One of the most reliable printers you can buy is a laser printer. They have less moving parts compared to inkjet (meaning more reliable), and for many models there is in-home printer service available should it bust – even if it’s out of warranty.
Inkjet printers can be had on the cheap new, but as anyone knows it’s cartridges that burn a hole in the wallet faster than anything else.
Example: You buy a new inkjet printer for $50, but then find out it comes with a "starter" cartridge. So you have to shell out some cash for a cartridge. And you’ll probably have to buy another one (or two) within a year’s time. That $50 printer can easily cost you over $100 before the year is out – and that’s not even including the cost of paper.
If you’re fed up with the ridiculous cost of the cartridges, maybe now is the time to switch over to laser.
I will say up front that there are three major disadvantages of laser printing:
1. Physically larger.
Laser printers need to be larger because they run hot on the inside and need to cool down. And the only way to do this effectively is to have a larger box.
2. May not be good for your health.
It is known that some (repeat: some, not all) laser printers do emit ultrafine particles. If you are using the printer in a room that is not well ventilated, it can pose a health risk.
Workaround: Use a wireless laser printer. More on that in a moment.
3. Toner can be expensive.
It is not uncommon to see a laser toner cartridge sell new for between $50 to $100. However bear in mind it takes a lot longer to wear out a toner compared to an inkjet cartridge.
How much does a laser printer cost?
Prices vary, but the average range for a personal laser printer is between $100 and $300.
All major printer manufacturers have laser models available. You will immediately notice they look, act and operate differently compared to the inkjet line – usually to the better on all three counts.
The first thing to take into consideration with a laser printer is the cost of replacement toner. You can search NewEgg or your preferred retailer of choice to see how much the toner will cost you. And yes it does vary significantly depending on make/model of printer.
A few words on refurbished toner
Using refurb/remanufactured toner is far more likely to work properly compared to "re-inking" inkjet cartridges. Most of the time the refurb will work well.
But not without drawbacks.
The things to note about refurb toner are:
- You will not get the same number of pages printed as you would with new toner.
- The imaging drum can potentially get damaged from using refurb (and that’s not cheap to fix).
- The refurb toner might leak.
I’m not saying to not buy refurb toner. What I am saying is know what you’re buying. Some people use refurb toner and never have a problem with it. Others say it’s not worth the hassle and that minor issues happen. And a small percentage have disastrous situations with them.
If you decide to go with refurb toner, know the risks.
Advantages of laser printing
Print more
With inkjet you constantly have to worry about ink and how much of it you have left. With laser you can just keep on printing and simply not worry about it for a good long time.
Print even more
Many affordable laser printers can print as much as 10,000 pages in a month. Some under the $200 range even have a maximum duty cycle of 20,000 pages a month.
Most home users get nowhere near that amount of printing in a month, but if you’re the "power printer" type of user, laser is definitely the way to go.
Choice of monochrome-only or color
Some people couldn’t care less about color printing. Monochrome, as in black, gets you more printed pages and the toner replacement is usually cheaper.
Wireless options available
The brother HL-2170W (NewEgg listing) is an example of how affordable wireless laser printing can be. Even at its low price point it still has a "warm-up" time of less than 10 seconds and connects on wireless b or g. It also has a built-in Ethernet port as well.
If you’ve got the space and are ready to ditch inkjet for good, go laser.
I decided to go this route. I found an HP P1005 monochrome laser printer on newegg for $75 shipped. I didn’t need color, and the cost of ink for my inkjet was so expensive it was making me sick. I also like the speed of printing with the laser, and the lack of paper jams that I seemed to frequently get with inkjets of a similar price to my laser. All in all, I’m very happy I made the switch, and I’ll never go back. I print at most several hundred pages a month.
I used Canon laser printer at my office (since 2005), but canon stop selling this model. Still in good condition and I always used refurbished toner after the first original toner finished. So far the toner last for one year.
My opinion is better to used laser printer rather than inkjet printers because its speed, quality and also you can print more pages. Its true inkjet printers is more cheaper but laser printer value your money for long term used.
Agreed. ‘Have been using Samsung ML-2010 monochrome laser printer for almost two years. ‘Still on only my third toner cartridge and have had only 1 paper jam in that time.
If you don’t print anything for six weeks, a laser will print just fine. With an inkjet, you might find that you can’t print. I gave up on inkjets; if I want to print some pictures, I’ll upload them to Wal-Mart.
I’ve been using a network colour laser printer for about four years now and think they’re brilliant. You don’t have problems with dried out cartridges, no matter how long you don’t use the machine. A black cartridge lasts me about two years with quite a lot of printing, each of the three colours about three years. Colour is more accurate in comparison with what’s on your monitor, all though that might be my particular printer; a Konica Minolta Magicolor 2300DL. All though cartridges are about six times the price of the cheapest bubble jet cartridges, they last twenty times longer. Printing is fast with no jams yet!
Yes the printer is big so you might need to reserve a plot on your territory, but if you use a home or office network that shouldn’t be a problem.
The only real drawback: my laser printer will only print on very thin photo paper. 180 gsm is about the most mine will take. If you’re buying a laser printer you might want to check how thick the paper that your printer will take. And make sure that all of your printing media is compatable with lasers.
I have an inkjet printer that I didn’t even use for a good year or so. When I finally got around to using it, the cartridges had all dried up. I had to go buy new ones because the deep cleaning feature that my printer comes with didn’t even get my old catridge working. Thirty dollars later and I have a new cartridge. I can see the advantages to laser now. Thanks.