my point, I am just wondering if something like an Epson 2850 (Costco has on sale for $200) would be better , especially for photos. Am I better off doing something like that with an eco tank, or spending $6 a month?

 

[thestryker]

That definitely sounds like a weird problem and makes me wonder if the black ink is either slightly different or for some reason it's using the colors to do black in color printing. No matter HP doesn't tend to stack up favorably against Canon (who's the best) and Epson (who has the EcoTank) when it comes to photos. I eventually got annoyed enough at dealing with ink that I bought a color laser and am okay living with the slightly lower quality prints.

This might help you out with figuring whether or not a change is worth it: https://www.rtings.com/printer/reviews/best/by-usage/photo