Hi guys,
New member here. I am trying to find the most cost efficient printer to use for my day to day printing needs.
I currently use a hp deskjet printer and I am frankly tired of paying for the original cartridges which just seem way too over priced in my opinion.
The third party alternatives that I have tried so far generally do not get accepted by my printer or run out too quickly.
So which printers do you guys use?
Interested to hear the responses from this community.
Thanks
What Printer Do You Use?
LPyroCoconut on 08/11/2014 - 23:28
Comments
Brother 2270DW - Duplex (which is super handy) + Printer server, had it for 2-3 years now and going strong.
I buy toner from ebay 3rd party $10-15 each, bargain!
Yeah get a cheap mono laser Brother or Fuji-Xerox — very cheap compatible toners on eBay.
The latest generation of low-end Brother laser printers seem to be of very lightweight construction. I'd recommend the older models (currently on run-out pricing), which are more solid in comparison:
http://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/officeworks/brother-hl-21…
http://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/officeworks/brother-hl-22…
Do you have a link for the compatible toner? Thanks!
eBay Search: TN-2250 — those are rated at 2,600 pages and you get lots of 3 for $40 delivered on eBay.
Any difference vs these which are also rated at 2,600 pages? The price on ebay is 4x less, seems too good to be true?
@fsbspy: Too good to be true, or just being ripped off by Printzone? :)
I think if there are one or two odd cheap prices on eBay I'll feel a bit suspicious. However when you have multiple Australian reputable eBay sellers selling the same compatible items at a similar price — maybe it's just the norm. Personally I bought from
aussie_toneron eBay many times before and never had an issue.
I second this printer.
Cheap toners on the net that can easily print out over 1000 pages.
Connect this printer to your wireless network and printing is much more efficient. I can go on my computer/laptop and just print :D no cables!Not only that, duplex is inbuilt and as HAL has stated, its really handy and convenient. :)
It's worth the investment.What would you guys recommend if colour was required? Is there a reliable laser colour printer with easily sourced cheap toner?
Thanks in advance :)+1 HAL - I have the same printer at home and it's faultless.
Second Brother Mono Lasers! I've got a HL-5340D which is still going strong after a couple of years. Toners are cheap as chips and last for ages.
Also, just a quick tip. When the printer says the toner is out and won't print anymore, get a piece of tape and cover the hole where it checks the toner on the side of the toner cartridge, just Google the model for details. I always get 20% more or so by doing this, works a treat.
You can also log into your printer settings and tell it to continue (not stop) when it thinks your toner needs replacing, much easier fix :)
Though I have only tried this on the printers with a print sever.
Samsung M2070FW - mono laser, wireless, duplex (manual), flatbed scanner, can print wireless from phone.
Toner is about $70 and does 1000 pagesManual duplex?
Print out one side, flip and put back into print and then print again.
lol… Not sure I'll classify that as a feature.
Wouldn't printing odd pages then even pages be easier?
@HAL:
It is actually printing all the pages in duplex but it prints all on one side first and then you take the pages, flip them and hit the start button on the machine then it prints to alternate pages.
A much cheaper way of getting duplex to be honest.
+1 on Samsung. People DO keep telling me how bad they are though so your mileage may vary, but I can tell you've I've only owned two over the space of the last 10 years or so. And this is in an office environment running two seperate company's paperwork. She gets a bit of a hammering. So two in ten years I think is very acceptable.
The built in web configuration in particular is brilliant feature wise. In particular the one we have now (CLX-6220FX) has ALL the brains inside the printer, not on each computer, which I really, really like. The driver software is therefore small and simple, not like HP's monstrous 200Mb+ affairs.
Quick example if you set up an e-mail notification for consumables running out, the PRINTER sends the email directly, not communicating the notification to the PC, then the PC software sends the e-mail. The printer makes it's OWN PDF files and sends them to a network share. Things like that.
Dumped inkjet PITA's years ago.
Go laser. We have a Fuji Xerox M/F & never a problem.Wish I read threads like this before I bought the Lexmark S415 about an year back.
It stopped working few days back saying that the Cyan Cartridge needs to be replaced. I don't print color very often. But it will not fudge. I need to change the cartridge to make the printer working. Got a original (mistake) from Office-works for about $20.
About to get the first page printed and the keyboard retired. It will no longer work. The whole printer is now an e-waste with about two of the cartridges full.
Never ever I am buying a Lexmark again..
That is more inkjet than Lexmark. Inkjets are a pain. Why do you NEED colour??
I just buy new $20 printer every time the ink runs out. I got two pallets out in the warehouse full of end of the line and discounted models. Nothing beats the feeling of printing of a brand new unit. The smell of untouched plastic is great. When I use up every drop of ink I simply take chuck in my trailer with the other 20 units and drop it at the council sustainable resource centre for $5 per run.
