Printer comparison (continued from earlier thread)

[Brad Grant]

The other thread was getting long so I thought we'd start anew...

I've updated the printer comparison photo album to add the Canon 3500 multi-pass unit and a dye-sublimation print from the Alps MD5000. The Canon unit is not a photo printer but a combo fax-copier-printer. It's a good reference for the difference between photo inkjets and basic printers. The Alps dye-sub print is to show the difference in VPhoto 2400dpi "inkjet" mode and true continuous tone at 600dpi.

Unfortunately, my scanner has been causing problems lately (on ANY type of scan) where a yellow line shows up in the middle of the right side. I've cleaned the glass and looked for what causes it but to no avail. It comes and goes, as the earlier scans did not show it. If anyone has any ideas as to what is causing this and how I can fix it, please let me know. You'll notice it on the 2 Alps dye-sub scans, (especially the closeup of the faces). For now, you'll just have to believe me that the line is not on the print at all, even when looking at it here under a magnifying lamp.

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=36640&a=6877958

 

[Yan]

Sorry Brad, I just noticed this thread after creating the "Print Quality Comparisons: The album" thread, my browser had cached the info and I missed your thread until I refreshed...
I hope I didn't confuse everybody now.

We were thinking alike about the old thread!

I never had that problem as with your scanner.

Yan.

The other thread was getting long so I thought we'd start anew...

I've updated the printer comparison photo album to add the Canon 3500
multi-pass unit and a dye-sublimation print from the Alps MD5000. The
Canon unit is not a photo printer but a combo fax-copier-printer. It's a
good reference for the difference between photo inkjets and basic
printers. The Alps dye-sub print is to show the difference in VPhoto
2400dpi "inkjet" mode and true continuous tone at 600dpi.

Unfortunately, my scanner has been causing problems lately (on ANY type
of scan) where a yellow line shows up in the middle of the right side.
I've cleaned the glass and looked for what causes it but to no avail. It
comes and goes, as the earlier scans did not show it. If anyone has any
ideas as to what is causing this and how I can fix it, please let me
know. You'll notice it on the 2 Alps dye-sub scans, (especially the
closeup of the faces). For now, you'll just have to believe me that the
line is not on the print at all, even when looking at it here under a
magnifying lamp.

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=36640&a=6877958

 

[Brad Grant]

Yeah, it's got me confused. It only seems to happen after a few uses and on the bottom half of the right hand side, which makes me wonder if it is a weak spot in the lamp that may be going dim. An early sign maybe of lamp burn-out? It's been a good scanner, especially after 3 years of use for only paying $60.

We were thinking alike about the old thread!

I never had that problem as with your scanner.

Yan.

The other thread was getting long so I thought we'd start anew...

I've updated the printer comparison photo album to add the Canon 3500
multi-pass unit and a dye-sublimation print from the Alps MD5000. The
Canon unit is not a photo printer but a combo fax-copier-printer. It's a
good reference for the difference between photo inkjets and basic
printers. The Alps dye-sub print is to show the difference in VPhoto
2400dpi "inkjet" mode and true continuous tone at 600dpi.

Unfortunately, my scanner has been causing problems lately (on ANY type
of scan) where a yellow line shows up in the middle of the right side.
I've cleaned the glass and looked for what causes it but to no avail. It
comes and goes, as the earlier scans did not show it. If anyone has any
ideas as to what is causing this and how I can fix it, please let me
know. You'll notice it on the 2 Alps dye-sub scans, (especially the
closeup of the faces). For now, you'll just have to believe me that the
line is not on the print at all, even when looking at it here under a
magnifying lamp.

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=36640&a=6877958

 

[Brad Grant]

I just reposted the Alps 5000 dye-sub print scan images as the yellow line problem on my scanner is gone for the moment. Still don't know what it is being intermittent and not anything on the glass. I still think it's heat-related which is why I can scan one or two after it being off a while and they are fine. If I do more than that in a session, the yellow streak appears. Anyway, the album now shows the Alps dye-sub print more accurately.

Also, I will be going to my parents tonight and printing the image on their Olympus P300 4x6" dye-sub printer. I also sent the image to http://www.IonPhoto.com to use my free introductory 4x6" print. Same-type service as Shutterfly but only 40 cents per print and they use Agfa instead of Kodak paper.

Once these 2 upcoming prints are scanned and in the album, I'll post here so you can check them out.

[BTW, still looking for a Sony UDP-10 sample and any others that aren't in the album yet. Thanks!]

The other thread was getting long so I thought we'd start anew...

