Small business: Color Laser versus Inkjet printing
Another Option
by Bueller - 4/1/05 6:09 AM In reply to: Color Laser versus Inkjet printing by antwashIf you're looking for nice quality colour output on pretty much any kind of media, check out the solid ink printers from Xerox. I've seen this output, because of the solid ink, you can still get great output even on low quality paper.
No contest
by Gsteele - 4/1/05 6:32 AM In reply to: Color Laser versus Inkjet printing by antwashThe reason I say that is that I was in the final stages of burnout trying to get decent output from various Lexmark inkjets. The problem was not the quality when new - it was that after the printer sat for a bit, the nozzles would clog or gum up, the color balance would drift, things came out pink, when one ink ran dry the whole cartridge was landfill, etc. My son (now 12) wanted to throw the thing out because every time he had a report due, there was a half hour wasted fiddling trying to get the printer back in shape. Enough!
I bought an HP color laser. Cost about $450 with rebate. Hooked it to a cheap ethernet print server and hung it on the network. No more fiddling. No more print banding. No more weird colors. No more waiting forever. No more worrying about paper quality. No more frustration over color balance, saturation, or print quality. No more half hours spent fiddling trying to clean print heads. The whole house can use it, it's fast, reliable, and desk space returns. Who cares what it costs per page - my time is way more valuable than any materials costs, and so is my happiness and peace of mind. We do draft printouts on black and white lasers until it all looks good - pagination, page location of graphics, fonts, spelling, etc. and then print the color pages on the color laser.
Anyone want to buy a whole slew of inkjets cheap?
And no, I don't work for HP or anyone else, for that matter - I'm retired.
No contest - wholeheartedly agree - Junk the inkjet
by krs03 - 4/1/05 7:09 AM In reply to: No contest by GsteeleCouldn't agree more with Gsteele. Whether it's Lexmark's problem with dried-up ink or it's the non-refillable new "smart" cartridges - these machines have limited usefullness. The money saved in buying a $50 printer is easily spent in replacement cartridge cost and wasted time. Now all I need is that "cheap ethernet print server".
Oki C5100 color LED printer
by ullrich9 - 4/1/05 8:03 AM In reply to: Color Laser versus Inkjet printing by antwashI live in a dry climate that is murder on inkjets. If you don't use them most every day, the ink tends to dry up in the jets. Ink carts were driving me crazy. I would only print color once a week, so the black might work from a good inkjet, but the color would plug up.
I put out the initial cost for the Oki and have not been unhappy. You have to shop around for the toner to save a few dollars, and it is frustrating when one color runs out and the machine will not print anything before you replace that color. But, this LED prints 12 pages of color per minute and even more in B&W. They never smear and back side printing works very well. The paper is cheaper for laser than inkjet but you cannot get a true photo like print with the laser/LED.
We use the Oki as our main printer for a small church. We hardly use the photocopier anymore. It can handle the high volume that an inkjet would fall apart under. I would hate to have to go back to depending on an inkjet.
For Ink and Toner - Might try Associated Supply Co.
by KarBar110 - 12/17/07 5:46 PM In reply to: Oki C5100 color LED printer by ullrich9Hi all,
I was just reading through these postings because I'm interested in buying a color laser printer. I noticed many people mentioning the high cost of getting ink. Well I just wanted to say that I've been using this company called Associated Supply Company in Nevada. Their phone is 1-800-345-9072 and are on the web at www.associatedsupply.com. They contacted me with one of those "free ink trials" and while I was skeptical, their claim of a no-obligation if I wasn't happy made me give it a whirl. And I have been very pleased with their service. I have a Brother MFC all-in-one that I use to print everything for three businesses that I run (yes I'm a busy gal!). But anyway...I was getting cartridges at OfficeMax before for about $12 each color and $20 for black. Well these guys give it to me for $10 each, they deliver it here to the home office, they give me a 45 day grace period to pay them, and my rep even calls me every couple months to see if I'm running low yet. If I'm not, he tells me to have a nice day and he'll check back in another couple of weeks, but if I am needing more, he sends a 3 month supply out to me. Its really great if you do a lot of printing like me. I am constantly switching cartridges.
Anyway, my point was that they probably sell laser toner as well, so if you are shopping around, you might check them out. I'm going to as well to see what kind of deals they can get on different brands of ink before I commit to a new laser. :o)
(And no I don't work for or represent ASC in any way. I'm just an entrepreneur that appreciates a good service when I see one, and I know how valuable client testimonials can be...and no they don't have any idea I am even posting this, and no I'm not getting anything out of it. I just simply am giving credit where credit is due, and hoping to save others some time and money at the same time). Good luck.
