Some — myself included — would say that printer evolution is spent. The ink-jet was essentially the end of the line for printer makers. By sticking some tiny holes in an ink bottle and hooking those selfsame holes up to electricity, you got a pretty passable imitation of most other high-resolution printing technologies at a price that is quite acceptable.
So we were OK with inkjet printers. It wasn’t a cool color laser printer but we’d buy one and print out some photos. Fair enough. But suddenly in cartridges started costing $40 for black and white and $60 for color. WTF, right? Well, Kodak pulled back the curtain on a minor inkjet evolution and I’m happy to say that they done good.
Introducing the Kodak EasyShare 5300. It’s big, it’s bulky, but it doesn’t cost a fortune to feed and maintain. It’s a printer that won’t make you think twice about making copies of your band’s flier or printing out a few hundred photos. It’s a good idea and I’m glad Kodak thought of it.
At $199.99, this printer/copier/scanner has quite a nice feature set. It has a SD/MemoryStick/xD card slot along with a CF card slot and has two front USB ports and can print straight from a memory key or PictBridge-compatble camera.
When I cracked open the box and set the printer up, I was surprised at the size. It’s definitely in the old-timey fax machine range rather than a standard inkjet and it weighs in at 21 pounds. That’s mostly because of the huge scanner platen and the oddly shaped ink cartridges that are actually quite large.
The printer uses Kodak’s KODAKCOLOR ink technology which does a few things. First, it offers a more precise ink dot layout and improves color-fastness and brightness. I don’t particularly believe most hype about color printers and instead base my assessments on actual high- and low-res prints on photo and plain paper. I printed and copied a few color items at Draft, Normal, and Best quality and found the images to be almost exactly alike, at least with fresh ink cartridges. A 4×6 high-res image of a phone took 30 seconds to print in draft mode and 29 seconds to print in Best mode and the images are almost exactly the same. Perhaps the Draft mode image is a little lighter, but only with a jeweler’s loupe — yes, I have one — did I see any major difference in saturation.
How are the photo prints? This printer, more than many I’ve seen, is truly Garbage-In-Garbage-Out. If the source is grainy, Kodak’s own technology won’t improve it. If the image is washed out, the printed version will be even more washed out. But if you feed it a nice, high resolution image taken with a good camera, you’ll get a great shot. On thing I did notice was a little fuzzing on the edges, more so than on the HP 7760, but both printers produced similar results.
Now, how does Kodak sell black ink for $9.99 and 5-ink color cartridges for $14.99? They completely offload the print heads to a separate carriage. Here’s how it works. You have the main carriage, the little part that swings back and forth. Then you have the print head into which you fit your ink containers. The containers have a soft, spongy mass that doles out the ink while the print head does most of the the work. Most cartridges come with the print head already installed, which makes them impossible to refill and is more a form of DRM than a practical ink solution.
Copies were quite bright and clear and full sized prints on plain paper were muddy but acceptable. Photo paper made all of the prints shine, as can be expected. Full-color, letter-sized images printed in about 1:30 while black and white documents printed in about 40 seconds.
The 5300 also has a large 3-inch LCD screen a fairly easy to navigate UI. The memory key support was quite useful and there were drivers for both Macs and PCs. Feel free to chuck the PC software if you already use a photo manager and on Macs the driver integrates with iPhoto and is all but invisible.
At less than $200, this is a perfect home printer. Moreso than many of the other printers I use regularly, the 5300 makes perfect sense in a number of scenarios, from printing out term papers to making a photo album for grandma. While it feels like a waste to print on photo printers with expensive inks and papers.
I have one beef: the printer doesn’t come with a USB cable. No biggie. The thing I’m happiest with? The 4×6 photo paper tray simply slides in an an LED lights up when it’s ready. That has to be the easiest switching system I’ve ever used.
Kodak knows the pain of change. They were a world brand that is now waning and only their printers and digital cameras can save them now. Will the 5300 help them back into the light? I think the concept and the price are quite sound and, given their brand awareness, the new line of printers offers a compelling alternative to the home and, to a lesser degree, home office user.
Like the “micro-innovations” this printer introduces – I wonder how HP (etc. ) will respond… the price for ink is about what you pay for 3rd party for current ink printers – looks like Kodak is going along the right path. Considering color laser printers can be had for but a few hundred dollars now, I wonder if the price point is a little high, might as well “splurge” for a laser for a little extra cash.
Jon
I think we have nothing but BAD about this printer gone through 2 printer heads and still is a piece of junk…………. I think it was not worth the money spent if all you do is have problems. I hope they learn from this disaster
Colour is not even close. service is awful. replacement printheads do not correct the problem.am being forced to change from my years of supporting kodak. they refuse to honour the warranty and simply give me a credit for their latest model. looking at the canon pixma which based on my predilection to a single manufacturer will result in a total conversion.Unfortunate and surprising.
I agree. The printer is junk. My advice to those who are not in the position to return their printers:
1) Remove the paper from the paper tray
2) Lift up the printer (enough so there is space between the printer and the desk)
3) Place the paper UNDER the printer
4) Enjoy your new Kodak AiO paperweight!!
Note: If the Kodak AiO paperweight does not hold the paper down, call tech support and they will replace, a-hum, the printhead??!
