Quality prints but at a high price
Written: Jul 15 '00
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Pros: dye sublimation option
Cons: slow printer, easily jams, pricey
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| ejdeleon's Full Review: Alps MD-5000P Printer |
At the onset, I'd like to say that the Alps5000 (with dye sublimation option) is the closest you'll get to professional photographic quality...hands-down. With the standard printer (without dye sub), you get an average printer (even with V-photo paper).
The reason I bought the printer in the first place was the "ability" to print at 2400dpi or high quality prints on even plain paper. I do a lot of photo-editing work and needed a printer that could do justice to my hard-worked efforts. I thought this was the printer for me. Unfortunately, I was disappointed even with V-photo printing because of the quality of the print. The printing technique employs the printing of oblique lines giving it a lined pattern visible to the very obsessive-compulsive (as myself). I was forced to purchase the dye-sublimation kit which added to the already sky-high price of this printer compared to other inkjets. But the kit did not disappoint me. At last I found the quality I was looking for.
I encountered a couple of problems using the printer. Firstly, I had more than a couple of paper jams. Even though it is capable of printing with gold and silver ribbon, I was a bit disappointed at the concessions you had to make to attain this. First, you'd have to utilize all of your primary ribbon cartridges to lay a foundation for the foil -- increasing your ribbon usage tremendously. And then the quality of the foil transfer wherein it wasn't very consistent. There were always areas where the foil was missing (especially with specialty paper -- which was the bulk of my foil work).
Paper is also quite expensive if you'd like to really achieve "photo quality". Although it prides itself in saying that it prints on virtually any media, the quality of its print varies with the media used (even if you lay down a primer). Using regular paper, gives the picture a washed out look despite it being glossy.
On the upside, using dye sublimation will truly make your photo creations come to life. The print is weather- and water-proof and does give you quite a palette of choices on colors and foils to use. But like I said, it all comes with a price. If you need quality above anything else, this is the printer for you. You just have to shell out and be prepared to wait awhile for the picture to print (up to 20 minutes per picture - the printer prints one color at a time so the paper goes through about 3-6 times). If you need quality AND speed, this printer is not for you. You will just be frustrated.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 550+100(dye sub)
Operating System: Windows
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Epinions.com ID:
ejdeleon
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Reviews written: 4
Trusted by: 1 member
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