Photo printers have never been so popular, both for the convenience and for the prices that have dropped in recent years. With the advent of smartphones and especially the improvement of their photosensors, it is all the easier to print your best shots directly at home. Indeed, the prices of printers specializing in photo printing have dropped significantly since the first models appeared on the market more than a decade ago.
However, many brands have positioned themselves in the niche and new technologies have emerged with their share of complicated terms for a neophyte. What is the best photo printer? What type of device should you invest in your personal situation? This page aims to answer your questions and especially to guide you in your search via a comparison of photo printers.
Comparison of the best photo printers: our Top 5
Here is our selection of the 5 best photo printer models. Each printer shown here includes the important criteria to consider. These criteria are explained below, in our buying guide.
1. Canon PIXMA TS5050: Versatility at a low price
Characteristics
Equipped with a WiFi connection, the Pixma TS5050 from Canon will satisfy photography enthusiasts who want to combine photo printing and printing (or photocopying) of various documents. Compatible with Windows and Mac, this product is easy to use: its large touch screen on the front is a big help.
This model is compatible with the Canon XL print cartridges, which allows you to save about 30% of ink on a page, compared to another model without this technology.
It will take only 39 seconds to print a photo on the appropriate 10 x 15cm paper.
To facilitate the versatile use of the Pixma TS5050, the paper tray has a capacity of 100 sheets.
Advantages
- Possibility to use Canon XL economy cartridges
- Fast, high quality photo printing
- WiFi connection and support for multiple transfer modes such as AirPrint
- Affordable price
Disadvantages
- The weight (5,5kg)
2. HP Officejet Pro 7720: for those who think big
Characteristics
This printer is cut out to see life in the big picture. Indeed, it allows printing in A3 format, which is not frequent for a consumer printer.
Its resolution of 4800 x 1200 DPI allows it to position itself as a printer of choice in terms of print quality. No more details of your photos will fall into oblivion because of a machine that tends to pixelize the prints.
Versatile, it is made with a very useful technology for everyday life: HP had a good idea to offer double-sided printing without human intervention. It’s all automatic and well done!
Advantages
- Print format A3
- High print resolution
- Double-sided printing function
Disadvantages
- Slightly slow to light up and react between tasks
3. Fujifilm Instax Share SP-3: the mobile and design printer
Characteristics
The First mobile printer of our selection. It must be said that portable photo printers are fashionable.
With its compact dimensions, this Fujifilm has the particularity of having a design that seems to come straight from another universe. Few products of this type have so many angles per square centimeter. What about performance?
13 seconds: This is the speed at which this camera prints a picture.
The concept proposes to transfer to the camera your most beautiful photographs captured from a smartphone via WiFi to start printing.
This photo printer is ideal for aperitifs with friends: you can imagine taking a series of fun photos and printing them quickly since the printing speed is quite impressive on this FujiFilm printer.
Advantages
- The original design
- Printing speed
Disadvantages
- No SD card port
4. Canon Pixma Pro 100s: almost perfection
Characteristics
This is a professional multifunction printer we have in our hands. It has a pretty impressive range of connectivity, including Bluetooth, USB, WiFi, Ethernet… In addition, it manages printing from online cloud services: Google Drive, DropBox, OneDrive, and even Facebook.
This is valuable support since it is possible to print a photo directly from a Facebook album, for example.
An additional feature is a support of “Direct Disk Print”, which means that you can print directly to an audio CD. This demonstrates how Canon has been keen to expand the functions offered by its printer.
The print speed of the Pixma Pro 100s for a standard 10 x 15cm photo is 34 seconds. It will take a little less than three times that time (90 seconds) to print an A3 size print.
The quality being there, this model is very interesting if you want to print posters, posters or flyers.
Advantages
- A3 photo printing
- Versatility
- Quality by appointment
Disadvantages
- The price is not affordable for very occasional printings
5. Canon Selphy CP1300: Nomadic and versatile
Characteristics
Designed to replace your fixed printer when you are on the move, this portable printer has many advantages, starting with its weight: 800 grams.
Battery operated, it has a 3.2-inch LCD screen that allows you to view and select photos from an SD card. We can already see the combo digital camera + Canon Selphy taking shape.
Thanks to its portability, it is possible to transfer photos to be printed directly from a smartphone (iOS or Android). In the same vein, you will be able to print photos retrieved from the web browser of a mobile device, always on battery power.
Finally, we should note that with the Canon Selphy you can print photos in an approved format for an official document.
Advantages
- Compact dimensions
- Compatibility with Canon PRINT application
- Good print quality
Disadvantages
- A little noisy
What type of photo printer should I choose?
There are different types of photo printers currently on the market. Two categories stand out: fixed printers and portable printers.
Both have their own advantages and disadvantages.
Fixed photo printers
They have the advantage of having more printing ink, but above all, they are very versatile. The photo paper tray can often accommodate a larger sheet of paper than a mobile printer would allow. Nevertheless, they will only be used at home, due to their weight and the need to connect them to the mains.
Portable printers
Unlike a fixed printer, the battery will need to be recharged regularly. Although its ink tank is only a smaller quantity than its big sister, the portable printer allows you to easily print photos wherever you are.
