Laser Printers

[Crafty1]

i currently own an inkjet printer and to me my colors are not as vivid as i would like. does anyone own a laser? if so, how have your results been? i mean is it worth the investment?

[topofmurrayhill]

A good inkjet does far, far better color than a laser printer. Remember, lots of modern inexpensive inkjets print photo quality now.

[drcobane]

It depends on the inks

Apollo hp nock off uses hp their standard ink is alcohol based. Bad real bad for labels. The best ink for labels is vegetable or bio dyes. They cost 25% more but worth every penny.

Ink jets are more practical most newer ones do about 9800 by 9800 dpi (higher the dpi the better it is) with 20 to 30 ppm (pages per minute)

[Beth-VT]

It really depends on how much color you use on what you print, and what you expect. I'm the odball here...I have a color laser and LOVE LOVE LOVE it. My ink-jet has been gathering dust for almost 2 years.

I print all my lables in full color and one particular line uses photos on it (2 labels per page) so coverage is about 75%. On my ink-jets, it was taking about 2-1/2 minutes to print and would only get about 125 sheets out of a set of cartridges (at $50 per set).

My color sheets now print in about 15 seconds (all black in about 3) and my ink is waaaaaaaaaayyyyyy cheaper now. Sure the toner costs more, but lasts about 10-15 times as long. And you only replace the colors as you need them instead of the whole set so if you tend to use more of cyan than the rest, you're not wasting the others. I've printed over 4000 copies and have only replaced 3 cartridges, you can do the math and see the savings.

Quality is excellent IMO. Sure, it's not 9600dpi photo quality, but I get 2800 dpi and it's more than enough for labels and stuff. 4pt. text is excellent, graphics are crisp and excellent, colors are excellent, etc.

If you want a printer for photo quality images, the ink-jets are the way to go no doubt. But for anything less than that I think lasers are so worth it.

The time that I save in printing and the $$ saved in ink has paid for itself. You can get a great Minolta color laser for $400 and it's probably more than most of us will need.

There are other advantages as well, like your ink doesn't run . I do hang tags, invoices, envelopes, container labels, and don't have to treat them or spray them or cover with clear labels, which in the long run also saves time and money. I use frosted labels, crystal clear ones, glossy whites (those look so fantastic!), matte whites, even silver foils and love the results on all. Even photos' printed on laser photo paper look wonderful.

My point is, you need to decide what your needs are and what you want the printer to do before you decide on the type. Lasers can't handle very small or very long (usually no more than 14") papers, so if you do banners they wouldn't work. Jot down your needs, and pro's and con's of both and see what you think.

Oh, did I mention that I LOVE LOVE LOVE my laser????

[Kimb]

We switched this year from using ink jets forever to a Oki laser color printer. I think my labels look alot more professional then before and I never have to worry about labels coming out wrong because the paper feeds the same way every time. The pictures look sharper and the lettering looks much better. It definitely was an investment for us, but my Lexmark printer was going thru so much ink that already half way thru the year I still haven't had to buy any ink yet. I was buying ink every couple of months with my ink jets.

Good Luck,

Kim

[daniedb]

Beth - do you have the Minolta you mentioned? I want to know which printer is inspiring so much love, because I have to have it!

[Crafty1]

thank you thank you thank you. i have been looking at color laser printers, but wanted to make sure i wanted to make the investment. since beth has raved so much about her experience with lasers, i think i might start really combing the printer industry for the right one for my needs. thank you so much beth.

[Beth-VT]

As of this date, I will no longer be responsible for debt incurred by anyone other than myself, lol!!!

Mine is the Minolta QMS Magicolor 2300 DL and it's almost 2 years old. Paid $650 for it at Sams back then, they have since come down to less than $400 if you can find them. They have the new 2400 series out now which is just the newer model, basically the same thing (think the res is a bit better now) and they are about $400 at Staples plus a $100 rebate , so it's only $300!!

I don't have the high capacity tray, nor the duplexer (don't have the need) but they are available. The 2400W is the model, the DL is identical except it gives you upgradeable memory and is network ready.

One reason I like these is that for the money, the DPI on the Minolta's blows the HP's away ...HTH.

Here's a link to compare:

http://www.staples.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?categoryId=10886&catalogId=10051&firstlevelCategoryId=10093&secondlevelCatName=Laser+Printers&prodCatType=1&langId=-1&pCategoryId=11768&secondlevelCategoryId=11768&storeId=10001&firstlevelCatName=Printers+%26+All-in-Ones&currentpagenumber=2&checkedCompParams=

[Blest2BAmerican]

I use laser and inkjets at work. The color laser printer produces superior quality compared to the inkjet. If I had the funds I would definately buy one. Just a word of caution, if you will be using cardstock in it, make sure it will take it. We have a laserjet at home that only prints black ink and will not take heavier papers.

