At a Glance
Expert’s Rating
Our Verdict
This specialized photo printer has a compact design and outstanding photo prints will appeal to the keen photographer with high-quality prints. It’s also versatile with a range of other features including two paper trays, handy touchscreen, scanner and Wi-Fi.
Best Prices Today: Epson Expression Photo XP-8600
Most inkjet printers use four coloured inks to produce text, graphics and photos – cyan, magenta, yellow and black (traditionally referred to as ‘CMYK’). However, Epson’s Expression Photo printers use two additional inks, with light-cyan and light-magenta also used in order to provide more subtle shades of colour in your photos.
Using six inks means that these printers are more expensive to run than a conventional four-colour printer, but they’re a good choice for professional photographers, or hobbyists who want the very best quality for their photographic prints.
Price
It’s not the cheapest inkjet printer around then, but you are paying extra for the high-quality 6-colour printing (not to mention the cost of all those ink cartridges, which we’ll come to later). There’s also an A3 model, called the XP-970, which is available for £199.99 .
Check out our round-up of the best printers to find the right one for you.
Design & Features
The XP-8600 has an admirably compact design, measuring just 349mm wide, 340mm deep and standing 142mm high, so it will fit easily onto a shelf or desk at home, or in an office where space is a bit tight.
Epson has crammed in an impressive range of features, though, including a 1440x5760dpi printer and 1200x4800dpi scanner. There are two paper trays at the front for A4 paper and photo paper, along with a manual feed at the back of the printer for heavier photo papers or speciality art papers.
This means you can print a wide range of documents without ever having to empty the primary tray to switch between different types of paper. And, when you’re printing, the motorized output tray automatically slides out of the front of the printer to catch your documents, and then slides back in with just a quick tap.
The printer provides both USB and Wi-Fi connectivity, and supports Apple’s AirPlay for the iPhone and iPad as well as Google Cloud Print for Android devices. Epson also provides its own Connect app, which provides remote printing and scanning features when you’re out and about.
With photography in mind, the XP-8600 includes both a USB interface and SD card reader so that you can quickly transfer and print photos from a camera. You can print on CD and DVD discs as well, or use automatic two-sided (duplex) printing for brochures and booklets, and the large 10.9cm touch-sensitive control screen makes it easy to quickly find the options you need.
Performance
The XP-8600 performs well as we begin testing with our standard text and colour graphics documents, although its speed and quality with these non-photographic files can be matched by many less expensive inkjet printers.
Epson quotes 9.5 pages per minute (ppm) for mono documents and 9ppm for text and colour graphics. Our test results were closer to 8.5ppm for both mono and colour documents, so the XP-8600 won’t be a good option for a busy office or a home worker who needs to print lots of business documents every day.
Text quality is good, and perfectly adequate for day-to-day use, but text characters lack the crisp smoothness of Epson’s best inkjet printers, which can use different types of black ink that rival the text quality produced by more expensive laser printers.
But, as you’d expect, the 6-colour printing of the XP-8600 comes into its own and produces really outstanding results for photographic printing. It has a light touch that produces subtle, natural-looking skin tones on portraits and selfies, while also creating rich, vibrant colours when shooting landscapes and scenery.
Darker areas within an image are crisp and well defined, with strong contrast, but without losing the fine detail provided by the high-resolution printer. Epson also points out that its special ‘Claria’ inks can last for 300 years, so you can be sure that your photo albums and happy memories won’t fade away too soon.
But again, photo-printing speeds aren’t terribly fast. Epson quotes a time of 10 seconds for a 4x6in post-card print, but our test photos took 30s on glossy paper using the printer’s Normal setting, and doubled that to a full minute on Best.
Printing a larger photo at full A4 size took 65s on Normal and, again, doubled up to 130s when we stepped up to Best quality. The results were worth it though, with impressive lab-quality photo prints that you could easily frame or use in calendars and other creative projects. The printer’s duplex printing and booklet options mean that it can handle business and marketing materials as well.
Running Costs
The disadvantage of using six coloured inks, of course, is that the replacement ink cartridges can work out far more expensive than for a conventional 4-colour printer. Epson does sell multipacks, though, which contain all six inks, with the standard size multipack costing £60.99 and the high-yield XL multipack at £112.99 .
