[cyberknight]

Hey guys I'm looking forward to buy a new printer. But i'm a very very occasional user! However i will be using it frequently for the coming 4-5 months. Now i don't really require a scanner/copier nor will i be printing any high quality colour photos. What i need is a quick B/W text printing with some images with decent clarity. Never the less colour printer is always welcome!
I want to keep the price tag to the minimum, anything around $60 is appreciated. I don't think i can get a laser printer with that budget, can i? Any brand will do, but i did love HP, Canon or Samsung.

[compnovo]

cyberknight, on 22 February 2011 - 03:10 AM, said:

Hey guys I'm looking forward to buy a new printer. But i'm a very very occasional user! However i will be using it frequently for the coming 4-5 months. Now i don't really require a scanner/copier nor will i be printing any high quality colour photos. What i need is a quick B/W text printing with some images with decent clarity. Never the less colour printer is always welcome!
I want to keep the price tag to the minimum, anything around $60 is appreciated. I don't think i can get a laser printer with that budget, can i? Any brand will do, but i did love HP, Canon or Samsung.

Hi cyberknight,
I don't know where you're located but if you have a Walmart, Costco, or Best Buy in your neighborhood I would just run over and buy whatever printer they have on sale for under 60 bucks. Any cheap inkjet will meet your needs, although I'm partial to Canon these days (I don't like the way HP's software takes over the computer).

[cyberknight]

Actually i don't have any of those stores nearby. I generally order for electronic goods after i have gone through their every specs over internet. The stores around me are just interested in selling goods that they have & are not bothered to acquire the latest techs or at least provide the best value for money for the outdated stuff that they sell.
So u know of any good models in Canon, i heard that Pixma series is good.

[SnyperTodd]

Cyber, I know your title says inkjet, but you mentioned laser and if you're looking for speed and best cost-per-page, nothing beats a laser. I don't know how much overbudget you want to go, but I have the previous model of this Brother laser and I love it. It's very fast and does a great job, and the toner cartridge is less than $30. If you want to stick with an inkjet, I strongly recommend Canon. I've had a few Canons and have been very happy with all of them. My dad went through about a half-dozen high-end photo printers within a month a couple years ago before finally settling on a Canon as the one with the best picture quality. The Pixma iP series is very good if you don't need the scanner/copier functions.

On a side note, I have a cousin who owns a printer and copier repair business, and he recommends Brother and Canon products (among others), but says absolutely positively do not bother with Samsung printers or copiers.

This post has been edited by SnyperTodd: 24 February 2011 - 12:13 PM

[compnovo]

Hey cyber,
We're using a Canon Pixma multifunction printer (MX330) and I really like it, but that laser printer SnyperTodd linked to looks really good if you don't need color --- you'll save a bundle in ink costs over time.
We do have an HP, but it's an older 1320TN laserjet that I bought used to save money on ink (I can get re-manufactured cartridges from Amazon for <$30) and because it's a network printer. Fortunately, good old Win7 installed the basic drivers automatically and I didn't have to face the horror of HP's software (just my opinion).

[cyberknight]

SnyperTodd, on 24 February 2011 - 12:11 PM, said:

Cyber, I know your title says inkjet, but you mentioned laser and if you're looking for speed and best cost-per-page, nothing beats a laser. I don't know how much overbudget you want to go, but I have the previous model of this Brother laser and I love it. It's very fast and does a great job, and the toner cartridge is less than $30. If you want to stick with an inkjet, I strongly recommend Canon. I've had a few Canons and have been very happy with all of them. My dad went through about a half-dozen high-end photo printers within a month a couple years ago before finally settling on a Canon as the one with the best picture quality. The Pixma iP series is very good if you don't need the scanner/copier functions.

On a side note, I have a cousin who owns a printer and copier repair business, and he recommends Brother and Canon products (among others), but says absolutely positively do not bother with Samsung printers or copiers.

Well i was lookin for an inkjet, but someone mentioned that i could get a laser(mostly monochrome without scanner) within my budget. Anyways i won't be requiring a scanner/copier. In fact all i need is fast B/w printing of plain text with few images. The print(text/image) quality has to be decent if not great & i'm willing to sacrifice speed for it to stay strictly within my budget. Guess i'll settle for a canon.

[cyberknight]

Hi there, Snyper & Compnovo
Thought i could use some info on cartridges. Since this is gonna be my first printer, i know very little about ink & toner cartridges. So which one will be cheaper? Also i want to understand all the commonly mentioned specs of cartridges. How long do they run or how many pages can they print? Some word on refilling will also be helpful.

