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Office Printer Recommendation?

nope7308

nope7308

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Oct 6, 2008
1,040
537
Ontario, Canada
I'm looking for a printer to use on a network of about 4 computers (both Mac and PC) and it will be used entirely for documents (colour isn't a priority). Additionally, it will be used quite heavily, so I would prefer a very long cartridge life. I'm guessing the average printing will be about 30-50 pages per day. The printer will be used for generic home use in addition to a home office.

Provided the printer isn't the size of a photocopier, I'm not too worried about size/bulk. So, do you have any recommendations? What approximate price will I be looking at? I'm sorry, but I don't know where to begin with this stuff.

Finally, I would like this to be a wireless printer, but I don't know if my current router can allow that (D-link WBR-2310). I would appreciate any/all help! Thank you.
 
Thanks, but a little more detail (e.g. an explanation) would have been helpful. I checked the website, but I'm still a little confused. What advantages does this technology have over traditional laser printers?

Since the printer will be used almost entirely for documents, printing quality doesn't have to be spectacular. So, I guess I'm looking for:
- Low purchase price
- Long cartridge life
- Inexpensive cartridges
- Standard printing quality

I would be willing to forgo colour altogether if it would drastically reduce the price. How do laser printers compare to these "solid ink" printers given the criteria above? Thanks again.
 
I think solid ink provides photo-quality prints at about the price of laser, while being cleaner.

In order for it to be cost-effective, you might have to leave the printer on continously, to avoid wasting ink every time you switch it on.

If you're happy with B&W, there are some very inexpensive laser printers. I would take a look at Brother and compare their cost per page.

I would only consider printers with automatic duplex.
 
Thanks for the helpful replies. Sorry to change the criteria, but I'm shopping on behalf of old people who don't know their elbow from their ass... here are the *new* requirements:

- Scanner/Copier/Printer (no fax necessary)
- B&W and Colour
- High Print Volume (30-50 pages per day)
- Long Cartridge Life with inexpensive cartridges
- Standard Printing Quality
- Wireless Networking Capabilities for Mac/PC

Around $500... is this even possible? If so, do you have any specific recommendations (either brand or model)?
 
Document or photo color? If you want to print photos, I think you will have to go for ink and printing would be more expensive, unless solid.
 
Do you need a duplex ADF to copy/scan/fax double-sided documents? That limits the choices a lot.
 
cube said:
Do you need a duplex ADF to copy/scan/fax double-sied documents? That limits the choices a lot.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure what a duplex ADF is...

I would need to print double sided while also having the option of scanning/copying. It would be fine if a double sided document would need to be 2 pages when scanned/copied. The ability to fax documents would not be necessary.
 
cube said:
ADF = Automatic Document Feeder
Click to expand...

That still doesn't mean anything to me. So, based on my requirements, do you have a suggested brand/model? Wireless networking is definitely a must.

How much should I expect to pay for all of this?
 
Built-in wireless for a laser AIO will not be easy to find. I can't say I have payed much attention to this in my own search.

For a duplex printing color laser in this price range, you will have to look at Brother and Konica Minolta. I'm biased against Lexmark for their failure to provide Vista drivers for some older inkjet printers.
 
cube said:
Built-in wireless for a laser AIO will not be easy to find. I can't say I have payed much attention to this in my own search.

For a duplex printing color laser in this price range, you will have to look at Brother and Konica Minolta. I'm biased against Lexmark for their failure to provide Vista drivers for some older inkjet printers.
Click to expand...

Hmm, is it possible to "piggy-back" off a wireless router? This way, I would move the router to the home office and hook the printer directly up to it.

After looking at costs, I think it would be best to buy a network colour printer and then a scanner separately. Would you recommend the Xerox Phaser 8560N or 8560DN? I'm not sure what the difference between them is, except that the 8560DN has double sided printing.

On average, do you know how long the solid ink cartridges last? Would they be more cost effective than toner cartridges? Again, thank you for your help with all of this!
 
nope7308 said:
Hmm, is it possible to "piggy-back" off a wireless router? This way, I would move the router to the home office and hook the printer directly up to it.

After looking at costs, I think it would be best to buy a network colour printer and then a scanner separately. Would you recommend the Xerox Phaser 8560N or 8560DN? I'm not sure what the difference between them is, except that the 8560DN has double sided printing.

On average, do you know how long the solid ink cartridges last? Would they be more cost effective than toner cartridges? Again, thank you for your help with all of this!
Click to expand...

You can enlarge a wireless network by bridging more access points. How or if this would work with specific models, you will have to ask the experts (on some routers you can flash alternative firmwares like DD-WRT to add features that the vendor didn't provide).

Xerox normally puts an N in the model for network, and D for duplex printing, so that should be it.

I cannot give you specifics about the solid ink stuff, because although I find it very interesting, I've decided against it for myself because I don't want to leave the machine switched on the whole time.

There are other considerations as well for going with solid ink, such as avoiding the possibility of messing up your clothes with toner, and not wanting toner particles in the air (there was some study about this last item).

But some people with solid ink printers complain about a bit of waxy smell.
 
Jesus Christ, who knew buying a printer would be so complicated?

I just read that the new Xerox Phaser printers have a sleep feature so you don't have to turn the printer off, but it keeps a small pool of ink heated. Do you think that would resolve the power consumption/wasted ink issue?

Also, do you know how cost effective solid ink is in comparison to toner cartridges? Putting sustainability aside (temporarily), I want the best 'bang for buck'. Here, I'm assuming that solid ink would have less waste because it's not contained in an actual cartridge.
 
So, if they put that sleep feature in the new models, I would be dissapointed in Xerox if it didn't work well.

Someone mentioned that with Xerox one should buy support, otherwise maintenance can become very expensive (after 1 year, I think).

Xerox has some PagePack service for some printers, where they supply the consumables in exchange for a flat fee. You should check about this.

The Xerox web site has real-time chat with a salesman.


I went to the Canadian Konica Minolta web site and I couldn't find the smaller products.


The Brother MFC9840CDW has wireless and seemingly duplex everything. I've seen it at about 600 CDN, but I don't know if the sites are reputable.


Yes, finding an MFC with everything that one wants is kind of an impossible task, tell me about it.
 
If you're happy with 1200x600 dpi, you should also take a look at LED printers (1200x1200 only in the high-end).

OKI offers FlatRate services in Europe, but I don't know in Canada.

There's also a FlatRate+ program where they also provide the printer which looks very interesting.
 
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