After just completing a large photo project, I'm in the get it printed somewhere else crowd. My personal preference is Snapfish for low cost and fast turnaround.
With that said, I've had two 4x6 photo specific printers. One from Kodak and one from HP -- both died very quickly. The Kodak was replaced under warranty but the second one died as well. I liked the Kodak because it used a dye-sub technology that included sealing the print like a professional printed photo. I don't like the fact that inkjet prints always seem to find some water and run. We currently use a Canon Pixma MP 620 multifunction printer to print everything from photos to online receipts. It does gorgeous photo printing but it voraciously consumes expensive ink. It seems I'm replacing cartridges every other week.
I do like this site for consumer information
http://www.consumersearch.com/photo-printers and
http://www.consumersearch.com/printers
BTW a helpful tip I ran across this weekend for saving on ink for inkjet printers is to turn off your printer with it's own power button. This will set the print heads to prevent drying of the cartridges. Also try and print something once a week to keep the cartridge print heads from drying.