HP PhotoSmart 8450 Inkjet Printer

by HP

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 22 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0002MK9IE
• Item model number: Q3388A#ABA
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (49 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: August 25, 2004

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

From the Manufacturer With the expanded color palette of HP's eight-ink color or up to 4,800-optimized dpi color printing, HP raises the bar in photo-quality printing. Easily view and edit using the large 2.5-inch color image display, and print studio-quality color and black-and-white photos.

Print photos without a computer using memory card slots (CompactFlash, Smart Media, Memory Stick, Secure Digital/ MultiMedia Card, and XD-Picture Card), from the HP Photo Proof Sheet, or directly from PictBridge-enabled cameras using the printer's front USB port. Or, use the easy Save-to-PC feature to save photos to your computer. Plus, print a 4-by-6-inch photo in as fast as 27 seconds and crisp black text and color in up to 20 ppm. (All reported speeds are fastest possible under ideal conditions. Actual speeds will vary.)

Enjoy your own digital darkroom--add textures and more for artistic expression. Enhance and fix your photos with easy retouching for personalized results with HP's Image Zone Software--for studio-quality photos that resist fading for generations. Conveniently share the printer with other computers using a network and print from select camera phones or other Bluetooth wireless technology devices.

Features:

• Make an impression every time you print with HP's studio-quality eight-ink color or up to 4,800 optimized dpi color printing. Enjoy HP's extended color palette to print color and black-and-white photos with high contrast and superior image detail.
• Personalize, enhance and retouch your photos with the included photo software.
• Easily switch from 4-by-6 to letter-size printing using built-in paper trays.
• Print photos with of without borders on standard sizes of photo papers.
• Get more value from your printer--print true-to-life photos and crisp text.
• Make every photo look its best before you print with easy editing features. Using the large 2.5-inch image display and easy front panel editing buttons, select the photos you want, then rotate, crop, zoom, automatically remove red-eye, and print.
• Print the action without a computer--play your digital video clip on the printer's image display, freeze your favorite scene, and print it. Plus, print the entire video clip frame-by-frame, or print your digital video using the HP Photo Proof sheet.
• Easily print photos directly from camera memory cards, the HP Photo Proof Sheet, or from PictBridge-enabled cameras using the printer's front USB port. Or, use the convenient Save-to-PC feature to easily save photos to your computer.
• Print photos from camera phones or other Bluetooth wireless technology.
• Make memories last. Studio-quality color and black-and-white photos that resist fading longer than traditionally processed photos with 8-ink color printing and HP Premium Plus Photo Papers--for bright, vivid prints that preserve your memories for generations.
• Enjoy the ease and convenience of Ethernet for simple print-sharing on a network. Share photo printing, access to camera memory cards, and save photos to multiple computers.
• Print black-and-white photos. Serious black-and-white photo enthusiasts can easily print gallery-quality images with richer, deeper blacks, multi-tone grays, whites and shadows.
• Print fast. Why wait for your photos? Capture every memory and every moment with true-to-life photos that you can print and share as fast as 27 seconds per page. Print fast black text and color, too, at speeds of up to 20 ppm.
• Print up to 30 ppm in laser-quality black with the optional HP 96 black cartridge, sold separately (color speed remains at 20 ppm maximum).
• HP SureSupply notifies you when it is time to replace your print cartridge and helps you purchase locally or via the internet.

What's in the Box
HP PhotoSmart 8450 photo printer, HP 97 tri-color ink cartridge (14 ml), HP 99 photo ink cartridge (13 ml), HP 100 gray photo ink cartridge (15 ml), power supply, power cord, quick start booklet, user's guide, CD-ROM with HP Image Zone software for Windows and Macintosh including HP Instant Share; USB cable and HP No. 96 cartridge are not included

Product Description

HP PhotoSmart 8450 Inkjet Printer

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

130 of 133 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely Amazing, December 18, 2004

By 

Mel Irizarry (Yuma AZ, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: HP PhotoSmart 8450 Inkjet Printer (Office Product)

I picked the 8450 up after my Canon i950 died. I initially set it up in the kitchen so my wife could try it out. It's been 5 days now and the printer is still in the kitchen. With the media card slots and on board photo editing my wife has no need to use a computer. The red-eye removal works better than any software package I have ever used. The photos that print out are extremely close to that of dye-sublimation printers. The only cartridge that runs out the fastest is the Gray cartridge #100. The tri-color #97 and the photo color #99 are still reporting 3/4 full. This is after printing around (40) 4x6 photos and (15) 8.5 x 11 full page prints.

Definately use the HP Glossy paper. I originally printed on the leftover Canon Photo Paper Plus which was impressive. When I tried the HP Glossy paper, I was blown away by the difference. The Canon paper had a yellowish tinge to it which covered up the light pinks and blues, and the flesh tones looked a bit jaundiced. The HP paper brought out the colors as I have never seen before. Absolutely perfect right down to the subtle pinks in the flesh tones.

