Customer Reviews

HP Photosmart Pro B9180 Printer

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(12)
1 star:		(33)

 

 

I just got the brand new HP B9180 13x19 pigmented ink printer. I had been waiting for it to hit the market since Feb. Well, it was worth the wait. This printer replaced my Epson 2200, which i thought produced beautiful prints.
These prints out of the 9180 are even nicer. So far, in just 2 days of printing, i found that using HP's print management system produces different results from printing from Photoshops print with preview. The colors with HP management are more vibrant and brighter than either the Epson or PS's printing. I used Ilfords pearl and got beautiful results. And it prints fast. Then i printed on a Legion matte paper and got even better results. A night time skyline panorama looked more detailed and brighter on the matte than the pearl paper.
The advanced photo paper -glossy from HP seems to scratch easily. That's my initial impression. I think i will be buying more matte paper for my photos. So far, i like my new printer. The idea of photos lasting 1-2 hundred years is appealing.
The HP software is also more detailed and clearer to use and offers more choices than Epson's. I was able to add ICC profiles of the Ilford paper easily.
One thing not all in place yet is HP's support for this printer. There is no Mac driver for the 9180 on HP's web site-just 3 Windows versions.
Also their email support was not too on the mark. However, when i called a support person, he did try to be as helpful as he could and even called me back the next day to say he would be mailing out a scarce replpacement CD to me. Very nice.
I did get a message from the printer today that i was running out of light magenta ink after not too many prints (maybe 8-11x14's). When checked, it says i have 35% remaining. a bit premature on the warning, but i will get some more ink befor i run out.
Based on my preliminary prints, i recommend this printer to people who want the latest, fastest printer making beautiful archival prints. If this printer is like my other 3 HP printers, it should provide years of service. My Epson 2200 died after 2 months use, and i don't like having to baby Epson printers, i want them to do the work, not me. The HP has replaceable heads, a sophisticated ink system that is an ink miser (so they say), and is built like a tank for long life.

I just got my printer today, so maybe it's a little premature to write a review, but I already know some of the key things I'd look for in a review.

Background: I have an Epson R800 which doesn't get much use. Before that I had an Epson 2000p. The R800 only accepted small (8 ½") paper, and always seemed to require a lot of effort and fiddling to get a good print. The 2000p was a great printer, but preceded the days of separate color cartridges, so was rather expensive to use. For its time, it was a terrific printer.

On to the B9180. It takes paper up to 13" wide, so we're back to a larger format. In fact this printer is a tank. This is my first HP photo printer and I think I picked the right time to switch brands. The HP now uses archival quality inks, which is one of the reasons I had always stuck with Epson in the past. If you're any kind of photographer, you don't want prints that are going to fade over time.

Initial setup went smoothly. Pulling some of the protective caps required a little force so was a bit scary (you really don't want to screw up a $700 printer before it prints something). The quick start guide and LCD panel directed you what to do. Basically you put in the ink, the printheads, and it takes about half an hour calibrating itself. I know the initial setup will use up some ink, but according to the printer, the matte black cartridge was only 68% full after setup completed. Other cartridges were left with between 70% - 85% according to the printers sensors. This printer is supposed to be very efficient in maintaining itself, so it will be interesting to see how much it ends up costing to run.

One thing that does use up ink is printing pictures that don't look like they did on your computer screen. The first print I made (that was particularly difficult to print on the Epson) came out perfectly, and rather quickly, it seemed.

The printer comes with a plug-in for Photoshop that makes printing a snap. If you don't happen to use Photoshop, it's not a big deal, but if you do, the plug-in is a very nice convenience.

So, I give this printer top marks for output quality, ease of use, and speed. How well it performs with only intermittent use, and costs to use over time remains to be seen. But where the Epson R800 falls in the category of "I really wasted my money", the HP B9180 is falling into the "Money well spent" slot. There's also a theory that companies make cheap printers to sell expensive cartridges. When they profit from the printer, they are not as greedy selling the ink. Who knows?

This printer is a great tool to have to compliment the current quality of the 6-12 megapixel dSLRs now available. I use a Nikon D200 currently, and the HP B9180 should show off its output quite nicely.