I know, bad joke!
I have had my heap of junk (5300) since January 08, upon unwrapping and setting up i was impressed ? well untill i tried to print a test page only to find that the print head was u/s. i took my unused printer back to the shop who’s name sounds like an indian dish only to be told that they could not do anything and a new print-head would have to come from Kodak, after spending a couple of hours on the phone a new print-head was sent and arrived three days later, to top it all they stopped selling the inks, now i need another head but i think the bin will get first choice, No more Kodak for me, maybe we can all send these useless printers back without any stamps attached? Dave in Brid
I Just got off the phone with tech support, with a guy I could hardly understand. I think we spent most of the time trying to understand each other. Well I am now on my second print head, the last one lasted about three months. I guess the old saying it true, you get what you pay for.
5300 worse printer I have ever had …
same issue like all the other people having problems — hardly used it at all — black will not print … wasted ink and time. Also sitting on hold forever to try to get another printhead. I’m screwed — I bought two of these things. Kodak needs class-action against them regarding this issue.
Beckie,
I very much agree with you. Kodak realizes they have a problem.
Kodak’s remedy?
1) Call Kodak tech support.
2) Connect to someone in India or Pakistan, who can barely speak English.
3) Waste your time repeating every thing you say.
4) Waste your time asking him (tech support), to repeat everything he is saying.
5) Continue the cumbersome conversation for about 30 minutes or so, until a resolution has been determined… Most likely, a new (NOT improved) print head will be mailed to you…
This scenario can continue with a 3rd printhead, a 4th printhead, etc., etc.. Maybe one out of five printheads will work? Is that the logic? I am a quality technician with an aerospace company and I am proud to brag that my company has a 99% quality yield rate and we have delighted very happy customers.
Kodak used to care about product quality. What happened? Apparently, the company is not willing to seriously address the obvious issues with the “Made in China” printheads. At least not to the CUSTOMER’S satisfaction.
I mentioned to the tech support person that I was into quality statistics and asked him what the percentage of calls to tech support were related to the printhead/ink cartridges. He actually laughed; embarassingly saying he was not permitted to answer the question. After he made that statement, I believe I got my answer. Not a percentage but an obvious admission to a very big problem.
I would encourage a class action suit against this shoddy product. If I were Kodak, I would pull the late night infomercials and go back to the drawing board. So much for Kodak product engineering!!
I would absolutely like to see a class action lawsuit against this piece of *&$#. I went down the road of talking to somebody who does not speak much English and got a print head. It worked for maybe a month and it is again a worthless paperweight. I will NEVER purchase any Kodak product again, that includes paper [I am sure that it will malfunction too]. Kodak DOES not stand behind their products. I liked the idea that they had of decreasing the cost of the cartridge, but attempting to save that money has cost me lots more. I went out and bought an Epson and am extremely happy with it. I have not yet thrown my Kodak paperweight out yet, but I intend to purge my home of anything Kodak. It is a sad thing when you try to buy American and you end up with a piece of crap like this.
I completely agree with above – I have had my 5300 for less than 1 year – I am on my third printhead and it is not working again. Overall -I have printed fewer than 50 pages of text and 20 photos. I had held for HOURS to get tech support, only to speak to folks who don’t speak english well. Obviously there is an ongoing issue with this printer at Kodak – I will never purchase another Kodak product.
I have a 5500 and I say Kodak has produced an okay fax machine and a good picture printer, but a very lousy all around machine. Poor printing, terrible software, terrible print heads, slow scanner, slow copier, noisy, jerky and high ink usage. The low cost ink cartridges are a poor value when considering how quickly the unit goes through ink. It is also very frustrating when the unit quits working after the black ink cartridge dies … no more scanning or faxing. Piece of Sh#t. I will also never buy another Kodak product.
I have nothing but problems and poor quality everything from this piece of junk. Its the worst printer/all-in-one I have ever experienced. I bought it because the tele-ad said it not only produced excellent quality prints but would save a fortune on ink. I bought it in 2008 and since then I have one reasonable quality photo and a maximum of 50 legible black-text only (in reality pale grey draft quality) documents from it. Every time I print I am asked to reorder ink cartridges. Now it will not even allow me to install firmware updates or restore it factory conditions. Until I buy yet more ink cartridges I cannot even scan or copy with this horrible pile of rubbish. My advice – if you see the Kodak brand JUST SAY NO!!! and spend your money of something that works.
Did you know that Kodak has great support, I purchased a 5300 AIO when they first came out and just with some simple maintenance it has given next to no trouble. You probably cannot upgrade firmware because your printer is not enumerating correctly. But what ever… You say no and I say yes. The 5000 series printer was the first of AIO kind for Kodak, you will always get teething problems… Give them a call 0870 243 0270. Try speak with Darren, he gives the best support.
Yeah, I agree Jon – I’ve been wanting a color laser and like you said, they’re coming-down in price. However, you cannot buy an all-in-one color laser for anywhere near the $200 this printer costs, so it probably still has a solid market. The last color laser AIO I saw was $600 or so, and I want an AIO since I do copying :(
Anyway, nice review. Epson uses the permanent print-head design as well, and that’s why their ink is less than the others. I believe that Canon does also.