The standard black ink cartridge lasts for just 240 pages, which works out at 4.2p per page, while the 360 pages provided by the five standard colour cartridges adds up to 14.1p per page. Both figures are rather high, even given the use of six separate ink cartridges, but you can bring those prices down a bit if you opt for the XL multipack instead.
The XL black cartridges lasts for 500 pages, which brings mono printing down to 3.8p per page. That’s still above average for simple mono printing, so the XP-8600 isn’t a good option if you simply want an office printer for letters and other text documents.
However, the five XL colour cartridges last for 830 pages, giving a cost for colour printing of 11.3p per page. That might be a little high for a conventional four-colour inkjet printer, but it’s not at all bad given the high-quality 6-colour print system provided by the XP-8600.
Verdict
The 6-colour printing of the XP-8600 will obviously be overkill for home users who simply want an affordable general-purpose printer.
But, if you’re a keen photographer and you don’t mind paying a little extra for top-quality photo prints then the XP-8600 will fit the bill nicely. It’s not overly fast but the resulting quality is worth the wait.
This is a compact printer with useful features including a decent touchscreen, scanner, Wi-Fi, two paper trays and the ability to print on discs.
Specs
Epson Expression Photo XP-8600: Specs
- A4 multi-function printer
- 1440×5760 dpi resolution
- 6-colour photo-printing system
- 1200×4800 dpi scanner/copier
- 100-sheet A4 tray, 20-sheet photo tray, manual paper feed
- Connectivity – USB, Wi-Fi
- Dimensions – 349x340x142mm, 6.7kg
Best Prices Today: Epson Expression Photo XP-8600
Printers might not be as exciting as a new smartphone but it’s likely we all need one at some point in our lives, even if it’s just occasionally. Whether you’re working from home or need an office printer for many people to use, we have reviewed and ranked ten of the best you can buy from tank system inkjets to large laser printers.
You might want to print a calendar, gig tickets, a boarding pass or some photos you’ve taken on your phone. Many printers are multi-function and therefore also handy for scanning and copying, too.
Whatever your needs, buying a new printer can be a confusing process. Not only do you have to worry about the upfront cost and whether it can print a good photo, but you’ve also got to consider print speeds, ongoing costs and a host of potential features.
It’s worth bearing in mind that the printer market moves slowly, and the latest printers aren’t always the best. Printer tech moves slowly so reviews might not be from this year or even the year before that but they stay on sale for a long time unlike phones or laptops .
Read on below our chart for more in-depth printer buying advice on things like whether to choose inkjet or laser.
Best printers 2023
1. Canon Pixma TS7450/1 – Best Overall
Pros
- Prints quickly
- Excellent quality
- Inexpensive to buy and run
Cons
- Mobile apps aren’t always intuitive
- Bulky design
- Photos need glossy paper
Printers are hard to even find in stock right now so a great value all-rounder from Canon at under £100 is worth snapping up, even though it is quite heavy.
This is a great value all-in-one printer that’s easy to set up and use. It’s also no slough with lots of features and versatile printing including documents and photos. Cheaper printers can be expensive to run but the TS7450 doesn’t even fall into this category.
The mobile apps are a little frustrating at times but print quality is good, although you’ll want to stick to proper glossy paper for photos. Note that the TS7451 is the same printer, only in white.
Read our full Canon Pixma TS7450 review
2. HP Envy Inspire 7220e – Best Compact Family Printer
Pros
- Attractive price
- Fast printing speeds
- 2-sided printing
- Good text and photo quality
Cons
- No ADF
- Can’t print on A4 glossy paper
Those looking for a compact and easy-to-use printer for the whole family might have just found it.
The Envy Inspire 7220e is an excellent all-rounder for those needing to regularly print text and photos at good speeds and affordable costs. The printer looks nice, has wide support for different wireless printing services and offers high-quality results.
It doesn’t have an automatic document feeder but that’s normal, so as long as you don’t need to print on A4 glossy paper, it’s a bit of a steal.
Read our full HP Envy Inspire 7220e review
3. Canon Pixma TS3350 MkII – Best Budget Printer
Pros
- Cheap
- High quality printing
- Connectivity
Cons
- Slow printing
- Expensive ink
If you’re looking for a cheap printer to handle day-to-day tasks then the TS3350 MkII (or TS3320 in the US) is an excellent choice.
This is not only affordable but offers great quality printing for a range of jobs, including colour images. This is even a copier and scanner too so you’re getting a lot for your money.
