Which cheap, wireless laser printer should I buy?

April 8, 2009 11:08 AM

Which cheap, wireless laser printer should I buy?

We're looking to spend under $150 for the printer, and we'd like something with a low cost-per-page, I think that's probably the most important feature. We're going to use three or four different computers with it, in our home, and it won't print all that much at a time. Speed doesn't matter much. If it worked as a scanner, that would be incredibly useful too, but we're okay with buying a scanner separately if we need to.

We're looking at the Brother HL-2170w right now. It's wireless, 1.4 cents per page in toner, and $110 shipped with great reviews everywhere.


So:

- Cheap, under $150
- Cheap, per page
- Wireless
- Works with Vista and OS X
- Scanner, too, if possible

posted by christopherbdnk to shopping (9 comments total)

Was going to suggest the HL-2170W. I bought one recently and have been happy with the purchase.
posted by lalas at 11:35 AM on April 8

If your cost-per-page is a big issue you'd probably be better off shopping for your toner elsewhere. We have had no problems with monoprice for cartridges, and Toner Refill Kits for refills. I can reliably get about three refills out of a single cartridge before it needs to be replaced, and get about 2.5 fills from a single refill bottle. That's with an HL-5250DN.
posted by odinsdream at 11:42 AM on April 8 [1 favorite]

The Brother 2170w is a great deal. I got mine on Amazon for $80, although that may have been a limited time offer.
posted by Aquaman at 11:53 AM on April 8

Thanks guys, I think we're going to go with the 2170w then. And odinsdream, thanks for the awesome pointers re: buying and refilling toner. We'll definitely use those.
posted by christopherbdnk at 12:03 PM on April 8

Just nthing the Brother 2170w. I've been very happy with mine.
posted by trip and a half at 12:50 PM on April 8

I don't know how other people's experiences were, but we just ended up with a canon (?) inkjet because it looked like nearly all laser printers suck down something like 20-25 amps on startup.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 12:58 PM on April 8

Late to the party, but I'll endorse the Brother also. I have two of the wired versions in different places and they have been the best bang-for-buck printers I've ever owned. Great from Mac, Windows or Linux, which is rare.
posted by rokusan at 1:59 PM on April 8

Just got the 2170w, refurbished, from NewEgg. Love it.
posted by xiaolongbao at 3:14 PM on April 8

ROU: where'd you get the figures for that?
posted by odinsdream at 8:00 PM on April 11