A new generation of ink-jet printers now offers monochrome output just under a laser printer's quality with prices well below $1000. As a bonus, many of these ink-jet printers provide color output that may not match the quality of higher-price models but still goes a long way to enhance correspondence and highlight important elements in a report or spreadsheet.
Because color has become such an important element in the low-cost ink-jet-printer market, our rankings for this category include only those models that offer monochrome and color at prices under $1000. However, if you never need color, some monochrome-only ink-jet printers are available at low prices. For details, see ``Ink-Jet'' in the Roll Call on page 280.
The color-quality index of Epson's Stylus Color ranks near the leaders in this category; however, its speed scores
for both monochrome and color output kept it out of our rankings. The Stylus Color and the DeskJet 560C both fared well in our ease-of-use ratings, thanks to a combined monochrome and three-color ink-jet cartridge.
Rankings for Best Overall and Mac Considered
PERFORMANCE 60%
Mono Quality 30%
Color Quality 30%
Mono Speed 30%
Color Speed 10%
FEATURES 25%
EASE OF USE 15%
Need low-cost monochrome and spot color?
BEST OVERALL
DECcolorwriter 520ic and Texas Instruments microMarc color
These similar 300-dpi color ink-jet printers tied for monochrome speed; both are excellent choices for clear output at prices less than those commanded by laser printers. The DECcolorwriter 520ic registered a slight edge over the TI printer for monochrome quality, which we gave more value to versus color quality for this group. Quality scores made the difference for our runner-up printers. The difference betw
een HP's DeskJet 540 and DeskJet 560C, both 3-ppm printers, was also in the quality index. The DeskJet 560C outperformed the DeskJet 540 in monochrome speed tests (2.44 to 2.38 ppm) and had better features and usability scores, but the DeskJet 540 had superior color speed scores (0.75 to 0.62 ppm) and higher monochrome-quality ratings.
Speed (PPM)
Native
Mode PostScript
BEST DECcolorwriter 520ic 3.79 N/A
RUNNER-UP TI microMarc color 3.79 N/A
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 540 2.38 N/A
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 560C 2.44 N/A
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 320 1.93 N/A
Speed (PPM)
Native Color
MAC Color PostScript
BEST DECcolorwriter 520ic N/A 1.06 N/A
RUNNER-UP TI microMarc color N/
A 1.12 N/A
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 540 N/A 0.75 N/A
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 560C N/A 0.62 N/A
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 320 N/A 0.54 N/A
Quality Index Features Ease
Mono Color score of Use
BEST DECcolorwriter 520ic 6.54 3.00 *** ***
RUNNER-UP TI microMarc color 6.15 6.00 *** ***
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 540 7.14 5.67 *** ***
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 560C 6.61 5.67 *** ***
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 320 7.15 5.67 ** ***
Price DPI
BEST DECcolorwriter 520ic $449 300
RUNNER-UP TI microMarc color $439 300
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 540 $414 600 x 300
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 560C $719 600
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 320 $379 600 x 300
KEY
Excellent
****
Good ***
Fair **
Poor *
N/A = not applicable
Want the best ink-jet for Mac applications?
MAC
HP DeskWriter 560C
Among the color ink-jet printers for the Mac, the 3-ppm DeskWriter 560C (the Mac cousin of the DeskJet 560C) outperformed its two competitors in our color speed tests. It also excelled in our ease-of-use ratings.
Speed (PPM)
Native
Mode PostScript
BEST HP Deskwriter 560C N/A N/A
RUNNER-UP HP DeskWriter 320 N/A N/A
RUNNER-UP Apple Color StyleWriter Pro N/A N/A
Speed (PPM)
Native Color
MAC Color PostScript
BEST HP Deskwriter 560C 2.37 0.48 N/A
RUNNER-UP HP DeskWriter 320 2.25 0.45 N/A
RU
NNER-UP Apple Color StyleWriter Pro 1.73 0.34 N/A
Quality Index Features Ease
Mono Color score of Use
BEST HP Deskwriter 560C 5.40 3.33 ** ***
RUNNER-UP HP DeskWriter 320 4.99 5.67 ** ***
RUNNER-UP Apple Color StyleWriter Pro NA NA ** ***
Price DPI
BEST HP Deskwriter 560C $719 600 x 300
RUNNER-UP HP DeskWriter 320 $379 600 x 300
RUNNER-UP Apple Color StyleWriter Pro $629 360
KEY
Excellent ****
Good ***
Fair **
Poor *
N/A = not applicable
When quality counts
HIGH QUALITY
DECcolorwriter 520ic and Texas Instruments microMarc color
When considering monochrome and color output quality and speed, these similar printers led the field. Canon's BJC-600 was the all-out color-quality
winner in this group. However, its slow speed scores kept it from winning top honors.
Speed (PPM)
Native
Mode PostScript
BEST DECcolorwriter 520ic 3.79 N/A
RUNNER-UP TI microMarc color 3.79 N/A
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 540 2.38 N/A
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 560C 2.44 N/A
RUNNER-UP Canon BJC-600 1.02 N/A
Speed (PPM)
Native Color
MAC Color PostScript
BEST DECcolorwriter 520ic N/A 1.06 N/A
RUNNER-UP TI microMarc color N/A 1.12 N/A
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 540 N/A 0.75 N/A
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 560C N/A 0.62 N/A
RUNNER-UP Canon BJC-600 N/A 0.32 N/A
Quality Index Feature
s Ease
Mono Color score of Use
BEST DECcolorwriter 520ic 6.54 3.00 *** ***
RUNNER-UP TI microMarc color 6.15 6.00 *** ***
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 540 7.14 5.67 *** ***
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 560C 6.61 5.67 *** ***
RUNNER-UP Canon BJC-600 6.86 6.33 **** ***
Price DPI
BEST DECcolorwriter 520ic $449 300
RUNNER-UP TI microMarc color $439 300
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 540 $414 600 x 300
RUNNER-UP HP DeskJet 560C $719 600
RUNNER-UP Canon BJC-600 $719 360
KEY
Excellent ****
Good ***
Fair **
Poor *
N/A = not applicable
Illustration: Graph: Rankings for High Quality Considered
PERFORMANCE 60%
Mono Quality 40%
Color Quality 40%
Mono Speed 10%
Color Speed 10
%
FEATURES 25%
EASE OF USE 15%
Draft Quality
