Computer Printers -- Who has one that does not suck...

[telebear]

After suffering regular paper jams, near-constant communication errors, and fiddling with expensive ink cartridges on what seems like a monthly basis, it seems my all-in-one Canon printer (MP620) has shit the bed.

I'm leaning towards a cheapo black and white laser, I don't really think I need color and printing photos at home is such a pain in the ass that it's easier (and cheaper) to just to pick pictures up at Walgreens.

So what says the collective????

I know Tech Talk... but thought I'd get more traffic here.

[farmer]

That's what I did. I ended up getting a laser cannon print-scan-copy-fax for cheap because it was on clearance.

It was (probably still is) great, until I found out that they never made a 64-bit driver for it. Gave it to my roommate when I moved out.

At some point here I should probably do the same, but right now I can get away with printing whatever I want at work, so I have a hard time justifying spending perfectly good beer / stripper money on a printer.

One thing to watch for is to get one with the toner and drum in one. Some with a cheaper sticker price will have them separate, and you have to buy a new drum every other time that costs pretty much the same as the printer did in the first place. The ones that have them in the same unit sell the toner / drum for about the same as the others sell toner for, so in the long run it is cheaper.

[mud]

HP has some good ones. Had two over the past ten years and the only reason i upgraded was to get the latest tech.

[XXX-er]

After the ink dried up in my brother all in one inkjet, I got a brother black & white lazer, if all you need to print is some text a lazer is cheaper/way less hassle, I kept the all in one for the scanner & fax

[stfu&gbtw]

I have a few brother hl-2230's and they're pretty reliable. Oddly enough, the hl-2270 has not been.

[nickwm21]

Here is the issue...

Printers are mechanical
Printers are made by electronics companies

I wish husqvarna made a printer

[mud]

Combination chainsaw, mill and husqvarna printer, the first all in one.

[oftpiste]

What about a harley davidson printer?

Our printer, which gets used 99% of the time for black and white documents routinely refuses to print anything - even in black and white - because one of the colored cartridges is 'past its expiration date'. The cure for this requires a trip to office depot, an unreasonable expenditure of resources to purchase cartridges that never get used, and further frustration when the last batch of cartridges we replaced expires and the whole fucking thing happens again.

What a fucking hose job. I too would like to know of a printer that doesn't suck.

[XXX-er]

thats^^ why I went lazer ...way less hassle

As recovering IT professional I scoped it out, bought the inkjet with the cheapest ink cartridges which was A brother all in one, the thing is becuz I used a much faster/cheaper lazer on the system instead of the inkjet it never got used so the ink entirely clogged the carrier ... the printer is completely fucked

If I had bought an inkjet printer with mo expensive cartridges which I believe have the print head right in the cartridge that printer would probably still be working but in any case I would be bending over on ink costs

[liv2ski]

Have had a HP990 forever.

[RShea]

Laser technology is cheaper - especially if you only need black and white and no color. Next question you need to ask is do you need a printer only or a multifunction printer, scanner, copier?

If printer only- HP, Canon and Lexmark business class are well known (if it is sold at Walmart or any big box store- it probably is a low end consumer class and if it breaks you end up throwing it away). Others out there include Ricoh, Xerox, Konica Minolta for laser units. Also look at the price of the toner and consumables for costs.

Multifunction units typically have more things that can go wrong due to the scanner and sheet feeders, etc. Canon, HP, Samsung, Ricoh all have models in this area depending on your needs.

Also think about a used/refurbished model if you can't afford a new true business class unit.

[toast2266]

What about a harley davidson printer?

It'll be heavy and vibrate off the side of the desk while printing, but it'll be a hit with 40 somethings having a midlife crisis who think a printer can somehow make them not a total fucking tool.

[Skree]

Computer Printers -- Who has one that does not suck...

They all suck... but to be fair, printing a computer is really hard.

If, on the other hand, you just want to print a picture of a computer, you should look into any of the Lexmark printers that use the 105XL ink cartridge. $5.00 for around 500 pages in black and white.

[MontuckyFried]

I've had multiple Brother MFC b&w laser printer/scanner/fax/copiers. They've been reasonably priced, have been bullet-proof, and very cheap to operate. Two of them have even served on office duty, basically replacing the high-dollar copiers when they're waiting for repairs, and end up doing every bit as well, minus any problems.

