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91 of 95 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Time to Upgrade to a B9180, October 24, 2006
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.
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67 of 69 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
HP B9180-Fast and beautiful large prints that will outlive you!, October 15, 2006
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.
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81 of 85 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very Impressive, November 11, 2006
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.
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