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Best printers to buy in 2013

Posted on 7 Jun 2013 at 13:53

We round up the best printers for homes and small businesses

It's worth taking the time to seek out a high-quality printer - if you don't, documents look washed-out, pictures lack sparkle, and you'll get a migraine trying to operate an awkward, slow machine.

We've rounded the best printers to help you make the right decision: we've consumer inkjets that print stunning photographs, more serious printers designed for small businesses, and there's even a printer that churns out pages at 60ppm. Make sure you've read these reviews before taking the plunge:

Canon Pixma MG5450

Canon printers are usually found near the top of the A-List, so it’s no surprise that the Pixma MG5450 is one of the year’s best devices. The Canon’s five-ink print engine churned out high-quality colour prints and text that’s as sharp as anything we’ve seen from a laser printer, and its speed was consistent no matter how demanding our printing.

Connectivity options include 802.11n Wi-Fi, a USB 2 port and a three-format card reader. Google Cloud Print and Apple AirPrint are supported, and Canon’s own apps allow printing directly from Android and iOS devices. The 7.5in colour display is easy to navigate. It’s fast, packed with features and delivers great quality – no wonder this won our last Labs test.

Click here to read our full review of the Canon Pixma MG5450

Dell B1160w

The Dell B1160w is a budget printer, but it still manages to include 802.11n Wi-Fi alongside its USB 2 port. We’re not used to seeing wireless networking on such a cheap machine, and the Dell’s print quality also defied our expectations. Text is virtually perfect, and quality in image and photo tests is better than almost anything else at this price.

Running costs are a little higher than we’d like, especially beyond 5,000 pages, and the Dell’s exterior is plain and plasticky. But, for this money, we can hardly complain – it’s a great deal if you’re buying on a budget.

Click here to read our full review of the Del B1160w

Lomond EvoJet Office

There haven't been many big leaps in printer technology recently, but Lomond’s EvoJet Office breaks the mould: it swaps a traditional moving print head for a huge, static head with 70,000 nozzles, and can churn out mono pages at a remarkable 60ppm.