I've updated the printer comparison photo album to add the Canon 3500
multi-pass unit and a dye-sublimation print from the Alps MD5000. The
Canon unit is not a photo printer but a combo fax-copier-printer. It's a
good reference for the difference between photo inkjets and basic
printers. The Alps dye-sub print is to show the difference in VPhoto
2400dpi "inkjet" mode and true continuous tone at 600dpi.

Unfortunately, my scanner has been causing problems lately (on ANY type
of scan) where a yellow line shows up in the middle of the right side.
I've cleaned the glass and looked for what causes it but to no avail. It
comes and goes, as the earlier scans did not show it. If anyone has any
ideas as to what is causing this and how I can fix it, please let me
know. You'll notice it on the 2 Alps dye-sub scans, (especially the
closeup of the faces). For now, you'll just have to believe me that the
line is not on the print at all, even when looking at it here under a
magnifying lamp.

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=36640&a=6877958

 

[Brad Grant]

I just posted the images from the Olympus P300 dye-sub printer.

Also, I moved the original full-size camera image to the first and alphabetized each printer for quicker access now that we have quite a few.

Still looking for images from the Epson 750, Canon CD300, Sony UDP10, and Lexmark printers.

Also, I will be going to my parents tonight and printing the image on
their Olympus P300 4x6" dye-sub printer. I also sent the image to
http://www.IonPhoto.com to use my free introductory 4x6" print. Same-type
service as Shutterfly but only 40 cents per print and they use Agfa
instead of Kodak paper.

Once these 2 upcoming prints are scanned and in the album, I'll post here
so you can check them out.

[BTW, still looking for a Sony UDP-10 sample and any others that aren't
in the album yet. Thanks!]

The other thread was getting long so I thought we'd start anew...

I've updated the printer comparison photo album to add the Canon 3500
multi-pass unit and a dye-sublimation print from the Alps MD5000. The
Canon unit is not a photo printer but a combo fax-copier-printer. It's a
good reference for the difference between photo inkjets and basic
printers. The Alps dye-sub print is to show the difference in VPhoto
2400dpi "inkjet" mode and true continuous tone at 600dpi.

Unfortunately, my scanner has been causing problems lately (on ANY type
of scan) where a yellow line shows up in the middle of the right side.
I've cleaned the glass and looked for what causes it but to no avail. It
comes and goes, as the earlier scans did not show it. If anyone has any
ideas as to what is causing this and how I can fix it, please let me
know. You'll notice it on the 2 Alps dye-sub scans, (especially the
closeup of the faces). For now, you'll just have to believe me that the
line is not on the print at all, even when looking at it here under a
magnifying lamp.

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=36640&a=6877958

 

[Brad Grant]

I just added images from the Sony UP-DP10 4x6" dye-sub printer to the online album. They look VERY good.

I should have the test print from IonPhoto's new online printing service in the next day or so and post it.

We'd still like to see samples from Epson 750, Canon CD-300, Canon 8200, and a Lexmark printer. If anyone can help out, let us know.

Thanks!

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=36640&a=6877958

Also, I moved the original full-size camera image to the first and
alphabetized each printer for quicker access now that we have quite a few.

Still looking for images from the Epson 750, Canon CD300, Sony UDP10, and
Lexmark printers.

Also, I will be going to my parents tonight and printing the image on
their Olympus P300 4x6" dye-sub printer. I also sent the image to
http://www.IonPhoto.com to use my free introductory 4x6" print. Same-type
service as Shutterfly but only 40 cents per print and they use Agfa
instead of Kodak paper.

Once these 2 upcoming prints are scanned and in the album, I'll post here
so you can check them out.

[BTW, still looking for a Sony UDP-10 sample and any others that aren't
in the album yet. Thanks!]

The other thread was getting long so I thought we'd start anew...

I've updated the printer comparison photo album to add the Canon 3500
multi-pass unit and a dye-sublimation print from the Alps MD5000. The
Canon unit is not a photo printer but a combo fax-copier-printer. It's a
good reference for the difference between photo inkjets and basic
printers. The Alps dye-sub print is to show the difference in VPhoto
2400dpi "inkjet" mode and true continuous tone at 600dpi.

Unfortunately, my scanner has been causing problems lately (on ANY type
of scan) where a yellow line shows up in the middle of the right side.
I've cleaned the glass and looked for what causes it but to no avail. It
comes and goes, as the earlier scans did not show it. If anyone has any
ideas as to what is causing this and how I can fix it, please let me
know. You'll notice it on the 2 Alps dye-sub scans, (especially the
closeup of the faces). For now, you'll just have to believe me that the
line is not on the print at all, even when looking at it here under a
magnifying lamp.

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=36640&a=6877958

 

[Brad Grant]

I received the test print from IonPhoto.com today. Overall a nice print, though they did add some reds for the flesh tones that were not in the original image. I've added the scanned images to the album.

