I know this is a very boring topic. But what is your favorite printer for an office setting? We have a big fancy one in our main office that I can use but I'd like one by my desk that is simple but super reliable. TIA!

Need Color or just B/W?

https://www.rtings.com/printer

My favorite review site does printers now. I used them and then googled around for other reviews of the ones I narrowed down to. So far, what I got lives up to the review on rtings.

If you're buying the ink - Epson Ecotank

Epson or Brother tank based printers are fantastic for desk based. Love my ecotank and ink is CHEAP for it and lasts a long time vs cartridge.

I had a Dell 5100cn color laser jet (made by Lexmark) for almost 20 years and THAT thing was a workhorse. The only reason I had to retire it is that it started needing parts and I couldn't find anyone who carried them at a reasonable price.

I replaced it with a Kyocera and it's (so far) just as reliable and consistent with a lot more modern tech. I ended up buying it from Printer Showcase because the guys there really knew their stuff and were always willing to answer/return calls. One guy actually called me from the car on the way to his kid's baseball game for a support issue I had on a firmware update.

I'd never get an inkjet of any kind.

Voice/sample size of one.

Avoid the Canon Maxify tank like the plague! Bought it to try the tank concept because it looked a little more professionally capable than the epson. The tank part is fine. HAven't tracked exactly, but probably around 50% of the cost of cartridges. Worst paper handling capability of any printer I have EVER had. It sucks! Constantly jams, constantly skips pages. Was too expensive to throw away, so living with it for now.

Also have a HP office jet pro 9025. Think it is the third one I have had. I know there is lots of HP hate here, but they have been pretty good for me. The interface is a little antiquated. But it handles paper and envelopes pretty well. Don't love the subscription model in general, but I print a fair amount monthly and the instant ink program was cheaper than buying cartridges. Not as cheap as the tanks, but not terrible. They have lots of plans to fit different needs.

Have had lasers in the past - Brother and Oki. Relatively high end models. Consumable costs are REALLY high on those and all the ones I had released a fair amount of toner dust into the air and all eventually started dumping it through out the unit. Hence the switch to inkjets.

The subscription thing is just the ink. You buy the printer. Called instant ink. It monitors and sends new cartridges when needed. I did find that I would have to called and beg for some extras to be sent initially, otherwise I would run out, since I do 4k to 7knof sheets in bunches. But they were pretty accommodating and in have a drawer full of extras. But once I did that, they show up and I throw them in the drawer.

I agree that the equiwnt is junk. Really wonder why printers are not better. It is not a new technology. The equipment is such junk. Honestly the hp stuff has been better than most,still not great but not terrible. Like I posted the Canon I bought is garbage.

Really have to look at your needs and willingness to spend up front.

No, we have one. It is not rented, it is an ink subscription and will not work if you don't pay monthly.

Whatever you buy, stick to 2 things and you will be fine:

No Subscriptions
No Validation Chips


Laser is more expensive upfront and per page over the long run, especially if you want color but it has very high clarity, faster prints, overall durability and longevity. No idea if laser cartridges have gone chip based yet, others may know though. If they have, dont buy any printer using them.

Inkjet is cheaper upfront and per page (especially tank based inkjets) but is just normal clarity compared to laser, much slower ppm than laser and the jets can clog if it is left unused for long periods and isn't allowed to run its regular maintenance cycles. If its always being used and is plugged in and allowed to run regular maintenance on its own, clogging it not really a big worry. Stick to generic cartridges or tank based inkjet, no chip based garbage like hp or brother or many others.

powerbelly said:

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Jabin said:

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powerbelly said:

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EMY92 said:

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Avoid HP at all cost.

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I can't stress this enough.

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Really??? All I've ever had are HP Laserjets and they've been bullet-proof tanks.

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Yes, they are moving to a subscription model for all printers. Beyond quality issues, you have to pay monthly to print.

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Yep. I never would have thought a 'smart' company would go this route. Man, what happened to HP?

From 'Wired' magazine:

HP Wants to Rent you a Printer that it Monitors at All Times

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One of the most perturbing aspects of the subscription plan is that it requires subscribers to keep their printers connected to the internet.

In January, HP CEO Enrique Lores declared that HP's "long-term objective is to make printing a subscription." The All-In-Plan is HP's latest attempt at that goal, hoping people believe that the subscription service will simplify things for themselves. And by including high cancellation fees, HP is looking to lock subscribers in for two years.

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Wow. That is not the plan I have, would not do that. Mine is just the ink, cancel anytime.. And you can use other ink if you aren't on the subscription plan.

In general, I often wonder why printer technology sucks so bad. Not a new technology, but they are such junk. Even the expensive ones I have had suck.

I have switched from HP to Epson for inkjets.
Epson XP-7100 has become a new favorite desktop color inkjet.
https://www.officedepot.com/a/products/9933091/Epson-Expression-Premium-XP-7100-Wireless/

It is about $250 right now, may want to wait a week and see if it goes down to about $150.
I try to buy 1 or 2 when the price drops and keep them as spare, which don't seem to last long.

PC Mag review from 2019

PeekingDuck said:

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Brother Laserjet, no contest

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Agreed

This is the topic I have been searching for. I have two HP Inkjets and I have resolved here today that I will buy no ore HP products.

I thought it was just my lack of knowledge and skills, but I have been experiencing constant disconnections from my network with both printers. Now I am getting messages that there is a problem with my HP account that must be resolved before I can print.

HP support 's first step was to ask for an updated Debit Card # so they could enroll me in "Instant ink "program. They also said the issue was my ISP's router doesn't support 2.4g connection. (It does, I checked).

The question I have is on the EPSON printers with the ECO tank system, will there be a problem if I don't print a lot? I probably on print 150 pages a month. One review said that owners who don't print a lot could find the printer pads? drying out and effectively killing the printer. Is this poppycock or a legit concern?

Canon, Epson, Brother??

Thanks for any guidance.

Makes sense as a concern. Cannot verify or deny since I print a fair amount and regularly.

As I posted before, I would avoid the canons. Mine is a piece of junk and the ink is hard to find.

Thank you for taking time to respond. I guess i am leaning toward the Epsons.

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Thanks for any guidance.

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It's sounds like you're committed to using inkjets, and of course that is fine.

But, if I were buying a color printer today, I'd look at the color lasers from Kyocera. They seem to be what HP used to be.

Personal Color Laser Comparisons

Thanks for the reply,

Not totally committed to inkjets, but I have certainly been hesitant to invest in a colo r laser when I may only print 100-150 pages per month.

Thanks for the link. I will check them out!

lch76 said:

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The question I have is on the EPSON printers with the ECO tank system, will there be a problem if I don't print a lot? I probably on print 150 pages a month. One review said that owners who don't print a lot could find the printer pads? drying out and effectively killing the printer. Is this poppycock or a legit concern?

Canon, Epson, Brother??

Thanks for any guidance.

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IMO, not a concern. Have had an Epson EcoTank going on 5 years or so I guess. Now that the kids are out of the house the printer gets used about once every 3 months, for only a few pages. Sometimes the colors are messed up because of the drying out or something. I just do the print-head clean task from the control/display panel and it fixes it after approx 3 iterations, about 3 mins.

That's what I'll probably get next time.

For what you describe your use as, I think an inkjet is the way to go. Less upfront cost. Lower consumable cost and, honestly, print quality compared to laser is fine in modern inkjets.

Thanks