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General discussion

what is currently the best printer for text and graphics

Dec 12, 2004 9:22AM PST

I see a lot of photo printers on the market. I am looking for a good printer that will be the best for printing text, usually from Word, or the internet. I will also be printing color graphics, mostly from websites. I do NOT need a printer that specialezed in printing photos, because i will be doing none of that. Thanks

Discussion is locked

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Re: what is currently the best printer for text and graphics
Dec 13, 2004 2:43AM PST

Forget inkjets, think lasers. From the past visiting of some local shops/stores, the lasers providing color do so much more. While the cost at first is expensive, the operating cost is way dwon from years past. The output is fanastic and speed is too once "at ready" plus it can do all you ask. If I mention any inkjet, sooner or later the output may become hosed or if you didn't know by now the operating cost can be prohibative due to ink carts and contanst cleaning cycles, etc.. But, if you seek one, look at HP or Canon models, exclude Lexmark or Epson ones. There!

good luck, really -----Willy

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2 year update - best printer
Dec 19, 2006 11:06PM PST

What is the best type of printer to get now, now that it has been more than 2 years.

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Factors to consider:
Dec 19, 2006 11:45PM PST

- printing volume (number of copies a month, on the average)
- speed important ?
- price per copy important?
- printing quality important?
- features like double sided printing, printing on envelopes
- separate cartridges?
- third party cartridges available?
- network printer?

There's nothing wrong with the $6000 (basic price) HP9500 series (see http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/us/en/en/WF02a/18972-236251-236268.html) if you want to print 200.000 copies a month (that's 7000 a day).

Personally, I'm happy at the moment with the second-hand Canon S800 inkjet printer I bought last sunday for $50, when my S450 had broken down. It's kind of slow, but it has a good enough quality for what I do with it. I particularly like the driver options to print 2 pages on 1 page and use concept quality, allowing me to save 75% on ink and 50% on paper for drafts and reports from my students. And it can use third-party cartridges (which aren't available yet for the current models like the IP4200/4300) and much cheaper (40% of the Canon ones).
I don't mind waiting some time for an occasional 50-page document to print if I can use my computer to browse this forum for example while it's printing in the background.

So tell more on your requirements and preferences.

Kees