Home printer recommendation

[chip*]

Hi,

In the past, my printing requirements was pretty low, and my nearby local library served me well for the occasional sheets. However, my usage is very likely to increase in terms of printing and scanning documents in the near future, so I am seeking a home printer/scanner. However, after researching the Net for over an hour, my head is about to explode with so many conflicting information! In this respect, I am grateful for any personal recommendation on a home printer with the following requirements:

Laser (low 2-3 use per month / ~ 30 sheets)
Colour printing
Scan
Print double sided.
WIFI capability to link to phone/tablet
Reasonable size to sit on my computer table
Decent support i.e. reasonable priced replacement toner/spare parts etc..
Budget ~ £150

Thanks!

[dmsims]

You need to up your budget

[LordGrover]

A few options here: printerland.

[chip*]

OK, no problem flexing the budget.
Let's go with £250 and see what recommendation comes up

[dmsims]

LordGrover said:

A few options here: printerland.

Need to tick the colour option - that changes things a bit

OP go for something where you can get decent aftermarket toners - otherwise a replacement set might cost more than the printer!

Look up toners for the model on Amazon

[595Heaven]

Does it absolutely need to be laser?

If not, look at the HP Instant Ink models which have a subscription service for the ink. Works well with low usage as you only pay for pages printed, not ink used to prepare the printer after a period of non printing. My old Epson printer used loads of ink if you needed to clear the print heads.

[Mr Pointy]

I'd add another requirement: third party toners easily available. If you are stuck with manufacturer's toner then it's often cheaper to buy a new printer than replace the toner. I suspect this discounts Lexmark & maybe HP & Xerox; look at Brother & Samsung:

https://www.printerbase.co.uk/printers/laser-print...

Stock levels seem to be a bit of a problem though.

[sgrimshaw]

Multifunction Colour Lasers are not small, so check the dimensions.

Actually, too many words in that statement .... "Colour Lasers are not small!"

[anonymous-user]

595Heaven said:

Does it absolutely need to be laser?

If not, look at the HP Instant Ink models which have a subscription service for the ink. Works well with low usage as you only pay for pages printed, not ink used to prepare the printer after a period of non printing. My old Epson printer used loads of ink if you needed to clear the print heads.

I have this subscription
£1.99 a month for 50 pages, others available
They send more ink before it runs out
For my usage it’s better than buying expensive original ink, or dodgy copies that kill the printer!

[595Heaven]

Jimboka said:

595Heaven said:

Does it absolutely need to be laser?

If not, look at the HP Instant Ink models which have a subscription service for the ink. Works well with low usage as you only pay for pages printed, not ink used to prepare the printer after a period of non printing. My old Epson printer used loads of ink if you needed to clear the print heads.

I have this subscription
£1.99 a month for 50 pages, others available
They send more ink before it runs out
For my usage it’s better than buying expensive original ink, or dodgy copies that kill the printer!

Yep, works really well for us and seems like a great price

[stemll]

Mr Pointy said:

I'd add another requirement: third party toners easily available. If you are stuck with manufacturer's toner then it's often cheaper to buy a new printer than replace the toner. I suspect this discounts Lexmark & maybe HP & Xerox; look at Brother & Samsung:

https://www.printerbase.co.uk/printers/laser-print...

Stock levels seem to be a bit of a problem though.

I use aftermarket toner in my Xerox 6510 and it's never complained, prints look as good as they did with the originals that came with it. They cost the same as a new printer (£198) but 4 times the capacity. Xerox ones would be £480.

Cheapest colour laser MFP on Printerland is the Kyocera M5521 @ £245. Cheapest Xerox is 6515DN @ £323 and both showing in stock. Both will continue to print B&W if the colour toner is empty. Many won't, the HP and Brother between these two in price will stop if any cartridge is empty.

As sgrimshaw said, check size and weight. These things are neither small nor light. The Xerox is 420x506x500 and weighs 31kg.

[chip*]

Thanks all for your feedback which has been taken on board.
It's crazy how a simple task to "print paper" has so many variations, but all the useful feedback has been educational!

595Heaven said:

Jimboka said:

595Heaven said:

Does it absolutely need to be laser?

If not, look at the HP Instant Ink models which have a subscription service for the ink. Works well with low usage as you only pay for pages printed, not ink used to prepare the printer after a period of non printing. My old Epson printer used loads of ink if you needed to clear the print heads.

I have this subscription
£1.99 a month for 50 pages, others available
They send more ink before it runs out
For my usage it’s better than buying expensive original ink, or dodgy copies that kill the printer!

Yep, works really well for us and seems like a great price

I researched on HP Instant Ink last night, and this option does appeal to me. Cost is minimal and it remove any hassle with buying / searching for a replacement cartridge. I suspect the Covid WFH situation has depleted printer availability as many are "out of stock", but I narrowed my choice to the HP Pro 9020:

https://store.hp.com/UKStore/Merch/Product.aspx?id...

It does what I need, and maybe an overkill as it has many other functions I don't use (or understand!) but at least it's should future proof any additional demand.

