Printer Shopping Driving Me Batty

[doitmyself]

I need a new computer printer my 2 person workplace office and trying to wade through any review material is nearly impossible.

I think I want a laser at minimum for "better" text quality and smudge resistance. Mono vs. color? Single use vs. Multi function? I'm working on this. Will definitely be under $500.

My main review sources are PC mag. and PC world. What's killing me are the reliability/customer service surveys at PC World: http://www.pcworld.com/article/244555/pr..._the_field.html The old standbys HP, Xerox, and Dell are disappointing. Canon, Brother, Epson, and Samsung excell, at least here.

Seems like the printers I like feature wise (PC MAG) fall in the mediocre or worse reliability/satisfaction survey (PC World).....and vice versa. Its really tough to judge if "excellent print quality vs. good" is relevant. Geez, I have a sub $100 HP inkjet that prints size 6 font excellent to my eyes.

Any advice to get me past this wall? As a BITOGer, I thought I had a reasonable grasp on judging review worthiness (it's tricky), but this is a challenge.

Individual annecdotes recommending one brand vs. another are pretty useless (Ford vs. Chevy type).

Really just looking for advice how to shop for this item objectively. Graphics and photos are of lesser priority. Thanks!

 

[Carbon]

In your price range, you can add duplexing (printing on both sides automatically). You want an enclosed paper store.

You would want one where the toner cartridges are good for 5000 sides or more, and are reasonably priced. Having replacement cartridges available locally is good, but otherwise keep a spare cartridge handy. Order one with the printer. Newegg is often a good source.

Your printer should be connected to your network by ethernet cable or WiFi.

Regarding all-in-one vs printer-only, it depends on your needs and available space.

 

[tomcat27]

in the color vs. monochrome - it depends on your needs, your print volume, and your budget for consumables. color toner cartridges are EXPENSIVE!!! Personally I like to find toner cartridges that I can refill myself. My first laser printer came from the factory with an easily removable cap on the toner cartridge to add toner. (not something that you easily find) The same printer had a cooling fan and was built for some duty cycles. According to reviews and experience, wireless can be reliable or flaky. my current printer has wireless and an ethernet port. I use the ethernet and have it plugged into a wireless access point so it's easily accessable. I've never actually seen poor print quality. shop around. many times printer prices are "fixed" by the manufacturers but some deals can be found on last year's models.

I, too, have a tendency to over-analyze purchases and do "analysis paralasis"

 

[Nick R]

Canon Imageclass are imo, the best laser printers, and Canon makes the best inkjet printers for everyday use.

 

[chad8]

Hp 8600 plus wireless with an aftermarket ciss ink system.
Yes , canon makes best in class , but are expensive to print. They also do not have a wireless web address that you can print from anywhere.At least not the printers I have looked at. I can print from my phone even on the road. I can print on 2 sides and save paper. The xl cartridges are good for 2200 sheets and the ciss is good for 10000 more.

 

[wander2039]

If you were closer I'd point you to a salvage shop with 3 used but good top of the line HP printers. I've only used one type of laser printer -HP- and besides one model they never let me down.. hard to mess with success.

 

[spackard]

Several years back I did a Total Cost of Ownership on a few printers for a department (one requirement was 11x17 printing).
The Lexmark W820 was faster, better, and cheaper than the HP they would have bought. It's about $2k new, but I see a few for $500 used. You could look at Craigslist in your area. You'll have to pick it up yourself, as the base version (without the accessories such as sorter, multi-tray output, duplexer) weighs 100 lbs.

Their monthly duty cycle is 250,000 sheets. I see them for sale with
There's a W840 on EBay now for $499 in IL, plus $125 shipping. It's the newer version, roughly 10ppm faster, 2x processor speed, and 300,000 monthly duty cycle.

With respect to PCWorld's reliability, I think those are for the lower-price consumer models. I haven't had problems with either the department's W820 nor mine.

 

[rg200amp]

Originally Posted By: Nick R
Canon makes the best inkjet printers for everyday use.


You mean Epson.