I've come into this ink-jet printer thread late, but will add my two cents.
(1) For printers that require an ink cartridge with a validation chip (most of the new ones), there are several possibilities (a) replace with OEM at a high price, (b) disable the validation chip and refill the cartridge from bulk ink (best with high volume), (c) buy a generic ink cartridge and transfer the validation chip to the new cartridge (cheap but slow to replace), and (d) buy a generic ink cartridge that comes with a validation chip already installed (easy, cheaper than OEM)
(2) The quality of a photo print depends both on the ink and on the paper. I have found that Costco photo paper is both good quality and inexpensive. For ink, I like ink from Abacus Private Store http://private.abacus24-7.com/ Not the cheapest but high-quality ink.
(3) Strange, in my area Costco is free admission. b_s-wilk wrote:
Costco has a $50 per year fee for regular membership, $100 per year for business.
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