[SnyperTodd]

Cyber, on a laser printer, you have a toner cartridge and a drum, which the toner cartridge goes inside. My Brother has two sizes of toner cartridges available- a roughly $20 one that is rated for 1500 pages and a roughly $30 one that is rated for 2600 pages, though with both units people are saying they get about double the output they are rated for. The drum is rated for 12,000 pages on mine.

On my inkjet (Canon MG6120), I have five small color cartridges- Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black, and Gray, as well as a larger Black cartridge for black and white printing. The small cartridges are around $14 a piece or $50 for a set without gray. The large black cartridge is roughly the same price - $15, so you're looking at almost $70 to replace the whole set after tax and/or shipping. However, they only last a couple hundred pages, and there's no trick to making them last longer. An inkjet within your price range will most likely have a single combination cartridge (which costs more) for the colors, or three small color cartridges and a black cartridge. Generally, the cheaper the inkjet printer is, the more expensive the ink is.

[smax013]

SnyperTodd, on 25 February 2011 - 07:59 AM, said:

Cyber, on a laser printer, you have a toner cartridge and a drum, which the toner cartridge goes inside. My Brother has two sizes of toner cartridges available- a roughly $20 one that is rated for 1500 pages and a roughly $30 one that is rated for 2600 pages, though with both units people are saying they get about double the output they are rated for. The drum is rated for 12,000 pages on mine.

Some laser printers will have both the toner cartridge and "drum" in one unit. That is how my old HP LaserJet 6MP is designed. This will obvious bump up the cost of the replacement cartridge, but my cartridge tends to last me FOREVER.

Quote

On my inkjet (Canon MG6120), I have five small color cartridges- Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black, and Gray, as well as a larger Black cartridge for black and white printing. The small cartridges are around $14 a piece or $50 for a set without gray. The large black cartridge is roughly the same price - $15, so you're looking at almost $70 to replace the whole set after tax and/or shipping. However, they only last a couple hundred pages, and there's no trick to making them last longer. An inkjet within your price range will most likely have a single combination cartridge (which costs more) for the colors, or three small color cartridges and a black cartridge. Generally, the cheaper the inkjet printer is, the more expensive the ink is.

It should also be noted that some printer manufacturer's have gone to putting expiration dates on their cartridges and then designing the cartridges to no longer work after the expiration date. I have not completely kept up with this, so it is possible that they make have stopped this crappy practice due to blowback.

Another crappy practice that some printer manufacturer's use is to have the printer stop printing if ANY of the cartridges is too low. So, even if you are doing only black and white printing and your magenta cartridge (for example) gets too low, then you cannot print anything even if you have plenty of black ink left.

Also, some printers will have separate print heads from the ink cartridges, which in theory should mean that the cartridges are cheaper. Most inkjet printers (especially at the lower cost level) tend to have the print heads built into the ink cartridges.

[smax013]

cyberknight, on 25 February 2011 - 04:01 AM, said:

Hi there, Snyper & Compnovo
Thought i could use some info on cartridges. Since this is gonna be my first printer, i know very little about ink & toner cartridges. So which one will be cheaper? Also i want to understand all the commonly mentioned specs of cartridges. How long do they run or how many pages can they print? Some word on refilling will also be helpful.

SnyperTodd gave you a decent idea.

In general, new ink cartridges from the manufacturers tend to cost in the $15 to $30 range per cartridge depending the cartridge type and size. Then depending on the inkjet printer, you could have anywhere from a couple of cartridges to as many as 4 or 5. The better photo printers will tend to have three color cartridges and a black (for non-photo printing) and/or gray cartridge (for photo printing). Cheaper inkjets will tend to have the colors all in one cartridge as Snyper mentioned. So, as Snyper noted, you could be spending between about $40 to $100 for a full set of cartridges for an inkjet.

Laser printer toner cartridges will tend to be more expensive, unless they are "pure" toner cartridges (i.e. a separate drum like Snyper's laser printer has). The toner cartridge (with build-in drum) for my old LaserJet 6MP is on the order of $80 to $100 if I recall correctly. But, if you are dealing with a black and white laser printer, you only have the one cartridge to deal with. If you are talking a color laser printer, then that is a different story.

As to how long they last...

