Need a new home printer- recommendations needed from the BWI brain trust

[republion]

I've had my fair share of ink jet printers over the years, and they all absolutely suck. I've had Epson WF all-in-one printers, as well as a few HP printers. They've all crapped the bed way too soon, and the print quality is marginal at best. I think the big problem is we don't print enough to keep the ink jet heads flowing properly. They get clogged and the print quality never seems to improve, no matter how much "head cleaning" you do. With the kids homeschooling now due to COVID, we are printing a bit more, but it won't be consistent enough to keep the ink jet heads clean for quality printing.

So I'm considering a laser printer. Right now, I'm looking at the Canon mf743 color printer ($309). I've never owned a laser printer and never had to buy or deal with toner.

What are your experiences and what might you recommend?

LINK FOR CANON PRINTER

FYI- I prefer to steer clear of Epson and HP due to my previous interactions with their customer service.

 

[MtNittany]

Brother laser printer

 

[Still in State College]

Toner is about the same setup as ink. Replacement is almost the same cost as as the printer. I did the same but only went B&W. Toner lasts much longer. I just went off brand for my toner replacement at about 25% of the cost. I haven't installed it yet so I can't say how it works.

 

[Monty2007]

I do have to say the HP LaserJet P2035 B&W printers we have at work seem to run like tanks. I one on my desk is about 5-6 years old and I never had a problem. I may have replaced only 3 toners over that time but my volume is minimal. Never had a jam or needed any other consumables.

 

[91Joe95]

Laser all the way.

I have hp 1018 from almost 15 years ago and it's still running strong. Parents (80+) have a brother wireless over 10 years old and the same. Do you need color or all in one? If not you can get a wireless laser for about $70-80 delivered.

 

[SATlionman]

HP LaserJet 180. Bought refurbished through Walmart and it looked brand new when I got it. Works flawlessly.

 

[brupsu]

I've had my fair share of ink jet printers over the years, and they all absolutely suck. I've had Epson WF all-in-one printers, as well as a few HP printers. They've all crapped the bed way too soon, and the print quality is marginal at best. I think the big problem is we don't print enough to keep the ink jet heads flowing properly. They get clogged and the print quality never seems to improve, no matter how much "head cleaning" you do. With the kids homeschooling now due to COVID, we are printing a bit more, but it won't be consistent enough to keep the ink jet heads clean for quality printing.

So I'm considering a laser printer. Right now, I'm looking at the Canon mf743 color printer ($309). I've never owned a laser printer and never had to buy or deal with toner.

What are your experiences and what might you recommend?

LINK FOR CANON PRINTER

FYI- I prefer to steer clear of Epson and HP due to my previous interactions with their customer service.

I have an inkjet canon mx490 color which has been very good.I also have a canon lbp 6200 series b and w laser printer.Has worked great.Last but not least I also have a brother mfc 2710 dw which is a color laser printer and its been good.Lasers are so much faster

 

[Columbus_Lion]

Get a scanner and be 100% paperless.

Printers and copy machines are worthless when you are paperless. Plus you save a ton on money not buying paper and toner.

 

[Still in State College]

Get a scanner and be 100% paperless.

Printers and copy machines are worthless when you are paperless. Plus you save a ton on money not buying paper and toner.

While I agree with your sentiment, there are times when you need to print. We try to be as paperless as possible but the are till some agencies that require paper.

 

[Thorndike2012]

I went to b/w only and to the Brother HL-L2360DW unit. Around $100. These things use a toner cartridge that's a little pricey, but lasts forever. I've already done several hundreds of copies with my first cartridge and toner is showing as full.

 

[Columbus_Lion]

While I agree with your sentiment, there are times when you need to print. We try to be as paperless as possible but the are till some agencies that require paper.

When paperless, that is the very rare exception. Its all about the approach. Get a signature app to sign documents and a good file system.

 

[republion]

When paperless, that is the very rare exception. Its all about the approach. Get a signature app to sign documents and a good file system.

School age kids. Paperless isn’t an option.

 

[Nitt1300]

I have two HPs, one real old one that runs as well as it did new but has no current tech (no bluetooth or internet connectivity) and a newer one that has all the tech but has the worst paper feed I've ever seen. I use the old one whenever possible.