All the marketing hype on inkjet being cheaper per page is true IF you base it on GENUINE ink / toner.
I only use laser (Colour) these days and it is by far the cheapest way to go. I buy generic toner cartridges for about $20 from ebay versus genuine for $130+ from office works. Never had any problems and may have to replace 1-2 cartridges (normally black) per year. You will normally get in excess of 2000 pages per black cartridgeYou can also get cheaper by buying a DIY toner refil kit.
With regards to a printer make, I only buy popular models such as HP, Epson, Oki as its easier to get toner than say a Lexmark, dell, brother etc.
Some printer toner / inkjet cartridges have sensors / counter chips on them which prevent them from being refilled. If you are looking at generic refils on Ebay, most reputable suppliers will either provide a cartridge with a new chip or in the case of DIY refils, will also provide the chips to fit yourself.
With regards to a printer make, I only buy popular models such as HP, Epson, Oki as its easier to get toner than say a Lexmark, dell, brother etc.
Brother not popular? Really?
Brother compatible cartridges are easy to find and buy, all ink places have them.
When Girl-Child started Uni we realised that she'd be doing a lot of (black and white) printing and that Boy-Child, two years her junior, would also be needing to do a lot of printing.
I bought a Brother HL-1430 which was their cheapest entry-model printer.
Both the kids did a five-and-a-half-year double degree with Girl-Child following with a Graduate Diploma and Boy-Child following with a two Graduate Diplomas.
Girl-Child finished Uni about three years ago, boy-child obviously more recently, so with both the kids hitting the printer that hard it's at a page-count of 30,000 now.
IT HASN'T MISSED A BEAT !!
It's fed "compatible" toners from an Australian seller on eBay.
Recently the Father-In-Law wanted a new printer so we bought for him the (current) entry-level Brother laser printer.
It works fine as you'd expect for a reasonably new printer but compared to this printer our old HL-1430 is built like a tank !!
Long story short….. Buy a Brother Laser Printer, we'd be in the poor-house if we were buying Ink-Jet cartridges over that time :)
And as to the person who said Brother toners / cartridges are hard to get has obviously never tried to buy one !
girl child boy child? Not daughter son?
Wait until (s)he gets to the part about Woman (or Man) Partner.
Also Father-In-Law should be Male-Parent-Of-Spouse. Obviously a mistake.
The printer is actually a Male-Sibling HL-1430.
Bought a multifunction brother inkjet (315) for around $40-$50 from Harvey Norman. It is a wireless version that function we needed. I bought a pack of five of each Colour cartridge from 123 inkjets ( they had posted a deal that expired so I emailed them and they posted a new deal) ink cost me around $60 for 5x each Colour and double black.
Had the printer maybe two years, have not had to spend a cent so far . Printer works great and does Colour for sons assignments.
Much better environmentally than buying a whole new printer like some do.Brother DCP 7065DN - About $200
Great value printer considering it does automatic duplex, has a scanner and also has an automatic feed scanner (up to 35 pages at a time I believe). Only missing feature is wireless printing, if that is important to you… Otherwise auto duplex with scanning at this price is awesome :)Alternatively, if you don't need the scanning functionality, then the Brother HL-2270DW does duplexing and has wireless too at around $115.
Got a canon MG6360 for $129 delivered on ebay. Quite sleek, scans, has two loading trays, wireless, prints great photos. Very convenient. Got refillable ink cartridges from overseas for about $40. Now All the colours in 50ml bottles only costs me $18 a set out of HK which is very reasonable. Having said that, a laser will produce much sharper prints but is not as versatile or cost efficient as an inkjet multifunction. Just my two cents.
I sold & tested them for years. My personal favourite was/is the Officejet series from HP- but that's priced for high-yields usage. Using the trick below- these can outperform a laser printer.
For everyday printing- HP, the cheapest you can get w/wifi (if you need it, I do). My current HP C4599 is now going on five years old. the previous HP lasted eight.
The two-cartridge printers like these have the print head on the cartridge. That means that every replacement gives a new print head. The ones such as, say, an Epson/Canon multi-cartridge, have a print head in the printer. The cartridges have their ink leeched out into a sponge. If you don't use it enough, it can dry & clog.
Lastly- and most IMPORTANTLY: for every-day printing (especially text) you must go to "print>properties>& choose fast/draft quality vs. the default "normal". This will make your inks last 2-3 times longer. I only replace ours about 2-3 a year, & that's w/one child in yr. 10 & the other at uni. We print- a LOT- & the ink lasts forever.
