Kodak Professional 8500 Dye Sublimation

Review Date
November 30, 2003

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
0-1 years

Visitors rate this review
4.67 of 5, 3 votes

Reviewed by
bhphotonerd , Intermediate

Price Paid
$895.00 at B&H Photovideo

Summary
Overall there has been very few things that I have been this impressed with since I have been involved in photography. The only thing that I have been this impressed about was my Canon EOS3.

Totally neutral B&W's and great colors. Set-up takes a cautious user 20 minutes to print the first photo. I noticed that the first two prints had some spots, due to dust during setup.

I have used this on a Semi-Formal business function and every customer was VERY IMPRESSED with the quality and speed of recieving their prints. Most have had to wait for them to arrive in the mail, this time they got them on the spot

Strengths
Very high quality prints
Fast
Neutral B&W's & great color
Per sheet cost is reasonable
No mess, clogs, multiple cartridges etc.
Simple controls

Weaknesses
Big investment at first, (I spent $2100.00 total for printer and enough paper & ribbons)
Software is lacking, you get a driver disk and Photoshop Elements (I think most people buying this probably have a full version of Photoshop), I just figured you would get an automated calibration tool or something.

Similar Products Used
HP 895CSe "Photo Printer"

Customer Service
Not needed yet or hopefully ever.

Review Date
October 15, 2003

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
0-1 years

Visitors rate this review
2.50 of 5, 2 votes

Reviewed by
J , Professional

Price Paid
$850.00 at B&H

Summary
I needed a fast, high quality printer, and ended up looking between the Epson 2200 and the Kodak 8500. I do some event photography, and the Kodak's speed was a definite plus. Also, I don't print daily. With my previous Epson's, unless I printed the whole cartridge set within a week, they clogged - some so badly I had to use an ENTIRE new cartridge to clean the heads.
Quality-wise, the Epson wins HANDS DOWN! With the included software I printed the most neutral B&W photos I've ever seen without a rip or special inks. I can print as many or few photos as I want at a time and NEVER clog the heads, it's wonderful. Yes, the per-print cost is about $1.50, but at an equivalent quality, it's a wash between this printer and the Epson. That is, unless you include screw-ups. Inkjets band, it's a fact of life at some point. Once I set up the Kodak, it's printed with the same incredible quality since - no streaking, banding, or clogs.

Strengths
FAST
Great quality
Never clogs
Per-print cost less than inkjet in longrun
It sounds dumb, but customers LOVE seeing "Kodak Professional" on the back of their archival prints, much nicer than "Epson".
Similar quality to Lightjet - makes excellent lightjet proofs for when you need to have stuff printed VERY big

Weaknesses
Very expensive initial investment
Limited to one paper type - but, I kept my Epson for the chance I'd need to print on watercolor paper.
Limited to 8x10 - if I need bigger, chances are I'll be going REALLY big on a Lightjet

Customer Service
Haven't needed it