# Colour Laser Printer under $1,000



## lightbulb (Oct 24, 2005)

I don't need high volume or speed and I already have a pro Epson photo printer, this would be used in a small office environment. Between Xerox and HP, opinions? What about others....obviously good colour and cost per page are main considerations, along with Mac friendliness and dependability / warranty. What's the best value?


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## Oakbridge (Mar 8, 2005)

lightbulb said:


> I don't need high volume or speed and I already have a pro Epson photo printer, this would be used in a small office environment. Between Xerox and HP, opinions? What about others....obviously good colour and cost per page are main considerations, along with Mac friendliness and dependability / warranty. What's the best value?


I just picked up an HP 2600n Colour Laser for $329 at Staples. Comes with four full sized cartridges and doesn't need drum units. It is a networked printer and I had no problem setting it up with my PowerBook.


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## grafico (Mar 25, 2005)

I second the motion for the HP 2600n. Nice little printer, small footprint. Although be aware that this particular model is on its way out, that's why you'll find it in the sub $300 range throughout the places that still have them in stock. When I purchased mine back in February, I paid a bit over 500 with taxes.


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## dibenga (Oct 30, 2001)

I've been using the 2600n for nearly a year now, it is an exceptional printer. 

Zippy with prints, even with large Photoshop and Illustrator files, colour accuracy is quite good. 

I even purchased a second printer tray so I can switch between letter and legal sizes.

Networking with PC and mac is seemless.


Best $400 I ever spent.


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## satchmo (May 26, 2005)

dibenga said:


> Zippy with prints, even with large Photoshop and Illustrator files, colour accuracy is quite good.
> =


I'm guessing this printer isn't Postscript. If not, how well do vector based graphic files print out? Smooth?


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## lightbulb (Oct 24, 2005)

Thanks HP supporters, I'll definitely have a look at the 2600n and the price is right too. Any pro Xerox users? How about Samsung, Brother, Ricoh etc....


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## dibenga (Oct 30, 2001)

No it's not postscript. But amazingly vector art is VERY sharp and accurate


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## Paradime (Jan 24, 2006)

The HP 2600n is a good choice. However, you should consider the HP 2605dn instead. Essentially, it's the 2600n with full auto-duplexing, faster print engine, faster processor, PCL 5E, 6 and PostScript 3 and 64 MB of ram vs. 16 MB. I've seen it around the $549 range.


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## phuviano (Sep 14, 2005)

quick question for you colour laser printer owners. How long does the toner usually last?? I know this depends on your usage. 

I know with ink cartridges, they have expiry dates. I have an hp ink jet printer now, and it recommends I should change the ink cartridge every 6 months regardless of what's left. Would I have to do the same thing for a toner???

I'm considering getting a colour laser printer, so that's why I'm asking.


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## lightbulb (Oct 24, 2005)

Paradime said:


> The HP 2600n is a good choice. However, you should consider the HP 2605dn instead. Essentially, it's the 2600n with full auto-duplexing, faster print engine, faster processor, PCL 5E, 6 and PostScript 3 and 64 MB of ram vs. 16 MB. I've seen it around the $549 range.


What's the benefit of full auto-duplexing? On the HP site, it's been reduced by $100 till Sept 15.


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## Paradime (Jan 24, 2006)

lightbulb said:


> What's the benefit of full auto-duplexing?


Simple...if you want to print a book, report or whatever, it prints on both sides of the paper.

With a non-auto-duplexing printer, it will print the one side, you then have to take the stack and put it back into the printer and then have it print the second side. It's just a major inconvenience when printing a large document or many copies of the same document.

With auto-duplexing, you can set things to print and walk away. When you come back, it's done.

Besides, I think for the price difference, the 2605dn is a steal.

I think the only other printer that's in the same league/price range is the Samsung CLP-510 but I'd pay the extra to get the HP. Surprisingly, Futureshop at it on sale for $299 last week...now, they upped the price to $349 while advertising it as $100 off (since the regular price is suppose to be $449.)