 

[slykens]

I've had my fair share of ink jet printers over the years, and they all absolutely suck. I've had Epson WF all-in-one printers, as well as a few HP printers. They've all crapped the bed way too soon, and the print quality is marginal at best. I think the big problem is we don't print enough to keep the ink jet heads flowing properly. They get clogged and the print quality never seems to improve, no matter how much "head cleaning" you do. With the kids homeschooling now due to COVID, we are printing a bit more, but it won't be consistent enough to keep the ink jet heads clean for quality printing.

So I'm considering a laser printer. Right now, I'm looking at the Canon mf743 color printer ($309). I've never owned a laser printer and never had to buy or deal with toner.

What are your experiences and what might you recommend?

LINK FOR CANON PRINTER

FYI- I prefer to steer clear of Epson and HP due to my previous interactions with their customer service.

I have the device you mention. I picked it up during Black Friday but just set it up about two weeks ago as some things have been up in the air for me.

Laser is definitely the right choice - laser doesn’t care if you go a few weeks without printing and is generally more tolerant of non-OEM consumables. My gf has both an HP and a Brother inkjet device and they both give her fits. I’d move her to laser but she needs large format and large format laser starts at $2k!

The mentioned device has a decent feature set even if things are a little hidden in menus at times. It comes with starter toner so if you print a decent volume you might want to order your first set of replacements right away.

 

[PSUSignore]

I have a relatively inexpensive b&w Brother laser printer. I do need a printer but on very rare occasions. I always had issues with my ink drying out on inkjet models, so they ended up costing me a fortune despite the low initial cost. Getting this laser printer was a wise move. Many people recommend Brother as a budget option because they accept non-OEM toner which saves money in the long haul too.

My first laser was an ancient used HP 2100 TN, I think I paid $20 for it including toner and I used it until it gave me a fuser error code. If you really want a bargain watch online marketplaces like Craigslist, cheap used laser printers are typically easy to find there.

 

[Lion Son/Husband/Father]

Buy it based on the cheap ink available at your Costco/bjs.

 

[Whaaaaaaaany]

I have a brother HL-2170W which is a basic b&w laser printer. This one is wireless so I can print from wherever I am in the house with my laptop or even from my phone. They make the same thing without it being wireless, I think its the same model without the "w" at the end. I've quite a bit for about 8 years with no issues. You can even buy off brand toner cartridges for it, which is what I buy. (and when it says the toner is low, put some black electrical tape over the sensor port on the cartridge and get a few more hundred prints). I got it pretty much for the reasons you did...ink kept drying up and I also really had no reason to print in color

 

[LafayetteBear]

I won't be buying ink jet printers again. The ink cost eventually makes them more expensive than laser printers. I had an old HP LaserJet 4-Plus on my desk for roughly twenty years. It finally died, and I went out and bought an HP Color LaserJet All-in-One (printer/fax/scanner/copier) for about $350. (HP Model No. MFP-M281fdw.)

The toner cartridges were another $400 (which is a lot), but they will last for a LONG time. I like everything about this All-in-One, although I don't need the fax anymore. I scan and e-mail exclusively. My clients and colleagues, scan and e-mail as well. If you wanted to reduce the cost of toner, you could eschew color printing and copying, and just go black and white. That would mean one black and white toner cartridge instead of one black and white and three color cartridges, a savings of roughly $300.

 

[91Joe95]

I have two HPs, one real old one that runs as well as it did new but has no current tech (no bluetooth or internet connectivity) and a newer one that has all the tech but has the worst paper feed I've ever seen. I use the old one whenever possible.

My old hp i hook up to a computer and allow printer sharing. Phones and tablets don't have drivers for it, but everything else does, making it virtually wireless. Actually I think there is a way to share in Google but its a bit of a pain and there are easier ways to print from the phone and tablet.

 

[MtNittany]

Back to the original question - IMO - HP used to be the best laser printers, but I like Brothers better now. Canon, no. Research toner prices (color is expensive regardless) and make sure it will scan.

 

[WDLion]

Laser all the way.

I have hp 1018 from almost 15 years ago and it's still running strong. Parents (80+) have a brother wireless over 10 years old and the same. Do you need color or all in one? If not you can get a wireless laser for about $70-80 delivered.