[DoLLz]

I had gotten an Okidata C5150. It is a one-pass color laser making it faster. It prints up to 12 pages per minute in color. The toner for this printer also leaves a glossy look without using glossy paper. Than may or may not be a plus to you. The last that I had seen this printer, it was down to $399. It may be even lower now if they still have them. The 5200 model would probably be easier to find and I think its down to the same price -- $399.

[Melly]

I just had a $1200 Colour Laser MFD with fax, scanner and copier dropped on my doorstep. The box is currently filling up my entire hallway. Will let you know how I like it when hubby sets it up for me this weekend I looked into having my lables professionally printed, but I would like a seperate photo for each scent, so this seemed the be he easiest way to go for me. Full colour ink jet lables would have cost me a small fortune in Ink. (not like the whole printer didnt)

[Crafty1]

I just had a $1200 Colour Laser MFD with fax, scanner and copier dropped on my doorstep. The box is currently filling up my entire hallway. Will let you know how I like it when hubby sets it up for me this weekend I looked into having my lables professionally printed, but I would like a seperate photo for each scent, so this seemed the be he easiest way to go for me. Full colour ink jet lables would have cost me a small fortune in Ink. (not like the whole printer didnt)

yes please post your experience. i am shopping around for one, plan to make a purchase this week. i can't wait to get mine.

[Melly]

OK OMG, I can not beleive the quality of the images I am getting off this thing, very detailed and crisp, will have wonderful looking lables for sure. The extra cash was worth the money IMHO. We bought an HP Colour Laserjet 2840.

[BruceCarvesWax]

Lots of things to think about with laser printers. Im a hp fan, you can check out my ebay and see i have bought 3 in the past 6 weeks. I love the hp 4550 models.(I put a 10gig hard drive in the back of it and dont even need a computer to print out my labels now.. it stores them all) I picked up a hp 8500 and its ok, but way way too big (300# machine). The only one I bought new was a hp4600N that is faster then the others because each color has its own drum. The others share a drum and it has to take the colors off the transfer belt one at a time. (4 passes instead of one)

The higher the copies per month they are rated, the more toner you will get and the better longer drum, transfer and fuser life.

The thing about the 4600 that I just got, it was like 525.00 new with everything. If I went to buy replacement toners it would cost me about the same amount that it did for the whole thing new. I really think the best way to do it is to buy new and sell it on ebay when the toners run low and just get another newer model. You can refill them, but have to replace drum memory chips so it gets costly even refilling. If you can get 8000 copies from a set of toners, that should last you for a few years, but some machines only do 1500 on a set of toner. Check the amount of copies the toner carts are rated at before you buy and how much the replacement ones cost.

Bruce

confused yet?

[scrubzz]

Lots of things to think about with laser printers. Im a hp fan, you can check out my ebay and see i have bought 3 in the past 6 weeks. I love the hp 4550 models.(I put a 10gig hard drive in the back of it and dont even need a computer to print out my labels now.. it stores them all) I picked up a hp 8500 and its ok, but way way too big (300# machine). The only one I bought new was a hp4600N that is faster then the others because each color has its own drum. The others share a drum and it has to take the colors off the transfer belt one at a time. (4 passes instead of one)

The higher the copies per month they are rated, the more toner you will get and the better longer drum, transfer and fuser life.

The thing about the 4600 that I just got, it was like 525.00 new with everything. If I went to buy replacement toners it would cost me about the same amount that it did for the whole thing new. I really think the best way to do it is to buy new and sell it on ebay when the toners run low and just get another newer model. You can refill them, but have to replace drum memory chips so it gets costly even refilling. If you can get 8000 copies from a set of toners, that should last you for a few years, but some machines only do 1500 on a set of toner. Check the amount of copies the toner carts are rated at before you buy and how much the replacement ones cost.

Bruce

confused yet?

no not confused at all here - that is very interesting

thanks bruce

[Crafty1]

thanks Bruce

[tx twister]

We just purchased an OKIdata 5200 last month. Definitely an investment at $599, but the color is incredible, & its nice and glossy. Its fast and I figure in the long run, I'll save by doing my own brochures, catalogs & labels instead of farming everything out.

[Crafty1]

we decided to go with the HP 2600 for now. it is gonna cost us abot 400.00, plan to buy it on Friday, will keep everyone updated

[Rsvlbrat]

Dang Bruce.....We use those printers at work! I have a 4600 next to my office. One of the offices has a 4550 but it takes FOREVER!I can't believe you have an 8500....that's a huge printer! You certainly must do alot of printing!

[BruceCarvesWax]

Dang Bruce.....We use those printers at work! I have a 4600 next to my office. One of the offices has a 4550 but it takes FOREVER!I can't believe you have an 8500....that's a huge printer! You certainly must do alot of printing!

I have a hard drive that makes the 4550's hum like a big dog. I think with the hard drive its faster then the 4600, but they are loud.... lots of clicking and junk. Here are 6 lasers of mine. 3 on floor and 3 on rack. 4500, 2X4550dn, 5si, 8500dn and the 4600n with hard drive also.

Bruce