The problem I had with my Epson is that I don’t print much and my house gets pretty hot during the summer. As such, the heads would frequently get clogged and need 4 or 5 clean cycles (which blasts tons of ink into the waste well) to get them working for a decent, but still not perfect, print. I wonder if Kodak has improved upon that disadvantage at all.
Mike
I bought the kodak printer. I had a couple of issues, one the rear door didn’t close correctly. Two the lcd stopped working. I had to return the printer.
The biggest problem I’ve had with printers is the paper alignment. Normally this doesn’t matter, but when printing business cards or slide labels, a lot of printers tlit the page enough that many of the labels are printed off the sticker, making them unusable. Did you notice how this printer performed in that regard?
Yes I printed labels for work and no problem at all there.
I have been following the evolution of the inkjet printers for a long time. My first printer was the HP photsmart 1000 and the print quality was excelent. I am into photography and shot and print a lot of photos. It printed great photos pluse the printheads were bult into the cartridges. When you replace the cartridge you also replace the printhead (neat) and they were easy to refill (if you were not looking for long lasting quality photoprints. I moved up to the Epson Stylus Photo RX500 all-in-one printer to save space on my desk. The printed Photos were outstanding and with the built in scanner it was a big pluse. The down size was that the print heads are built in the printer, the inkcartridge do not last long and are exspensive to replace. I tried using refill ink cartridges but they were good for normal printing, not for photo if you want them to last long( regardless what the refill supplies say or imply). I am very interested in Kodak easyshare printer. I think Kodak was behind the wagon of time and is about to move in front with it’s know-how in producing a good photo-printer. I am looking for any feed back on this or any other all-in-one priter.
The Kodak AIO uses ink not dyes like many of the others so prints should last. That is important to me after spending time making a scapbook watching them fade is sad.
I got my printer Dec 2007 had to get inks 3 times this last time I can not get the black ink to print and the colors are really bad.
I was told by sam’s club to bring it back but I did not tell them my husband got in Dec 2007.
I have had problem after problem with the 5300 Kodak Easy Share All – In – One Printer.
I need comments what to due.
I have a Dell computer and have good printers with them the ink lasted a year but this last one it crapped out and I was waiting for them to send me a rebate on a new computer, it came after he got this one. I should have taken it back and ordered from them.
Linda
Call Kodak or go to their website. You need a new printhead, and they’ll send you another one for free.
Its a piece of junk.
Think again!!!
I have had a model 5300 going on three months. I’m on the third color ink and second black ink and third print head. All together I have printed less than twenty pages of text and less than twenty photos. It works when you put new ink in for a day or two and then just quits printing black or shows low on ink. I have notified Kodak and they keep telling me it is print heads. I just ordered a new Canon ,I know the ink cost more ,but at least they work. I cannot wait on getting a new print head everytime I want to print a page and refill the ink. Cheap ink ???? not when you refill as often as I do!!!!
I AGREE. I HAVE HAD MY 5300 LESS THAN ONE MONTH AND IT WILL NOT PRINT.
AND WHAT’S WORSE I CAN,T GET A RESPONSE FROM THE MFG ABOUT TROUBLESHOOTING. I’M SURE I WILL RETURN IT FOR A DIFFERENT PRINTER.
I’m sure glad I’m not alone!!!! I have tried to 2 1/2 weeks to call Kodak regarding my 5300 not printing black ink! It showed full…so I bought another cartridge thinking maybe it was wrong? Nope, just no black. I called, on hold for 2 hours 5 different times! I emailed and no response. I finally got an email response that told me to do the typical “clean head”, etc. Like I haven’t done that 50 times!
Then, I called at 11:00pm one night. On hold again for 2 hours! WTF!? I finally set the phone down and went about my business until someone picked up. They finally did. She told me it was b/c of post-holiday sales! WHAT? It is January 24th! And are your products so crappy that your phone lines and email lines are that jammed upat 11:00pm PACIFIC TIME!?
They told me I needed a new print head. Well, this is #2 already….why don’t they just come with a case of them?
Great prints, but a pain in the arsh!
If you call in the middle of the night obviously you not going to get an answer you idiot. Do you work until 11 PM????
I am glad I am not the only one. Long story short, now they tell me that my Dell laptop is not compatible…What, Huhhhh??? Are you kidding me? I have asked Kodak for instructions on returning the printer, and I keep getting answers to try different things to keep it. So, If anyone knows or has returned the 5300 could you please let me know?
Thanks
just call and they will replace the printhead.
“I’m on the third color ink and second black ink and third print head. All together I have printed less than twenty pages of text and less than twenty photos.”
With all respect, this is simply not credible. Are you really saying you can only print seven photos per colour cartridge? And only seven per print head? And only twenty pages of text from two black ink cartridges??
Come on, George, you are overdoing your put-down of Kodak.
I am having the exact problem – he is not exaggerating.
I’ve gone through 2 print heads also, and still having problems. I put in a new cartridge and after about 30 pages, it says I am low on ink – even though the graphic shows plenty left. I won’t buy another Kodak printer!
I’m also experiencing the same problem. No exaggeration. I don’t print a lot, and this P.O.S. is definitely not a money saver when the inks quit working well before they are fully used. Plus, I have to wait a week for a new printhead any time I want to print a document.
