Best printer for the job

[GirlGamer55]

I know this must have been asked before but I can't find where, so I'll ask it again. I want to print out semi good quality cover art for my games...some are missing covers, others are just ugly as hell. Also the printer can't be super expensive and if it can be wireless that would be wonderful.

I'v heard that the quality of the paper also comes into factor, so what kind of paper is best?

I do need a new printer so I might as well get a good one that can do normal print jobs and handle my cover art.

[bmoc]

In my work I deal with a variety of printers and copiers. My current favorite brand is Brother. They seem very reliable and have a reasonable cost per page on most units.

We have a few of this particular one: http://www.brother-usa.com/MFC/ModelDetail/4/MFCJ5910DW and I have never had a single problem with them. I can't say that about any other printer that I have ever worked with.

Inkjets are used by people looking for archival quality because ink binds to paper better than toner. Inkjets are also typically cheaper than color laser printers. That said, a color laser printer would be ok too. That is what I use for my Universal Game Case covers because I have easy access to a high quality one for little cost per page.

As for the paper, some people will say that glossy paper looks the best but I think just plain cheap paper looks fine at least in Universal Game Cases. The outer plastic of the case adds a sufficient amount of glossy sheen for my tastes. I would just get the cheapest ream of legal sized paper you can find.

[isiolia]

For some reason our networked Brother color lasers eventually dislike waking from sleep, but otherwise are nice for the money.

IMO, lasers do a better job on regular paper. On coated, modern inkjet printers can output amazing stuff, but on copy paper the results are so-so. That can be relevant since you need to print on legal size paper for a lot of game covers, and coated paper is a lot less available in that size.

My observation is based on a Dell color laser I have at home that is poorly supported - I can only use the default/low quality settings - versus an Epson inkjet I got a month and a half ago assuming it would do a better job. On photo paper ($$$) it's spectacular. On the legal paper I was using, it's even less saturated than the laser printer. Still decent though.

[Hobie-wan]

Inkjet printing covers and things on cheap paper isn't too great IMHO. When it is just text, the paper doesn't get too damp and it is fine. When you print a picture on thin cheap paper, it gets so damp it will wrinkle and the inks will bleed together since everything is so damp. If that's going to be in a slipcase under plastic it might be ok if it doesn't bleed too muich, but as a top cover in a CD case it will be all warped and look crappy.