Printers come in all sizes and with many different options. Deciding which printer is right for you can seem like a huge task, break it down and consider each of the following options will help make it easyer. Make sure the price or one option is not the only thing you consider. Knowing which options you need, such as edge to edge color printing, or maybe a label function should be considered overall other options. Buying the perfect machine that will do what you want, when you want, can be found with a little to help. As with all computer components you really need to stop and think about what you really need a new printer. Let us now talk about some of the things each consider when looking for printer.

Laser Vs Inkjet: There are two basic types of printers found on the market today. Laser printers and inkjet printers, both have pros and cons as well things to consider when looking for your new printer. Not just the cost of printer should be considered when looking at these options. Let us first talk about laser printers. Laser printers come in both black-and-white and color it can create some amazing pictures. While laser printers can be fast and high-quality, the cost of consumable or the laser cartridges can be quite expensive and certain models. If all you need is a good black-and-white printer and colors not an option this time, a good black-and-white laser will cost far less than almost any inkjet printer made. Always check on the cost per page found in the manufactures website. Let's look at inkjet printer for a moment, yes inkjets can be less expensive and have all kinds of options. Yet even though that ink cartridge only cost $10, if it only does less than 100 pages your cost per page can be quite high. Some models replace the cartridge not the print head others replace the print head and cartridge all-in-one. While most inkjet printers will give you a high quality print job whether the give you a good job every time is one thing you need to consider. Once again check the cost per page and other issues such as alignment and maintenance of your inkjet printer. Most people never consider that most printers do require maintenance over their lifetime. Failure do proper maintenance will cause a printer to prematurely fail as does cost you money. Whether your buy a laser or inkjet printer make sure you understand what maintenance needs to be done on a regular basis.

All in One Vs Standalone: Two different styles of printers have become very common today. Standalone units that print and only print or all-in-one units that can have print, copy, scan and fax options are available in both inkjet and laser printers. All in one units have great appeal for saving spaces and being convenient, however having one part that fails may cause othre parts to not work. Consider how much you use the other options on your printer or scanner and fax decide whether it's worth the money to buy it in all in one or individual pieces. While standalone printers may seem old-style and archaic, newer printers or high-volume printers standalone units may be more robust and have heavier duty cycles or in other words the ability print more pages week after week. Once again think about how much in the future you will use your printer. If you occasionally write a letter and print out or make a get well card and only use your printer a few times a month than a all in one unit may be best for you. High production offices, large volume printing and industrial uses may find that a standalone unit works much better. Only you can make the choice of which unit is best for you.

Cost Per Page: Since you buy a printer once and consumable such as ink or toner several times over the life of the printer, this should be the main thing you think about when buying your particular model. The cost per page can be found in many places including the manufactures website and companies that sell ink cartridges. Sites such as Staples.com and Office Depot.com do list cost per page on many of the cartridges they sell. Please read carefully at what they consider the cost per page. They list the different costs usually based upon percentage of the page printed. Percentages for small color pictures and full-size color pages will be different and must be considered. Black-and-white and color printing will vary based upon the size of cartridge. Doing a little homework in this area of research your printer will save you time and money.

What you use it for: Please also consider what you use your printer for, if you use your printer for a while and then don't use it for weeks at time, buying certain types of printers may be more problems than they're worth. Inkjets for example must be used on a regular basis to keep the ink from gelling or drying out. The manufacture tries to keep this from happening by sealing the print head when not in use. However with air vents that are required for the cartridges to work, overtime the ink will dry out and eventually gel or clog your print-head. If you have a model that replaces the whole cartridge and print head each time this may not be as much of an issue than some manufacturers that use built-in print-heads. Laser printers do not have this issue, their inks or toner is dry or wax and do not clog or dry out over time. The downside to laser printer cartridges is they are more expensive in the initial outlay and take longer to recover your costs. Also laser printers can do amazing things, but most don't give you the quality of inkjet printer.

Now that you have some the basic things to consider please once again take a piece of paper and write down what you use your printer for and what your expectations are. Always read reviews from several sites and look at the things they do and don't work for you. Once you decide on the printer you want to purchase also look for sources of ink or toner, consider their costs and availability. For instance you might find great printer that works for you but find out the only way to get ink or toner for it is to mail order because your local big-box store doesn't carry it. Take your time do some research and have fun with your new printer.

Check out Newegg.com they have several Printers to choose from and detailed specifications on each.

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