I totally agree with Peter UK. That does not even seem possible, besides cannon’s printheads are built into the printer as well, who knows you could have the same issue with canon as well. There’s always one bad apple in a bunch, especailly with electronics. Maybe you should of returned the printer to your local Best Buy and got a new one there is such a thing as a 30 day return/exchange policy!
ONE bad apple? I did return my first one…now my second one is on the fritz, going through printheads! Gimme a break…this does not hardly constitute a “bad apple” in the bunch when everyone is having the same problems. I cannot afford to wait on hold for hours…get a reply 2 weeks later, and then wait for the printhead to arrive in the mail…I have things to print and do! If they go out this often, why aren’t they SOLD at BESTBUY!!!!!???? Why do I have to wait to get in touch with Kodak (which is impossible) and have it sent via mail? Poor customer service, I’m sorry! Poor product, I’m sorry.
I bought the 5300 in January. Encountered the print head malfunction this past weekend. Several calls to Kodak- reached tech support in India, of course. The second support chap was very helpful after the first guy had me jumping through downloading firmware and uninstalling and re-installing cartridges and unplugging and replugging the printer. Received a new printhead assembly today and, based on all your comments, will hope for the best. Why DOESN’T Kodak make these assemblies available in Best Buy etc.?!!
John, You’re absolutely right about GIGO. I’ve had one of these 5300s since they first appeared on BB’s shelves. Color photos that I’ve shot with my DSLR are really pretty good using the medium-grade value pack paper (they call it “Premium”) and the 4×6 prints wind up costing less than $0.15 each. But try to print a low-res graphic image and the results are generally unacceptable in my opinion. I’ve had no hardware problems at all and I’ve printed 100’s of 4×6 prints and many pages of text. My biggest complaints (so far) concern the clunkiness and of the software interface (on XP), and I’m hopeful that Kodak can fix this over time.
I purchased a Kodak EasyShare Printer for use at school. I had trouble right from the beginning and the “support” over the 1 1/2 hour phone call read from a script. I am returning it as soon as possible. It scanned a few pictures and then froze. It printed twice and stopped. Does anyone have the name of another all-in-one that works?
I purchased the HP1510 all in one printer with my computer and I am totaly satisfied!! My daughter is at the everything project years in school and so far (2 years) later all is still perfect and the ink is cheaper than most others when purchased in the combo pack.Five star in my books.
Well the back door does not fasten properly so none of the functions work. Even when I hold it shut, the scan never functioned. Seems to be pretty shoddy workmanship. I’ll exchange it at Best Buy, but I have little faith that another will work.
Nice review. I’m waiting on the EasyShare 5500 model release reviews.
If Kodak can quickly work out any product bugs and offer excellent customer service they will have many brand XYZ converts! If they fall short then they aren’t going to gain much market share and are going to lose potential growth to others that can get the job done better.
I’m currently in the market for an Aio printer and I know it is not going to be a color laser due to cost of ownership, or an HP brand anything. There is no way I am going to spend ~$750 a pop on a set of 4 toner cartridge replacements for a color laser! Just isn’t economically feasible for a home office set up and I hear photo quality is not good. I’m PO’d at HP for two reasons: 1. Their historically expensive inkjet cartridges and their decision to not support my HP 3150 mono Laser with a Vista driver release.
Anyway, I sincerely hope Kodak can get this line of printers working well. If they do they will have my business!
I only wish the MemJet printer technology patented by Silverbrook was here now! That seems to hold a lot of promise!
http://texyt.com/silverbrook+memjet+technology+available+desktop+photo+wideformat+hp+edgeline+comparison
I tried one of these printers and had nothing but problems. I printed about 10 pages before the unit told me the print head or cartridge was not installed properly, and this was without touching the machine. At Kodak’s direction I exchanged it and the new unit had the exact same problem. I’m returning it in the morning for a refund and buying a Canon Pixma instead. It might not be as inexpensive to buy ink, but at least it will work.
John,
I worked for Best Buy for a year and bought a Kodak 5300 on my last day there. (I moved to an engineering job with lot’s more promise.} My experience has been mostly positive with this AIO. I love the feature that I can put 4 each 4×6 pictures on the glass, and the software separates them into four files to my HD. I did have trouble with driver installation, but that’s my fault! The instructions didn’t say the included CD had a driver compatible with VISTA. So I tried searching the internet to find one. Kodak’s online help told me to load the driver on the CD and it works fine now. I’ve printed lots of business cards, lots of plain paper documents, and use the 24 lb paper. There are no “indexing” problems and my biz cards all look splendid through Word 2007! I ordered Kodak’s “duplex” unit that will plug into the back door on my AIO printer. I have 3 years experience duplex printing on my HP6540. But HP never came out with a successful VISTA driver for the HP. So I bought and gladly use my new Kodak 5300. The best feature for printing Color Pictures, is the clear “fixer” included in the color cartridge. This prints on and “seals” the picture over the ink. But you have to use good quality (Kodak) photo paper so the ink penetrates into the layers so the “fixer” can go on top. The previous respondents who have ink/print-head trouble have done something wrong when they setup their AIO’s. My Kodak 5300 AIO works GREAT and I’m glad to tell everyone about it!
