How much do you really need to pay for a top-of-the-range printer? If you don't need options such as Wi-Fi connectivity, faxing and self-contained photocopying, it might be less than you think.

A practically perfect Wi-Fi all-in-one printer for the photo enthusiast and document monger alike

A stickler for tradition, Epson's PX720WD resists the temptation of settling for five inks, as found in the likes of the Canon PIXMA MG5150 and HP Photosmart Premium C309G. So instead of getting both dye-based and pigment-based black inks as a compromise between document and photo printing, the Epson goes for the full 6-ink monty.

Wi-Fi is the way to go for home printing convenience, enabling you to output documents from any desktop computers or laptops around the home. But what happens when you're stuck at the office or out on the road and you want to print something out back at home? HP's new e-All-in-One series of printers feature a crafty ePrint system, which enables you to send emails direct to the printer itself, after which it will automatically create prints from any attachments that you've added.

Inkjet printers have a sloppy reputation for business printing. Run a highlighter pen over an important phrase of text and you're likely to end up with a smudgy mess. A few raindrops can make ink-printed envelopes almost unintelligible. Colour laser printers make a viable alternative but they tend to be big, heavy and expensive, so what's the answer? Epson bridges the gap between regular inkjet and laser printing with its resin-based DURABrite Ultra inks, which are practically dry by the time they hit the paper and are remarkably resistant to water, smudging and fading.

The word 'printer' seems too humble for most of the all-in-one devices currently on the market, which sprout full-colour LCD menu and photo preview screens, memory card slots aplenty and high-resolution scanners for photocopying. But what if you just want a straightforward Wi-Fi printer/scanner that you can use from all over, without all the extra bells and whistles? The new Canon MP495 might be just what you're looking for.

Though it's the least expensive of Canon's new generation of 'MG' all-in-one printers, the MG5150 still serves up a feast of features.

A multifunction printer with no real weaknesses

For all your home office requirements, the S405 makes good business sense

A small sheet-fed scanner with big performance

Lexmark used to give inkjet printing a bad name, serving up cheap, flimsy models that only ran for a few days on their 'installation' cartridges before needing replacements, which would often cost more than the original purchase price of the printer itself. The S605 represents a major rethink, ditching the tri-colour cartridges originally favoured by Lexmark and ushering in a single print head unit, fed by individually replaceable ink tanks .

HP pretty much invented desktop colour inkjet printing, launching its first DeskJet 500C model onto the market all the way back in 1991. For most of the time since then, HP has stuck rigidly to its dual black and tri-colour cartridge configuration, usually enabling you to swap out the black cartridge for an optional tri-colour 'photo' cartridge, boosting the ink range for six-colour photo printing.

Epson has always bucked the inkjet printing trend, using cool-running piezo-electric print heads to get the ink onto the paper, instead of boiling it in the conventional thermal fashion. The company claims this gives greater freedom when it comes to formulating inks, as the consideration of a rapid boiling and cooling cycle is taken out of the equation.

It's a fair few years now since Canon launched its ground-breaking five-ink printing system, featuring dye-based cyan, magenta, yellow and black inks, as well as a secondary pigment-based black ink in the line-up.

This photo printer doubles up as a digital photo frame

A scanner and Wi-Fi connectivity make this photo printer a very appealing option

This photo printer packs a scanner for those wanting to preserve their non-digital pics

This 5-ink photo printer creates stunning images in its own time

This bargain photo printer offers above average print quality

Can this new multifunction device continue Canon's recent run of successful printers?

Is this extremely cheap multifunction device a bargain or a false economy?

Why does an inkjet printer need a touchscreen and internet access?

Frankly, we're at a loss as to how Canon stuffed so much stuff into a single, inexpensive box

Fujitsu offer a speedy but expensive solution for loose-sheet document scanning

A speedy and great value printer for work or home