Printer/AIO !

[TheEvolution]

Please help me!
I'm totally noob about printing.....
I need a printer/AIO for basic use at home.
I will mainly print B&W pages,may be 50-100 B&W,5-10 color and 1-2 photos per month.
Scanner,photo print,DVD label(no Fax) will be bonus for me though my priority is cheap printing cost and my budget is pretty low.
Refill is good option but don't know how to do that.
Should I buy a mono laser at present and later an inkjet AIO ?
Thanks..........

 

[Guest]

Personally, I'd just buy a cheap mono laser.

I'd stay away from AIO because they are built down to a price and if one part fails you lose the use of the rest of it during repair (assuming repair is economically viable).

Inkjet is expensive and unreliable when you use it and the cartridges dry up if you don't.

 

[robjohnston]

I agree with fihart that a mono laser printer is one of the most cost effective methods of printing, especially large quantities. However it is a higher outlay for each toner cartridge.

If you were to purchase an inkjet AIO with a low initial cost, you usually get stung when it comes to buying cartridges. Lexmark is a good example of this. They tempt you in with a low purchase price, but then a full set of cartridges later on will cost more than the printer did in the first place.

This is often the case with HP AIO's as well.

Kodak's ESP range seem quite good. They have only been on the market about 12-18months but so far they have made a good impression. I believe there are three models, ESP3, ESP5 and ESP7 but someone please correct me on this?
The main selling point is the low cartridge costs. £5.99 for a black cartridge and £7.99 for a colour usually, also a double pack can be bought for around £11.99.

I work in repairs and returns for a major electrical retailer, and I very rarely have one of these returned for any kind of fault.

 

[TheEvolution]

So,should I buy a cheap mono laser printer like HP laser jet P1005 and later will but a AIO for scan,color pages and photo print ?

 

[Guest]

Cheap lasers -- I like Kyocera but Brother and Samsung are probably just as good. HP supplies are readily available -- not that you'll need to replace the cartridge on a laser very often.


The rest comes down to space, really -- an AIO has a sensible footprint but I would also look at Canon dedicated scanners which store upright.

If you must have general colour printing inkjet is the choice -- though for photos I would use a store or online service which returns prints that look like film processing prints.

 

[TheEvolution]

So,u mean if space doesn't matter and if I don't need photos then a cheap mono laser printer,a inkjet color printer and separate scanner would be great ?
Would u like to suggest me few cheap laser printers ?

 

[Guest]

Pretty much as you say.

I couldn't recommend any current laser models. Most of my gear is outdated -- freebies from dumpsters and a local company where friend is IT manager. Friend bought a cheap Samsung laser last year and is happy.

There are lots of reviews out there -- CNET not a bad place to start.

Scanners, I'd go with big brands Canon and Epson -- the lesser known may not be as good.

 

[TheEvolution]

I have found some models after lot of googling,but still confused.....

HP P1005
HP P1006
Samsung ML-2525W
Samsung ML-2525
Samsung ML-2240
Brother HL-2170W
Brother HL-2140

 

[TheEvolution]

Got information from my friend.
Cheapest Monochrome laser Samsung ML-1610@Rs.3000/- and Samsung ML-2245@Rs.5000/-(Only ML-2245 with separate toner and drum)..........

 

[Guest]

Probably similar to Samsung my friend bought and that seems fine. The main measures on mono lasers after print quality are speed of start up (important if you only use it for short runs), speed of printing (if you do long runs) cost per average page (longevity of refill vs price).

As you've observed some lasers offer an all-in-one toner and drum replace, some have separate. Obviously this will affect the apparent cost of consumables (though a separate drum may not need replacing for a long time, it may be hard to find and be expensive).

 

[TheEvolution]

Don't know if Brother or HP offering separate toner and drum.
But only Samsung ML-2245 offering and I'm sure.
Though my basic requirement is pretty low compare to others but cost per average page is most important to me.
Unfortunately I don't have enough skill to calculate that.....

 

[Guest]

See reviews which often include cost per page.

 

[TheEvolution]

Please suggest other good sites for printer review too.....

 

[Guest]

Amazon is useful as it has quick user reviews.

For example:http://www.amazon.co.uk/Brother-HL-2035-Compact-Laser-Printer/dp/B001D8C5V0

 

[TheEvolution]

@ fihart
Thanks for your reply!

I think Samsung ML-2245@Rs.5000/- is cheaper with separate toner and drum compare to other.
Brother not giving extra cartridge at that price.
Though I will print not so much.
Now I have a question.
How long a laser toner/cartridge can last ?
I mean at least I will need one year to empty the cartridge (assuming a cartridge can print 2K pages) and I have to keep other sealed cartridge without using it.
And what is the max life of a cartridge ?
I'm asking cos may be I will not print regularly.
BTW,is auto duplex mode important to save more money and hassle ?

 

[Guest]

How long piece string ?

The honest answer is that I've never had to buy a new cartridge -- generally my old printers are replaced by fresh old printers before the toner runs out (I live in London and businesses just dump redundant gear on the street for the garbage men to take away).


Cost per page -- lasers are undoubtedly the cheapest option and I'd expect that with average domestic use most refills would be sufficient for over a year's printing.

The really good thing about lasers is that you can leave them unused for months and one day just fire them up and they work. That is not the case with inkjet.

 

[TheEvolution]

OK,then I'm gonna buy Brother HL-2140 if it comes with at least a separate toner or cheaper compare to other.
If not then Samsung Ml-2245.
It comes with separate toner and drum.
So the it seems cheaper than other.
No HP cos those laser printer's toner contain less ink than Brother or Samsung(if I'm not wrong).
One more question.
Is refill possible for Brother and Samsung.
If yes,is it very hard for a newbie ?

How long piece string ?

The honest answer is that I've never had to buy a new cartridge -- generally my old printers are replaced by fresh old printers before the toner runs out (I live in London and businesses just dump redundant gear on the street for the garbage men to take away).

BTW,I live in India and thing are totally different here.
Thank for your help.....

 

[TheEvolution]

Best answer selected by TheEvolution.