Hi, Is a laser printer worth the extra cost over a desk top ink jet. I've been having banding and problems getting my HP to print the first sheet. It's about 2 yrs old. I've been studying the Konica-Minolta 2450 which can print both True Type and 144 postscript fonts for $599. I have about 10 adobe Type 1 fonts. I can't get info on the 144 list from the company to see if mine would be included though. I also only print probably under 500 copies a year.
[ June 29, 2005, 01:19 PM: Message edited by: jerry jaran ]
Posted by Si Allen (Member # 420) on :
Most inkjets will print whatever you feed them!
At 500 copies a year, I doubt you need a lazer printer. Epson, cannon and some others will print photos and ultra sharp details and are under $100.
[ June 29, 2005, 01:56 PM: Message edited by: Si Allen ]
Posted by Checkers (Member # 63) on :
Hiya Jerry, Typically, operating costs for a laser printer are significantly less than inkjet. From what I recall of a consumer report several years ago, a full color 8" x 10" print on an inkjet costs about $1.00 where a laser print was around 50¢. So, in theroy, you could be saving $250 a year in your printing costs and have the machine pay for itself in under 3 years. I'm sure if you search the net, you'll get varied opinions on this topic. Ultimately, the quality of the finished product is what would matter to me.
Havin' fun,
Checkers
Posted by Mike O'Neill (Member # 470) on :
I'm down to about .08c per 12x18 full color full coverage at 35 page per minute (11"), toner & service incl.
...but its a 40,000 toy.
I've never liked inkjet other than wide format, but it all depends on your work environment. 40 prints per month doesnt really justify spending a bunch on a printer.
Posted by Russ McMullin (Member # 5617) on :
I have had the same laser printer since 1994 and I still love it. The toner is about $100 and usually gives between 3000 and 4000 pages. The print quality is excellent. Considering that a ream of paper is about $3.00, I estimate my cost per page at 3 to 5 cents each.
Posted by Rick Chavez (Member # 2146) on :
500 sheets a year is very low, I have a color (Tektronix 780) and black and white laser printer (HP 5100) and the only advantage I see is slightly cheaper output and faster, especially if I am printing 100-200 pages for bid documents or multiples for meetings. Plus I can push a lot of different types of paper through it. Color correction/matching on laser printers is not the best, and consistancy isn't either. Plus a full set of toner for my printer is 750.00 bucks. If color is critical, I print it on my Epson 1280. I estimate my per sheet cost on an 11x17 sheet is near .50-70 cents, that includes the service warranty and saving for a new machine at 7500-8000.00 in 3-4 years.
[ June 29, 2005, 04:33 PM: Message edited by: Rick Chavez ]
Posted by jerry jaran (Member # 524) on :
Hi, Thanks for tips. I realized after noting the cost and my printing output that per sheet would be high unless the machine would last years. the warranty is 1 yr. so that says something. I am now looking at the Epson 6600.ink jet for $200. It will print transparencies too. The 4600 will not. The ink is better than HP too and individual cartridges.
Posted by W. R. Pickett (Member # 3842) on :
...Hey Russ, what kind of ink jet do you have?
The "free" Epson C86 that came w. my new Mac has been used about FOUR times and now it's out of black ink. A new ink cartridge costs $25 !!! ...My old Epson 740i did not have seperate ink wells, and an entire (4 color) cartridge was the same price.
...So, does lazer printers ink last longer (and cost less) ?
Posted by Barry Branscum (Member # 445) on :
You might check out some of the new DELL color lasers...I have one, new for 700 bucks...I love it.. 25 ppm color, 35 ppm bw. Like 7-11 cents per page costing...Great machine!
On my laser printer I can get around 1500-2000 prints with 11x17 and around 3-4000 8 1/2" x 11"s with the toner. Then you have Fuser Rolls and Imaging units. I can't remember the last time I changed the fuser roller or imaging unit but they get around 10,000 prints. The extended warranty runs out on mine soon and I doubt I will renew it, I think it was around 900.00 bucks. I will probably get a Xerox in the next year or so, it prints closer to what the screen shows and the toner is not all glossy like my 780.
Posted by Mike O'Neill (Member # 470) on :
I got a little problem with Dell printers.
Proprietory Proprietory Proprietory ....
No third party inks available, no other source than Dell to buy inks from. Nice business model, locked in customer base.
TCO (total cost of ownership) = extreme
Run it for a while, then say what your cost per page is. Dells numbers are based on 6% coverage.
[ July 03, 2005, 01:53 AM: Message edited by: Mike O'Neill ]
Posted by jerry jaran (Member # 524) on :
Hi, Well,in my research on epsons individual inks a reviewer noted that at four changes an alert comes up to service the machine which costs a lot and one would choose to buy another! They use a lot of ink too so I went back to the laser and checked out PC World reviews which led me to the Editors choice of the Dell 3000cn color. It now sells for 310 tx inc. free ship. So, I ordered it. Well, What do we work for anyway but to spend.
Posted by Ian Stewart-Koster (Member # 3500) on :
Jerry, 2 years ago I bought a second-hand Lexmark Optra S-1850 from Ebay for $300 Australian. It came with an extra bulk drawer & a duplexer unit & a spare new toner cartridge.
Its duty cycle is 60 000 copies per month, which is monumental , but its resolution if you want it is 1200 dpi, though I use it for post script halftone printing, and ordinary text printing. At 20 pages per minute it's great, quick, saving paper by going back to back, and spare cartridges give 16000 pages of normal text print at $95 each, which is about 3 pages per one cent of toner. You can also double up your print size, so four pages wil fit on a page. RAM can be increased with ordinary 72 pin computer ram from a windows 95 system.
Nowdays you can get the same unit for $150 or less, (on ebay) but it was built as a heavy duty unit to last. It's only black & white, but worth its weight to us & the economy is great. You don't mind printing out some of the manuals that come as pdf file either. There's just a learning curve with half tone stuff, and don't try sending five 4 meg photos to it or you'll be waiting a while!
It suits us... the inkjet hardly turns over these days!
