Printer recommendations?

pbans · Post by **pbans** » November 18, 2007 5:52 pm

Okay Geek Squad......
My printer went south and I need to get a new one.....
I want an all in one deal....I've had an hp, which I was happy with up until a couple of days ago when it quit recognizing printer cartridges.....I finally called hp and they said.....time to get a new one.....gee, thanks.

ANYWAY.......what's good?
I'm running XP on my desktop and Vista on my lappie....would use the printer for both of them, but mostly the PC.....

ragtopW · Post by **ragtopW** » November 18, 2007 6:22 pm

I only know one thing..
Check on the price of the ink... I bought an HP last year
and I almost bought a (long forgotten brand)
but I noticed the cost of new ink was more than the printer..

pbans · Post by **pbans** » November 18, 2007 6:35 pm

ragtopW wrote:I only know one thing..
Check on the price of the ink... I bought an HP last year
and I almost bought a (long forgotten brand)
but I noticed the cost of new ink was more than the printer..

Probably a Lexmark.....I noticed that about them, too....
when they run out of ink......it's totaled.

jonesbeach10 · Post by **jonesbeach10** » November 18, 2007 7:54 pm

Not sure what prices you're looking for, but I have a HP Photosmart C4280 that prints, copies, and scans, and works fine with Vista, and I assume would work well with XP.

parrothead216 · Post by **parrothead216** » November 18, 2007 8:13 pm

We bought a Brother Printer from BJ's!

We got ink from this place. It was a good value and seems to work well.

Here's a link: www.InksOutlet.com.

Black cartridges ran like $3.00 each and they have combo packs with color! The Ink has worked fine! No Problems!

We hope this helps those looking fo Ink as well!

docandjeanie · Post by **docandjeanie** » November 18, 2007 8:22 pm

Paige,

I have an older HP, so it would be revelant. However, I would go with a wireless one, since you will be using it for both machines.

just a thought. Good luck.

ph4ever · Post by **ph4ever** » November 18, 2007 8:35 pm

We've got a Dell AIO 962 with a wireless router. We haven't had a bit of problem with it. The only complaint I have is that you have to order the cartridges online - you can't just run to a office supply store and pick them up.

Dutch Harbor PH · Post by **Dutch Harbor PH** » November 19, 2007 12:27 am

Paige,

We have an HP 7400 series all in one......it is wireless/wired it works great most of the time...every now and again it hiccups and needs to get re-loaded.... At work my local printer is an HP 6100 series all in one...wired....works great....get the ink at costco......

hawaiiboy · Post by **hawaiiboy** » November 19, 2007 12:56 am

I would recommend that what ever printer you buy, try and
get one with separate cartridges for each color. That way
when one color runs out, you only have to replace that one.

chippewa · Post by **chippewa** » November 19, 2007 10:52 am

As posted, ink usage is a big issue. I was recently looking for a bare-bones printer for home, no bells or whistles. My old Canon printer died, and even though I usually refill the cartidges myself, they only held 9ml of ink. I had to refill them too often. I settled on an HP printer, until I saw the cartridge it used only held 5ml of ink! (HP 21)

Many older HP cartridges held 19 or 21ml, the HP 45 held 42ml! Guess what -- it's next to impossible to find a printer that will use those cartridges anymore.

SharkOnLand · Post by **SharkOnLand** » November 19, 2007 11:15 am

We've got a Canon MP610. I like Canon's print quality, and it's a pretty decent printer. I bought a Canon 5 years ago when I had issues with HP customer service, and have stuck with Canon ever since.

Like some all-in-ones, it won't fax, if that is important to you.

SuperTrooper · Post by **SuperTrooper** » November 19, 2007 12:16 pm

I'm not sure what your usage is, but I would suggest looking at color laser MFPs if ink cost is a concern. When my daughter went to college we bought her a Ricoh color laser MFP. She is well into her second year of a graphic design program and is still on the original toner cartridges. At home we have an older NEC mono laser printer and buy the extra-capacity toner cartridges (6,000 pages each) that I buy on the internet for about $90. BUY.com now offers my keet's color laser MFP for under $400. We paid $650 2 years ago.

http://www.buy.com/retail/Product.asp?s ... adid=17662

In the long run it could save you money as it is a serious office machine and less likely to break down under frequent use.

pbans · Post by **pbans** » November 19, 2007 3:20 pm

SuperTrooper wrote:I'm not sure what your usage is, but I would suggest looking at color laser MFPs if ink cost is a concern. When my daughter went to college we bought her a Ricoh color laser MFP. She is well into her second year of a graphic design program and is still on the original toner cartridges. At home we have an older NEC mono laser printer and buy the extra-capacity toner cartridges (6,000 pages each) that I buy on the internet for about $90. BUY.com now offers my keet's color laser MFP for under $400. We paid $650 2 years ago.

http://www.buy.com/retail/Product.asp?s ... adid=17662

In the long run it could save you money as it is a serious office machine and less likely to break down under frequent use.

yeah, that's probably way more machine than I need and for sure more than I have room for.....I need something that will just slide under my desk.....I like the looks of the Canon.....since my HP left me a little bitter and angry by crapping out on me in what I consider a relatively short time.....

FunkHouse9 · Post by **FunkHouse9** » November 19, 2007 3:31 pm

I have an HP Officejet 5510 and have no complaints. The only thing I wish is that it scanned negatives and slides.

The problem with an all-in-one is that if one thing breaks, everything has to be replaced. If I were to do it over again, I'd buy a good laser printer and a scanner. Toner for a laser printer usually lasts a lot longer and gives you more for your money from my experience. I had an HP LaserJet 4 and the toner would last an eternity for the price of just a few of my small all-in-one cartridges. If color printing isn't necessary, I'd do that. I don't know anything about color laser printers.

A stand alone scanner is usually relatively cheap unless you really need something great.

The only downside to separate units is that it's a little more difficult to fax or copy than with an all-in-one if that's important to you.

chrisintampa · Post by **chrisintampa** » November 20, 2007 1:32 am

also consider what you want to print

documents?
pictures ?
mixed media ?

what is the primary use

and cost per page for what you do most often will be the decision maker not the cost of the printer they are sold for a loss

i have an inkjet i rarely use for color (i do that at the office

)

and a laser the is a multifuntion that scans prints etc and has a low cost per page and is black and white