I should have the test print from IonPhoto's new online printing service
in the next day or so and post it.

We'd still like to see samples from Epson 750, Canon CD-300, Canon 8200,
and a Lexmark printer. If anyone can help out, let us know.

Thanks!

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=36640&a=6877958

Also, I moved the original full-size camera image to the first and
alphabetized each printer for quicker access now that we have quite a few.

Still looking for images from the Epson 750, Canon CD300, Sony UDP10, and
Lexmark printers.

Also, I will be going to my parents tonight and printing the image on
their Olympus P300 4x6" dye-sub printer. I also sent the image to
http://www.IonPhoto.com to use my free introductory 4x6" print. Same-type
service as Shutterfly but only 40 cents per print and they use Agfa
instead of Kodak paper.

Once these 2 upcoming prints are scanned and in the album, I'll post here
so you can check them out.

[BTW, still looking for a Sony UDP-10 sample and any others that aren't
in the album yet. Thanks!]

The other thread was getting long so I thought we'd start anew...

I've updated the printer comparison photo album to add the Canon 3500
multi-pass unit and a dye-sublimation print from the Alps MD5000. The
Canon unit is not a photo printer but a combo fax-copier-printer. It's a
good reference for the difference between photo inkjets and basic
printers. The Alps dye-sub print is to show the difference in VPhoto
2400dpi "inkjet" mode and true continuous tone at 600dpi.

Unfortunately, my scanner has been causing problems lately (on ANY type
of scan) where a yellow line shows up in the middle of the right side.
I've cleaned the glass and looked for what causes it but to no avail. It
comes and goes, as the earlier scans did not show it. If anyone has any
ideas as to what is causing this and how I can fix it, please let me
know. You'll notice it on the 2 Alps dye-sub scans, (especially the
closeup of the faces). For now, you'll just have to believe me that the
line is not on the print at all, even when looking at it here under a
magnifying lamp.

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=36640&a=6877958

 

[Yan]

I am not impressed by the IonPhoto print. As you say they added some red and lots of yellow ( look at the top left of the photo)

Also they are not precise. Look at the crown symbol on the horse's eye blinder on the IonPhoto and then the one from ShutterFly. What a big difference!

Also the nose hairs from the horse are not as well defined.

Thanks for those latest updates. It shows that not every online service is equal!

Yan.

I received the test print from IonPhoto.com today. Overall a nice print,
though they did add some reds for the flesh tones that were not in the
original image. I've added the scanned images to the album.

 

[Brad Grant]

Yan,

While I tend to agree with you from the images online, the print doesn't look that bad in person, (though I still think I prefer Shutterfly, but at 10 cents less/print, hmm). This raises an issue with our experiment: Scanning process quality. I have an ultra cheap scanner that I cannot seem to synchronize to my monitor for colors, though the CRT is old too. For kicks, could you send that photo to IonPhoto and scan it since they give away 1 free 4x6" print per person? This would allow me to compare your scanned results with my scanner and may be a more fair comparison for Ion vs. Shutterfly. Just a thought...

Brad

Also they are not precise. Look at the crown symbol on the horse's eye
blinder on the IonPhoto and then the one from ShutterFly. What a big
difference!

Also the nose hairs from the horse are not as well defined.

Thanks for those latest updates. It shows that not every online service
is equal!

Yan.

I received the test print from IonPhoto.com today. Overall a nice print,
though they did add some reds for the flesh tones that were not in the
original image. I've added the scanned images to the album.

 

[GC17204]

Brad,

Wow, quite an impressive collection. Thanks for putting the album together. In light of the many variables (scanner, monitor, ambiant light etc), what is your take on the best printer and on-line print service? I have my opinion on what I can see on my monitor, but you may be able to judge better with the original prints. I think I like the epson and shutterfly but I can only judge sharpness and not color accuracy.

thanks,
gordon
--------------------

Yan,

While I tend to agree with you from the images online, the print doesn't
look that bad in person, (though I still think I prefer Shutterfly, but
at 10 cents less/print, hmm). This raises an issue with our experiment:
Scanning process quality. I have an ultra cheap scanner that I cannot
seem to synchronize to my monitor for colors, though the CRT is old too.
For kicks, could you send that photo to IonPhoto and scan it since they
give away 1 free 4x6" print per person? This would allow me to compare
your scanned results with my scanner and may be a more fair comparison
for Ion vs. Shutterfly. Just a thought...