I have been a loyal Epson user for many years having used both Stylist 3000 and 5000. I had been anticipating the replacement of the 5000 since ink technology had advanced significantly in recent times and, quite frankly, I begain to loathe using or creating profiles for the different papers, etal. I researched as much as I could once the HP B9180 was announced especially taking note of its pigment inks and placed my pre-order and endured the delay of its market release. By coincidence, the Epson 5000 died a month ago and left me high and dry for several weeks until I received notice that the HP was shipping and I would receive mine in 10 days. It finally arrived and decided to dedicate the day to setting it up. Setting up and getting it to print was straight foward and patience is necessary enabling the printer to go through its setup initialization. Since I use a series of MAC's it took some time to get three machines connected by both wireless and hardwire, but managed to successfully wade through it all being a non-techy. I printed a few random prints (letter and A3+ borderless) using both the OSX print dialogue and HP print utility via the 'automate' file menu in Photoshop. The B9180 is an impressive printer at under $699 compared to the Epson 5000 printer costing $3000 when new. The color and detail is exceptional and I was using a mixed collection of papers from semi-gloss, gloss, matte and uncoated to compare results and how much correction might be needed. Having read a previous post about print speed, I also tried this as well comparing 300 dpi, 600dpi, and 1200 dpi printing... for my use, 600 dpi is more than adequate to produce acceptble prints and even 300dpi was reasonable. I only mention this because of the spooling time for higher dpi prints. One note of interest, the Epson 5000 used 120ml carts (6- ~$360) while the HP uses smallish ones (8 of them- `$280), I also read somewhere, OEM HP ink carts are their highest margin product so HP is rigorously protecting their cart patents, so don't expect to see any aftermarket non-OEM carts anytime soon. Besides the pigment inks are HP and are themselves problematic to produce consistently compared to dye-based inks. Afterall, HP rates their pigment inks at about 200 years of permanence, one of the highest in the industry. In short, I am pleased with my decision to buy the HP B9180, resigned to the price of inks, and reccomend it. To hedge my bet, I also purchased an extended warranty which is something I've never done before.

(December Update) Light Cyan and Light Magenta cartridges ran out first with the remaining cartridges having 50% or better remaining. The color has been consisent across different applications (InDesign, Photoshop, and Freehand) and the HP Print Dialogue Menu is a great tool under the 'automate' in Photoshop. Resetting the printer is time consuming and turning it 'off' requires the printer to go through its 'startup' sequence which, in itself, is time consuming. I now just leave it 'on' all the time as this partiular printer goes through a 'auto' self-maintenace cycle periodically. I had 2 paper jams using 13X19 Ilford semi-gloss paper using the 'single sheet' feeder that required me to turn the printer off and clear the jam. Paper fed from it's paper tray doesn't always go through the printer striaght about 50% of the time all be it slightly crooked, but still annoying and wasteful. Like other printers I've owned in the past, the HP B9180 is no exception to adjusting to its quirks as well as paying attention where needed. If anyone has spent time in the darkroom printing color prints knows the adjustments with any inkjet printer is small potatos. I've yet to use any HP branded papers and still use the various papers I have on hand.

I bought this printer to replace an Epson 2200 and I have been very happy with my choice. As compared to the 2200, I have the following observation:
1. Resolution seems to be virtually identical. This is good as I was always pleased with the resolution of the 2200.

2. Black and white capability much better on the HP. I was never able to get a dead neutral b&w image with the 2200. I could come close if I printed with black ink only, but it was still not quite there. If I printed composite b&w, I always got a slight color cast. With the HP, printing with black ink only gives a very neutral b&w image and printing with composite b&w is almost as neutral.

3. Much less metamerism. One of the problems I had with the 2200 was in evaluating color because it shifted dramatically in different light. This effect is MUCH less evident with the HP.

4. No changing cartridges when going from gloss to matte paper. This is one of the biggest advantages of the HP. It is a real pleasure being able to go back and forth between gloss and matte paper without the hassle (and the wasting of ink) involved in changing the black ink cartridge.

I realize that the Epson 2200 has been replaced with the 2400 and that many of the problems I have experienced with the 2200 have been fixed. However, the 2400 still requires that you change the black ink cartidge. I have seen comparison prints between the 2400 and the HP and the only place that the 2400 might have an advantage is in shadow detail on b&w prints. The 2400 uses three black inks instead of two and this might give it an edge. The slight differences that I THOUGHT I saw were not enough to justify the extra cost of the 2400 and the hassle of changing ink cartridges.

The HP has its built-in self calibration system which should result in more consistent prints -- particularly after changing cartidges. I have not had it long enough to comment on this.

One area where Epson still has an advantage is in paper. There is a greater variety of papers, both from Epson and from third-party suppliers, for the Epson printers. This situation seems to be improving. I am constantly finding more third-party papers that now have a profile for the HP printer.

