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HELP! Looking for small, good, inexpensive wireless printer

ssledoux

ssledoux

macrumors 601
Original poster
Sep 16, 2006
4,413
4,245
Down south
I HATE my Epson printer. It doesn't have a draft mode, and takes FOREVER to print a single b/w page.

I don't have a computer anymore, so I need something wireless to use with my iPad and iPhone.

The more compact, the better.
 
Epson WF-3720 Work force Pro. it's cheap to buy under $100 and prints&Scans. and is wireless.
You may hate your Epson but all these printers are pretty worthless, but i have found they are about the best for the money, sure the WF-3720 is not compact so maybe it's not a good choice for you.
Good Luck finding something.
 
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Honestly the only thing I hate about it is how it has no setting to do a "fast" print in black and white. A mailing label takes pretty much a full 5 minutes to print. It's ridiculous.
 
If you just need black and white, I’d highly recommend a Brother L2320D laser monochrome printer. It’s super fast, small, and toner can’t dry up like ink does. They run like $80 and will last you years. Oh and of course they are AirPrint compatible.
 
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Glad to hear the good comments on Brother. That's what I was planning on replacing my inkjet with when it dies.
 
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I’ve had my brother printer for close to 2 yrs. the laser ink last forever. It’s awesome. I should upgrade to an AirPrint brother....
 
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Do AirPrint printers connect directly to the device you are using or do they have to connect first to your WiFi network?
 
I'm looking at the small Brother models too – I'd love to understand the ease of adjusting network settings as well, and well as opinions on the longevity of the (much more expensive) toner cartridges versus (cheaper but still expensive) inkjet cartridges generally.
 
digitalcuriosity said:
Just how old is your Epson printer?
Click to expand...

It's not really very old- definitely purchased within the last year or MAYBE 18 months. I just can't find any way at all to set it to do a "draft" print, so everything takes forever when I could whip out a draft b/w in 20 seconds on my HP. It was just so huge I got rid of it.
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thisismyusername said:
A b/w brother laser is my choice as well. I have one of their multifunction ones and it works great. Forget ink jets (have your photos professionally printed).
Click to expand...

Yeah I never print photos or anything like that anyway. And honestly, if I have something color, I just send it to my husband to print at his office because the quality is always so much better.
 
I’ve had 4 printers over the last 4 years, last one is a Brother laser, I cannot say enough good things about it. Fast reliable and toner is so affordable compared to ink cartridges. Toner cartridges last longer and do not dry up as ink jet ones do. I bought about 6 months ago and it still has the original toner cartridge.
 
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iapplelove said:
I love my HPs... been using them since Air Print was released. They were the first to jump on.

I have on HP that’s on year 5!

Best Buy has them as low as 60 bucks that do almost everything.
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I'm a few years into an HP 5530. Compact, versatile, Air Print ready, great quality prints and easy to set up without a computer. Having HP InstantInk (three months came free with the printer) has saved me boat loads of time and money on ink refills.
 
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ssledoux said:
Yeah I never print photos or anything like that anyway. And honestly, if I have something color, I just send it to my husband to print at his office because the quality is always so much better.
Click to expand...

When I bought my inkjet years about it seemed like such a nice feature to be able to print photos but it's more of a pain. It's so cheap to get pictures developed at Costco there's really no point. I have only been replacing my black ink for years.
 
I recently went from Inkjet to laser and it’s a night and day difference. Print quality is nicer, toner lasts longer between refills, toner is also much cheaper than ink. I couldn’t be happier.
 
Done with the inkjet hassle myself. Perhaps if I printed a lot more, I would not have had so much trouble. For intermittent, reliable and cheap mono prints, I suggest a laser printer. Color laser if you need to print business color now and then.

Inkjet only if you print frequently and don't want to outsource your occasional photo printing.
 
I need a new printer too. My several years old Brother 2270DW stopped working (I could only print from the manual feed tray) so I decided to recycle it and buy the newer model -- the 2370DW. After several hours was trying to get it set up, I gave up. Also it seems defective in that it prints a black line on the right side of the page. So I am planning to return it, mainly because of the frustration with setup.

In this space (laser, compact, auto duplex), the only other players are Samsung (https://www.staples.com/samsung-xpr...ith-wireless-printing-ss346c/product_24295911) and Xerox (https://www.staples.com/xerox-phaser-3260dni-wireless-mono-laser-printer/product_1460995). The Samsung's reviews aren't all that great. Xerox seems to have great reviews, but too few of them.

Does anyone have any experience with any of these printers?

Now, if I decide to go inkjet there are considerably more choices -- are any of the newer inkjets better with respect to ink drying out? There are some newer technology ones by Epson, e.g., that use actual ink rather than cartridges. But the question is whether they will dry out if the printer is not used for extended periods? I have no use for a multifunction and IMO more functions means more chances for frustration.

So, anyway, I need recommendations for a printer too. I would like something that is easy to setup with a mac.
 
ghanwani said:
I need a new printer too. My several years old Brother 2270DW stopped working (I could only print from the manual feed tray) so I decided to recycle it and buy the newer model -- the 2370DW. After several hours was trying to get it set up, I gave up. Also it seems defective in that it prints a black line on the right side of the page. So I am planning to return it, mainly because of the frustration with setup.

In this space (laser, compact, auto duplex), the only other players are Samsung (https://www.staples.com/samsung-xpr...ith-wireless-printing-ss346c/product_24295911) and Xerox (https://www.staples.com/xerox-phaser-3260dni-wireless-mono-laser-printer/product_1460995). The Samsung's reviews aren't all that great. Xerox seems to have great reviews, but too few of them.

Does anyone have any experience with any of these printers?

Now, if I decide to go inkjet there are considerably more choices -- are any of the newer inkjets better with respect to ink drying out? There are some newer technology ones by Epson, e.g., that use actual ink rather than cartridges. But the question is whether they will dry out if the printer is not used for extended periods? I have no use for a multifunction and IMO more functions means more chances for frustration.

So, anyway, I need recommendations for a printer too. I would like something that is easy to setup with a mac.
Click to expand...

Sorry you've had issues with Brother, but they have been the best for me and many others I know. When you set up a Brother printer (or any other AirPrint enabled printer) it's much easier to just manually connect the printer to your wireless network from the printers menu. Then just ad the printer through macOS systems preferences printer window. You then use the default macOS print/scan app. I've set these up for family and friends in less than 5 minutes. You also forgo all of the manufactures software/bloatware and the issues involved that goes with it.
 
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macdragonfl said:
Sorry you've had issues with Brother, but they have been the best for me and many others I know. When you set up a Brother printer (or any other AirPrint enabled printer) it's much easier to just manually connect the printer to your wireless network from the printers menu. Then just ad the printer through macOS systems preferences printer window. You then use the default macOS print/scan app. I've set these up for family and friends in less than 5 minutes. You also forgo all of the manufactures software/bloatware and the issues involved that goes with it.
Click to expand...

I had no major issues with my previous one either. I tried to set up wired networking using the on printer menu but it just wouldn't get an IP address.

What is your take on the black line at the right edge of the paper? Defective toner cartridge?
 
ghanwani said:
I had no major issues with my previous one either. I tried to set up wired networking using the on printer menu but it just wouldn't get an IP address.

What is your take on the black line at the right edge of the paper? Defective toner cartridge?
Click to expand...
That sounds like a defective drum cartridge or a defective toner cartridge. It can happen with either. I would call Brother depending on how long you bought they may do something for you.
 
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