I have the older version of this: http://www.costco.com/Brother-MFC-89...100001382.html

Being a black and white between 4-5 hundred dollars seems like a lot, but getting half a decade of totally hassle free printing has been totally worth it. The toner cartridges last FOREVER, too! WAY better than the POS (and $$$) Xerox machine we had at the office. There's a unit I bought back in 2006 that I ended up giving to a friend for his business, and it's still rocking hard.

I've also REALLY enjoyed these, which I take on the road with me when I have to work out of town for extended periods of time:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16828113690
$85 and pretty rugged. I've been very pleased with mine. Been going strong since 2008, many thousands of pages, and a lot of travel.

[The Suit]

I've had a Brother MFC-9970CDW for a couple of years and been happy with it. Color multifunction laser. It's pretty loud, but it has been reliable.

[stfu&gbtw]

I've had a Brother MFC-9970CDW for a couple of years and been happy with it. Color multifunction laser. It's pretty loud, but it has been reliable.

I have one of those... I agree it's pretty reliable, but toner gets expensive, no?

[PNWbrit]

What about a harley davidson printer?

But who wants to dress up in leather pants every time they need to print a boarding pass or recipe?

[The AD]

I'm leaning towards a cheapo black and white laser

Do it. Just check out toner cost and the number of pages you'll get out of a cartridge before making your decision. I bought a Canon all-in-one b&w laser a couple years ago and it has worked great. I find I very rarely need to print anything in color.

[MontuckyFried]

I have one of those... I agree it's pretty reliable, but toner gets expensive, no?

That's why I went with a black and white model initially, BUT at least with color laser, toner (which is a powder) doesn't go bad on its own like ink cartridges do, and if you don't print color that often, you'll rarely need to replace your color cartridges.

I think I'm going to go with a color model next, but I've gotten by for many years without it just fine. I just go to Kinkos for those rare instances I HAVE to print in color for a given project. Then again, maybe I just need to buck up and get a color plotter one of these days. Those cost mucho dinero tho.

[MontuckyFried]

Do it. Just check out toner cost and the number of pages you'll get out of a cartridge before making your decision. I bought a Canon all-in-one b&w laser a couple years ago and it has worked great. I find I very rarely need to print anything in color.

I've found the high-capacity toner cartridges to be pretty economical. Also, I've had good results with the cheap aftermarket ones on Amazon. If you don't go with original manufacturer cartridges though, just make sure to read reviews to make sure you're getting a good one though as YMMV.

[MTT]

I bought another muti use box last week.

Cannon MX459 Yep the Ink will dry out before I ever go through it.
The Wifi feature is new for me, and nice, No cable to the Lap Top.

And hey they are getting cheap, I paid 70$ for this thing.

[stfu&gbtw]

That's why I went with a black and white model initially, BUT at least with color laser, toner (which is a powder) doesn't go bad on its own like ink cartridges do, and if you don't print color that often, you'll rarely need to replace your color cartridges.

I think I'm going to go with a color model next, but I've gotten by for many years without it just fine. I just go to Kinkos for those rare instances I HAVE to print in color for a given project. Then again, maybe I just need to buck up and get a color plotter one of these days. Those cost mucho dinero tho.

Just be careful you get one that does true black and not amalgamated black. Amalgamated black will drain (and require) your color carts when you print b/w. Also - a b/w laser printer can be had for way less than $100. The brother all in one I have (9370?) was about $500.

[The Suit]

I have one of those... I agree it's pretty reliable, but toner gets expensive, no?

Wife buys that, so I don't know.

[jgb@etree]

Haven't read thru any of the posts other than the OP, but two thoughts come to mind:

1. You generally get what you paid for. If you cheaped out and bought some POS, then you got a piece of shit
2. Multifunction ANYTHING is generally a bad idea. Typically all of the functions are dumbed down/limited. Having the right tool to do a job is always helpful. If you need a printer, get a printer.

</drunk wisdom>

Edit: FWIW, I use an HP 1321n at home. It's a 6-7yo 'personal' laser printer, and has never given me a single issue. I get my toner from work, but can't even recall the last time I had to switch the toner.

[oftpiste]

yeah, wait 'til your cartridges 'expire' even though they're full. fuckers!

I bought another muti use box last week.

Cannon MX459 Yep the Ink will dry out before I ever go through it.
The Wifi feature is new for me, and nice, No cable to the Lap Top.

And hey they are getting cheap, I paid 70$ for this thing.