The one big reason I'd go for the HP instead of the Samsung is that, eventually, you'll need to replace the Samsung's imaging unit, transfer belt, etc. and those components cost more than the printer. From my understanding, the HP uses a different technology so there's no need to replace these type of components. Hence, making the HP cheaper in the long run.


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## hhk (May 31, 2006)

I also own a 2600n. One question for others with colour lasers. Do you choose mono print when colour is not needed or do you just print colour? I'm wondering if there's a way to default to mono and print only colour when needed.


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## CanadaRAM (Jul 24, 2005)

The Xerox 6120 is $399 and is Adobe Postcript, Mac compatible and has the Ethernet network installed standard. 

MacWorld Review

Thanks
Trevor 
CanadaRAM.com


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## spudmac (Aug 23, 2002)

CanadaRAM said:


> The Xerox 6120 is $399 and is Adobe Postcript, Mac compatible and has the Ethernet network installed standard.
> 
> MacWorld Review
> 
> ...


Hey Folks,

This printer is available at Costco.ca for $349.99. Taxes takes it to just under $400. Shipping and handling is included. I'm seriously considering it, but had a question. The review above reveals it is not "Bonjour Capable". Does Bonjour allow me to see it using my airport express to print wirelessly, or will wireless printing be no problem?

Thanks,

spudmac


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## coreLlama (Aug 5, 2005)

*go Xerox*

just to through my 2 cents in here...

Although I can't comment on the specific printers you asked about... we just got rid of all our HP colour printers here at work and bought Xerox. Overall the print quality was far superior with the Xerox and it cost less to run over time. But of course I'm talking about getting ride of HP 9550's and getting in some Xerox Phase 7760GX machines. I'm loving the 7760GX right now.

so maybe the print quality carries down to the smaller models?


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## Digital_Gary (Sep 18, 2003)

CanadaRAM said:


> The Xerox 6120 is $399 and is Adobe Postcript, Mac compatible and has the Ethernet network installed standard.
> 
> MacWorld Review
> 
> ...



Second that! Great option. We sold a few to customers and 2 guys I work with were so impressed, they bought one for themselves. If I had an extra few hundred, I'd have one too


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## coreLlama (Aug 5, 2005)

*hopefully helpful*



hhk said:


> I also own a 2600n. One question for others with colour lasers. Do you choose mono print when colour is not needed or do you just print colour? I'm wondering if there's a way to default to mono and print only colour when needed.


hey hhk, if I need to only print BW I will choose BW(mono) because depending on how your colour management is setup the printer might use all your colours (CMYK) the create black. So you end up wasting colour when not needed. It also bedends on the program your printing from and how it sends the data to the print driver and what colour space the print job is in. (CMYK, RGB, Lab, Greyscale)

If you set up the print driver from Preferences (not from a program) it will retain that setup as default.


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## gtgt (Jul 19, 2005)

Just got Xerox 6120 for my office. Great quality, looks similar to an inkjet (not for printing high quality photos though). Doesn't have the dot gain that most colour lasers do. Not the fastest printer though. Am now selling my Xerox 7700DN if anyone is interested. It was overkill for the amount of prints my office does.


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## sccoaire (Feb 11, 2005)

It's good to hear that all of you who have a HP 2600 are satisfied with it. That's what I was going to buy but then I read a colour laser printer review in PCWorld (http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,123839;page,1/article.html) and at the time (end of March) the 2600 didn't make the top 10 list. The best according to their test is the DELL 3100 which apparently does have Mac drivers because it's Postscript. 

So what did I do? I went with the DELL 3000 because I didn't read properly (me = dumb). Didn't come with Mac drivers, non Postscript. Paid $380. Printed from Windows and the quality is amazing. After lots of hassle, found a way to print from a Mac. I'm happier now.. but bewarned.

http://www.ehmac.ca/showthread.php?t=41884&highlight=3000cn


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## Paradime (Jan 24, 2006)

sccoaire said:


> I went with the DELL 3000


I do recall the Dell scoring high. However, I've found that a lot of these publications have inconsistant reviews. One site might rave about a product that another site trashes.