Brad

 

[Brad Grant]

GC,

I tend to agree with your choices, though the Sony dye-sub and IonPhoto are not far off Shutterfly in person. Also, I still like the color, smoothness, and realism of the Alps prints in person. I really need a better scanner for something like this. Shutterfly prints are nice too for the captions they print on the back. I must admit the Epson 870 looked great, though I will never own one due to the pickiness and maintenance it seems to require. I'm leaning more and more to the Sony UP-DP10 as I mostly print 4x6 snapshots. For those times when a larger print is desired, I'll use Shutterfly. Just my opinion, of course.

Brad

Wow, quite an impressive collection. Thanks for putting the album
together. In light of the many variables (scanner, monitor, ambiant light
etc), what is your take on the best printer and on-line print service? I
have my opinion on what I can see on my monitor, but you may be able to
judge better with the original prints. I think I like the epson and
shutterfly but I can only judge sharpness and not color accuracy.

thanks,
gordon
--------------------

Yan,

While I tend to agree with you from the images online, the print doesn't
look that bad in person, (though I still think I prefer Shutterfly, but
at 10 cents less/print, hmm). This raises an issue with our experiment:
Scanning process quality. I have an ultra cheap scanner that I cannot
seem to synchronize to my monitor for colors, though the CRT is old too.
For kicks, could you send that photo to IonPhoto and scan it since they
give away 1 free 4x6" print per person? This would allow me to compare
your scanned results with my scanner and may be a more fair comparison
for Ion vs. Shutterfly. Just a thought...

Brad

 

[Yan]

Brad, could you please add these 2 pictures to your photo album. Thanks in advance.

These are from Ofoto. I used up my free pictures there. The Professional Kodack Paper they use is nice.
However the pictures came out darker and slightly bluer than the originals.

You can also see slight horizontal banding and on some pictures slight vertical banding. Also nothing is printed on the back of the pictures (They did not print out the filename or the picture date info)

Anyway as you can see I was disappointed. They will need to improve or lower their prices if they want to be successful in the long term.

Here's the reduced scan



Here's the faces crop:



Yan.

The other thread was getting long so I thought we'd start anew...

I've updated the printer comparison photo album to add the Canon 3500
multi-pass unit and a dye-sublimation print from the Alps MD5000. The
Canon unit is not a photo printer but a combo fax-copier-printer. It's a
good reference for the difference between photo inkjets and basic
printers. The Alps dye-sub print is to show the difference in VPhoto
2400dpi "inkjet" mode and true continuous tone at 600dpi.

Unfortunately, my scanner has been causing problems lately (on ANY type
of scan) where a yellow line shows up in the middle of the right side.
I've cleaned the glass and looked for what causes it but to no avail. It
comes and goes, as the earlier scans did not show it. If anyone has any
ideas as to what is causing this and how I can fix it, please let me
know. You'll notice it on the 2 Alps dye-sub scans, (especially the
closeup of the faces). For now, you'll just have to believe me that the
line is not on the print at all, even when looking at it here under a
magnifying lamp.

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=36640&a=6877958

 

[Yan19157]

Yesterday, I sent Ofoto a detailed email of my results (with a cropped scan attachment) and some suggestions that I had. (I email it to their feedback email address.)

I sent that email at 9:45PM (I guess 6:45PM their time) and their customer support responded 20 minutes later.

WOW, I'm really impressed. Not only did they read my email and responded so quick. They recredited my pictures and forwarded my suggestions to their development team. They do stand behind their product and I can appreciate that. That makes me believe that we will see some improvments there in the future.

Yan.

Brad, could you please add these 2 pictures to your photo album. Thanks
in advance.

These are from Ofoto. I used up my free pictures there. The
Professional Kodack Paper they use is nice.
However the pictures came out darker and slightly bluer than the originals.
You can also see slight horizontal banding and on some pictures slight
vertical banding. Also nothing is printed on the back of the pictures
(They did not print out the filename or the picture date info)
Anyway as you can see I was disappointed.

 

[Brad Grant]

Yan,

Thanks for submitting the Ofoto prints. I have added them to the album.

That is certainly impressive support you received from Ofoto's team. That will start to become more and more of a factor in the future as the market gets flooded.

Brad

WOW, I'm really impressed. Not only did they read my email and
responded so quick. They recredited my pictures and forwarded my
suggestions to their development team. They do stand behind their
product and I can appreciate that. That makes me believe that we will
see some improvments there in the future.

Yan.

Brad, could you please add these 2 pictures to your photo album. Thanks
in advance.

These are from Ofoto. I used up my free pictures there. The
Professional Kodack Paper they use is nice.
However the pictures came out darker and slightly bluer than the originals.
You can also see slight horizontal banding and on some pictures slight
vertical banding. Also nothing is printed on the back of the pictures
(They did not print out the filename or the picture date info)
Anyway as you can see I was disappointed.