thefellow;22653 wrote:the Canon Selphy CP-800 Sublimation printer of a good standard
It's worth reading up on dye-sublimation before you spend any money.
Any printer that's specifically called a "dye-sub" printer is not the type of printer you use for printing mugs. There is no printer that's been specifically designed to use dye-sublimation inks of the type used for mug printing.
Printers such as the Canon Selphy that you've mentioned use the dye-sub method for printing photos (the ink is sublimated to the paper). To print to mugs, ink needs to be printed to a transfer sheet without it undergoing the sublimation process. The sublimation process occurs under heat in a heat press when the transfer is attached to a substrate (like a mug).
It's a bit confusing because they both use the term "dye-sub", but it's easy to remember if you take into account that there is no printer specifically designed for the ink we use to press to mugs. What you need is a printer that can be used with the dye-sublimation ink that we use.
Some printers are "officially supported" by the dye-sublimation ink manufacturer (which means you're supplied with a colour correction ICC profile). Other printers can be used with the dye-sublimation ink, if you have your own colour correction profile made.
Dye-sublimation ink cannot be used in a printer that uses a thermal printhead (such as HP, Canon, Kodak, Lexmark, Dell, etc) because the heat in the printhead would prematurely activate the sublimation process. The ink can only be used in a printer with micro-piezo printhead (Epson, Brother, or Ricoh) because these printheads use a electricity-crystal process to print which remains cool.
Make sure you do your research before you part with your money. If you don't want to do the research then do as suggested here and buy a "package" from one of the reputable resellers of dye-sublimation ink so that you have everything that you need in the same box.