Is there anyway I can load just the drivers for the AIO and not the rest. It takes over my whole PC. Other wise I love the Kodak AIO. Thanks
Dan
Yes, day you can just load the drivers for the AIO and not the rest. When installing the software, do not choose typical install but rather custom. When the list comes up of what is to be installed, install none of them. It will just install the necessary drivers. This solution reported on http://www.computerworld.com
Roger,
Thank you very much!!!!!!!!!!!! This will make life alot easier.
Dan
Roger,
Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This will make my like alot easier.
Dan
I need the fax feature; has anyone purchased the 5500 and used it with a MAC? Thanks.
My experience with the 5300 on Mac has been a slow one. Seem the drivers take forever to transfer data to the printer & therefore it takes forever to print even just one page of text. I have had a couple of issues with printing also. At one point the printer would not print. I spent over an hour with tech support cleaning after cleaning before they finally sent a replacement print head. By then the ink was quite low from all of the cleanings that had been done. Well, I returned the print head with the return shipping label Kodak supplied & they mailed me one black & one color cartridge. If Kodak could improve the transfer/print speed on Mac I would be more satisfied!
Same problem I had with my iMac….too bad. Kodak has a good rep and I thought this would be a good printer. Kudos to Best Buy for refunding my purchase. I went back to Canon with fair customer service, good print quality and very expensive ink cartridges.
I have the Kodak 5500 only problem I have had so far is a message paper not loaded correctly so after pressing the ok but 25 times it prints :)
I really have to wonder what business this guy has reviewing printers. He obviously has zero experience with any consumer printers.
His one beef: No USB cable.
HELLO. Printers DON’T COME WITH USB CABLES. Period. Buy an HP, Canon, Brother, Oki, etc. You won’t get a single USB cable. Why? Retailers can sell you them at a markup and make some extra money while printer manufacturers save money by not having to produce/buy cables. Both sides win.
If the reviewer doesn’t know that every printer doesn’t come with the USB cable, it shows that he doesn’t know enough about printers to accurately review and grade a printer.
In my experience, these Kodak printers are cheap. I don’t own one, but I work in a retail store. If you just pop open these printers and look inside, you can see the cheap materials.
I installed the printhead, and 50 percent of the time when I close the top, the printer tells me through the LCD, “Print head not installed correctly.”
I can open and close the top 3-4 times and it works fine.
BUT, when I print out a photo the printer has pretty poor quality. You can visually see the lines of the photo. We’ve got sample photos provided by Kodak that are NOTHING like those printed out by the actual printer.
I’d honestly compare the photo quality of these printers to those of HP’s Officejet line, and the HP OJ series costs even less per photo (Hp’s 7580, 7680, and 7780).
These printer can’t even hold a candle to HP’s C5180 AIO printer as far as photo quality, and that printer retails at the same price.
BUT, there’s only one thing I’ve yet to test out on the Kodak printers. Water resistence. HP’s photos, while they’ll theoretically last you 100 years, will bleed if a drop of water lands on them.
HP will tell you differently. They’ll say that if you use HP paper they won’t bleed. False. They do. I’ve tested it :).
If Kodak’s photo prints don’t bleed, it may actually be worth purchasing. It’s fairly inexpensive to print off of (Don’t be fooled by, “OMG It’s only $10 for black and $15 for colors!!” It makes no difference in the grand scheme since you’ll be replacing the cartridge more frequently, and it comes out comparable price per page wise against other inkjets in the same price bracket), has decent print quality, and decent print speed. If the photos are actually waterproof, the printer might be worth purchasing.
Personally, if I were to buy one, I’d buy an extended warranty. Looking inside the Kodak printers just screams, “Cheap.”
I can assure you that the Kodak pictures are waterproof. My grandson had a 4×6 picture in his jacket pocket. My daughter washed his jacket. The picture not only survived the washer, but it survived the dryer! Edges were a little frayed, but that was it.
They do scream “cheap” I can’t believe how much I have saved already!! This AIO is GREAT!!
The reason printers do not come with cables is that in a lot of cases a standard length cable might not be suitable for the customer.
However in this neck of the woods Brother printers do come with cables, not in the box but supplied seperately
Has anyone else experienced the “scan” function not working but everything else does ? I can make copies fine, printing photos and text has not been a problem.. I do get the occasional “Print head not installed correctly.” message but I can work around that. It’s just when I try to scan a document. It “warms” up then the menu pops us, I select my choices and hit start. Display shows “scanning” but nothing happens.. After a few minutes, the display goes back to the menu mode (as if it completed it’s task !).. Any clues ?
i have the same thing happen to me with the scanner part as well. i have called kodak a number of times and they thought it was the printer so sent me a new one and the same outcome. i have tried everything and still cant figure it out
D a Firmware update: http://www.kodak.com/go/drivers
I have for some time been scouting for a good AIO for my personal use. Photography is an old hobby of mine and i do photoprinting quite regularly.
Having experienced the great nuisance value, by accident or by design, I am determined not to buy an HP printer.
Canon’s reviews are not bad but the prospects of heavy ink bills is alarming.
