And you thought Apple repairs were expensive.. (re: Xerox)

[brentsg]

My Xerox ColorQube printer is leaving the 1 year warranty period so Xerox just sent me an e-mail trying to get me to extend it ($199 for another year).

They throw a startling line in there to secure the sale:

"Without a Service Agreement, US labor rates are $377 for the first 1/2 hour, plus parts and travel costs."

So far the printer has been rock solid (knock on wood), but this definitely isn't something I would have glossed over had I known pre-purchase. Basically you either purchase the extended warranty or it's a disposable printer if/when it breaks.

 

[MisterMe]

You are being dramatic. Xerox Phaser printers produce beautiful documents, do so quickly, and are built like anvils. I own two of them. They make me want to throw stones at everything else.

Yours as well as my two printers are departmental printers. They are capital investments. This is how you have to think of them. That said, I have been a computer user long enough to remember B&W inkjet desktop printers that cost as much as Xerox color printers today. To be sure, a maintenance contract will cost you nearly as much as the printer. So too will a full complement of replacement wax ink. Would you prefer to have the printer cost $5000 like departmental color printers of just a few years ago?

 

[brentsg]

I disagree that it's dramatic. And none of this has anything to do with the quality of print.

It is of course, expected that the money is made on the consumables. However that shouldn't carry with it the expectation that an hour of maintenance will set you back $584 plus travel and parts. ($377 + $69 per 15 minutes)

Basically, 1 hour of maintenance work will cost more than the printer. So yes, it's a disposable printer just like all the $50 inkjets.

 

[MisterMe]

I disagree that it's dramatic. ...

OK, maybe you are just being dense. The Xerox ColorQube is in an entirely different league than the inkject all-in-one's that you are used to.