Hendon\" post_id=\"2080915\" time=\"1662190684\" user_id=\"142376:

Can you or anyone else recommend a laser printer model for use at home? Budget sensitive but looking at low cost per print for mainly school work purposes for the family. Thank you!

Hendon\" post_id=\"2080969\" time=\"1662236715\" user_id=\"142376:

I don’t see myself printing colour so probably b/w frequently so probably deal with colour printing separately. But if I can get a model for b/w and an another model for colour, maybe a price comparison would help kick off the decision process. I haven’t looked at laser before so need help. Looking over at the detailed post again, I wonder if a high end model would make sense in the long term even if I don’t print colour for now - or should I expect to change printers in 3 years anyway if they are not made to last in the humid climate here, and a low-end model for b/w printing will suffice.

ChiefKiasu\" post_id=\"2080952\" time=\"1662208331\" user_id=\"3:

You looking for a b/w model or a colour model? I think @slmkhoo can probably give you some pointers on the colour model.

Hendon\" post_id=\"2080915\" time=\"1662190684\" user_id=\"142376:

Can you or anyone else recommend a laser printer model for use at home? Budget sensitive but looking at low cost per print for mainly school work purposes for the family. Thank you!

Zappy\" post_id=\"2068730\" time=\"1653541922\" user_id=\"134817:

Ok, here's the lowdown on lasers & inkjets.

Laserjets:
- Consumer grade printers are typically faster than the consumer grade inkjet
- Better for vibrant colors (eg. powerpoint charts)
- Prints are waterproof and usually archival
- For better cost per page, consider monochrome lasers (but then you lose colour functionality)
- Higher end lasers have a separate drum & 4 colours (5 consumables but you only need change the colour toner)
- Lower end printers use an all-in-one colour cartridge, so you only need to buy 4 consumables but the cartridge has a built-in drum each (overall higher cost per page)
- Expensive toner but it is dry powder and will not dry up
- Toner should not be kept in high humidity (imagine your powder gets damp)
- Toner should not be kept in high temperature places (the toner is designed to melt onto paper)
- Typically, the more expensive the printer, the smaller the cartridge (higher cost per page)
- Do not use inkjet photo papers in laserjets because inkjet papers have a coating and if it melts, it will coat your laser drum and that will mess it up then will need to buy a new one
- Use only specialty papers that are labelled for lasers (for normal printing, plain paper is ok)
- There is something known as digital paper for laserjets but because you melt toner on top of the paper, plain paper is fine
- For best photo results = inkjet + inkjet photo paper

Inkjets:
- Best for photographs especially if printed on inkjet photo paper
- Inkjet photo papers are designed with a coating so that it can absorb more ink and therefore has higher gamut
- Most inkjet prints are not waterproof (don't spill water on it)
- There are some inks that are water-resistant but will never be as good as laserjet prints
- Comes with different types of cartridges (small ones with built-in printheads - most expensive per page but cheapest hardware cost typically)
- Some also come with a built-in printhead and separate ink tanks
- There are some that now has bottles of ink (original brand, not talking about aftermarket products)
- These have the best bang for the buck (colour capable and cheapest cost per page but not waterproof)
- As some people have mentioned, needs regular printing so that the printhead does not dry out

General:
- When looking for a printer, look for upfront cost of printer, cost of printing each page, duplex capability (manual or auto), wifi capability, scanning/ fax, auto document feeder
- Typically, cheap printers will recover their cost by having expensive cartridges
- Expensive cartridges do not just refer to the selling price. You should not only look at the price but also how many pages it can print. Do your own calculation.
- Individual colours are cheaper in general because you don't need to change out the whole cartridge when 1 colour runs out (some inkjets use 1x Black and 1xCMY cartridge)

slmkhoo\" post_id=\"2068833\" time=\"1653619005\" user_id=\"28674:

The tank type? My old inkjet (Epson) was one of those - we only refilled the black ink once, after 3 years. The other colours are still more than 50% full. But the nozzles would dry up quite frequently and take a lot of cleaning. Very economical, but our main reason for replacing it is that it's slow, doesn't do auto duplex printing, and the print quality is not as crisp as laser printing. Good enough for school/uni/home purposes and when our official printing could be done on an office printer.

ChiefKiasu\" post_id=\"2068830\" time=\"1653618194\" user_id=\"3:

I've been using my Brother printer for years. It comes with some \"re-ink friendly\" cartridges which I used to top up occasionally when they run dry. I think the ink costs less than $50 and I've not needed to buy more since I've bought the first batch 5 years ago. This either means that re-inking kit is either very large, or I don't need a printer

Zeal mummy\" post_id=\"2068803\" time=\"1653582751\" user_id=\"58173:[quote=\"Zeal mummy\" post_id=2068803 time=1653582751 user_id=58173]
My family uses a monochrome laser printer and a colour inkjet.. The laser printer is actually very fast and efficient. The document prints for black & white papers are also neater than the inkjet. There are pros and cons, I don’t think one is better than the other or vice visa. So do pick the best fit for your own use.[/quote]

slmkhoo\" post_id=\"2068704\" time=\"1653526115\" user_id=\"28674:

Oh thanks! Will explore using all purpose paper, maybe the thicker ones, for printing photos, and see how it looks. Or just accumulate and send to a photo place for printing.

After reading up on various posts, I realised that the different printing technology requires different paper, and that the inkjet photo paper can't be used with laser printers. Learnt something new.

