Our fantasy inkjet printer would create stunning photos and perfect text in the blink of an eye, preferably with zero ink costs and complete autonomy. But that printer would also likely defy the laws of physics and economics. We're willing to settle for a more attainable ideal: A machine that produces impeccable photo quality prints at the speed of a dye-sublimation printer, while maintaining the cost efficiency of a laser printer, and a simple user interface of an inkjet. But there are some less obvious features that would also make inkjet printing a whole lot better. Here's what we came up with.

1. Universal Direct Print Standard It’s encouraging that several digital imaging manufacturers have teamed up and announced in December that they would endorse an industry print standard. And we’re looking forward to the day there’s a common print standard which allows us to connect a digital camera directly to any photo inkjets. Currently, only a handful of companies offer direct print convenience, and even this is limited to compatible machines from the same manufacturer only. (Read more here.)
	2. Let there be light We'd like a clear plastic window on the outside of the printer and a little light on the inside--like an oven--so that we could verify that printing's proceeding properly.
3. Intelligent diagnostics When printing, lines or pixels randomly drop out. Blocked nozzle? Printhead not firing on all cylinders? Usually, your only diagnostic tools--and we use the term loosely--consist of endless head-cleaning cycles and test prints. On top of the inconvenience and frustration, the cost of all that wasted ink adds up quickly. We need a little more self-awareness built into the printheads and the mechanism so that you can at least tell if the problem is physical, mechanical, or electronic. And instead of forcing more precious ink through the nozzles to clean them, what about an actual refillable cleaning solution--Windex, anyone?
4. More flexible paper handling We prefer the enclosed paper trays found in midrange laser printers; they keep the dust out and the paper flat. We'd take it one step further and put the enclosed tray at the back of the printer, rotated along its landscape edge, so that it can tilt up in a space-saving L-shaped path or lie flat to drive thicker media straight through the printer.
	5. Waste not Recyclable print cartridges, please. If manufacturers want to guard their lucrative ink-cartridge businesses by blocking third-party refill solutions, that's one thing. But they should at least take 'em back and do the refilling themselves. Combined with a paper-type sensor to reduce paper waste, this would make printers a lot more eco-friendly.
6. Pages per gallon of ink If a car can tell you how many miles per gallon you're getting at a particular moment, why can't a printer tell you how much it costs to print the last page or how many pages you actually got out of the cartridge you just replaced? Then we could make informed decisions about media, total cost of ownership, and finally settle the debate on the relative costs of single piece vs. separate ink-tank/printhead assemblies.
7. Mix-'n'-match colors As pigment-based inks start to pervade the mainstream, we'd like to see more interesting formulations, such as metallic or glow-in-the-dark colors. And it's time to start branching out of traditional fixed-color primaries (CMYK) into roll-your-own ink sets. For instance, if the only color in your document is a specific red for your logo, you should be able to use, say, three black ink tanks and one custom red tank for the most efficient printing.
8. Look Ma, it's waterproof Even with pigment-based inks employed in some inkjets, the fact remains that you can still smudge your photo prints with wet hands or even a drop of water. What we'd love to see is a printer that can spray a protective layer over its prints or blow-dry the media so that we can touch the printout immediately after without worrying about smudging the output.
9. Goin' wireless A few inkjet makers are now offering wireless Bluetooth connectivity, something we'd like to see become a standard feature on all printers. This way, all you need to do is keep 10m within range of printer or PC, and you'll be able to get printouts anywhere sans those annoying spaghetti cables.
	10. Retractable cables In the meantime, while that printer is still relying on mains and cables, we'd love to see cables that can be retracted back into the printer, much like most vacuum cleaners provide. And if possible, a simple slot at the back of the printer for the power brick should help hide the power brick as well. So if there's ever a need to move the printer from one location to another, you won't find yourself tripping over the cable and power cords.

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