New Printer? A matter of Economics (Full Version)

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spiritchsr1 -> New Printer? A matter of Economics (4/11/2008 8:20:36 AM)

I have a HP 632 Printer for home use. It has worked well for the general usage we need it for. However the color cartridge has been empty for quite some time. The cost of a new HP replacement color catridge is $33.95 at Wallmart.

Well the cost of a new HP printer of the same type is only $2.00 more. And whats even better is the cost of the replacement cartridges for the new printer are half the cost of the old cartridge at Wallmart. I bought the HP 1420 Printer for $35.95.

My question is are these basically throw away printers now?

Spiritchsr1



Miss Giggles -> RE: New Printer? A matter of Economics (4/11/2008 8:41:35 AM)

They have been for years.



stellaluna -> RE: New Printer? A matter of Economics (4/11/2008 9:25:23 AM)

Yep. I just buy a new printer every fall. It's one of my seasonal purchases. They get better and better anyway.



PGAGA -> RE: New Printer? A matter of Economics (4/11/2008 1:16:34 PM)

Friday, April 11, 2008

Long ago inkjet printer companies realized that the money was in consumables, so made the cost of the printer low and of ink high. The uniqueness of HP printers, and why their cartridges were more expensive, was the cartridges having print heads. This effectively gives one a "new"printer every time a new cartridge is put it.

I have yet to have one of my three HPs fail, although one of my sons' PSC combos has some sort of fault and we have had two HPs here at the church fail.

Phil



rlj -> RE: New Printer? A matter of Economics (4/11/2008 3:37:02 PM)

quote:

The uniqueness of HP printers, and why their cartridges were more expensive, was the cartridges having print heads. This effectively gives one a "new"printer every time a new cartridge is put it.


Is that still the case? I bought a Canon over an HP because of the cost of the individual tanks. I used to love the HP's but they got so obscenely expensive to get ink for. It's like $10 or so for 5 ml ink replacements vs. $15 for the 12 or 13 ml of our Canon.

I think it's a good idea to make sure a printer has no less than 2 cartridges - 1 black and 1 cmy because if it is a 1 cartridge system you will have to switch in and out or if you leave a color cartridge in you will use up your ink very fast while printing very slowly. When we got ours I made sure it had a seperate cartridge for each color. This is because you use far more yellow and then red compared to blue and why pay for all 3 when they go out when you can just buy what you need when it goes? The initial cost is more expensive but pays for itself down the road.



Boats -> RE: New Printer? A matter of Economics (4/14/2008 9:33:44 AM)

quote:

rlj
I bought a Canon over an HP because of the cost of the individual tanks


Same here. I use Canon because it's a good printer with reasonable ink cartridge prices.
(love my all-in-one)

Have you tried after market cartridges?
Friends of mine had mixed results with the knock offs. (with HP printers)


Can be found all over - amazon -ebay. Be watchful of enormous shipping.
(One place wanted over $100 for shipping on $20 with of ink. Thanks but no thanks)


The place I buy from:
<< cheapie ink store >>


Boats
[sm=pirateparot.gif]



stellaluna -> RE: New Printer? A matter of Economics (4/14/2008 9:58:52 AM)

My current printer is a Canon Pixma that I picked up at Wal-Mart for $39.99. [:D] I've been very pleased with the cost of ink replacement.

The worst printer I've had was actually an HP, and I've never bought one since. In addition to the outrageous ink costs, the printing itself wasn't that good. I had really good results from the Epson I bought to replace the HP and the Epson I bought to replace the other Epson...etc. They're getting cheaper and better, so I don't have any problem replacing a printer frequently.

The new Kodak cartridges are supposed to be very easy on the wallet...anyone have one of their printers?



Miss Giggles -> RE: New Printer? A matter of Economics (4/14/2008 11:44:20 AM)

i've used hp photomsmart printers for the last few years and the quality is very good. The ink is an ok price but you can get it cheaper at certain stores or buy a kit at costco that is a better deal.