It’s quite slow so isn’t a workhorse and you’ll want to get XL cartridges to keep running costs down. For printing the occasional letter, boarding pass or family photo without breaking the bank it’s perfect.
Read our full Canon Pixma TS3350 MkII review
4. HP DeskJet Plus 4120 – Excellent Value Inkjet
Pros
- Very cheap
- Easy to use
- Good photo & graphics quality
Cons
- Average text quality
- Needs Instant Ink to keep running costs down
Those on a budget needing a printer for a mix of different tasks should consider the DeskJet Plus 4120 – known as the 4155 in the US.
It’s basic in style and design with things like a simple LCD display but keeps costs down, especially if you use HP’s Instant Ink subscription service.
Read our full HP DeskJet Plus 4120 review
5. Epson EcoTank ET-3850 – Best Ink Tank Printer
Pros
- Cost per page is very low
- Good print speed
- Excellent print quality
Cons
- Pigment black isn’t ideal for photos
- Lack duplex copying
- One year warranty
Anyone against traditional cartridges should consider this EcoTank model from Epson. The ET-3850 offers high-quality printing at decent speeds while keeping the cost down, even if you’re printing A4 colour pages on a regular basis.
It’s more expensive to buy the device itself than cartridge rivals but may well work out better value in the long run. And it has virtually the same specs as higher-end EcoTank models, including the PrecisionCore print head.
One of the main practical downsides is that it doesn’t offer duplex printing and Epson only offers a one year warranty or 50,000 pages – whichever comes first.
Read our full Epson EcoTank ET-3850 review
6. HP Smart Tank 7605 – Best Small Office Printer
Pros
- Fax function
- Dual-band WLAN
- Touch display
- Additional XL-BK ink bottle
Cons
- Limited USB host functions
- No real off switch
If you’re looking for a great all-rounder then the Smart Tank 7605 is a hot contender with its wide range of functions and large amount of ink included in the box – enough for up to 12,000 pages.
It’s highly suitable for home or small office use, even if there’s a slight overreliance on the HP Smart app. Still, it can wirelessly print, copy, scan and fax, plus has an automatic document feeder.
The compact printer looks stylish and has a 3in touchscreen, the tank system keeps costs low and print quality is good. There’s little more we could ask for at this price.
Read our full HP Smart Tank 7605 review
7. Epson EcoTank ET-18100 – Best Photo Printer
Pros
- Inexpensive photo prints
- Great print quality
- Mess-free ink refills
Cons
- No display
- No scanner / copier
- Expensive to buy
The ET-18100 has niche appeal because it’s been designed with a particular user in mind.
If you want to print a lot of photos at up to A3 sizes without breaking the bank, then you’re the target market. The printer itself is costly, but the ink tank design keeps running costs down.
The mess-free design is great and refill bottles are better for the environment, too. Print quality is excellent but as mentioned, you will need to print a lot of photos to justify this model.
With no display or copier/scanner functions, this isn’t an all-rounder.
Read our full Epson EcoTank ET-18100 review
8. HP Smart Tank 5105 – Best Value Ink Tank Printer
Pros
- Cheap running costs
- Borderless on A4, A5
- Ink tank sensors
- Affordable printer
Cons
- Flimsy
- Awkward paper path
- Only 50ml coloured inks included
- No display
It’s great to see HP taking on Epson at ink tank printers and the 5105 is a practical solution for any home or small office customer that would like to worry less about the cost of printing.
Normally there’s a high initial price for the printer with an ink tank model but HP offers good value here, even if the supplied colour bottles are only 50ml and the build quality is on the flimsy end of the scale.
There’s also no display and this isn’t the fastest printer around either, but the quality is good for a range of tasks including surprisingly vibrant photos, and you can print borderless on A4 and A5 sheets.
It’s not all singing, all dancing but if a value for money ink tank printer is what you need then the 5105 is worth a look.
Read our full HP Smart Tank 5105 review
9. Epson Ecotank ET-8500 – Best Value Photo Printer
Pros
- Very high print quality
- Top for greyscale photos
- Processes many types of material
- Very low cost per page despite 6 colours
Cons
- No real off switch
- High purchase price
If printing photos is your thing, then the EcoTank 8500 is an excellent choice as this printer is designed for the task, although it can do regular printing and scanning as well.
It’s a fairly expensive printer at first but if you’re planning to print a lot of images then it should work out as a good investment in the long term with reliability and print costs.
