In general hp printers tend to work fairly well. I have a deskjet 980cxi and it is fully supported, even the full duplex control. The only thing that I miss is the timer that dries the ink before flipping the page, but unless I print photos that's not a big deal.
The
Gentoo printing guide points out a link to the
LinuxPrintingGuide, where you can see how well is a printer supported. Since printers seem to be quite well supported in general, I would start by choosing three printers that you like based on magazine reviews, etc. HPs tend to be good but expensive (both printer and cartridges). Lexmarks are cartrige rip-offs and I wouldn't recommend them unless you need something cheap and print very little. As far as I know, Cannon offer a good price/value. From Epson I've heard varying things. Some printers have the head in the cartridge, while others separated (so you get a new head every time you change cartridge).
So decide:
- How much do you print
- How much quality you need. I personally don't care about photo quality, because I anyway order photos printouts online (cheaper+better)
- Inkjet or laser?
- Functionality (duplex, scanner, copier, etc)
- Size (fits on your desk?)
- Price
Make a list of your favourite three, and then see how well they are supported under Linux.
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