Depends on needs
by rc1005 - 4/1/05 8:40 AM In reply to: Color Laser versus Inkjet printing by antwashI would say it depends on your printing needs. If you are in an office you are going to be mainly printing on standard 8 1/2x 11 and legal sized paper. If you need something in color it's most likely going to be for a presentation on the same paper sizes.
InkJet printers make it much easier to change to custom paper sizes and thickneses. Most are going to have the top feed design which limits bending the paper allowing for greater thicknesses. Also most of the Epson Photo printers have support for the rolled paper allowing for continuous printing and some have built in cutters.
How often do you print?
That $39 in cartridges is great but what happens when you print very little. Those cartridges are going to dry up. Laser would be better in this situation.
I could go on and on weighing both inkjet and laser but it comes down to whatever fits your needs.
laser vs inkjet -- if asthetics matter
by sparky52t - 4/1/05 9:44 AM In reply to: Color Laser versus Inkjet printing by antwashAs a graphic designer, I've looked at both formats and am totally on the side of inkjet printing if quality of image matters. Color laser does the job adequately and quickly but if you look at a side by side comparison of a sample photograph, you'll prefer the inkjet sample. If your color output is for PowerPoint handouts and such you may want the economies of a color laser but if image quality is king -- go inkjet.
Looking for good quality color image printing on labels
by princessshena - 11/27/07 7:28 PM In reply to: laser vs inkjet -- if asthetics matter by sparky52tIt seem that Inkjet wins the battle for home photo printing but do you think a color laser printer would give good result for printing graphics and photos on labels and such? I am a photographer and I only use my home color printer to print CD labels for my clients and the occasional promotional item for myself. I have had enough with trying to get rid of lines from my second 1 year old ink printer. The problem is that I do not print colors very often so the cartridges dry out or clogs and no number of head cleaning and alignements will correct the quality of the image anymore. I also never print photographs at home (I use a lab for that). Image quality is king but not on photo paper anyway. Should I get a laser printer next or do you still recommand an inkjet?
RE: Color Laser vs Inkjet Printing
by ModularPro - 4/1/05 12:17 PM In reply to: Color Laser versus Inkjet printing by antwashIn my experience color laser wins hands down. Besides the much higher quality and faster printing speed, the Samsung CLP-500 color cartridges are good for 5,000 pages (black 7500 pages), the costs are actually lower for laser than ink jet printing.
color lazer vs inkjet
by stopsign - 4/1/05 12:30 PM In reply to: Color Laser versus Inkjet printing by antwashThey both coast alot but if want a cartridge thats going to last you a year or more color lazer otherwize i would get the inkjet i have a inkjet it works good but i have to by about 5 a year.
what about laser's ink longevity once applied to paper?
by jnewton1 - 4/1/05 1:42 PM In reply to: color lazer vs inkjet by stopsignI'm worried because most of my printed "artistic" work is going away. I have an Epson stylus photo 1200 and original colors are excellent, but stand still only a few months.
Does laser colors remain the same for longer time?
Thanks for your advice.
A little nudge on ink fading... (RE:)
by Impreza WRX - 4/1/05 4:59 PM In reply to: what about laser's ink longevity once applied to paper? by jnewton1Dunno, but I do know that some Gameshark codes I printed with my Oki yeeeeaaaars ago are still perfectly readable!
Ink vs. Laser
by Fire1946 - 4/1/05 6:07 PM In reply to: A little nudge on ink fading... (RE:) by Impreza WRXI am using a color laser printer ( HP 2500) and buy the cartridges over the Internet ( much cheaper than in the stores); I use an old HP LaserJet4 ( black and white) for the normal stuff ( last cartridge I bought over the Internet for $ 18). When you print flyers etc. in color and want to be sure that they do not smudge when getting in contact with water use a color laser printer. Rumor has it that the European Union is looking into the pricing of the ink cartridges and is going to force the companies to lower their prices (HP makes most of its profit in the print department with the cartridges!). Let us hope that the price reduction will also apply in the US and not only the European Union!
Peter
lazer vs inkjet
by angelicarose - 4/20/05 2:39 PM In reply to: Ink vs. Laser by Fire1946I am looking at the 2550 L series and the 1200 d ink jet.. I wish to get a printer that is color and cost effective in regard to replacing the cartridges. Which way do I go? Where do you go to replace the cartridges? thanks
also about how many pages are you able to print for a full page color flyer before you replace the cartridges?
(NT) Look at the link I provided.
by R. Proffitt
- 4/20/05 3:47 PM
In reply to: lazer vs inkjet by angelicarose
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