If Kodak’s claim of low priced ink is true then it is going to be my choice, and like me of many others who work on frugal budgets.
The greed of companies like HP and Canon is scandalous. How long do they expect to get away with this open loot? Are they not writing their own obituary in costly ink?
Maybe I’m the only one, but my 5300 is the biggest useless paperweight I’ve ever owned. The first one printed only 176 pages between 4 sets of ink and 2 different printheads. It would gum up after sitting stationary for a few days. The replacement printer lasted 4 pages until issuing fatal error 3809. I do not how much Kodak paid to develop this albatross, but HP has nothing to worry about. I’m waiting for Kodak ’s lackluster customer support to determine what to do with this one. The thing about printers is they never work when you need them and this Kodak seems to never work at all.
My 5300 keep telling me my paper is loaded wrong. Rejects the paper unless it is upside down.
Why Can’t I read any of these 100+ messages?
I just bought this printer at Circ City. I followed the loading instructions and now I smell something burning. The LCD says the printhead is missing or loose, so I have reseated it 10x. I called 1-800-421-6699, option 20, just like the paper in the box says. So far, it’s been 22 minutes and I am listening to country music and hearing the woman say they’re sorry every 2 minutes or so. “Thank you for holding…..check kodak.com/go/support…”that hasn’t helped.
Not a good start. I am guessing they will be sending me a new printhead.
Had the same thing happen. The printhead melted down. I returned it to Best Buy and got a new one. Now I have the same problem that I’ve seen posted all over. No black ink. Bad support. 2nd printhead. Worked great for a day or two. Not what I expected.
The instructions say load the paper face down. If you used phot paper would you want it to print on the back or front. LOAD the paper upside down!
if the paper is photo paper is is supposed to be loaded upside down
My 5500 lasted for 1 photo and 2 copies when the fatal error message 3809 popped up, printhead is not installed correctly. When I read the comments posted I realized I had made quite an error too! Buying a Kodak printer. I agree the print quality is nice, but the printer doesn’t work. Go back to the drawing board Kodak.
Bought it yesterday and it worked. It worked today for a while. I went out and came home. Fatal error 309 – call service. No service in middle of night. It goes back to Office Depot tomorrow – and I go back to the trusty HP brand. Cheap ink is no value if the printer doesn’t work. I don’t have time to screw around with a shoddy product.
The print head and cartridges do not go in and out easily – so I wonder about the long term performance of this printer too.
I meant fatal error 3809 too. Seems to be a popular one
Have someone an id howe to make a total reset of the machine? I get the error “printhead not installed”
I tried eveything…
So, I got the whole Printhead error too, but what I did was take out the cartridges and then Unsnapped the actual tray that was holding the ink Cartridges.
I also cleaned off the bottom of that since it had some stray ink, but I don’t think that was quite as important.
What happened was that the little tray that holds the ink cartrigdes (which is actually the Printhead) got loose so all I had to do was snap it back into place.
Now everything’s peachy!
First comment, I wish I had been able to find this website and the valuable feedback before I purchased my Kodak AiO. The lack of candor of the product on the net should have been a clue but clueless I purchased a machine that can scan, take up space and give me error messages, partial prints, and hours of grief. No one should have to put up with this much grief with a printer. I appreciate the time John Biggs has devoted to reviewing the Kodak AiO and fear that the bottom line in respone to the final paragraph of his review is that Kodak spent a lot of money and time developing a machine that is as good as some of the Vapor Ware of days past.
I followed the directions, plugged it up and got a “fatal printer error” – error code 3809 message right out of the box. I’ve been on hold now for 35 minutes to “get help”. While on hold i’ve been reading these comments. i think i’ll box it up while i’m still in the 7 day return period and get an hp. Like another reviewer said, it may cost more, but it’ll probably work. I am also disappointed in the fact that Kodak’s own support site doesn’t pull up this error when i search for it.
Got the Kodak 5300 AiO today set it up tryed it out and the picture
quality is very poor and color is dull its going back to Office Depot
tomorrow my old HP 750 all in one was sharper and more colorful than
this thing. I am very disappointed in kodak
I bought my first KODAK AIO (5500) on June 30, 2007. As of yesterday, Kodak has suggested sending me a third one! I am so frustrated with this machine. The ink is lasting longer than the whole printer! I’ve had almost all the problems listed in the comments above. First, it was the errors about the print heads not being installed properly after they originally were working. I had labels get stuck inside and could never be found. The paper not being recognized, having to place it opposite up otherwise it thinks it’s out of paper when it clearly is not. And now, my latest dilema is that the fax capabiities have just stopped working (sending/receiving) altogether. I’ve decided when the new one arrives, I shall pack up this one, send it back and most likely take back the new one to Best Buy and get a different maker altogether. I had an HP 2200 for over four years and this Kodak brand sounds as clunky when engaging printing as the old HP did when it was on its last leg. My husband is a Kodak employee, so our intent was to ‘keep it in the family’ but I can’t take all this time and energy to be on the phone for 2 hours at a time troubleshooting when all I want is either a simple print or a simple fax sent or received. I would love to hear from anyone with better luck elsewhere or a comparable AIO product.
