1. SPS Accounts:
    Do you find yourself coming back time after time? Do you appreciate the ongoing hard work to keep this community focused and successful in its mission? Please consider supporting us by upgrading to an SPS Account. Besides the warm and fuzzy feeling that comes from supporting a good cause, you'll also get a significant number of ever-expanding perks and benefits on the site and the forums. Click here to find out more.
    Dismiss Notice
Dismiss Notice
You are currently viewing Boards o' Magick as a guest, but you can register an account here. Registration is fast, easy and free. Once registered you will have access to search the forums, create and respond to threads, PM other members, upload screenshots and access many other features unavailable to guests.

BoM cultivates a friendly and welcoming atmosphere. We have been aiming for quality over quantity with our forums from their inception, and believe that this distinction is truly tangible and valued by our members. We'd love to have you join us today!

(If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us. If you've forgotten your username or password, click here.)

Inkjet or Laser?

Discussion in 'Techno-Magic' started by Dice, Mar 5, 2009.

  1. Dice

    Dice ★ SPS Account Holder Adored Veteran

    Joined:
    Jun 23, 2002
    Messages:
    5,125
    Media:
    24
    Likes Received:
    149
    Gender:
    Female
    Remove all ads!
    I've been using a stone-age printer for a long time and I'm ready to retire it. Prices for both inkjet and lazer are very reasonable now so I'm wondering what I should get. What are the advantages over each other. Any input would be appreciated.
     
    Dice, Mar 5, 2009
    #1
  2. Silvery

    Silvery I won't pretend to be your friend coz I'm just not ★ SPS Account Holder Adored Veteran

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2005
    Messages:
    3,224
    Media:
    40
    Likes Received:
    218
    Gender:
    Female
    I have a laser printer. It's mainly used because we use it for our business and we do a LOT of printing.
    Sayling that, I'd recommend a laser printer for home use as well. The toner is probably more expensive than ink cartridges but they last a lot longer so in the long run it works out the same if not cheaper. Plus if you're printing out a couple of pages you don't have to worry about any of them getting blurred because the ink isn't dry.
    Also, laser is much faster and when your toner starts running out you don't get that awful streaky effect that you get on inkjet xxx
     
    Silvery, Mar 5, 2009
    #2
  3. Taluntain

    Taluntain Resident Alpha and Omega Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2000
    Messages:
    23,645
    Media:
    494
    Likes Received:
    564
    Gender:
    Male
    For monochrome printing, laser is the only sensible option.

    If you only print colour once a month, stick with an inkjet, but make sure it has separate cartridges for every colour.

    If you print more than a few pages in colour a month, get a colour laser.

    If you can afford it, buy a separate laser for black and another for colour printing. If not, and you print a lot in colour and black, just get a colour laser.

    The only significant advantages of inkjets over lasers are that entry level inkjets are dirt cheap, and that in most cases, under optimal conditions, you'll still get a much better colour print from an inkjet than a laser. But in the long run and overall, lasers are a much better choice. The speed alone is worth it.
     
    Taluntain, Mar 5, 2009
    #3
  4. Blackthorne TA

    Blackthorne TA Master in his Own Mind Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!)

    Joined:
    Oct 19, 2000
    Messages:
    10,414
    Media:
    40
    Likes Received:
    232
    Gender:
    Male
    It depends on what your use for it is, and what kind of up-front money you want to spend.

    Lasers are quite a bit more expensive up-front, but cheaper on a per-page cost than ink-jets. The laser toner cartridges are quite a bit more expensive up-front, but they print many more pages before needing replacement.

    Ink-jets are superior to laser for photo printing, so if that's what you want the printer for, you want an ink-jet.

    I've never had a laser, so this next point may not be accurate, but if you print very infrequently, ink-jets are prone to clog and you can go through a lot of expensive ink on nozzle cleaning. Sometimes the clog is permanent. I don't think lasers have an issue with deteriorating quality if the toner is not used frequently.
     
    Last edited: Mar 5, 2009
    Blackthorne TA, Mar 5, 2009
    #4
  5. Taza

    Taza Weird Modmaker Veteran

    Joined:
    Oct 23, 2002
    Messages:
    1,447
    Likes Received:
    25
    Well, I know a lot about this, with what two laser printers and more inkjets than I can count.

    And BTA has it down perfectly.

    If you print a lot, laser gets cheaper and is the better option.

    If you print a little, inkjets clog, making laser the cheaper and better option.

    (And oh, lasers do deteriorate in quality, but that has never been anything one or two test prints wouldn't fix.)
     
