What is best laser or inkjet printer?

[rex]

I’m looking for a new printer for uni work now that I will be going back later in the year, though a lot gets submitted online for my course I do a lot of printing still. Also I like to make my own reference sheets and type and print up notes etc.

I have a cheap inkjet I have been using for now but the cartridges cost a lot of money, it’s probably cheaper to just buy a new printer.

I want to spend a bit more up front for cheaper ongoing costs. I read a lot online saying lasers are cheaper but is this always the case? Replacement toner looks really expensive.

Are they any good for photos, even though I don’t print photos too often I sometimes get asked by family to print off pictures to send to relatives who don’t do computers.

 

[Philtrum]

Hello and welcome to the site.

Reading your post, I would generally advise laser is cheaper and more hassle free, especially if you’re mostly printing black and white. If you need colour you should be aware the colour printers cost a bit more to buy and you have to buy 4x new toners instead of one.

It would be worth before buying a laser printer checking how much the toners cost for the model you are interested in as some are quite expensive. If you’re printing a lot you may need to buy a new drum for it at some point too.

If you’re considering inkjet some of the new “eco tank” printers that Epson do and possibly some of the other brands might also work out quite well. The disadvantage to these is sometimes the heads can dry out and they don’t print as fast as laser.

Re photo printing, generally you get much better results on an inkjet than you do a laser. It might be worth considering how often you do this - if it’s once or twice a year it might be worth simply using an online photo printing company as this normally only costs a few pounds for professionally printed photos.

 

[strollin]

Unless you need to print in color often, a mono laser is your best bet. They used to be much more expensive but have come down in price lately so that they are much more affordable.

I switched from inkjet to mono laser about 8 years ago and would never consider going back. The laser puts out better looking prints, is much faster and has a much lower cost-per-page. My laser works first time, every time, unlike the inkjets I had where I would have to fiddle around with them for 10-15 minutes in order to print due to empty or clogged ink cartridges or paper jams.

In the 8 years I’ve had my laser, I have only changed the toner cartridge once and have never needed to change the drum. I have a spare toner cartridge on the shelf and don’t need to worry about it drying up before I need to use it like with ink jet cartridges.

No contest, IMO.

 

[rex]

Thanks, think this has convinced me to go with a laser, what brand ddo you have as if it’s lasted 8 years I want one myself.

 

[strollin]

I have a Brother MFC-7860DW printer which is no longer made. It looks like the MFC-L2710DW is a pretty similar currently shipping model. Brother MFC-L2710DW

 

[JamesN]

Since you mostly needs blank and white prints, I would suggest to use laser printer which is relatively cheaper option for longer term and you can have fast printing compare to inkjet printer. You just needs to change toner which is less expansive ones depends your location.