Just got a 5300 and did the calibration ok went to copy a simple text page and guess what fatal print error 3809. Worst part is I spend half aday reading great reviews from the web on this printer and only when I search the error code did I find this site!!!
We’ll see what support says in the morning
Has anyone had a problem printing envelopes, i can`t see to get them to print i have tried everything, nothing works, i have a 5300 Kodak all in one printer
YES!! Every time I have tried to print an envelope…putting it in just like it shows on the tray, it spits it out with the message “Load the paper correctly” or “You paper is not loaded correctly” Either way, I have not been able to get the printer to print postage on an envelope directly via my Stamps.com account.
I have been very annoyed with EVERY printer I have bought over the last 5 years other than my EPSON Stylus 1270 which still works perfectly every time.
Printer manufacturers have made the interfaces so bogged down with crap you can print every day output.
Same problem with my printer, also the AiO 5300. Fatal error 3809 and the message that the printhead would not be in place. But well, it is. The error occured while printing, and no Kodak support is available. The comments on this site enforce me in thinking that I’ll never get it fixed… let’s see.
So. Since my HP printer kicked, I’ve needed a new printer for printing fliers, CD labels, jewel case inserts and other business related items. Yeah, error 3809. Right out of the box. Based on these comments, I think I’ll disassemble the ink cartridges and print head and try reinstalling it, see if that does the trick. If it doesn’t work, it’s back to China for this spruce goose; and no, that’s no two way ticket.
If you get a print head related error, just go to Kodak’s web site; they will ship you a new print head assembly overnight. That will fix it.
First thing to note, this is designed nicely and engineered nicely but manufactured in China. Manufacturing defects are the result of a slave labor pool and greedy corporate management believing that customers will put up with high failure rates for low prices that keep their profit margin up.
Ok, given that. Without touching the software, the printer was setup and tested. Copied a photo to plain paper. The scan speed was good and the print speed was fine. The print was darker and muddier than I expected but it was an acid test dark low contrast photo. Overall, “OK”.
Then tried to scan to the memory card. Scanner started, stalled, sat there. Tried again, again, again… Between lockups, it scanned fully twice but both times failed to write to the memory card. Tried again (x20) using 3 different memory devices, formatted them on the AiO without issue yet scanner would error out saying it cannot write to the device at the very end of the scan.
Thorough this process the printer once said I must call service and twice said the print heads were not installed properly. Did not touch the heads.
I suspect this the result of flakey firmware. I will look for some firmware update somewhere and install the software on my Mac to give that a try but ultimately this must hang off of a wireless router (Airport Extreme 802.11n) and be a scanner for more than just one person to use against memory sticks. On paper this printer looks good. Using paper this printer is tango uniform so far!
Bought from Office Max 15-Sept-2007 for $199 with a $40 rebate ($149 net)
This is, by far, the WORST printer I have EVER purchased and used. I am so sorry I plunked down the cash for this p.o.s. If anyone is considering buying this printer because of the “low prices on ink” – believe me – it’s NOT worth the aggravation and wasted paper.. STAY AWAY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have had a 5300 at home since the end of June WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS and the PRINT QUALITY IS BETTER THEN ANYONE ELSE’S……
Heres the deal I run a computer shop and have for over 20 years and we travel locally in the tri-state area and we have TRIED many different Brands name printers and NONE have ever worked this well….All these people beating down KODAK I have to challenge, We have installed over 30 of these in the past 2 months without any major problems, Setup is pretty easy if you pay attention just as with any computer product.
First thing people need to do is to go to Kodak on-line and load the new firmware updates and install FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS because you are Flashing the Firmware, it’s simple.
In the Office I have 1 Kodak 5300 networked for all the computers and 1-5300 set-up as just a Copier without any computer, ALL HAVE WORK FLAWLESSLY. THEY ALSO SAVE ME MONEY EVERYDAY
We did have 1-5300 about a week ago that had the back service door that the customer tried to shove it in and broke the tab.
These PRINTERS work GREAT and the only reason so many people complain about them is this is KILLING all the other printer companies our INK cost is less then half of what it was 4 months agoand we have expanded our business.
Quality of PICS IS GREAT through the 5300, but get the highest quality paper Don’t be cheap. we also have a G610 Printer Dock for a new Z712IS Kodak Camera and these PRINTS ARE STORE QUALITY AT LEAST. VERY HIGH QUALITY PRINTS they are also water proof just like getting them done at the local FUJI or KODAK center……
The INK is top quality for the 5300 Printer and the G610 docking station…..There must be a lot of company people on here for HP AND LEXMARK AND CANNON AND EPSON writing all these bad reviews. All I know is My customers are EXTREMELY happy and SO AM I WITH KODAK
I WOULD LOVE IT, BUT IT STALLS OUT HALF WAY INTO PRINTING A PICTURE. NOT ALL OF THE TIME, BUT VERY OFTEN, I HAVE WASTED SO MUCH PAPER AND INK. THEY SENT ME A NEW ONE, THE SAME THING HAPPENS. I THOUGHT MAYBE IT WAS A VISTA PROBLEM….WHAT DO YOU THINK?
I really need to Thank You your review would be why I got mine! THANK YOU!!
I have over 20 years tech experience with pc systems and this printer is bad news, not as a good choice.