Another area in which the HP suffers is their software. I am using it with Photoshop CS2 (and the CS3 beta). I have found that some features don't work and that others are a little cumbersome. I have also noticed that if I make a mistake and tell the printer to use the main tray (or to automatically select the tray) when I have put paper in the Specialty Media tray, the printer will stop responding and I have to turn it off to recover. These are minor annoyances and can be overcome just be being careful to do things properly, but this is not the way software (or firmware, if that is where the problem is) should work. I use a PC and have been told that the Mac software works a little better.

I think this printer represents a tremendous value and produces marvelous prints.

WOW! That is the only description I had as my first 13 X 19 print rolled off this printer. I printed on HP soft gloss premium plus paper, and the prints are perfect, better than the ones I have purchased. And they print quickly. They are rated for over 100 years without fading, and the ink is water resistant (waterproof on some papers.) I am driving my spouse nuts as I bring print after print to her with the same "WOW! Look at this one!"

It is a BIG printer. Heavy and solidly built. Takes a lot of room, but if you want quality archival prints up to 13 X 19, clearly this is the printer for you.

Set up was easy, unlike several previous HP printers. The instructions are clear and easy to follow, but they do have to be followed exactly. The set up "manual" is 24 pages long (in English, French and Spanish)and is clearly written. Included in the box is enough quality paper to calibrate the printer (I believe this is either the only one in this price range to do this, or at least one of the few,) a process that takes about a half hour as a number of pages are printed in the process. And you do have a few sheets of HP Premium Plus paper left over. But when finished, you are set...you should not have to ever repeat this process...

There are 8 ink cartridges...they seem to have a good capacity, rated for close to 800 4 X 6 prints... and it is a good thing, as the best price I have found is $28.99 EACH from Amazon, including shipping. The unit comes with a set of fully filled ink cartridges, unlike many printers that include only partially filled cartridges.

The printer can print without much input from you, and it also can be fine tuned to your specific item. It works with Photoshop plug-ins as well, and the list of print sizes is fantastic...most every size you could want from 2 X 3 to 13 X 19, plus as many custom sizes as you wish, each of which can be saved with specific paper and quality settings for future reference.

There are a lot of printers out there, and most are far less expensive than this one, but if you want to sell your photography, or if you want to print quality presentations or even photos for framing, I believe this is the printer for you.

Current Setup:
Mac OX 10.4.9, G4 Dual 1.25, Photoshop CS2, printing primarily on HP Advanced Photo Glossy paper, Ilford Gallerie Smooth Pearl paper [Download the profile directly from Ilford]

Previous experiance:
-Epson 1280 "old school"

Pros:
-Very substantial size and build
-Good wide color gamut [not as wide as the Canon imagePROGRAF iPF5000 especially when reproducing blue but very comparable to Epson 2400 & 1800]
-Wide variety of media, most of the time the closest comparable driver will work on different media
-24/7 call-in support
-stingy ink usage
-printer based color management is outstanding!
-love the plugin

Cons:
-Took me a second to figure out where to add new media profiles
-Printing on 5x7 sheet media from time to time I have experianced an issue where there is a line ~.25 of and inch thick and neither I nor HP has determined the issue.
-Ink coverage not complete, ie. in solid colors there are fine lines where there is no ink
-DO NOT USE PREMIUM OR PREMIUM PLUS PAPER AS THESE PAPERS HAVE A COATING THAT HELPS PRINTS FROM DYE BASED PRINTERS LAST LONGER; ONLY ADVANCED PAPER, THE PRINTER DOESN'T EVEN HAVE A PROFILE FOR THESE PAPERS.
-There is limited availability of photo paper in my Area, Birmingham, AL MSA

FYI
The first cartridges I had to replace were the light gray and light Cyan, I print portrait photography primarily.

I've been using this printer for a couple of weeks now and I'm very happy with it. The prints are spectacular! I've tried a few of the new specialty papers made for this printer. The advanced photo paper makes a print that is smudge free and waterproof from the moment it comes out the printer. The vivera inks are a huge step up from previous inks. By swinging down a door on the front the entire printing mechanism moves up and out of the way to receive heavy flat stock up to 13" x 19". You need some room behind the printer for the paper to move, but the results are amazing. The artist matt canvas creates a wonderful effect. You will need to buy or order wood canvas frames to properly mount them but I love the effect.
The printer is quite large. I had to make a new area for it. Also you never turn it off. They recommend letting it run and do automatic print head maintenance. I've had mine on since it arrived. Every now and then there is a little noise as it goes through it's routine. I only notice it every few days and it's pretty quick.
This is a very high end printer. My friends have the similar new Epson and Canon printers and the HP blows them away. The ink cartridges are quite large; 2-3 times more ink then the other brands. After many prints the levels have hardly moved. If you want professional quality prints on a variety of papers, including flat heavy stock, this is the printer for you.