    Taza, Mar 5, 2009
    #5
  6. Taluntain

    Taluntain Resident Alpha and Omega Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2000
    Messages:
    23,645
    Media:
    494
    Likes Received:
    564
    Gender:
    Male
    BTA is right; I've usually wasted more colour on cleaning the inkjet nozzles than actual printing because I very infrequently need to print in colour. Infrequent printing is a non-issue with lasers, however. You can get to the point where the toner dust is distributed unevenly and you get only a partial print, but in such a case you can just take the toner out and shake it a bit to redistribute the dust and put it back in. Also, going from economy mode to regular makes it use more toner, which usually fixes any gaps in the printout without any effort. I have yet to encounter any other print problems with my laser and I've had it for the last 3 or 4 years.
     
    Taluntain, Mar 5, 2009
    #6
  7. Silvery

    Silvery I won't pretend to be your friend coz I'm just not ★ SPS Account Holder Adored Veteran

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2005
    Messages:
    3,224
    Media:
    40
    Likes Received:
    218
    Gender:
    Female
    Lots of laser printers have self clean functions too which is handy
     
    Silvery, Mar 5, 2009
    #7
  8. Dice

    Dice ★ SPS Account Holder Adored Veteran

    Joined:
    Jun 23, 2002
    Messages:
    5,125
    Media:
    24
    Likes Received:
    149
    Gender:
    Female
    I guess I should have indicated what I want to do with the printer. Although I do print a fair amount of black and white I actually work with photographic images a lot and colour quality is important to me. From what you all have said so far it sounds like inkjet will be a better option.
     
    Dice, Mar 5, 2009
    #8
  9. Merlanni

    Merlanni Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

    Joined:
    Nov 12, 2005
    Messages:
    2,445
    Media:
    23
    Likes Received:
    54
    Gender:
    Male
    I was looking for a decent printer for occasional prints. I print very little and at the moment even do not have one. A laser huh, who knows.
    This is a large hole in my hardware knowledge.
     
    Merlanni, Mar 5, 2009
    #9
  10. Chandos the Red

    Chandos the Red This Wheel's on Fire

    Joined:
    Jan 18, 2003
    Messages:
    8,252
    Media:
    82
    Likes Received:
    238
    Gender:
    Male
    I have both, a laser and an inkjet and I use the inkjet way more often. The rotating drum on lasers is a real pain sometimes, since it wears and collects dust and dirt, and if you print color, generally you have to by a toner cartridge for each primary color, which can be VERY expensive. I would stick with an inkjet unless you are printing mostly monochrome. For that, as BTA remarked, it's a good choice.
     
    Chandos the Red, Mar 5, 2009
    #10
  11. chevalier

    chevalier Knight of Everfull Chalice ★ SPS Account Holder Veteran

    Joined:
    Dec 14, 2002
    Messages:
    16,815
    Media:
    11
    Likes Received:
    58
    Gender:
    Male
    Laserjets are bad for your respiratory system. It's believed to be possible to get cancer from them, although I can't substantiate this. You can buy an inkjet with an increased efficiency, meaning you can print thrice as much on a single cartridge and the print is supposedly nearly as good as laser. I might be buying one such soon. HP 5400 is an example, although I'm not recommending anything specific.
     
    chevalier, Mar 6, 2009
    #11
  12. Taluntain

    Taluntain Resident Alpha and Omega Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2000
    Messages:
    23,645
    Media:
    494
    Likes Received:
    564
    Gender:
    Male
    Taluntain, Mar 6, 2009
    #12
  13. chevalier

    chevalier Knight of Everfull Chalice ★ SPS Account Holder Veteran

    Joined:
    Dec 14, 2002
    Messages:
    16,815
    Media:
    11
    Likes Received:
    58
    Gender:
    Male
    Possible, but I guess people talked like that about cigarettes before things were finally proven. You don't know what and how much it does to you, but you know it spews things out in the air. I guess I'd still buy an inkjet rather than a laserjet, especially if you can buy a high-efficiency one these days, so the output and quality of text is nearly the same as laser and colour print is probably vastly superior to any colour laserjet a normal person can afford. Sigh. Pity I didn't buy one such when I saw it for 299 PLN and later 240 PLN. Now it costs like 500 or more. That's probably because of the dollar or euro going up.
     
    chevalier, Mar 15, 2009
    #13
Sorcerer's Place is a project run entirely by fans and for fans. Maintaining Sorcerer's Place and a stable environment for all our hosted sites requires a substantial amount of our time and funds on a regular basis, so please consider supporting us to keep the site up & running smoothly. Thank you!

Sorcerers.net is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products on amazon.com, amazon.ca and amazon.co.uk. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.