Any positive/negative feedback are welcomed on the HP Pro 9020 before I pull out my credit card.

[Mr Pointy]

Well it will cost you 50% of the printer's inital cost to replace the ink (£235 printer, £122 for a set of ink cartridges) & you probably can't use compatibles as the cartidges are chipped - although I haven't actually searched online. The printer also uses HP's "Dynamic Security" which leads to this sort of shenanigans:

https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/20/11/09/02212...

You might want to check on how you get out of the Instant Ink scheme - there have been reports that the printer stops working if you cancel your subcription since you don't own the ink.

[nickofh]

chip* said:

Thanks all for your feedback which has been taken on board.
It's crazy how a simple task to "print paper" has so many variations, but all the useful feedback has been educational!

595Heaven said:

Jimboka said:

595Heaven said:

Does it absolutely need to be laser?

If not, look at the HP Instant Ink models which have a subscription service for the ink. Works well with low usage as you only pay for pages printed, not ink used to prepare the printer after a period of non printing. My old Epson printer used loads of ink if you needed to clear the print heads.

I have this subscription
£1.99 a month for 50 pages, others available
They send more ink before it runs out
For my usage it’s better than buying expensive original ink, or dodgy copies that kill the printer!

Yep, works really well for us and seems like a great price

I researched on HP Instant Ink last night, and this option does appeal to me. Cost is minimal and it remove any hassle with buying / searching for a replacement cartridge. I suspect the Covid WFH situation has depleted printer availability as many are "out of stock", but I narrowed my choice to the HP Pro 9020:

https://store.hp.com/UKStore/Merch/Product.aspx?id...

It does what I need, and maybe an overkill as it has many other functions I don't use (or understand!) but at least it's should future proof any additional demand.

Any positive/negative feedback are welcomed on the HP Pro 9020 before I pull out my credit card.

We switched from a regular inkjet printer to instant ink 3 months ago. I was tired of faffing with non genuine inks and them not working.

We bought a Deskjet 4130 for £60 with £15 cashback. It also came with a four month trial of instantl ink. I am printing around 200 sheets per month. Once my free months ends it is £8 per month for up to 300 sheets. I think that is very reasonable , I have a spare set of ink and free return packages for recycling.

With the code FREEINK and a Futher one I can provide you can get another 2 months free.

If you are lower user there is a free package of upto 15 sheets per month or various paid ones. If you choose a paid package you can't swap down to the free one easily.

So far I have printed copied and scanned 600+ for only the initial cost of the printer. Print quality is good , although the set up has-been troublesome for some. It's also worth noting that it doesn't matter what you print it goes my pages. Do if you printed 300 full page high quality photos that gobble up the ink it's the same as a letter. Really good value.

[dmsims]

I'd go for an Epson Eco-tank over the HP

[nickofh]

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing-accessorie...

I can't see any reason , given your requirements to spend more than this.

7 months free ink. Scanner and auto two side printing etc.

£100

I was looking at the eco tanks. 5000 ISH pages for 20 quid looked great. But I read about some software and ink sponges that render the printers useless unless they are serviced by the manufacturer.

Edited by nickofh on Thursday 19th November 12:22

[stemll]

I'd go for anything over anything from HP. Locking users to their cartridges (which they claim they don't do any more but there are no compatible cartridges for the 4130 or 9020, I wonder why that would be if they wouldn't lock it).

It is none of their business what people put into the printer that belongs to them. They will never be on my shopping list.

[S6PNJ]

Mr Pointy said:

You might want to check on how you get out of the Instant Ink scheme - there have been reports that the printer stops working if you cancel your subscription since you don't own the ink.

I fully suspect this to be the case - as the 'Instant Ink' cartridges belong to HP, not you (or the printer owner) but if you put your original (or new bought) cartridges back in, surprise surprise (subject to them containing ink and not being gummed up) your printer will start working again.

[chip*]

I am glad to hear more constructive feedback after I revealed my first choice HP Pro 9020, but my real first choice is actually the Brother DCP-L3510 CDW (laser all-in-one) from an earlier printerland link. Sadly, this printer is out of stock on every single websites! I am going to sign up to the various websites to track for new stock on this model.

In view of all the additional comments especially on the HP restrictions, I am edging back towards a laser printer with the above Brother printer top of my hit list. I think going laser is the best option for my random use as it should eliminate my main concern re: drying ink/gumming issue.

I am going to research more later this week, but I welcome any recommendation similar to the Brother DCP-L3510.

Thanks again for all the above feedback!

[Mr Pointy]

I don't know how brave you are feeling but there's one on ebay for £219. It's described as a customer return having printed 13 pages:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Brother-DCP-L3510CDW-A4...

They must be out of stock at Brother since everyone is showing them as OOS. Personally I would go with laser over inkjet; I had a Lexmark laser which became uneconomic to keep going & I bought an Epson Workforce inkjet which was a bad move. Being a light user it is a struggle to keep it from blocked jets & I use as much ink on cleaning routines as I do printing documents.