For inkjets, like Snyper said, the cartridges tend to last in the hundreds of pages. How many hundreds will depend on your print settings ("draft" modes use less ink then the "best" modes), the printer's design, and the size of the cartridge. How long the various cartridges in your printer will last will largely depend on what you are printing. If you are printing a lot of black and white, then obviously the color cartridges should last a lot longer. And if you are printing color, then how long each color cartridge will last will be a function of what colors are in the photos/pages.

For laser printers, you are generally talking about them lasting in the thousands of pages. Again, the print quality settings can effect this as well as the design of the printer and the size of the cartridge.

In the end, you will have to narrow down your choices to some printer and then compare their estimates of number pages they will do on a cartridge(s). You should, however, take the manufacturer's estimates with a rather large grain of salt.

I will note that in general, laser printers tend to have a lower cost per page cost over time compared to inkjets. This is assuming you are talking about black and white prints. If you start talking color (which means a color laser printer), this gap closes, but color lasers still tend to be more cost effective than inkjets (you will just pay a LOT more upfront and also pay more for cartridges). I will note that inkjets are generally better than color laser printers for printing photos.

For my personal use, I use my laser printer for like 90+% of my printing. I have two inkjets. The one that I have is basically only for printing 11x17 pages (I use it for printing out roughly half size architectural and structural drawings). My primary inkjet is an all-in-one. I mainly use it for its copier function, but also I use it when I want a color printout, especially photos. FWIW, I do use my laser printer for printing labels (typically my return address labels when I run low) as well as envelopes.

[cyberknight]

Thanks for the info Smax & Snyper. Can both ink & toner cartridges be refilled by me? Or should i get it done at a shop by some professional. How reliable can refilling be & will the print quality be more or less the same as using original cartridge?
I've decided on getting just a simple printer, on which i will be printing b/w 95% of the time.

[smax013]

cyberknight, on 27 February 2011 - 03:18 AM, said:

Thanks for the info Smax & Snyper. Can both ink & toner cartridges be refilled by me? Or should i get it done at a shop by some professional. How reliable can refilling be & will the print quality be more or less the same as using original cartridge?
I've decided on getting just a simple printer, on which i will be printing b/w 95% of the time.

I have never really heard about refilling laser printer cartridges. That does not mean that it may not be possible.

In theory, many inkjet cartridges can potentially be refilled, but manufacturer's recommend against it. Now, one reason that they recommend against it is without a doubt because it costs them money (the inkjet printer market is kind of setup like the shaving razor market...just like the shaving razors at basically sold at a loss and Gillette/Schick really make their money selling the replacement blades, most inkjet printers are likely basically sold at a loss with the manufacturer's making their money selling the ink cartridges). Somewhat in their defense, however, it can also be a quality issue as well...some refill inks are not as good as the original ink in the cartridges. Personally, I have never bothered to do ink refills...since I use my laser printer for the overwhelming bulk of my printing, I just don't need to refill/replace my ink cartridges that much at all. I am "(bad) lucky" if I need to replace the cartridges more than once a year...for the 11x17 printer it has been more than a year since I replace either cartridge on it. For me, it is just easier and no really too expensive to just buy replacement cartridges. I could see, however, that for someone who prints an awful lot with an inkjet, it might get expensive to keep replacing cartridges and thus it might be worth trying the refill options.

[Donex]

cyberknight, on 22 February 2011 - 03:10 AM, said:

Hey guys I'm looking forward to buy a new printer. But i'm a very very occasional user!

As a rule, the cheaper the printer is the more expensive the cartridges are. I doubt You can get a good laser printer for $60 (except for second hand ones), so if you really need a printer that is dirt cheap and You don't mind ink for it to be more on the expensive side, take a look at something like Canon Pixma 2702. It used to sell for only $30 or so, but be prepared that over time the cost of its ownership will most likely be disappointing.

[SnyperTodd]

Donex, on 28 February 2011 - 08:44 AM, said:

cyberknight, on 22 February 2011 - 03:10 AM, said:

Hey guys I'm looking forward to buy a new printer. But i'm a very very occasional user!

As a rule, the cheaper the printer is the more expensive the cartridges are. I doubt You can get a good laser printer for $60 (except for second hand ones), so if you really need a printer that is dirt cheap and You don't mind ink for it to be more on the expensive side, take a look at something like Canon Pixma 2702. It used to sell for only $30 or so, but be prepared that over time the cost of its ownership will most likely be disappointing.

The Brother laser printer I linked to was recommended to me by someone who works with, maintains, and repairs this type of equipment on a daily basis. It's very possible to get a good laser printer for $60-70, you just have to watch for deals. It's a no-frills unit, but it's fast and reliable and the toner is reasonable. What more can you ask for in that price range?

