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"Major disappointment in photo printing function" on by frustrated bigtime
Pros: Does a fantastic job on text documents, extremely economical ink usage
Cons: Faulty photo print program
Summary: Just bought this printer 3 days ago after 3 weeks of research on ink usage and user opinions of about every printer out there. Kodak seemed to be the best of all so I made the 80 mile trip to buy the 5300. I refuse to pay HP's extortion ink prices now even if I have to upgrade to a laser. The 5300 did a fantastic job of scanning documents, also printed a couple hundred pages of text on draft which still made clear copies and hardly made a dent in the black ink supply. Tried the stand-alone photo printing for the first time tonight, it has taken over 2 hours to print 8 photos because of constant errors, only two are usable. Went through the entire sample pack plus 3 more. First photo took 5 tries, sent it through after printing about 1-4 inch on one end then said the printhead was loose and to remove it. This is impossible to do and no instructions anywhere on their website how to do it. Mashed on it, put the cartridges back in, shut the top and it was ready. Used the same paper, sent it through and got another 1-4 inch of print on the edge and gave the error message again. Printed 8x11 sheet of text, went through fine. Tried photo again, loose printhead message. I had the cartridges out at least 5 times, jiggling the printhead each time since it's impossible to remove. Next 5 attempts it would spit out the Kodak paper and say wrong paper size, to load A4 (it was A4). Had to cancel print and start over finding the photo I wanted to print, to get rid of that message. Very first photo looks like it's covered with sand although best was chosen. 2nd photo printed two-thirds of the way through and spit it out, no error message, just didn't go to the end. Same thing happened on the 3rd photo, got a partial. 4th printed perfect, wasn't doing anything different. 5th and 6th prints - got partials. 7th print - perfect. 8th print - got about 1 inch of print then it spit it out. Put the same paper back in, chose the same photo again, it reprinted the one inch same as the first time and spit it out. no error message saying why it doesn't complete. I think I got a lemon! Another 80 mile trip to return it. Back to Walmart for photo printing for 15c a copy. LOL
Updated
First time it printed 1-4" on the end and spit out and gave the 'missing printhead message' so I removed the cartridges and mashed on the printhead again, put the cartridges back in and it appeared ready to go. had to wait til the memory card loaded again, found my photo and cropped it (for the 4th time), turned the paper around and put the same one back in since only 1-4 inch was ruined. This time it started printing, but only got half-way through the 4x6 before it stopped and spit it out, again with no error message. I'm not wasting another single sheet of 4x6 photo paper on it. Nine sheets now,two good photos. What WERE they thinking when they designed this!!! Their heart is in the right place trying to bring some sanity back to the ink prices, but they've got to have a dependable printer or they will fall flat on their faces.Updated
I only gave it a 2 the other night when I was trying for the first time to print photos and kept getting error messages and was very frustrated. Once Kodak explained how to reinstall the printhead, it prints photos like a dream, along with scanning and text documents. I would change my rating to a 10 if I could :o) -
"Good TCO, good printer" on by sgrmba
Pros: Ease of use, ink cost, good support
Cons: Normal First model 'blues'
Summary: Bought printer - developed problem which was diagnosed as print head issue. Called Kodak, which has setup a dedicated toll-free number for supporting this printer. They sent me a new print head and everything has been great since and that was 4 months ago. No longer hesitate to print things. I have printed the normal home items from internet site to cards. I have made copies and scanned in items - very good outcomes for everything. Experimented with printing photos on several different qualities of paper and got excellent results with the better quality paper. Photos come out dry immediately. Agree that the software is average but have never expected stellar photo editing software to be packaged with any printer. If you want really good photo software, spring for Adobe Photoshop Editor, the recognized standard for this area. My Epson printers, the photo printer and their all-in-one, were atrocious. They ate me alive in ink costs. Constantly dried out requiring multiple cleanings which eat ink. My HP's did a great job of printing but again, too high on ink costs. The HP photo printer always produced excellent but very wet prints. I had to spread everything out on the table and allow to dry for hours. Plus - don't let them get near any water in any way. You think that can't happen but imagine looking through your photos and enjoying a cool soda on a warm day. That's right - combine condensation on your drinking glass with photo and guess what happens? I hope this isn't a temporary foray but the beginning of great all-in-ones from Kodak. Overall, I have been most satisfied with this printer (my 12th).
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"Excellent value, excellent service." on by rreeds
Pros: Affordable ink, outstanding customer service.
Cons: Wish it had two paper trays, one for photo, one for plain paper.
Summary: After a rocky start I am delighted with this printer. First one worked for one day and developed a problem at turn on the next day. Tech support was helpful, promised a new printhead ASAP. New printhead didn't solve problem but Kodak went the extra mile to make a happy customer. New printer, extra ink and paper for my trouble, even a follow up phone call to insure I am happy with the printer and the support.
Printer gives excellent quality on both plain paper (generic), and photo paper (Costco's brand). Kudos Kodak!
Ralph Reed -
"Great All Around Printer! I'm Loving this thing!" on by scott007holcomb
Pros: Prints everything I need it to- photos look great. My biggest praise is the cost of the ink- no matter what anyone says- in the real world it comes down to cost per page!!!!
Cons: Too big, too bulky- but all that is nothing compared to being able to afford the ink cartridges!!!
Summary: I was skeptical at first, but after having used it as much as I have- I love this thing! On average I print at least 50 4x6 prints a week (I'm a teacher and trainer)and at least 20 larger size and I have no issues with ink lasting or problems with the print head, I'm amazed and skeptical at some of the low ratings I've read (are the folks reviewing working for HP, Epson, Canon or Lexmark...hmmmm). For me, in the real world- it's all about one thing, cost per page and right now Kodak's printer is the winning me over with each print! All printers print, but which company will save me money per print, for now it's Kodak- step up to the plate HP, Canon, Epson and Lexmark!! You can do it!
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"Hugh disappointment" on by mixed56
Pros: Print quality is very good for my needs
Cons: Isn't working when I need it most ... tonight!
Summary: In July 07, my printer died when I was at deadline for a final research paper and my professor allowed me to e-mail my paper instead of turning in the required hard copy. Anyway, one paper down and two more to finish I shopped on the spur of the moment for a new printer. The sales rep at Best Buy highly recommended the Kodak EasyShare 5300 and I was sold quickly on the low cost for ink refills, as well as the Kodak reputation. Since July I have printed about 1,000 pages and maybe ten 4x6 pictures. Last night, while printing a research paper I replaced my black ink cartridge ... it has been downhill since and I am not happy. Even with the new print cartridge I have no black ink. I went to the support website to troubleshoot the problem and downloaded the firmware version that was recommended to take care of the problem. Of course, this didn't fix my no black ink problem. Therefore, I was back to trouble shooting and tried cleaning the print head and carriage with a damp cloth as they suggested ... and now I have a printer error 3802. I sent an e-mail to support services and they will get back to me within 24 hours. My paper is due tomorrow morning and now I have to be inconvenienced by finding somewhere to print before 7:45 am ...gurr! Honestly, I had planned on purchasing this printer for my daughter for Christmas ... however, at the moment that is not going to happen. Is there anything I may have missed in the self repair area?
Kodak EasyShare 5300 user reviews
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