Great features, but poor poor quality, and all the complaints are real and accurate. I am experiencing them all.
If all your customers are so happy, let them place their comments here so we can all see them.
Maybe Kodak has started to make a better product now and has improved over the last batch of junk they first sold to me.
I worked for Kodak and I want to give you all some inside information on some of your products… Any questions?
I have a 5300 and am generally happy with it–good quality prints and affordable ink. Yes, there have been problems with the printhead every few months, but all I had to do was go on line, go through a fairly straightforward diagnostic process, and Kodak shipped a new [free] printhead that arrived in 3 or 4 days. No call to India required.
2 Follow ups, The printer head error is from not properly installing it or the sensor not reading it correctly, we have had 2 that had this issue and we just popped it out and and re-installed the head, then updated the firmware and the problem went away. These were customers that bought theirs on-line and set-up themselves. They never thought of updating the drivers or firmware and never heard of firmware. We only service PC were don’t mess with Mac anymore so I have no idea how these printers work with Macs nor do I care to investigate anything to do with MAC anymore.
Also The 5300 beats the hell out of any HP, Cannon, Lexmark, Epsom….We have to deal with all Brand names and so far there is a Cannon that prints really good also but the others aren’t even close to the new KODAKS
Most all the So-called Problems I see listed above could have been handled with just the firmware updates. People that buy any computer parts, Printers, Routers you name any part manufactured for computers the FIRST THING YOU DO IS GO ON-LINE AND CHECK FOR UPDATES, THATS STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE FOR THE LAST 15 years
ONCE AGAIN ALMOST ALL THE COMPLAINTS COULD HAVE BEEN CORRECTED EASILY THAT WERE POSTED ABOVE WITH THE FIRMWARE UPDATES… Oh and it prints Envelopes PERFECTLY and even in Quickbooks with LOGOS
THANK YOU!!!!!!!!! Darman. I red all these bad reviews while thinking of purchasing a 5300. I’ve also been a geek for about 15 years. I told my wife that these must be newbies trying to do software updates instead of flashing the firmware. You have to have both. …………oh and don’t forget to uninstall your old printers before installing a new!! You are confusing your machine!!
I’m going to purchase a 5300 and I’ll post a review in a couple weeks… good or bad.
Good luck, Jack.. I’m not a “newbie”.. I’ve followed the instructions, ** had downloaded the latest firmware as soon as I got the printer **, have the ink heads in correctly, etc.. etc.. The only thing this printer is good for is a paper-weight.. Works, it doesn’t work. It prints a 4×6, next one, stops halfway. Printing 8×10’s is a “hit-n-miss” project. If I have to re-install the printheads any more, I’ll wear them out.
No doubt the color and the quality of the pictures (when it DOES work correctly) are top-notch, I’d agree with those comments (and yes, I DO use the best paper Kodack offers). But I’d have to say that only one out of every three prints actually print with no problems. I’ve NEVER been able to print 2 pictures back to back with no problems.
Now, if I bought this printer for printing just plain b&w text documents, my opinion would be different. No problems there. But that’s NOT the reason I bought this printer..
So Jack:
1) the “firmware update” doesn’t always fix what’s wrong with this printer
2) I really hope the printer you get stuck with works as flawlessly as some of the folks have said
3) I do NOT work for any companies that are rivals of Kodak (so I really don’t have any stake in the game as to one way or the other)
4) SAVE THE RECEIPT.. (u may need it…)
Good Luck !
* Update * – After re-installing the latest “firmware” (again), rebooting, etc., I just tried to print a document and (2) 4×6’s.. ahahahaha….
The doc printed fine..
However the first 4×6 came out halfway printed – now I’m looking at the “printhead missing, not installed correctly, blah, blah, blah” message !! What a riot. Imagine all this happening to the printhead in the course of actually printing something..
That’s firmware ?
Good luck, Jack.. I may see you on the return line soon..
Printhead missing problem appeared just 2 hours after installing and after only half a dozen colour prints. The print quality is good but I don’t think I can trust the printer to be reliable having read all the details and problems listed above. Kodak really need to sort this mess out as a printer that has the potential to be great really is becoming a white elephant.
Installing the latest Firmware did nothing, apart from take up another hour of my time and increase my frustrations. Taking out the cartridges and printhead several times and reinstalling them, following the guidelines very carefully, although I must have done it right in the first place as I have printed a few items, also failed to get rid of the annoying error – you can’t even turn the damn thing off, so I have now removed the plug from the mains and will be going back to the shop in the morning to argue with the salesman who pursuaded me to buy one.
Wondering if anyone has experienced a certain ink color not working. I’ve installed brand new cartridges, re-seated the printhead, re-booted, stood on my head… still no red ink.
Any ideas?
Yes, lots. When your cartridge is not detected it normally indicated one of 2 things. Your cartridge is after market and not Kodak brand or its not making correct connection to the printer. Give us a call… we can help… 0870 243 0270…
Ha, bought this today – another fatal error 6203, scanner can’t scan the calibration page for some reason – back to where it came from!!
This indicated: SCANNER_ERROR_HOME_NOT_DETECTED.
Have you tried a firmware upgrade? http://www.kodak.com/go/downloads and follow the prompts…