Another point that most people should consider (including those considering the Xerox) is the issue of purchsing toners. The fact of the matter is, it's pretty much impossible to find toners for anything other than HPs and maybe even the Samsungs.

Try visiting your local Staples and see if they carry toners for the Dell or Xerox. I'm confident that they don't. So, you'll always dependant on purchasing directly from the manufacturer for whatever price they demand.

At least with an HP, you can always buy 3rd party toners just about anywhere or get one of those DIY refilling kits that are dirt cheap.


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## CanadaRAM (Jul 24, 2005)

Its easy to find toners if you go to the dealers that carry the printer... Office Depot and Staples carrying the supplies are not my first criteria when choosing printers... 

The Xerox is true Adobe Postcript (which raises the cost some) but is a 4-pass printer (which lowers the cost some at the expense of slightly longer page-out times.) It supports Macs, and Xerox (Tektronix as was) knows colour better than anybody. Besides that big box discount store, you can also check with the dealers who hang out here on ehMac - and who just may have them in stock locally.

FutureShop was selling the Samsung CLP510 cheap -- and people found out when they got them home that they wouldn't print at the top resolution unless you installed another 128 Mb RAM. I was wondering why we all of a sudden were having a run on that RAM module... 

Thanks
Trevor 
CanadaRAM.com


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## lightbulb (Oct 24, 2005)

Just to follow up, I ended up with the HP 2605dn. I tried to get a deal on the Dell 3110 because of its good reviews but the lowest was $492; the HP was $405 + $12 delivery. The ability to auto print both sides is pretty cool. Haven't had time to really get into its various controls and features though. Connected via ethernet and all 3 Macs work fine with it.


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## Paradime (Jan 24, 2006)

CanadaRAM said:


> people found out when they got them home that they wouldn't print at the top resolution unless you installed another 128 Mb RAM.


Are you sure about this? I believe you are mistaken. If you're printing some complex Adobe Illustrator file, maybe you're right but otherwise, it's not going to be an issue.

We have a CLP-510 at the office without any extra ram and we print at 1200 dpi all the time. In fact, I did a comparison between 600 dpi and 1200 dpi and there was an obvious difference so I know that 1200 was printing correctly. I've printed some fairly large Quark documents at 1200 dpi with no problems or errors.

Ultimately, there's nothing in the manual or the Samsung site that backs your assertion.

The biggest problem with the CLP-510 is how it calculates the usage of toner. From what I've experienced and accounts I've read about, it has little to do with the actual amount of toner left in the cart. I'm surprised this hasn't turned into a class-action law suit. Regardless, we fixed the problem by hacking the chip on the toners...problem solved.

Don't ask me how...just Google it.


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## Oakbridge (Mar 8, 2005)

lightbulb said:


> Just to follow up, I ended up with the HP 2605dn. I tried to get a deal on the Dell 3110 because of its good reviews but the lowest was $492; the HP was $405 + $12 delivery. The ability to auto print both sides is pretty cool. Haven't had time to really get into its various controls and features though. Connected via ethernet and all 3 Macs work fine with it.


Where did you get it from?


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## CanadaRAM (Jul 24, 2005)

Paradime said:


> Are you sure about this? I believe you are mistaken. If you're printing some complex Adobe Illustrator file, maybe you're right but otherwise, it's not going to be an issue....Ultimately, there's nothing in the manual or the Samsung site that backs your assertion.


Sorry, I didn't look this up, I just went by what the customers were telling me, that they couldn't get full 1200 DPI printing without a RAM upgrade. I don't know under what circumstances. The CLP510 that was on sale may ship in a different configuration than the CLP510N, and duplexing (which requires 2x the RAM) may be a factor.

Trying to find out on Samsung's web-technology heavy and profoundly unusable website --- all of the Samsung specs state "up to 1200 dpi class printing" - two red flags here - in the printer business 'Up To' means "1200 only in certain circumstances" and '1200 DPI class' means "not really 1200, but we think it looks just as good as 1200"

No Postscipt on the CLP510's.


