Help! I need to buy a new printer that wont cost me a fortune in ink!

David333

Owain_Moneysaver wrote: »

How much colour do you have to print? An old B/w laser (HP 4 series or later) will go on for ever and compatible toner cartridges are cheap as chips, with *thousands* of text pages per cartridge.

I would agree with this: a black and white laser printer is amazing. I buy a cartridge once or twice a year and print reams and reams with no worries about whether I'll have enough ink to print something off.

A linked question for Owain: where do you get your 'cheap as chips' compatible toner cartridges? Thanks!

Owain_Moneysaver

David333 wrote: »

A linked question for Owain: where do you get your 'cheap as chips' compatible toner cartridges? Thanks!

I haven't had to yet, as I'm still on my first set with my current laser printer, and my previous printer was so old I couldn't get toners for it.

However cartridgepeople are showing compatible LJ4 toners for £20.99 rated for 6,800 pages, which is about 1/3rd a penny per page. Laser printers produce good results on cheap copy paper too; inkjets tend to need coated paper or they go blurry.

Also for students, it's worth noting that some universities refuse to accept final theses printed with inkjet, as they don't accept the ink is permanent enough against fading for archival purposes. I've had to do prints for students who've found that out a few hours before the submission deadline!!

olly300

What I did before I buy any printer is check how much the cartridges cost from new from normal stores and from places like cartridgepeople. The reason why I check from both places as there may be an occasion where I have to buy a cartridges from a normal store.

Epson seems to have to be one of the companies where it's easy to get compatible inks for their printers. Most of my previous printers where those.

metalgal

Have you tried using the refill kits from tesco? i use it and its messy but £5 for 3 bottles of ink and it lasts forever. I hate paying for printer ink and five pound for hundreds of refills or £35 a go is a no brainer. there are located beside the printer inks in tesco. they also have a colour ink kit. It comes with instructions and easy to use although wear gloves and do it over an old newspaper.

Voyager2002

Buy a scanner separately from your printer, so that you have a much wider choice of models.

As mentioned above, you will save a great deal of money on B and W printing by getting a laser printer.

toffifee

I always buy Canon inkjket printers nowadays - they seem to be the only ones that have automatic duplexing (print on both sides of the paper) built in. Saves me loads on paper costs and I don't think the ink (5 cartridges) is much (if any) more expensive than other brands. I always use genuine ink though - I think that compatible ink killed my old Epson.

Completely agree with recommendation to get a laser printer though. I picked up my Canon laser for about £110 but I think they were mispriced!

david39

The problem that "kills" Epson printers (well, at least the older models, can't say about recent additions to the range) is that the printhead - the bit that sprays the ink onto the paper - is a separate unit and does not get replaced when you change the ink cartridge.

Other printers have the print head built into the cartridge, so that it is renewed at each change.

Now, on Epsons, the ink is fed along tubes to the printhead and has a tendency to dry out during long periods of inactivity, thereby blocking the ink from reaching the paper.

Two rules with these printers :
1 - Always switch the printer off at the switch on the printer - not at the wall-socket. The printer goes through a closing down sequence that seals the tubes and stops air reaching the ink to dry it out - this does not happen if you just disconnect the printer from the mains supply.
2 - If you have a long number of days of non-use, just switch the printer on occasionally to let it go through its inking-up procedure. This will keep the ink liquid and flowing. Also, do not let the printer stand idle for hours while switched on.

If you have an Epson that has died through the above then look at :
http://www.mwords.co.uk/catalog/info-articles-printer-maintenance-c-15_128.html?osCsid=17a938724f87bc42c095690fceae2a6f
which has all the information you need.
Isopropyl alcohol is available from Maplins.

ultimatedingbat

I've got an epson DX4400 and paid £12 for a lot of cartridges which last me most of the year. I think I spend £20 a year maximum on ink

David333

Owain_Moneysaver wrote: »

I haven't had to yet, as I'm still on my first set with my current laser printer, and my previous printer was so old I couldn't get toners for it.

However cartridgepeople are showing compatible LJ4 toners for £20.99 rated for 6,800 pages, which is about 1/3rd a penny per page. Laser printers produce good results on cheap copy paper too; inkjets tend to need coated paper or they go blurry.

Also for students, it's worth noting that some universities refuse to accept final theses printed with inkjet, as they don't accept the ink is permanent enough against fading for archival purposes. I've had to do prints for students who've found that out a few hours before the submission deadline!!

Thaks Owain. My first cartridge (which I think is only a half full one) lasted for ages as well. I have a Samsung 2010 ML 2010 for which 'cartridgepeople' are doing compatible toner for £25. If you're a student and the majority of your work is black and white (the odd photo can be printed off at uni) then go for a laser printer... .

squif33

I'd go with Epson as well. I've got an Epson Stylus R245 that has been going for years. I buy the inks off ebay they usually cost about a pound each. Never understand how people afford to spend £20 plus on ink every couple of months! Good luck!