Hi everyone, I'm just looking for a cost-effective printer (in terms of ink usage) , preferably with WiFi functionality too. I don't print much besides a bunch of notes for uni, which my other sibling will use for as well. Doesn't have to be too spectacular, so if anyone has suggestions please let me know down below thanks :)
What's a Decent Printer for a Uni Student?
AmbiguousMilk65 on 03/06/2019 - 15:17
Last edited 04/06/2019 - 15:05 by 1 other user
Last edited 04/06/2019 - 15:05 by 1 other user
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We (most uni students I’d imagine) get an allowance covered in fees but it’s not a huge amount and doesn’t last that long, and not sure about OP but I’m external so don’t really get an opportunity to use the Uni one anyway.
When I was at uni we used to print blank pages to use up our allowance and get blank paper :)
OT, a cheap Brother printer would work well for you. Some are still part of that ebay 20% sale.
EG:
Single sided: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Brother-HL-L2305W-B-W-Laser-Prin…
Double sized: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Brother-HL-L2350DW-HL-L2375DW-Mo…This sounds absurd but when I was at Uni some students had no limits on printing eg Computer Science students at UniSA.
So yeah we just used to print out books we weren't going to read and stuff, it really worked out well. :D
I don't get an allowance at my Uni.
9c for one-sided B/W print or 35c for colour.
We’ve got a cheap HP. Was about $40 odd to buy I think. Does a good job, easy to use, duplex (printing only) and scans.
But like any inkjet they get you with the cost of the ink :( we use OEM, but could probably get cheaper elsewhere most likely.
Do you really need to print out your notes?
Perhaps just write by hand or save them for later reference.
Can’t go wrong with a second hand Fuji Xerox ApeosPort IV or V, those things are fantastic at a reasonable price (under $2k easily). It’s a lot of printer for a low price, and the features/$ ratio outweighs any cheaper option. Aftermarket toner is dirt cheap too.
$2k reasonable for a uni student??
Are you serious or having a laugh?
Edit: Sorry my bad, you're obviously having a laugh!
I’m being serious. If I could turn back time and undo the last 4 printer purchases, I would’ve gone straight for a second hand commercial machine.
How much do you value reliability, uptime and ease of use? Ever had a major assignment jam in the printer with 55 minutes to go? Ever had to staple things in a few bundles because your stack of paper was too thick? Never again shall I suffer the likes of $100 printers.
I get it but that's called hindsight bias
https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=we…
Agreed, rather spend more money on reliability and ease. Thinking about buying a Toshiba E Studio for $1.5K. Does hole punching, stapling, double side printing and A3. I hate the random lines and paint smudges on the cheap printers.
While at uni I got ~$25 a semester in credits for printing. I never used more than about $30 worth for the 4 years I was there. I would just print at uni.
If you really prefer handwriting have you considered a iPad or galaxy tab? Then use one note to organise everything?
I buy two or three 20 dollar printers and use the ink and throw away the printers because it's cheaper.
It's the free market being completely hopeless again but if anyone is going to be losing money here it should be HP whatever other unregulated multinational is offering me the service.
Not me.
These kinds come with short usage toners, so all you are really doing is sending carbon into the atmosphere, and ABS plastic to landfill.
You could instead pickup a thrown out printer for free
Then buy one aftermarket toner and bulk inks and use it for years. For example, HP Long life toner cartridges commonly last 10,000 pages @ >$100. Easy to get for most old commercial models, many of which you can find for free on the street, and cheap/free on gumtree.
For colour inkjet just get some bulk ink tanks, with pipes that feed commodity inkjets for months or even years of uninterrupted colour printing $140. I bought a new one to get all the bells and whistles. The printer did cost $250 but all up <$400 for a printer that does A3, duplexing, networking, stack scanning, multifunction, etc and I never have to buy cartridges, just $60 worth of ink every few years.
Want colour laser? May be possible now, they are getting chucked from offices, just have to find cheap cartridges- harder yes but some models must have reasonable consumables. With laser printers, you just have to avoid ones with worn out fusers or drums (check the printers' info page). Note: Sometimes 9% remaining can mean 20,000 pages or more!
One of the following, nothing else have an ROI anywhere near them
- credit card printer
- access card printer
- ID card printer
- Fiat currency printer
- Fake news printer?
I have used an Epson wf-2660 from a few years.
It works with knock off cartridges that cost less than $5 from eBay or Amazon. Woolworths and Officeworks also stock the knock off cartridges for a bit extra if you run out need them quickly.It is very cheap to run and reliable with wifi. They don't sell this model anymore, but Officeworks sell similar things for about $100.
Christ… I GAVE AWAY a HP print/scan/copy/wifi just recently. How much to fill that sucker? $6 for black+colours from China. The cartridges would smash out a couple of hundred pages (at least in black and white) easy. Just check on gumtree or new at officeworks for $19. Make sure you have a steady reliable supply from China first though
With printers look for ones on sale with good cashback's. It's sometimes cheaper to buy these printers than buying secondhand printers or even getting free printers off mates/gumtree/whatever (bought a printer once with a cashback that was more than the price of the printer on sale)
I got an MFC J5320dw when I started uni. It's been pretty much perfect. Costs similar to a laser printer to run because it uses very large cheap cartridges, especially the black which costs like $15 for 1200 pages (make sure you buy the XL cartridges). The printer itself cost like $200, but I think I got something like $100 cashback. It's got an scanner with an auto document feeder which is nice, and got WiFi. I think I've changed the ink twice over nearly 4 years.
That printer isn't available anymore but this Epsom seems similar. It comes with an $80 cashback from Epsom so it costs around $60 depending what store you buy it from
as a uni student i'd assume you'd milk the uni printer for all its worth