dbuckley Posted November 2, 2011 Share Posted November 2, 2011 I'm old, and can clearly recall when a Epson MX100 dot matrix printer cost six hundred quid. It used ribbons that cost just a quid or two to replace. My first laser printer was a Brother HL4 that cost about £1500 quid, and I bought two spare toner carts at the time of purchase, and the printer died of old age before I used the second cart, and printer and unused cart was eventually biffed into a skip. Time was when printers and consumables were sold at cost plus markup. Now printers are given away, and consumables are expensive. For the right sort of inkjet, CISS ink systems are marvellous. For Brothers and the like with tanks in the front or side of printer, CISS works brill. 'Cos my CISS works so well, the daughter bought a CISS system for her inkjet, which has the tanks whizzing from side to side with hoses flopping everywhere, and it never worked satisfactorally. In fact, its now in the woodshed, and I guess its only a matter of time before printer and CISS system are biffed... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnA Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 I have stopped using my Epson and HP printers because of the cost of the replacement ink and toners. Over three years ago I bought a second-hand colour photocopier from a reputable dealer. The dealer / repairer I use is based out in Essex, but still comes out to me in Buckinghamshire if I have a problem for a fixed call out charge. If the part is simple to replace, he explains how to replace it and then sends out the part in the post - so saving a second visit (I think I have had two issues in three years). I have recently upgraded the photocopier for another second hand newer colour copier with A3 from him. Apparently copiers are getting more reliable. The best thing is the toners are far, far, far cheaper per 10000 sheets when I compare them to the cost of running the Epson and HP printers I used to use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mutley Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 Generally, the larger the scale of the printer, the cheaper it is to print (on a "cost per page" basis). I got the company I used to work for an HP Laserjet 4200n. Toner = 12000 pages for less than £35!!! It's a fairly large printer designed for moderately heavy usage. My advice is to look at the cost of ink/toner before you buy the printer. HP printers are actually some of the cheapest to buy toners for normally! But remember, it takes about 12 months for the cartridge factories to start producing any decent quantities of compatibles, so for the first year or so, you can only buy genuine new or refilled cartridges for your new printer model. My second piece of advice is to always keep a spare cartridge. You don't want to have to spend more money than you need to, in buying a cartridge from somewhere more expensive just because you need it NOW! (Feel free to PM for a price on toner for your printer) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peternewman Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 Just to agree with what Mutley says and expand on it; check eBay. I got a HP LJ 4000n for a tenner for my parents, with toner still in it, which we've added a duplexer too, and also a massive HP LJ 5Si, that does duplex A3 for a quid. You have to collect the items yourself, for the prices to work, but replacement toner, when necessary (we've only done it once on each I think), has been very cheap, probably less than £35 too. Certainly the 4000 series are still common enough, that we could always just get another one from eBay if it broke, and swap the bits that were salvageable across. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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