65 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Color My World, January 5, 2005

By 

Brad C (PA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: HP PhotoSmart 8450 Inkjet Printer (Office Product)

I purchased an HP8450 over the holidays to produce some photos as gifts. For years I worked in photography, and I consider myself a professional with professional standards. I had actually very seriously considered just getting an HP 7960 printer as they are now clearanced in the US and available for about $150. The 8450 still hovers at a premium price of around $250, though I bought mine on sale for $220. In the past I've owned lower-end HPs, two Epsons which, due to their heads clogging after two months, I vowed never to buy Epson again, despite some excellent output while they're working. The Canon's are supposedly excellent printers, but the models I looked at seemed to be lacking in onboard features and had some ergonomic problems (like "push and click" doors that wouldn't stay closed) that were bothersome enough for me to eliminate them as a choice. HP's former top-of-the-line photo printer, the 7960 has recieved unanimous, excellent reviews and it's now lowered price makes it a very attractive option. But heading down to Staples, I had the chance to lay my eyes on the 8450. It just looked so much more solid than the 7960 that I had to find out if it was going to offer any improvements in photo quality. There are some comparison photos available at Photo-i (an excellent review site based in the UK) showed there was some difference between the two printers http://www.photo-i.co.uk/Reviews/printers/HP%208450/page-3.htm . The 7960 looked a bit over-sharped, resulting in some jaggedness, as compared to the 8450's smooth (and somewhat off-putting) unfocused look. But as the reviewer points out here, these are huge blow-ups. For those who took away the same erroneous impression as I did, let me say that I've never seen crisper images from any photo printer I've owned than the 8450. They are really stunning. The pics from my Canon G2 have never looked better. Certainly better than any photo lab I've recently use (albeit generic services). Any fears of losing sharpness in gaining smoother prints were quickly abated when I began putting the 8450 through its paces. Now, how did the 7960 compare to the 8450? I think that's what's on a lot of people's mind considering which HP, at the moment. Honestly I could only do a rudimentary comparison at Staples, but it was enough to give me that final steer towards the 8450 (although it's superior build had already nudged me towards that precipice). The test anyone can run is using the HPs built-in sample photo -- one of those dreaded flower shots (why do manufacturers always insist on sticking flowers in my face. Are all photographers closet horticulturists?). I ran a printhead cleaning on both machines and then printed out the built-in test photo onto a sheet of HP Premium that had strayed nearby. Even from this little test, the 8450 appeared (to me) to best the 7960 in clarity. The stamin of the orchid was much better defined. All I can attribute this to might be the 8450 being a bit more precise in delivering its ink, resulting in better definition. Both samples looked very good, but the 8450 just shone more realistically. I studied the samples for 10 minutes, trying to give a reason for liking the 8450 print, whereas, at home, my wife picked up the two-side test print and immediately declared the 8450 the winner. Enuf said, I guess. I purchased the 8450 a half hour later. Eight prints later at home, I'm really in love with the printer. It's the FIRST time I haven't had to burn sheet after sheet of paper to get what I see on the screen. Almost true WYSIWYG color printing on my eMac 1.5ghz without any fudging with print settings. I think this is the printer's greatest strength. If you've ever tried getting acurate color from your computer screen to your prints, you know how hard is can be (plus a waste of ink and paper). The HP 8450 is the first printer I've ever owned that does it almost perfectly without any tinkering. It's absolutely simple to turn out a great prints straight out of the box. Great quality, combined with sturdy HP technology. A winning combination.

Side Notes: Inks ARE somewhat expensive. The gray HP 100 (about $25, and nearly impossible to find the cheaper) cartridge only let me print about 13 8x10 prints (and not heavy in black areas) before running out. I'm not very happy with this aspect of the printer. The other tri-colour cartridges have about 60% of their ink left, so be prepared to be buying additional gray cartridges. I really wish Hewlett Packard would put more ink into their supplies, it's not very fair to the consumer. It would cost them a few pennies, instead of multiple dollars for the customer.

It's for this reason I am giving an otherwise excellent product four stars.

Final Note: The HP software that comes with the printer is excellent under Mac OSX. Connectivity and ease is excellent. BUT... the additional HP printing software, namely the printing utility that lets you create "album pages", uses a terrible algorithm when resizing or rotating prints. I'd say you lose about 20% of your print quality; it's terribly noticable. If you want to resize or rotate your prints, you're much better off sticking with iPhoto.

77 of 85 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hp does it again, another must buy!, September 17, 2004

By 

James Borton (Grand Rapids, MI) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: HP PhotoSmart 8450 Inkjet Printer (Office Product)

When I first saw this powerhouse printer on the shelves at CompUSA I couldn't believe they had replaced the 7960 printers already, but after further investigation, I found that this new model had some great improvements. Print quality is a bit better than last years models in that the colors seem more vibrant, and accurate to what the camera saw. The print speeds have jumped nicely, and the product itself feels more rugged. HP has thought of everything with this model. They included an Ethernet adapter in the unit to allow me to plug it right into my home network, and simplified the many options in the front of the printer for one touch printing, no PC necessary. The sales rep I spoke with also stated that they have found the new inks to last longer, so I won't be purchasing ink as often. He also said the pictures won't fade for over 100 years. I am very impressing with this printer! It has taking digital imaging to a new level at home.