To test this, I used Word to create a solid colour circle (about the size of a ten cent piece). I printed it in regular mode & then in draft. The regular circle was warped, there was sooo much ink in it! In fact, on some cheaper paper, so much ink can cause the text to blur as it continures to spread out on the paper. The draft was solid, dark black- no warp. Colours in draft mode will be lighter/not as bright or saturated.
RE: laser—> slow to print, some paper can curl (as it's thermal), toners "can be" expensive. To get a scanner/printer laser is much more expensive than an inkjet. To get colour is quite a bit more than that. You cannot print photos, but you can print brochures, etc. Printed documents are less prone to smear vs. inkjet.
What I used to recommend, is to buy the cheapest inkjet as above- that would satisfy photos & scanning, then get a cheap mono laser for the 90% you'll do otherwise, which is text.
FYI- from my own experience.
Cheers
During my uni work I went through three inkjets. I'd put my printer into the cupboard during the holidays. When I pulled it out the print-head had clogged. Those things are basically unrepairable - I tried soaking them in various solutions but they were always stuffed and the replacement cost was greater than the printer cost.
Eventually I paid a bit of money and got a Samsung colour duplex laser (CLP-620ND) and haven't looked back. I refill the toner myself making it very cheap to print. But the best part is, if I pull the laser out after its been still for a few months, it works just as well as it did before!
Another +1 for Laser black/white printers. Im a university student so I know how important it is to be cost effective with printing/paper etc. Bought a Brother HL-2135 from Officeworks for about $50 and its absolutely perfect for all my needs. Toner cartridges off eBay are dirt cheap and it prints up to 20PPM.
Fuji Xerox DPP255DW for $79 at office works. 30PPM, wireless and automatic double sided with compatible toner on EBAY for $20 for 2000 pages from local seller. Nothing beats the value
Epson Stylus Tx550w. Google Rihac CISS for alternative ink, saved me heaps. Been using this for two years.
I have an Epson Artisan 730. Wireless, scanner, document & photoprinter, USB and card slots.
I used it until the (1/2 full) cartridges ran out and then threw a CISS in it. CISS = Continuous Ink Supply System. eBay is the place to get them. I bought it with extra ink ~2 years ago and it's still on the first lot.
note 1 CISS is much better if the ink tanks remain stationary apart from the head otherwise you will have heavy ink lines swinging back and forth with the head. Experienced recommendation.
note 2 All new printers IME have half full cartridges/tanks. This makes sure you need to buy new ones early on. This makes the cheap printer not so cheap.
+1 for epson, if you buy the printers that only need 4 cartridges (BMYC), compatible cartridges are readily available on ebay for about $5 each and print around 300-400 black pages. Just dont update the printer firmware, that causes it to complain when cartridges are not genuine.
bought HP1510 printers for $18-00 at Harvey Norman.
Inks were included.
Normally inks alone are $50 for the pair.
All I do I throw the printer away and get out from my reserve ie $18-00 units !!Depends on what you print jobs you need done. If all you need is B&W then I'd recommend a cheap monolaser like everyone else. Having used brother and xerox, I prefer xerox as my current monolaser brother would always have an issue with printing stuff that isn't just basic text. It's generally missing characters throughout the document and I've even updated and installed the latest drivers numerous times.
You can easily get toners/refills for both on eBay.
Now if you need colour and don't mind slow prints then I use an Epson XP200 because it has one of the lowest running costs. Non-OEM cartridges are plentiful and cheap on eBay as well. It also has scanning/photocopying functions but it's quite slow so if that's important then yo'd need to invest in a more expensive multifunction. It also has wifi and airprint which has come handy at times.
Managed to get a Brother MFC-J870DW for $75 yesterday, which is an absolute steal!
It's the most advanced multi-function / printer I have ever seen. It even has NFC and can upload my scans directly to Evernote, Google Drive, OneDrive or OneNote accounts, without the need for a PC or a mobile device! Also, a great ability to customize it with shortcuts on the touch screen.
In terms of printing costs, the reviews I read say that it's more economical than other similar ink-jets. It's interesting that you can buy the cartridges in two sizes.
Two sizes? Full or half-full maybe?
Where do you get this printer at $75?
I use this as I don't print all that often -
http://www.umart.com.au/umart1/pro/Products-details.phtml?id…If you're keen on staying with an inkjet, you could look into a CISS for it. (Continuous Ink Supply System) - but you have to print something at least once a week or it can block up.
I have a CISS system and I have no problems with it blocking up. It seems to cope quite well with a week or two off.
And I recommend it very highly. Rihac make great units.
I see a lot of people with Ink-Jet printers recommending them and a lot of people with lasers recommending them.
I wonder if the reason many people recommend Ink-Jet is because they haven't had a Laser ?
As I mentioned previously we have the (old, built like a tank) Brother Laser Printer and I also have an Epson R390 for my "Photographic" printing.
