If you need a budget-priced multifunction device that excels in printing photos -- and if you can live without fax capabilities -- Hewlett-Packard's Photosmart C5280 is worth strong consideration. It offers several handy features that help produce excellent-looking photos, and it also allows you to print directly onto CDs and DVDs.

The unit's top color print resolution is 4800x1200 dpi, which is good for photos, as is its optional six-ink printing system. You can use the C5280's 2.4-inch color LCD screen to preview photos and print directly from a memory card. The C5280's 125-sheet input paper and photo tray is small, but the 20-sheet photo paper tray is handy. Although the C5280's top printing speed is 32ppm in monochrome, real-world print speeds will be much slower. It's also worth noting that the quality of this unit's printed text isn't quite as good as that of the photos it produces.

The C5280's copier function offers only basic features and limits the maximum number of copies to 50 at a time. The unit's scanner, however, yields outstanding results.

The C5280 runs quietly -- especially when compared to other budget-priced units -- which can be important in certain environments.

The C5280 has a few drawbacks that are worth noting. First, as with most budget-priced multifunction devices, this unit seems to use ink quickly, which means that the cost of ownership is high. Also, if you intend to use this machine with an older computer, the included HP software may run very slowly and cause some serious headaches. You won't be able to connect this device to a network; it offers only USB connectivity. And the C5280 isn't a workhorse by any means; HP recommends no more than 3,000 prints per month.

The C5280 compares favorably to other budget-priced multifunction devices; in fact, if it had a fax function, it would be near the top of the list.


Pros: Great photo-printing quality, great value, prints to CDs and DVDs, second paper tray for photo paper, color LCD
Cons: No fax capability, limited copier functions, uses ink quickly, lacks networking connections

Warranty
1 year, limited