Photo printers still aren't to the point where the cost per print justifies owning one. Color lasers are definitely a steal these days, as they are faster and the cost per page is less than an inkjet. You may pay more for a toner cartridge but it also lasts a lot longer than an ink tank. A mistake a lot of people make is buying a printer as part of a bundle with a computer. The printers that are included in bundles are usually the most inefficient models the printer companies make. They will eat you out of house and home in ink expenses in short order. Cheap, entry level printers sold separately are also huge consumers of ink. I actually got a Canon 1000 printer free with purchase of a 4 pack of ink cartridges once, and it tore through those ink carts in a few weeks. I'll never do that again.