Recommendations for Direct to CD/DVD printer

[pred02]

My agining Epson Stylus R220 is about to kick the bucket so I would like to replace it with a printer that has direct to CD print capabilities. I'd prefer a printer that has a better system than the Stylus for loading CDs (the tray would get jammed and I would need to manually push it in).

Requirements are:
1) Inexpensive
2) Ability to print direct to CD/DV
3) Is generic Ink friendly for inexpensive replacement

Optionally, I like it to be a MFC but that is not that important right now. From what I have seen only Epson offers print to CD/DVD option, do they hold a patent or something?

Thanks!

[jagabo]

From what I have seen only Epson offers print to CD/DVD option, do they hold a patent or something?

Yes. Although outside the USA you can get CD/DVD printers from other manufacturers. I use a USA version of the IP4000 with a CD/DVD tray purchased via ebay. A few button presses enabled CD/DVD printing. I don't know about the current Canon printers.

[gadgetguy]

HP also has CD/DVD printers for sale in the US. I've been happy with my 5160.

[jman98]

Many Canon printers can be easily "hacked" (you push a few buttons like jagabo said) to print to CDs/DVDs. See
http://damnprinter.com/105/the-five-easy-steps.html
You'll need to get a tray from somewhere (ie. Ebay), but it works fine. I have an IP4500 that works great for me this way. I've been using it for over a year now.

I bought the Canon because I tried to use an Epson first and the stupid printer refused to recognize the brand new ink cartridges that came with it. You see Epson is so paranoid that you might somehow cheat them out of money on ink cartridges that their printers operate in super paranoid mode and refuse to work with any cartridges at all sometimes. You know what the "fix" for this is? Return the printer. No joke. After I found that out, I went "Screw you Epson!" and I bought a Canon. I will probably never buy another Epson product again.

[pred02]

The Canon MX850 seems to fit the bill and the price. Where do you get/buy your generic ink cartridges for the Canon?

Thanks!

[stiltman]

I like my HP but I have to admit, comparring my old R200/220 printed DVDs to my new HP printed DVDs, I like the quality of the Epson's a lot more

[jman98]

The Canon MX850 seems to fit the bill and the price. Where do you get/buy your generic ink cartridges for the Canon?

Thanks!

I don't buy generic cartridges. I buy official Canon cartridges because I don't have time to put up with b.s. in dealing with problems if an aftermarket cartridge doesn't work for me. Remember, my problem with Epson was that the stupid printer wouldn't even recognize it's own new out of the box cartridges. I just want my printer to work - period. If pay a few extra dollars per cartridge, I don't care.

I have NOT tried this, but some have claimed that Cartridge World's remanufactured cartridges work fine in Canon printers. The nearest Cartridge World to where I live is a 30 minute drive round trip and so far I have been unwilling to gamble on their cartridges. If they fail to work in my printer, I'll lose another 30 minutes taking them back AND still have to buy real Canon cartridges somewhere. If Cartridge World was maybe 5 minutes away, I might try them, but I place a lot more value on my time than a couple of bucks. I've never had any problems with true Canon ink cartridges purchased at Best Buy.

[videobread]

I use Epson and have not had a problem finding carts post lawsuit. I bought four R220's as they were being discontinued and immediately sold the carts on ebay for $55 a set. I have two new R220's left, one crapped out and I'm using the other.

I have since purchased two R280's for my kids and still get the carts cheap. I don't do photo printing and am satisfied with the colors I get. I also have a chip resetting tool which I use when I get a troubled cart. I swap out the chip on the bad cart and reset and all is ok.

Printers are cheap and disposable. The real issue is cart cost. Never tried the Cannon or HP.

[pred02]

Printers are cheap and disposable. The real issue is cart cost. Never tried the Cannon or HP.

That being said does anyone have any recommendations for generic ink cartridges for their Canon (chipped) that work well?
Thanks!

[videobread]

Cannon compatible carts are available from most suppliers:

rima.com
atlanticinkjet.com
ebay

[sandralink]

Get an Epson R220 if possible, or R280

A very good workflow shows here -
http://www.pftq.com/pq/42/cd-dvd-burning.php

[nwrigley]

Get an Epson R220 if possible, or R280.

If price of the printer is the same, which do you guys recommend between these two? Are there any issues with generic cartridge compatibility with the R280?

I buy my generic ink from Rima, currently using an aging R200. The generic R280 ink set is 33% more ($6) than the R220, but it would be worth it if the printer is better. Also, I can get the R280 from Epson rather than going to Ebay for an R220.