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cheap laser printer?

B

boomish

macrumors regular
Original poster
Aug 1, 2008
122
0
Am looking for a cheap laser printer has anyone got any recommendations?

I found a Dell 1320cn is very cheap in replacement toners but after more searches it seems lacking in drivers and maybe difficult to setup. I don't want to buy a Samsung, besides the whole anti Apple thing I had one before and it was crap.

Appreciate any help..
 
Over Thanksgiving I ordered an HP Laserjet P1102w....at the time they had it discounted (with instant savings) to $74.99. I bought a $25 off $75 coupon from the web for $1.86....added a $1 tape dispenser to get my total over $75, so the printer ended up costing me about $56 with tax (shipping was free). Cheaper than a toner cartridge for a lot of printers.

It's wireless and supports AirPrint....I've tested printing from my iPhone and iPad and it works great (but you first have to update the printer firmware to get the capability).
 
be careful with hp printers. mine is still awaiting a software upgrade for my particular model to print wirelessly. i really like the brother or epson printers, which will be my next purchase. i am going for a color laser though which start at 299
 
Thanks guys, yep I am after a colour too I forgot to mention that, I think I will get a Dell as some people have it working ona Mac, Dell have released an OSX driver, I need to get one for the mother in law who is on a PC too so I will get one and test it, if it works I'll order another, I foudna few forums where the users swear by the Dell 1320c, works for years and by far the cheapest toners, I found a full set for £25! others are £50 upwards!
 
If you are getting a color laser, make sure you know that the cheap ones run way slow for color compared to their black and white speed. This means if you print anything with any color in it, even if its a tiny part of the pages, it will run really slowly... basically 1/4 of its speed. In my experience its either better to get a cheap black and white laser, or a color that prints color at the same speed as black and white... or if you can't afford that, then get an ink jet. Also be aware that the consumables for color laser printers ain't cheap. For HP color 3600N printer, their are 4 toner cartridges that sell for about $135 each. They last a long time, but when they go, they are expensive. Also note that the indicator that they are low (replace soon) can come on WAY before they are empty. My recent black toner cartridge I think kept going for nearly a year after that warning came on.

And side note... I would never buy anything from Dell ever again... horrible company.
 
ya i was looking at some of the color speed. 4 ppm speed. what is that all about. i have a quick inkjet all in one and i wanted to replace it with a color laser all in one. there is not many choices for a all in one thats wirelessly as well for under 600. plus the expensive toner.
 
Thanks for the replies guys, well speed is not an issue I think it's more cost, I have 3 kids and it's just the day to day printing of the whole family etc, I have run a mono laser and inkjet before, and yes a good combination but in the end the Samsung laser went horribly wrong after buying some cheap refills. I have a cheap inkjet I got free with a new iMac and that has lasted well, cheapish cartridges but they are tiny and run out all the time, only reason I chose Dell was other recommendations, I wouldn't buy a Dell laptop, but maybe their printers are ok? but now I don't want to buy anything Samsung either..
 
Brother makes some very nice low-end monochrome laser printers. These can sometimes be found for under $100 at places like Staples, etc.

Be aware that the lowest-cost versions will only have USB connectivity. If you spend a little more, you can also get network connectivity via Ethernet and/or wireless.

I seem to recall hearing that Samsung didn't have a good record insofar as driver support was concerned. Never owned one so I can't vouch for that personally.

Also, I've heard that of late, Okidata isn't good with the Mac (they once were).

But again, Brother seems to be interested in supporting the Mac market.
 
Check out the HP LaserJet Pro CP1525nw Color Printer. It's selling on Amazon.com for $183.79. HP/Office Depot sometimes sells it for $149.99. It's the best HP LaserJet printer I've bought for under $500.
 
boomish said:
Thanks for the replies guys, well speed is not an issue I think it's more cost, I have 3 kids and it's just the day to day printing of the whole family etc, I have run a mono laser and inkjet before, and yes a good combination but in the end the Samsung laser went horribly wrong after buying some cheap refills. I have a cheap inkjet I got free with a new iMac and that has lasted well, cheapish cartridges but they are tiny and run out all the time, only reason I chose Dell was other recommendations, I wouldn't buy a Dell laptop, but maybe their printers are ok? but now I don't want to buy anything Samsung either..
Click to expand...

Not trying to be a pest on the speed issue, but just want to reiterate that I thought the same as you until I got a cheap color laser and experienced it. Some of them print color at about 4ppm... that is REALLY, REALLY slow compared to anything you are used to. There are printers on sale now for the holidays at great prices. I just saw an HP in one of the flyers... CP-2025DN ... for $349. I think OfficeMax threw in a $50 gift card also. That's a 21ppm b&w and color printer and should last a long time. I've got an older and similar HP printer and its worked well for several years and never had a paper jam that i can remember. The only thing to watch for is the printer tells you the toner is low WAY before it needs to be replaced. I buy replacement when the warning comes on and keep using the old one until it completely stops.
 
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