New printer time
October 23, 2005 7:40 AM   Subscribe

So I'm looking for a new printer, the old one is going to a good home. I'm not sure where to start looking for a new one but I have a few criteria: Laser, two-sided printing, and I'd like color. It's been so long since I got a printer (or any hardware) that I'm not sure where to go looking for reviews and suggestions. Anyone out there able to suggest a good printer that matches the above requirements, or have an idea where to start looking? I've had a lot of good experience with HP's, but I'm willing to look at other brands, I'm mostly interested in quality. My last printer lasted me 7-8 years, and I'd like something that could do that again. Oh, and if its an addon to get the two-sided printing, that's OK.
posted by Ikazuchi to Computers & Internet (11 answers total)
 
What's your top limit on price?

The Xerox Phase 7750DN is pretty nice, but costs a pile of cash.

If you want something cheaper I hear Samsung's lower end colour lasers are pretty nice.

I have experience with some nice Canon ones as well but currently their laser printer pages are screwed so I can't find the exact models.
posted by alexst at 7:49 AM on October 23, 2005


Are you looking for an ethernet connection? parallel port? USB?

How many pages do you print a month? What sort of color coverage do you need (i.e. spot color on business documents vs. full-page photographs)? Do you need ledger size prints?

Windows? Mac? Linux?
posted by bcwinters at 8:02 AM on October 23, 2005


Response by poster: Ethernet for the network, and definately windows drivers (but pretty much everything has a windows driver). I'd like it if it also had good linux drivers, but that's not necessary.
As for the color, it may do the occasional full page in color, but most of the time, it will just be some spot color. I'll probably be printing less than 200 pages per month.
I'm not sure what the top limit is, since I don't know the average price range that printers with my requirements are running.
posted by Ikazuchi at 8:56 AM on October 23, 2005


Start at HP, and Xerox. I've also heard good things about Canon but I don't have any experience with them.

Any automatic duplexing + colour laser that you actually want to own is going to be a couple grand at least. No one makes a product that is up to the same quality levels as was available from HP a decade ago unfortunately. If manual software supported duplexing is OK I've been fairly impressed so far with the HP 2550 ($600 with built in networking) I just purchased. FYI: any hp printer can be networked easily with a HP Jetdirect box (~$150).

One thing to be aware of with colour lasers when shopping around is the supply costs and price per page. The Xerox 7750 I have, though a wonderful printer in 11X17 size at a good price, has eight (nine?) different consumables. A full set of supplies is over a C$1000. The Xerox 8550 is a great printer with awesome output and uses a solid ink technology instead of toner. Again the cost per page is fairly high but the output for graphics is much better than any toner style printer I've seen. Toner style printers have a more durable output than solid dye printers.
posted by Mitheral at 9:24 AM on October 23, 2005


Check the deal sites: here's an HP 2550N for $350ish. Not full-duplex, but it's color (multipass) and networked, and by all means not shabby. Driver support usually gets you manual duplexing.
posted by kcm at 9:28 AM on October 23, 2005


You can get a HP Color LaserJet 3700dn for about $2000 that will do all of that.

I'd second the opinion that no printer will match 1980s-90s LaserJets for their durability. If you didn't need color, I'd actually recommend buying a used HP LaserJet.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 10:22 AM on October 23, 2005


And on (non) preview, what b1tr0t mentions is absolutely true: each color toner cartridge (there are 3 + black) will run you about $90 each. HP is cheapening up the manufacturing like all rock-bottom-priced ink jets you see at Wal-Mart for $25 these days. Just to give you some idea of how cheap the 2550 is, when it changes color toners all the moving plastic parts sound like a small-caliber gunshot. I've used the 2550 before, and didn't have any (serious) issues with it, but man what a cheap chunk of plastic.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 10:26 AM on October 23, 2005


i'd recommend a Lexmark C510n, as it runs about $550 from newegg (the n means network, there's a C510 available in the mid $300s that doesn't have Ethernet). the C510dtn includes a duplexer and the clustery dealie on Froogle lists about $1200 as the cheapest price on them. they produce awesome output (and the C510n is smaller than the CLJ 2550) but they seem to burn through the toner carts pretty quick. also, the C510 has a shelf-style cartridge thing - whereas on a lot of HPs you have to change the cart, close up, hit the button, wait for it to cycle, repeat, you just open the front on the lexmark and slide the cart in.
posted by mrg at 10:38 AM on October 23, 2005


ugh, it makes me want to cry to say this, but seeing as just about all laser printers these days are damn near disposable, take a look at dell. (sniffle)
the 3100cn i have personal experience with. not a bad printer by any means (but we got it free) and the consumables cost was on par with any other vendor. no auto duplexing though, that's a $300 option. this printer can be found for as little as 250ish if you watch for coupons. It looks like they also have a new model the 5100cn that includes a duplexer for $649 with whatever special they're running currently.
as others have noted, unless you look at some of the monster xerox or cannon models you're never going to get another printer with a 7 year life. sho around and find the best deal you can and either resign yourself to never replacing the color consumables (just replacing the printer) or finding a more expensive printer that has a reasonable consumable cost (don't forget the cost of the drum!)

best of luck
posted by skatz at 2:00 PM on October 23, 2005


I strongly recommend against Lexmark. Not only are Lexmark consumables expensive, but the printers are engineered to reject refilled/remanufactured cartridges. Lexmark have even initiated expensive legal attacks on companies offering refilling services that are able to bypass Lexmark's technical restrictions.
posted by krisjohn at 8:06 PM on October 23, 2005


Now that I think of it, the fans and paper loading mechanism on a laserjet 4 are probably as loud as the entire 2550.

I was exaggerating a bit, but no way was the lj4 as loud as the 2500 series when it rotates its cartridges.

you have to change the imaging drum on the 2550

Oooh, forgot about that. While you don't have to change it as often as the toner, it is more expensive than the regular cartidges. I will add that the output on the 2550 was very good for the money. Print speed was also quite decent. The no-borderless-prints aspect was annoying, but that costs mucho-cashola with lasers.

And to echo b1tr0t and everyone else: stay away from Lexmark.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 10:51 PM on October 23, 2005


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