I have a HP Protosmart 7760 that's 25 years old and works like the day it was new. I also have a new HP ENVY Photo 7855.

 

[FHSPSU67]

I'm in the process of buying an hp M255dw color laserjet. For $299 it's a new product and seems to be perfect for a home environment. I also have a scanner so no need for all-in-one..

 

[roswelllion]

I've had my fair share of ink jet printers over the years, and they all absolutely suck. I've had Epson WF all-in-one printers, as well as a few HP printers. They've all crapped the bed way too soon, and the print quality is marginal at best. I think the big problem is we don't print enough to keep the ink jet heads flowing properly. They get clogged and the print quality never seems to improve, no matter how much "head cleaning" you do. With the kids homeschooling now due to COVID, we are printing a bit more, but it won't be consistent enough to keep the ink jet heads clean for quality printing.

So I'm considering a laser printer. Right now, I'm looking at the Canon mf743 color printer ($309). I've never owned a laser printer and never had to buy or deal with toner.

What are your experiences and what might you recommend?

LINK FOR CANON PRINTER

FYI- I prefer to steer clear of Epson and HP due to my previous interactions with their customer service.

I have seen a few post the Brother printer in this thread. The printer seems to work fine BUT we sometimes don't use the printer for a couple months at a time. [travel] the printer then goes into deep sleep and won't come out until you contact them. then they say it has been corrupted and they sell some anti virus software which costs more than the printer. i got suckered into buying it once. Beware!!

 

[tgar]

Hey Guys, I have a laser toner company selling cartridges made in The USA, not China. Our cartridges are made from recycled cores in a plant in Illinois. Made in the USA with American labor. We can save you a lot of money, 50 to 75% discount average. Unlimited warranty, 100% satisfaction guarantee, Free shipping.

yes, you can buy cheaper price and quality from China and resellers of Chinese products. You can also get crap quality, no return policy, nobody to return your calls if you buy from Amazon ( I almost set up a business there but I saw no upside )

Made in the USA, significant discount over OEM Genuine cartridges ( which I also sell )

Sensible Toner Inc. sensibletoner.com call me if I can help and you want to buy quality Made in the USA cartridges. 844-409-3080. Happy to help.

I feel sorry for the Chinese people but I hate China. Veteran owned company.

sorry for the long post and infomercial.

 

[NewEra 2014]

I bought a Brother HL-L3290CDW about 6 months ago, as I need color printing, copying, and scanning from time to time. It has worked like a champ, and I am still on the original ink after several hundred pages. Very easy to set up, runs on WiFi. The downside is that there is not a document feeder for scanning.

I previously had an HP all-in-one unit. The Brother product is far superior, but I had the HP for over 10 years, so technology is better.

 

[PSUSignore]

Side question for those of you running Brother printers with wireless networking capabilities... I sometimes have issues with the printer showing offline on my network, I think it's because everything on my network has a dynamic automatic IP address assignment. Another factor may be that I keep my printer turned off since I rarely use it, and only turn it on every few months when I need to print something. This likely changes the IP address it's been assigned. Have any of you found a good solution for this to ensure the printer stays discoverable and online by my networked PCs?

 

[pennstatefan111]

I have a brother HL-2170W which is a basic b&w laser printer. This one is wireless so I can print from wherever I am in the house with my laptop or even from my phone. They make the same thing without it being wireless, I think its the same model without the "w" at the end. I've quite a bit for about 8 years with no issues. You can even buy off brand toner cartridges for it, which is what I buy. (and when it says the toner is low, put some black electrical tape over the sensor port on the cartridge and get a few more hundred prints). I got it pretty much for the reasons you did...ink kept drying up and I also really had no reason to print in color

I have had a workhorse Brother HL-2270DW B&W laser for the last 5 years which also prints duplex (both sides). I would highly recommend the Brother laser printers due to their performance and overall cost.

 

[PSU_Chicago]

Buy your printer knowing you will replace it. Do not spend a lot of money. It is going to fail.

 

[BornALion]

So my job is printing from large transactional runs, to owning the print services in over 90 offices, as well as supporting virtual office users. We have had program after program and the only one who stands up time over time is HP. Get a 8700 series and sign up for the instant ink program. Cheap monthly cost and never buy a cartridge again.

