The same setting is used for the mixed document, printed on premium matte paper. The photos are printed on the best-quality glossy photo paper recommended by each manufacturer, using the printer's 'best quality' setting.

The results are also measured for moisture resistance (6.25%).

A document with a mixture of graphics and text (31.25%).

A typical black-and-white letter (31.25%).

The results are also measured for moisture resistance (5%)īlack and white inkjet and laser printers.

A colour document with a mixture of graphics and text (25%).

Printing quality is always a matter of judgement, so we make that judgement as objectively as possible with five trained panellists looking at four standard documents to represent common printing habits.

But it also means that some brands that have a lower profile around the world, or are more business-orientated, have to miss out.

This means we can report on far more products than we could test here in Australia, and at greater depth. Just like CHOICE, our partners in Europe buy the printers they test directly from retailers to make sure they're testing the same product the consumer buys.Īll the printer models they choose are commonly available worldwide, or have local variants. Our test labs use a panel of people, comparing results against standard benchmarks to minimise any bias. This gives us consistency in the quantifiable measures such as speed and ink consumption, and the more subjective area of the quality of output. Our testers have a huge range of experience. From their tests we pick out the models you can buy in Australia for our reports. We use professional labs in Europe that specialise in printer testing and test hundreds of printers every year. To test as many printers as possible to the depth that's required, we share costs and expertise with our sister consumer organisations around the world. We test multifunction, inkjet and laser printers to tell you what each printer can do, and just how much it'll cost you to use it over time. Add to this the costs of ink and toner cartridges which frequently cost more than the printers they serve. With dozens of models on the market, it's increasingly difficult to pick out the ones that do just what we want. Most other electronic gadgets we buy can be tried out in stores, but we can't really do that with printers.

Printer ink test sheet