Reply to: Cheapest type of printer

[Lumiere]

invest in an epson's inkjet printer - cartridges £1 each from ebay (T611-T614) - the overall cost is a tenner per year

[Shimano105]

I got one of these 4 years ago:
Hp 2200DN 2200 DN mono laser printer only

Same sort of cost. Not run out of toner yet. Yeah is a bit big and noisy but would have spent hundreds on ink by now with a deskjet.

I've just bought one now as well - early impressions are good! Tis noisy and large but has a high quality feel and should pay for itself in toner costs vs ink costs alone.

[Sysman]

I got one of these 4 years ago:
Hp 2200DN 2200 DN mono laser printer only

Same sort of cost. Not run out of toner yet. Yeah is a bit big and noisy but would have spent hundreds on ink by now with a deskjet.

I got an HP 2100M 10 years ago, but it developed a nasty smudge after moving house. The network cards were so disgustingly expensive that I couldn't bring myself to buy one. A couple of years ago I just missed a second hand one, with network card, full duplex and a couple of unopened cartridges for about 80 quid. That would have been perfect as I could have used the existing one for spares.

A second hand version of a quality printer is definitely worth looking at.

[DaveB]

Agree that the HP LJ4 is a hardy bit of kit but a bit noisy.

Personally prefer the 4050tn's which, I believe, superseded the LJ4's.

Edit: Just a thought, are these older printers still compatible with Windows XP/7?
i.e. are drivers available?

Don't know about 7 but the HP's work out of the box with XP. No need for downloads etc.

[administrator]

I got one of these 4 years ago:
Hp 2200DN 2200 DN mono laser printer only

Same sort of cost. Not run out of toner yet. Yeah is a bit big and noisy but would have spent hundreds on ink by now with a deskjet.

[Clippy]

Agree that the HP LJ4 is a hardy bit of kit but a bit noisy.

Personally prefer the 4050tn's which, I believe, superseded the LJ4's.

Edit: Just a thought, are these older printers still compatible with Windows XP/7?
i.e. are drivers available?

[HairyArsedBloke]

You can pickup a refurbished HP LAserJet 4 for around £60 with a toner cartrige. New cartridges cost around £20.

HP 4's were built to last, I have one that I picked up 5 years ago now and it's till going strong.

Lovely bit of kit. I gave away one when I moved abroad - I wish I hadn't now.

[lilelvis2000]

Yes, Samsungs do tend to have expensive toners. I have a ML-3560 which runs a treat but the low capacity toner is about £100 with VAT and delivery! even a fuser for it was cheaper than that. I got it because DABS had mispriced it to £140! - it would normally go for about £380.

We got a kyocera recently and it works brill and it was cheap and the mono toner is £65 all in.

I have a friend who bought a Brother laser about 10 years ago and is still using it.

Epson still makes dot matrix for around £180 or so.

[Moscow Mule]

You can pickup a refurbished HP LAserJet 4 for around £60 with a toner cartrige. New cartridges cost around £20.

HP 4's were built to last, I have one that I picked up 5 years ago now and it's till going strong.

Good shout. I've been meaning to get one of those for myco for a while.

[Clippy]

I would avoid the cheaper end Samsungs, I bought one last year and it was piss poor quality, and the toner lasted less than 3 months of light usage. Wish I'd spent the extra up front (about 100 quid) for a comparable HP, much better print quality and the toner lasts a lot longer (as well as being cheeper to buy).

As someone who has an entry level Samsung mono laser printer I would tend to agree.

It can be a little slow in warming up and doesn't always seem to line up the paper correctly - but this may be the way I have it setup.

I only bought it because it was mis-priced by Staples so got it for £40 instead of £70.

It's not a bad printer for the money I paid so am going to stick with it but if I was in the market for a new printer, I'd look to buy an entry level HP one and one that could do automatic duplexing.

[blacjac]

This could be the answer. I reckon a toner cartridge should last a damn sight longer than a piddly inkjet cartridge.

I would avoid the cheaper end Samsungs, I bought one last year and it was piss poor quality, and the toner lasted less than 3 months of light usage. Wish I'd spent the extra up front (about 100 quid) for a comparable HP, much better print quality and the toner lasts a lot longer (as well as being cheeper to buy).

[Shimano105]

This could be the answer. I reckon a toner cartridge should last a damn sight longer than a piddly inkjet cartridge.

[xoggoth]

Damn! I Chucked away an old dot matrix Centronics serial printer last year. You should have said earier.

[DaveB]

You can pickup a refurbished HP LAserJet 4 for around £60 with a toner cartrige. New cartridges cost around £20.

HP 4's were built to last, I have one that I picked up 5 years ago now and it's till going strong.

[Sysman]

I invested in a cheap'n'cheerful mono laser printer. The first cartridge lasted 15 months. It isn't just the cost, but the confidence to print a hundred page document knowing that I won't have to replace a cartridge half way through.

It's worth it for the lack of stress.