Helpful information about paper and printer quality.

At the right is a close up snapshot (with a Sony Mavica digital camera) of the print quality from the Lexmark Optra N using Xerox paper. This is the paper sold at Office Depot.

There are all kinds of cheap paper out there. We recommend you raise your sights and get a better paper (this Xerox would meet our minimum requirement; lesser copier paper we would not recommend).

Office Depot actually sells laser paper that is of this acceptable category but if you go to Unisource, Xpedx, or MacPapers in your area you will find wonderful paper made just for reproducing photographs on your desktop laser printer.

"Multi-use" paper often means that it is an ordinary paper that the manufacturer hopes you will be gullible enough to buy. The lettering "special for laser" can also be just a relabeled copier paper. This is known as bait-and-switch. This is why it helps to have reviews available on the Internet.

If you are looking for a better paper, you ought to try out First Choice from Weyerhaeuser (Unisource or Mac Papers) or Futura Laser from Consolidated (Unisource).

If you wish to experience the 1200 dpi photo-quality of a GCC printer in your own office, and learn about the various options and solutions provided by GCC 1200 dpi printers, contact Bob Kinsella, e-mail If you wish to experience the 1200 dpi photo-quality of a GCC printer in your own office, and learn about the various options and solutions provided by GCC 1200 dpi printers, contact Bob Kinsella, e-mail bkinsella@gcctech.com

This Xerox paper is actually better than normal for a national chain store. Elsewhere, though, watch for the simply ploy of repackaging normal paper with a tag that says "Laser QUALITY, etc. Don't get suckered in by clever labeling.

We are continuously testing a wide variety of papers. It came as a surprise to find out what was available from the paper mills. Unfortunately you will not find the premium papers at the chair stores (it is not wise to buy laser paper at Walmart if you want to print photographs).

The laser printer companies themselves tend to recommend paper that is, at best, only average, and at worse, not adequate for reproducing photographic images. This is because most of these printers are really made for offices, for simple text, for mass producing tons of it. Cost, not quality, is what counts in that market.

But if you are reproducing a Maya work of art, this deserves a better quality. Here a full view of the 11x17 inch page hot off the press, with Xerox paper.

QMS sent us their 2060 laser printer and you can check out the reviews on two different web sites, www.cameras-scanners-flaar.org and www.laser-printer-reviews.org. We also review the GCC laser printer.

Additional reviews of laser printers, directory-index of www.laser-printer-reviews.org