Cheap ink cartridges and the overall lower cost of running an inkjet printer, combined with increased availability of photo printing services, means more people are using their home printers to produce hard copies of their photographs.

This is one conclusion drawn from a new survey of printing habits conducted by PC Advisor, which found almost two thirds (60 per cent) of respondents tend to use their device for leisure purposes.

Many models have the ability to print directly from cameras or USB drives, such as the MFC-J625DW from Brother, which was given a positive rating from the publication.

PC Advisor noted the need to print out business-oriented paperwork like boarding passes or contracts is likely to have fallen, however advanced features of new home printers mean they are still being used for business purposes.

A third of participants said the primary function of their device was for handling work documents and PC Advisor explained it is now possible to carry out double-sided scanning and copying from home, something that was once only possible on professional laser equipment.