printers

[Neville Morris]

A few moths ago there was some discussion on the best printer for fingerprint use. Can some one tell me what the printer was that every one was talking about. Who was it that was doing some work on it to make better for f/p work and any other info. Thanks.

[George Reis]

Both Epson and Canon seem to make high quality ink jets that will reproduce ridge detail well. The Epson 2400 is their current model with three tones of black ink - although I think they have a couple of smaller printers that also offer the new inks at a lower price.

The after market manufacturer (Lyson) that was working on a set of gray inks for Epson printers ran into some problems with some cartridges which set them back in this project. I believe that Lyson is still interested, but think they want to make some comparisons between their ink set and the Epson printers that use the three shades of black ink. I wouldn't expect anything from Lyson for several months, at least.

As to the Canon printers. My experience with them is that they are capable of printing excellent images and are a bit faster than the Epson printers, however they do not support third party inks as easily as Epson printers. That isn't a problem unless a company like Lyson makes something that would prove valuable, like a seven or eight shade set of black inks.

George

[neville]

Thank you George I see from your website that you have experience in this field. We currently have a HP2600 inkjet and a Mitsubishi CP700D thermal printer attached to our image enhancement computer located in our darkroom. The CP700D has no XP drivers so it's no longer usable due to I&T requirements, not unexpectantly as we are still on Win98SE.

The HP2600 appears incredibly slow and then you have to wait for the paint, I mean ink to dry. The result is no comparison with CP700D either.
Did I mention this is for fingerprint identification work. We use the system to photograph any latents developed in the lab. We mark up the printouts with red dots using Overhead Transperancy pens, our working notes. The printouts are normally 4 to 5 times enlarged from the original.

I was thinking of staying clear of ink jets as a result, also their running costs are very high. I am willing to re-access this though. The HP2600 also seems less robust than what we require. Is the Canon that much better? We are currently printing well over 200 images a week. I'm not sure how this compares with overseas agencies; to us it seems a lot.

Do other agencies tend to use inkjets, dye-subs, colour photocopiers or coloured laser printers?

I am very interested in all your thoughts.

[Shaheen]

Hello,

This is a very interesting topic to me - I have a further question.

Have you experimented with using different papers for printing on, or have a preference for one type of paper? Does this make much difference?

Cheers,
Shaheen

[Robert Miller]

Have you experimented with using different papers for printing on, or have a preference for one type of paper? Does this make much difference?

Shaheen,

I have experimented with the Lyson products using varying dilutions of black ink in an Epson printer with various papers. I passed it around to other LPEs in my department and there was a decisive preference towards the glossy paper sold by Lyson. The matte finish lacked the contrast and edge sharpness found in the glossy finish. The matte finish has a slight bleeding into the paper which makes the ridges appear to be a little soft. I hope this helps!

Robert Miller

[Neville]

The paper makes a huge difference to the end result; we are using HP semi-gloss and HP gloss photo papers.

This combination still doesn't match the Mitsubishi system though.

From what I have been told the printers used in the instant printing kiosks found in many Malls, Chemists, and Photo Labs ( the ones where you stick your memory card or CD into a slot then select the photo and print it) are using a Mitsubishi type thermal/ dye-sub printer.

Robert do you think that the Epson printer is that much better than the HP2600 inkjet. If so what model are you talking about. Would it make a difference using only Black cartridges. We currently are only using a Black and CYM colour cartridges, 4 in all.

Good to get you opinion, thanks.

[George Reis]

I have been very frustrated in getting decent prints out of the HP printers I have seen over the years. In my consulting work, I frequently help agencies calibrate their equipment, and it never goes very well with HP, and it always goes well with Epson. If I was having printing problems and had an HP, I would consider either getting a custom profile made for it, or I would replace it with an Epson or Canon.

For high volume color laser printing, however, HP makes fine machines.

George