Importantly, print quality is excellent and you can print on a variety of materials including fine art paper. It’s also got a large 10cm screen and no less than three different paper feeds.
Read our full Epson Ecotank ET-8500 review
10. Brother DCP-L3510cdw – Best Laser Printer
Pros
- 2-sided printing
- Decent performance
Cons
- Single-sheet scanning
- No colour screen
- Running costs
If you don’t need to print photos on photo paper but instead need a printer primarily for documents then a laser is a great choice.
The Brother DCP-L3510cdw uses LEDs instead of a laser, but it’s very similar and can reliably handle lots of printing with crisp quality at a decent speed.
You’ll need more room for it than a typical inkjet printer but running costs over the long term are more affordable and with Brother’s EcoPro subscription you get the printer for just £1.20!
This model has a basic LCD screen but still has useful features including 2-sided printing, a single-sheet scanner and Wi-Fi, complete with AirPrint support.
Read our full Brother DCP-L3510cdw review
How to choose a printer
There’s no single printer that will suit everyone, so while the list below is ordered it’s best not to worry too much about the number beside it. We’ve mixed together home and business printers, multifunction, colour and mono.
Inkjet vs laser
Printers come in two main forms: inkjet or laser, with colour and mono flavours of each. Lasers tend to be more expensive to buy, but provide better quality output, particularly where lots of text is involved. And they can be faster. Notice we said ‘tend’ – lasers aren’t always best.
As a basic rule, if you need to print only text, and a lot of it, a mono laser printer will offer the crispest text output and the best combination of fast page-per-minute output and low ink costs. If you need to print photos, choose an inkjet printer. A dedicated photo printer with individual cartridges for each colour will suit those who print only photos.
If you’re working from home and need to print a lot, a laser printer is likely going to be a better option.
You can also read our more in-depth comparison of the pros and cons of each type of printer .
What are printer running costs?
When buying a printer, remember that the price you pay in the store is just the beginning. Be sure to consider the cost of replenishing toner and other consumables over the lifetime of the printer. This is particularly important if you print a lot. A set of toner cartridges can easily approach the cost of a colour laser printer.
Most manufacturers quote a ‘page yield’ estimate for their ink cartridges, which is the typical number of pages you can expect to print before the cartridge runs out of ink. You can use the page yield to calculate the average cost per page and you’d be surprised to find how much this can vary from one printer to another.
Of course, if output quality matters more to you than cost, scoot over to the other end of the cost spectrum where there are more specialised printers that use five or even six inks for printing photographs. Those additional inks can produce excellent results for your photo prints, but they add to the cost, sometimes pushing the cost for photos up to 10p or more per page.
Some brands offer a cartridge subscription service, like HP’s Instant Ink , to keep costs to a minimum.
What is a multifunction printer?
Most modern printers are multifunction ‘all-in-one’ devices that include a scanner too. This allows you to scan photos and other documents and convert them into digital files that you can store on your computer or share with friends or colleagues. You can also print copies of your scanned documents, allowing the printer to stand in for a photocopier too.
Some models even include a fax machine. If you require a scanner and a photocopier as well as a printer, you’ll save money by buying in all-in-one – but if a standalone printer suits your needs, you may be able to spend less.
What about print speed and features?
Speeds quoted by manufacturers are almost never matched by real-world performance. If you often need to print in a hurry, look for independent reviews when choosing your printer.
Other useful features to look out for include additional USB ports and memory card slots that will allow you to print photos direct from a camera.
High-capacity paper trays capable of holding hundreds of sheets of paper, or an automatic document feeder that can handle scanning and copying work while you go and do something more important, might be worth looking out for.
Double-sided printing is handy for halving your paper usage.
It’s also worth thinking about the bundled software that comes with your printer. Some printers include software that provides basic editing features, such as red-eye removal or adjusting the colour balance – some even allow you to perform simple editing tasks using controls on the printer itself.
Author: Chris Martin, Managing Editor, Tech Advisor
Tech Advisor Managing Editor Chris got his break as a reporter at infamous site The Inquirer and has been with us for more than 12 years. With a BA degree in Music Technology, audio is his specialism, but over the years he has reviewed all kinds of gadgets, from smartwatches to mesh Wi-Fi to coffee machines.
Recent stories by Chris Martin:
- Canon Pixma G4510 review