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## Paradime (Jan 24, 2006)

CanadaRAM said:


> "up to 1200 dpi class printing" - two red flags here - in the printer business 'Up To' means "1200 only in certain circumstances" and '1200 DPI class' means "not really 1200, but we think it looks just as good as 1200"


You're making assumptions that just aren't accurate. The reason it says "up to 1200 dpi" is because within the printer preferences, you can select either 600 or 1200 depending on what you're printing. For example, if you doing pages of text, you don't need 1200 dpi and printing at 600 dpi definitely provides significant speed gains over 1200 dpi.

Same thing with basic proofing...I'll print a "rough" copy at 600 dpi and do the "good" copies at 1200 dpi.

Anyway, I can assure you from personal experience as someone who has a CLP-510 on his desk at work, the base configuration (without any ram upgrades) can easily print large and moderately complex documents at 1200 dpi.

That's not to say I would buy one of these for home so please don't look at my defense of Samsung as an endorsement.


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## [email protected] (Feb 1, 2005)

If you can afford it, take a look at the Xerox 8500.

$1049 - $450 Rebate = $599

The most environmentally friendly printer available. Very little waste. No large toner cartridges. True Postscript capabilities. More economical per print than laser.


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## simon (Nov 2, 2002)

I picked up a HP 2550 printer at the source during there warehouse day sale (at the company's head office tent sale in Barrie) for $225. Brand new in a sealed box. Mac drivers were easily found at HP.com. It's a USB only printer which is not a huge drawback (although I can add it to my network with my USB to Ethernet Hub).

Prints are strong and vibrant, but my Tektronix 780 (yes before Xerox) is a bit better and is postscript so I have those bases covered elsewhere. For $225, I'll get about 3500 prints with the installed toner and then I'll probably toss it.


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## mac_geek (May 14, 2005)

I picked up a Samsung CLP-510N from Costco on the weekend... $199!! There was a $100 instant manufacturer rebate and the model was $50 off for being the display model.

Postscript or not... memory or not... you can't beat $200 for a colour 1200dpi laser printer!


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## lightbulb (Oct 24, 2005)

Oakbridge said:


> Where did you get it from?


http://www.computerland.ca


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## Paradime (Jan 24, 2006)

[email protected] said:


> If you can afford it, take a look at the Xerox 8500.
> 
> $1049 - $450 Rebate = $599


The reviews on this printer are not too flattering and solid-ink technology has a few inherent problems. For example, you can easily scratch the ink off the page with your finger nail...unless Xerox has improved the ink in recent years.

Second, $450 rebate? I hope it's an instant rebate, otherwise, you're paying over $60 in taxes you wouldn't need to otherwise.

This is probably another long discussion but I refuse to buy anything with a mail-in rebate.


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## cavemanatlarge (Jan 30, 2004)

I need some advice

I will be shopping for a printer in the near future and think an all in one device would suite me best. It should have the following features. I need it for work if It can be gotten and can use it as a tax rightoff

laserprinter (Colour)
fax
Scanner
duplexing
11 by 17 printing
ability to manually feed thicker stock for labels
Both Mac and PC compatable

I do not know if such a beast exists but I would be interested in one if it does.

Thanks

Caveman


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## ehMax (Feb 17, 2000)

Paradime said:


> The reviews on this printer are not too flattering and solid-ink technology has a few inherent problems. For example, you can easily scratch the ink off the page with your finger nail...unless Xerox has improved the ink in recent years.
> 
> Second, $450 rebate? I hope it's an instant rebate, otherwise, you're paying over $60 in taxes you wouldn't need to otherwise.
> 
> This is probably another long discussion but I refuse to buy anything with a mail-in rebate.


The printer gets solid reviews. Maybe the printer isn't good for people who like to scratch print-outs with their nails. I also hear they're not good for people who like to spill coffee on their print-outs, or leave their print-outs on the floor and roll over them with an office chair.  

The rebate is electronic submission, so you do pay the full amount, then get a rebate, so yeah $60 in taxes. But that's kind of offset on the fact that you just got $450 back.


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## Paradime (Jan 24, 2006)

ehMax said:


> Maybe the printer isn't good for people who like to scratch print-outs with their nails.