QUESTION for the laser owners……. Would you (or did / have you) go back to Ink-Jet ?
My vote is…. Unless you NEED photo-quality Ink-Jet, Lasers are the only way to go !!
nah I'd stay with laser because I rarely print and in the long run, the toner is cheaper.
Photo quality printing is a very good way to make ink manufacturers very happy with the kachink sound going off all the time. Better off delaying gratification and making prints at the store. Or just not print photos.
I suppose there might be people who have to make coloured pie charts, but fortunately I'm not one.
So I'll won't use an ink jet.
Have a Fuji Xerox Docuprint 203A which is really decent.
Another factor to think about is if you highlight stuff you print. In my experience inkjets smudge and lasers don't.
I bought a Brother MFC-J6920DW which is a duplex colour printer/scanner/fax/photocopier and also does great A3 prints as well. I paid 159 on a super special at the time and then spent $100 on refillable ink cartridges and some bottles of ink for refills. Have used it now for 6 months constantly and so far have only needed to refill the cartridges once. The refills will last me longer than the printer will. Based on usage the refill bottles should last me another 3-5 years without having to buy any further ink at all.
My last printer was an epson which I installed a CIS (continuous ink supply system) in I used it for 3 years and never had to buy any further ink. On that printer I saved, assuming I had bought epson cartridges in excess of $3000 over the 3 years.
I used to have an inkjet, but the inks kept drying out and they were expensive to buy, and it was slow, and noisy. If you can forgo colour, a mono laser is totally the way to go. Laser toner doesn't go off, they're quicker to print, and a bit less noise.
You also want a laser where there are generic cartridges for sale on eBay (avoid the ones with the chips that try to block using generic toner). I'd also suggest a printer with networking (either WiFi or Ethernet), rather than USB, that way it can use it painlessly from multiple computers.
I've got an HP LaserJet 2100TN that I bought second-hand for $100, it's been running for around 8 years, still works great, and generic toner is around $23 delivered on eBay, and lasts more than a year. That's supposed to print 5000 pages and probably does, so around 0.5 cent per printed page; paper came from a staples promo a while back, that was so cheap it might actually have been free! That's 0.5 cents per printed page including paper costs - and if you want to spread the cost of the printer over the past 8 years, and add that, it's currently 0.71 cents per page, including toner, paper, and printer purchase cost - so I'm pretty sure we're in the lowest 10% band in Australia for domestic printing costs.
If I were buying now though, I'd still get a mono laser, but a new one from Brother or Fuji-Xerox or Samsung.
So which printers do you guys use?
Work printer.
Well at home I have a 5 year old HP C4580 wireless all in one (back in the days when you buy a Mac you get a free printer if you're a student). It's still going strong.
I don't refill the cartridges as sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't and you end up with a bloody mess everywhere. I think the trick is to refill before the ink runs out completely, otherwise the nozzle will be dried and/or the printer will reject the cartridge as incompatible. I buy these "reman" (remanufactured/refurbished) cartridges on eBay for about $10-15 which goes for a long time.
QUOTE: "The third party alternatives that I have tried so far generally do not get accepted by my printer or run out too quickly"
Which 'third party alternatives are you talking about? I use Fuji-Xerox and buy toner from hottoner.com.au - it works for me. This printer brand is used by most 'large corporations'. I think its the best printer brand atm.
Go for an officejet/office printer… More expensive yes but seems to be more economical…
there should be a poll and a formal comparison
Any recommendations for colour laser printer with auto duplex? Does anyone know thr cost/page for colour lasers vs inkjet?
Brother laser HL-1110. Cost $38 from Officeworks. Fast, good quality, and dirt cheap.
I used to use inkjet printers but they're slow, take a long time to start up, clog regularly (genuine ink) requiring wasting of expensive ink to clean the nozzles.
what would be a good laser/black printer that can do duplex scanning and printing?
I hate hard copies to begin with.
I batch my prints and print at work. Or I use a usb key or my phone, print them off at office works at 6c per page. Rarely do I need a hard copy of something.My mfp at home hp color LaserJet is only for scanning. Shitty aio inkjets are woeful for this.
Brother usually has the cheapest (generic) inks.
I got a Brother DCP-J315W which is a multifunction printer from office works which works fine. However I get the ink on ebay for about $2.50 each (x 4 colours). I think I got a 30 pack (9b+7c+7m+7y) for around 65$Currently using a P255dw mono laser printer by Fuji! Been buying x2 generic toner for $20 at eBay and each toner can last up to 3000 pages with 'toner save' setting! Very very very efficient! It's duplex as well! Oh and the printer costs $60+ I think with genuine toner.
pyrococonut - which HP printer? I had one previously, B110a , which could be hacked to take refills or generic cartridges.
If you can forgo colour, go for a mono laser like the Brothers.