 

[MaconNitt]

I won't be buying ink jet printers again. The ink cost eventually makes them more expensive than laser printers. I had an old HP LaserJet 4-Plus on my desk for roughly twenty years. It finally died, and I went out and bought an HP Color LaserJet All-in-One (printer/fax/scanner/copier) for about $350. (HP Model No. MFP-M281fdw.)

The toner cartridges were another $400 (which is a lot), but they will last for a LONG time. I like everything about this All-in-One, although I don't need the fax anymore. I scan and e-mail exclusively. My clients and colleagues, scan and e-mail as well. If you wanted to reduce the cost of toner, you could eschew color printing and copying, and just go black and white. That would mean one black and white toner cartridge instead of one black and white and three color cartridges, a savings of roughly $300.

I'm still using an HP LaserJet 4-Plus. It is a workhorse, I use it for printing quarterly payroll tax returns and W-2's. Not the fastest in the world but the print quality is excellent.

 

[The Stan]

I bought a samsung b/w last printer on Amazon for about 99$ around 5 years ago... Bought a second one for a different house... They work great.

 

[YeOldeCup]

Really depends on how much printing you do, as inkjets are so cheap as to be disposable these days. I've had an HP CP1525 wireless color laser for more than a decade, as my daughters did a lot of color printing in high school. Like others have said, lasers are tanks that just keep on working. Bought both daughters Canon MG6620 color wireless (inkjet) all-in-ones for college; they're a bit pricey, but performed very well and are still running strong 4 and 5 years later respectively.

 

[Grove Lion]

So my job is printing from large transactional runs, to owning the print services in over 90 offices, as well as supporting virtual office users. We have had program after program and the only one who stands up time over time is HP. Get a 8700 series and sign up for the instant ink program. Cheap monthly cost and never buy a cartridge again.

I actually plan to run to BJ's tomorrow to buy an HP OfficeJet Pro 9018. Our Cannon just died and I need one now. Any thoughts on that printer? We might print from home 20-50 pages per month so we don't need a workhorse. Also... any recommendations on a supplemental Laser... just for black and white printing? Thanks.

 

[brupsu]

Side question for those of you running Brother printers with wireless networking capabilities... I sometimes have issues with the printer showing offline on my network, I think it's because everything on my network has a dynamic automatic IP address assignment. Another factor may be that I keep my printer turned off since I rarely use it, and only turn it on every few months when I need to print something. This likely changes the IP address it's been assigned. Have any of you found a good solution for this to ensure the printer stays discoverable and online by my networked PCs?

Does it have sleep mode?Should be automatic.lf not find it in the menu and set it to sleep after x amount of time.That should keep that ip number locked up.

 

[republion]

Great info folks. Thank you very much for the responses. Although I came into this thinking the Canon was the way to go, I’m going to do a little more research on the Brother as it seems to be highly recommended. I just can’t pull the trigger on an HP (or Epson) based on my previous experiences with them. Thanks!

 

[slykens]

Side question for those of you running Brother printers with wireless networking capabilities... I sometimes have issues with the printer showing offline on my network, I think it's because everything on my network has a dynamic automatic IP address assignment. Another factor may be that I keep my printer turned off since I rarely use it, and only turn it on every few months when I need to print something. This likely changes the IP address it's been assigned. Have any of you found a good solution for this to ensure the printer stays discoverable and online by my networked PCs?

On many routers you can reserve an address - this way the device gets the same address from the DHCP server every time it requests an address. Alternatively you could manually configure the printer with a static IP address- before you do that check your router to make sure it is outside the dhcp pool or range so you don’t have conflicts.

 

[PSUSignore]

On many routers you can reserve an address - this way the device gets the same address from the DHCP server every time it requests an address. Alternatively you could manually configure the printer with a static IP address- before you do that check your router to make sure it is outside the dhcp pool or range so you don’t have conflicts.

Yeah, I've tried this without a lot of luck, still had problems. I've since gotten a new router so maybe I need to try it again to see if I get a better result.

 

[delcoLion]

My vote goes to Brother. We have an older B&W that is like the Energizer Bunny, just keeps going.

I haven't kept up with color toners, they used to be as expensive as hell, so check those prices before you go to a color laser.

My B-I-L has a HP Color Laser Jet Pro MFP M281fdw and says it's great, but he works from home so I assume his company pays for it.