I don't suppose you've actually used one of these. If you print a colour report and bind it, with normal usage and handling, you'll notice that the ink often smears.



ehMax said:


> The printer gets solid reviews.


It's strange how one review is glowing while another might slam the exact same product.

For example, CNET's review:
http://reviews.cnet.com/Xerox_Phaser_8500N/4505-3159_7-31414759.html
"The Xerox 8500N serves up mediocre print quality."

PC Mag's Review:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1862581,00.asp
"High quality output."

...but they same article does say, "The only flaw holding the 8500N down to a rating at the high end of good is dithering, which showed as an obvious graininess in some but not all of the images."

and, "If you turn the printer off every day, you'll use up a tremendous amount of ink in the power-on cleaning cycle."

...sounds like my Epson ink-jet. 

So, the comment about "very little waste" isn't entirely accurate.

Bottom line, people should try and read as many reviews as possible before making a buying decision.


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## CanadaRAM (Jul 24, 2005)

cavemanatlarge said:


> I need some advice
> 
> I will be shopping for a printer in the near future and think an all in one device would suite me best. It should have the following features. I need it for work if It can be gotten and can use it as a tax rightoff
> 
> ...


Give up the combo 11x17/printer/scanner/fax idea for starters. You can get a regular all-in-one scanner/fax for $129 give or take a bit. An 11 x 17 scanner is rare and expensive.

The 11x17 laser is the 900 lb gorilla here. 
You are looking at many thousands of dollars for an 11 x 17 colour laser. The Xerox 77x0 series is the cream of the crop. Just to give you some perspective on this, it's over $1300 --- 
---
---
---
just to change the toner cartridges. 

Konica-Minolta has one as well. I did extensive research and none of the competitive brands could match the Xerox for professional colour quality.

11 x 17 inkjet is much less expensive.

8550: The Xerox solid ink printers are only viable if you use them constantly for many pages each time they are turned on. They waste 20 - 30 pages worth of "ink" with each power on. They are better for business correspondence than for photos.


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## cavemanatlarge (Jan 30, 2004)

Yeah thats kind of what I figured. So what is a good 11 by 17 inkjet worth that is both mac and pc compatible. Do any of them have a scanner built in?

I am a geologist and need the large format for maps and charts. I am less interested in photo than good map printing. 

Actually I would still be interested in a combo letter or better yet legal colour laser printer with scanner and fax, that is capable of thick stock in the manual feed.

thanks

Caveman

P.S. I like how you gave the toner price, it was funny.


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## sheamusj (Sep 21, 2006)

*What Are The Differences*

Excluding consideration of purchase price, what are the factors that would influence the purchase of a laser printer or an inkjet?


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## CanadaRAM (Jul 24, 2005)

There are a number of 11 x 17" inkjets -- Epson (1280, R1800) and Canon have models from about $500 up (haven't checked the actual $'s)

There are none that incorporate a scanner. The only way you're getting a large scanner and colour together is in an expensive digital photocopier-style unit.

11 x 17" scanners are rare. Microtek made one, but it looks like it is discontinued. Epson has the GT-15000
at MSRP $1999 but it is Windows only. The 10000XL at $3400 MSRP is Mac compatible. Fujitsu has one for US$10,000.

Laser Colour All in Ones do exist - Epson has one about $1200 that is really a scanner bolted to a bracket above a colour laser, Canon, Xerox, Samsung, Kyocera/Mita and Konica/Minolta all have machines from $2000 - $12,000 Watch out for "Colour Multifunctions" that scan in colour but only print black and white... 

Contact a reputable dealer (hint: there are some right here on ehMac) because you're going to need some help sorting through the options. 




> Excluding consideration of purchase price, what are the factors that would influence the purchase of a laser printer or an inkjet?


In general, lasers are lower in per-page toner cost than inkjets. They are more forgiving of paper, although a good paper will get better results (inkjets get generally poor results on 'normal' paper for graphic-heavy or photographic work). Lasers don't require $1 per sheet photo papers. 