Zappy\" post_id=\"2068759\" time=\"1653551897\" user_id=\"134817:

Shouldn't be too much of an issue unless it's abused badly since it's a branded item and all.
Just don't put more inkjet coated photo papers thru it

slmkhoo\" post_id=\"2068754\" time=\"1653548358\" user_id=\"28674:

Wow - that's detailed. Anyway, we have the printer already, and we'll hope it lasts and works well. My office has a somewhat higher-end version of the same model and it's served us well for 4 years (although it had much less use than normal over the past 2 years). Fingers crossed!

Zappy\" post_id=\"2068730\" time=\"1653541922\" user_id=\"134817:

Ok, here's the lowdown on lasers & inkjets.

Laserjets:
- Consumer grade printers are typically faster than the consumer grade inkjet
- Better for vibrant colors (eg. powerpoint charts)
- Prints are waterproof and usually archival
- For better cost per page, consider monochrome lasers (but then you lose colour functionality)
- Higher end lasers have a separate drum & 4 colours (5 consumables but you only need change the colour toner)
- Lower end printers use an all-in-one colour cartridge, so you only need to buy 4 consumables but the cartridge has a built-in drum each (overall higher cost per page)
- Expensive toner but it is dry powder and will not dry up
- Toner should not be kept in high humidity (imagine your powder gets damp)
- Toner should not be kept in high temperature places (the toner is designed to melt onto paper)
- Typically, the more expensive the printer, the smaller the cartridge (higher cost per page)
- Do not use inkjet photo papers in laserjets because inkjet papers have a coating and if it melts, it will coat your laser drum and that will mess it up then will need to buy a new one
- Use only specialty papers that are labelled for lasers (for normal printing, plain paper is ok)
- There is something known as digital paper for laserjets but because you melt toner on top of the paper, plain paper is fine
- For best photo results = inkjet + inkjet photo paper

Inkjets:
- Best for photographs especially if printed on inkjet photo paper
- Inkjet photo papers are designed with a coating so that it can absorb more ink and therefore has higher gamut
- Most inkjet prints are not waterproof (don't spill water on it)
- There are some inks that are water-resistant but will never be as good as laserjet prints
- Comes with different types of cartridges (small ones with built-in printheads - most expensive per page but cheapest hardware cost typically)
- Some also come with a built-in printhead and separate ink tanks
- There are some that now has bottles of ink (original brand, not talking about aftermarket products)
- These have the best bang for the buck (colour capable and cheapest cost per page but not waterproof)
- As some people have mentioned, needs regular printing so that the printhead does not dry out

General:
- When looking for a printer, look for upfront cost of printer, cost of printing each page, duplex capability (manual or auto), wifi capability, scanning/ fax, auto document feeder
- Typically, cheap printers will recover their cost by having expensive cartridges
- Expensive cartridges do not just refer to the selling price. You should not only look at the price but also how many pages it can print. Do your own calculation.
- Individual colours are cheaper in general because you don't need to change out the whole cartridge when 1 colour runs out (some inkjets use 1x Black and 1xCMY cartridge)

slmkhoo\" post_id=\"2068585\" time=\"1653449116\" user_id=\"28674:

We recently replace our inkjet printer with a laser printer. I've just discovered that the photo paper for inkjet printers can't be used for laser printers. But most photo paper I find online seems to say it's for inkjet - so can anyone recommend photo paper for laser printers? I also prefer matte rather than glossy. Hope someone can give me some leads. Thanks!

Zeal mummy\" post_id=\"2068666\" time=\"1653476570\" user_id=\"58173:[quote=\"Zeal mummy\" post_id=2068666 time=1653476570 user_id=58173]
You can use thicker papers (85g pure white) that are “all purpose” or PaperOne “Presentation/premium that is designed for colour digital, laser and inkjet printing”.

I also don’t see any photo paper for laser printing. Maybe new? It can do great damage to your laser printer if you use inkjet photo paper.[/quote]

slmkhoo\" post_id=\"2068663\" time=\"1653474178\" user_id=\"28674:

Is it a premium model? My husband chose it - changed job, freelancing and working entirely from home, so he needs a better printer.

slmkhoo\" post_id=\"2068585\" time=\"1653449116\" user_id=\"28674:

We recently replace our inkjet printer with a laser printer. I've just discovered that the photo paper for inkjet printers can't be used for laser printers. But most photo paper I find online seems to say it's for inkjet - so can anyone recommend photo paper for laser printers? I also prefer matte rather than glossy. Hope someone can give me some leads. Thanks!

ChiefKiasu\" post_id=\"2068645\" time=\"1653470901\" user_id=\"3:

Wow... that's one of HP's premium models. But yes... the toner is expensive. But at least I think it lasts longer than the inkjet printers. Not sure if there are any pirated models of the toner... I never looked before

starlight1968sg\" post_id=\"2068636\" time=\"1653469529\" user_id=\"14025:

congrats. i guess the photo frames are easily available and not too expensive, right?

slmkhoo\" post_id=\"2068606\" time=\"1653457429\" user_id=\"28674:

Yes, we bought a colour printer and toner is expensive! We bought a HP M283fdw - mainly because we need better functionality and speed compared with our old inkjet. But I didn't realise that it's so hard to find photo paper for laser printing! It probably wouldn't have made us decide differently even if I'd known as I don't print photos often. But it's still a bit of a nuisance.

slmkhoo\" post_id=\"2068632\" time=\"1653468383\" user_id=\"28674:

In the end, we just (literally just a while ago!) printed them on our old inkjet as it's still around. And I finally got the photos in the frames! Better late than never.