Please note that this printer will not work as advertised with VISTA. HP customer support has informed me that the printer does not support 13x19 printing with VISTA. I learned this after troubleshooting and wasting major amounts of ink and costly paper. In this large size, prints only contain part of the image. I purchased this printer because HPs website advertises this printer as "certified for VISTA" and capable of borderless prints at 13x19. It amazes me that HP continues to falsely advertise their product. Be warned of this issue and HPs decision to continue to falsely advertise.

The box arrived with some dents and dings, however, the printer is fine. The easy to follow directions made start up a nonevent. I'm still(after a month of intermittent use) trying to get the color management issues resolved. I only have Photoshop Elements that, apparently, doesn't support the one stop shopping color management that a more expensive version has. Using printer managed color does a nice job but I'm wondering if the prints could be even better.

I installed the wireless print kit and finally got that working after a day of fooling with it. The directions are more of a rough outline and a few things were different.

The summary is that it makes great prints and takes up a big space. I have not had any paper slewing problems with 4 x 6 to 13 x 19 sheets.

Background: I've owned and/or used Epson 2200, 4000, 7600, and 9800 printers for prints up to 44x96. Other than laser printers, this is my first deviation from Epson. I'm very happy with this HP.
INSTALLATION
I don't remember the details, but the initial setup had a small problem. The instructions were very explicit, so I called support. In the end, they had me turn it off and on again and the problem went away. I could have saved an hour on the phone.
COLOR
I've been using this exclusively with a 13x19 Hahnemuhle fine art paper for which I had a custom profile made. I'm getting excellent results and a pretty good color gamut. I print photos, mostly color and some B&W.
INK CONSUMPTION
After the ink consumed to charge the printer, I've made about 35 prints (usually 9x13.5 image area) and 10 5x7 notecards and any minute now I'll replace the MK cartridge. The light gray is just showing the low warning now. Since the paper I use is $3 a sheet and ink carts are $30, I'm pressing my luck to get a feel for the accuracy of the warnings.
EASE OF USE
When I installed this, I was using Photoshop CS2 and printed through the "automate" menu. That went away when I upgraded to CS3, perhaps because I uninstalled CS2 first or perhaps just because the printer driver was already installed. It's not a big difference going through the regular print menu. It is, of course, important to have all of the correct settings; I wasted two sheets because Color Management had reset to Adobe RGB from Application Managed Color when I reopened the file.
One convenient feature is the Printing Shortcuts which allow you to save presets for your various paper/size/orientation standards. Overall, the driver is a bit more user friendly than Epson's.
Speaking of Epson printers, this one differs in that you do not control the platen. When you've inserted paper, you press the OK button and the printer grabs the paper and transports it. Anything you load through the slot (all heavy paper) gets pulled out the back and then prints moving forward. This means that you need space behind the printer.
Having been through painful episodes with clogged heads on Epsons I love several features of this printer. If necessary, I can replace the heads. But that's less likely to be necessary because the printer periodically checks itself. Just leave it turned on and you can go on vacation without fear that you'll have to jump through hoops power cleaning heads or even end up choking on the cost of a service call!
SHORTCOMINGS
The paper loading for specialty paper is tweaky. You drop the alternate loading slot door on the front and hand-align the paper. Curled corners of heavy paper catch on the way in fairly often. The good news is the only time I've had the paper skew is with some notecards (7x10 sheet size). I tried loading the Moab notecard stock in the tray and that did not work.
On two prints I notice a faint line rubbed in the ink. Same image, same spot (no, it's on in the image file). I blew out the printer and have not seen it again.
This printer is larger and heavier than many 13x19" printers. I have it on a substantial folding table and it really dances when it prints.
BOTTOM LINE
I don't know what was going on at the time, but I got this printer in March 2008 for $500 plus shipping. Prices are higher now. It would have cost me that much to buy a set of cartridges for the Epson 4000 which this printer replaced. I consider the HP B9180 a fine printer and outstanding value.