For high volume printing, a laser is almost always much faster than inkjet. The 'finish' on a laser is generally better, more like commercially printed material, and since they don't use liquid inks, the paper remains flatter, and is more conducive to double-sided printing. 

Text printed by a laser is generally sharper than an inkjet's. Some laser printers have Adobe Postscript (or a PS clone) built in for faster processing and more accurate graphic and typefont results -- very few inkjets have the option of Postscript.

However, a good colour inkjet will produce, on the correct photo paper, a print that is very close to a photographic print, with no discernable dithering or dot pattern. Lasers cannot reach quite as high a quality of photo printing - althought the $10,000 Xerox 7700 series is remarkably good.

Thanks
Trevor 
CanadaRAM.com


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## cavemanatlarge (Jan 30, 2004)

Thanks for the info Trevor. I do not know dicksquat about printers, especially from companies other than HP.

The epson one looks good to me

Cheers

Caveman


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## sheamusj (Sep 21, 2006)

*Great Information Trevor... Thank You*

Thank you for helping me to understand. :clap: 

Do you any suggestions regarding an excellent quality B&W and color Laser Printer in the $1,000-$1,500 price range? Our printing uses are for Word and Excel documents and... for printing detail images from the Internet relative to Decorative Arts objects (e.g., ceramics, glass, furniture jewellery et al) so the ability to print detail and in color is important. Also, our print volumes are relatively low, approximately 500-1000 pages a month.

BTW we bought an Epson Stylus Color 860 back in 2000 when we bought our last Macs. This has been an incredible machine, it has always worked well and entirely trouble free.



CanadaRAM said:


> In general, lasers are lower in per-page toner cost than inkjets. They are more forgiving of paper, although a good paper will get better results (inkjets get generally poor results on 'normal' paper for graphic-heavy or photographic work). Lasers don't require $1 per sheet photo papers.
> 
> For high volume printing, a laser is almost always much faster than inkjet. The 'finish' on a laser is generally better, more like commercially printed material, and since they don't use liquid inks, the paper remains flatter, and is more conducive to double-sided printing.
> 
> ...


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## Oakbridge (Mar 8, 2005)

sheamusj said:


> Excluding consideration of purchase price, what are the factors that would influence the purchase of a laser printer or an inkjet?


One of the biggest can be the type of cartridge system. Some machines have complete cartridges, others have separate drum units, waste management pieces, etc.

The costs of the extra pieces can start to add up over a period of time.

Network vs. standalone. Single pass vs. duplexing. I went with the 2600n and might exchange it for a 2605n because I do a lot of double sided work and after trying the 2600n, I would prefer not having to print one side, then flip the pages around manually and print the back side.

I also went with a network printer so both my Macs and my Windows machine could share it. In the past I've used the file transfer thing, either over the network or via a flash drive but that leaves you with multiple copies of the same file.

Colour vs. black & white. Printer vs. multi-function (print, copy, scan, fax)

Those are a few considerations.


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## sheamusj (Sep 21, 2006)

*Thank You for Excellent Insights*

Wow... You did a great job Steve! You identified a number of issues that I didn't even know existed. Many thanks!


Oakbridge said:


> One of the biggest can be the type of cartridge system. Some machines have complete cartridges, others have separate drum units, waste management pieces, etc.
> 
> The costs of the extra pieces can start to add up over a period of time.
> 
> ...


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## Oakbridge (Mar 8, 2005)

I saw an HP 2605dnxi in Sam's Club the other day. I know what a dn designation is. Does anyone know what the xi stands for?


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## Paradime (Jan 24, 2006)

Oakbridge said:


> Does anyone know what the xi stands for?


Usually refers to an expanded or alternate software bundle.

BTW, how much was it?


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## Oakbridge (Mar 8, 2005)

Paradime said:


> Usually refers to an expanded or alternate software bundle.
> 
> BTW, how much was it?


$479 I think.

Now I'm worried that part of the lower price was a $100 instant rebate that expired September 30th. Will have to see what the October pricing is like. I've got only a day or two left to return the 2600n that I had already purchased.


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