Terath -> RE: New Printer? A matter of Economics (4/16/2008 1:52:54 PM)

Am I the only one here who loves my HP printer and the ink? I happen to get mine in bulk, and also in the large size print cartrige, 74xl and 75xl. They work great, and my black ink will likely last me until I'm in a nursing home.[:D] That thing's huge. I've got a Photosmart C5280 All-In-One, and it really does a lot in one great package. I can even print directly on printable disks, way better than Lightscribe and paper labels.



ladioffaith -> RE: New Printer? A matter of Economics (7/8/2008 12:11:31 AM)

My computer died recently, and the monitor and printer were soon on its heels.

A friend gave me a printer, but the cartridges for it are WAY pricey! So I am buying some remanufactured ones off e-bay. For $20, I can have two cartridges that normally go for $30 each.

The days of the $30 printer are over ... I went to Wal-Mart and was underhelmed with the choices. The cheapest one had only ONE cartridge. (Can you say "composite black???) The printer-scanner-fax had no cartridges, and the store didn't carry them either.

The downside is that I am stuck having my friend print my stuff until the remanufactured ones come in the mail.



JonCo54 -> RE: New Printer? A matter of Economics (7/8/2008 1:22:20 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Terath

Am I the only one here who loves my HP printer and the ink? I happen to get mine in bulk, and also in the large size print cartrige, 74xl and 75xl. They work great, and my black ink will likely last me until I'm in a nursing home.[:D] That thing's huge. I've got a Photosmart C5280 All-In-One, and it really does a lot in one great package. I can even print directly on printable disks, way better than Lightscribe and paper labels.

No you are not the only one. I use an HP AIO and am very pleased with it but it is getting old. HP has won numerous awards for their products and their printer and scanners were second to none for performance and quality. Epson was always a close second. When buying a printer look, at the cost per page to print it and cost of replacement cartridges. Many online PC mags have done the homework on this already. Now it's just a matter of choosing which one you want.



TMeeks -> RE: New Printer? A matter of Economics (7/8/2008 8:25:08 AM)

For years, I was a fan of HP printers. The original HP Photosmart Printer used special dyes and it was phenominal at the time. But, because I primarily use my inkjet printers for photos, I no longer use any HP inkjets. It's just too difficult to get true, calibrated color from them. They also began to have major paper handling issues with the newer line of Photosmart printers. The page is brought in just a tiny bit crooked.

The total number of HP inkjet printers I've owned exceeds 10. But, now I have turned to Epson for my inkjet printing. The top end Epson printers do a wonderful job on delivering true art quality calibrated colors.

But, for general use, I now use color laser printers. These are a LOT less expensive to use if you print in any quantity at all. While the expendibles SEEM more expensive, in the end they are considerable less expensive on a per-page basis.

My favorite color laser printer is the Okidata. But, unfortunately, it's getting more difficult to find them and their supplies. So, I have added a low-end HP 2600n which, to my surprise, has been extremely cost-efficient. Not great for photos; but, if you do a lot of general printing it's a good choice.



TMeeks -> RE: New Printer? A matter of Economics (7/8/2008 8:30:17 AM)

Kodak is trying to become a major player in the inkjet printer world. They have hired some project managers with considerable experience and success with other companies. So, I look for them to make a bid to be highly competetive in the near future.

quote:

ORIGINAL: stellaluna

My current printer is a Canon Pixma that I picked up at Wal-Mart for $39.99. [:D] I've been very pleased with the cost of ink replacement.

The worst printer I've had was actually an HP, and I've never bought one since. In addition to the outrageous ink costs, the printing itself wasn't that good. I had really good results from the Epson I bought to replace the HP and the Epson I bought to replace the other Epson...etc. They're getting cheaper and better, so I don't have any problem replacing a printer frequently.

The new Kodak cartridges are supposed to be very easy on the wallet...anyone have one of their printers?



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