Either way, the OP decided to go with an inkjet, and the Canon Pixma 2702 is a good suggestion.

[cyberknight]

smax013, on 27 February 2011 - 04:39 AM, said:

I have never really heard about refilling laser printer cartridges. That does not mean that it may not be possible.

In theory, many inkjet cartridges can potentially be refilled, but manufacturer's recommend against it. Now, one reason that they recommend against it is without a doubt because it costs them money (the inkjet printer market is kind of setup like the shaving razor market...just like the shaving razors at basically sold at a loss and Gillette/Schick really make their money selling the replacement blades, most inkjet printers are likely basically sold at a loss with the manufacturer's making their money selling the ink cartridges). Somewhat in their defense, however, it can also be a quality issue as well...some refill inks are not as good as the original ink in the cartridges. Personally, I have never bothered to do ink refills...since I use my laser printer for the overwhelming bulk of my printing, I just don't need to refill/replace my ink cartridges that much at all. I am "(bad) lucky" if I need to replace the cartridges more than once a year...for the 11x17 printer it has been more than a year since I replace either cartridge on it. For me, it is just easier and no really too expensive to just buy replacement cartridges. I could see, however, that for someone who prints an awful lot with an inkjet, it might get expensive to keep replacing cartridges and thus it might be worth trying the refill options.

Replacing ink cartridge once a year?? It can last that long if u don't use it, but does'nt the ink dry out or something like that? I mean the cartridges are supposed to have a shelf life, right?

[smax013]

cyberknight, on 01 March 2011 - 11:13 AM, said:

Replacing ink cartridge once a year?? It can last that long if u don't use it, but does'nt the ink dry out or something like that? I mean the cartridges are supposed to have a shelf life, right?

Inks these days have less of an issue with drying out in the cartridge. It still somewhat depends on the design of the cartridge and/or printer. Even for "badly designed" cartridges/printers, if you print a couple pages one and a while, it will typically prevent the ink from drying out and clogging the cartridge.

[compnovo]

smax013, on 01 March 2011 - 07:07 PM, said:

cyberknight, on 01 March 2011 - 11:13 AM, said:

Replacing ink cartridge once a year?? It can last that long if u don't use it, but does'nt the ink dry out or something like that? I mean the cartridges are supposed to have a shelf life, right?

Inks these days have less of an issue with drying out in the cartridge. It still somewhat depends on the design of the cartridge and/or printer. Even for "badly designed" cartridges/printers, if you print a couple pages one and a while, it will typically prevent the ink from drying out and clogging the cartridge.

The only brand I've experienced problems with the inkjets clogging from non-use were Epsons, one reason I stick with Canon these days. It's too bad because otherwise the Epsons were really good printers --- my last one, an R200, even printed on special disks.

[chengkimwai]

To: All Printers Users/Buyer Beware,

I would like to bring to your notice when buying an inkjet printers especially those using four ink cartridges, that they should ask the seller what will happen if any one of the color cartridges is empty. The machine will not function at all when one of the ink cartridges is empty in the majority of the manufacturers. So when buying a printer also buy all the colors cartridges in stock otherwise the machine cannot be used. For offices, it can cause much inefficiency to purchase all the ink cartridges as it occupies shelf space and the cartridges have an expiry date for the ink to dry up. As the machine ages, the ink cartridges cost more to purchase and harder to find retailers selling them.
For those machines called All-In-One, the fax, and scan functions will cease to function as soon as any one of the ink cartridges is detected empty.

From: KW

[IJ24]

cyberknight, on 22 February 2011 - 03:10 AM, said:

Hey guys I'm looking forward to buy a new printer. But i'm a very very occasional user! However i will be using it frequently for the coming 4-5 months. Now i don't really require a scanner/copier nor will i be printing any high quality colour photos. What i need is a quick B/W text printing with some images with decent clarity. Never the less colour printer is always welcome!
I want to keep the price tag to the minimum, anything around $60 is appreciated. I don't think i can get a laser printer with that budget, can i? Any brand will do, but i did love HP, Canon or Samsung.

Although, laser printer is not included in your option, think you should still consider the idea because the extra amount that you'll spend on the one time purchase can easily be complemented with the savings that you will get from its running cost especially if you will base on your needs.

[WinfieldZenith]

Inkjet printer is very important for both home and office use. This post is very helpful for those who are looking for buying an Inkjet printer.