Need help deciding what to buy.

Computer and electronic gizmo support.
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J_luo88
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Need help deciding what to buy.

Post by J_luo88 »

I'm looking to buy one of those multifunction, printer/copier/scanner units. It doesn't need to have fax or any other funny capabilities like inserting an sd and printing off that. What i'll like is that it'll print fairly fast, doesn't have to be that great at printer photos, but if it did, that'll be great too. Also, i would like it to be quiet. My dad had an Epson and when that unit went to print, god it was loud.

Any suggestions of what to buy?
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Post by ysu »

Yeah, old epsons are noisy bastards :)

Look at running costs closely too.

How much will you print? Do you need color prints? Do you *really* need them? :)
I bought a samsung ml-1510 laser, it's fast, reliable, and cheap. Cost some $250 2 years ago and I'm still using the same original toner which came with it (it's good for 1000 pages IIRC)
I've also have a hp 4255 all-in-one (fax too, I needed it) - fast, quiet, but not very cost-effective.

If you want to use it for regular printing, and you print enough (couple sheets a day is plenty!) and don't need color, the laser is a better choice. Far more quiet too.
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w00dsy
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Post by w00dsy »

I have a canon MP390, and i like :) But i just looked at the canon site and they aren't on there, maybe they aren't made anymore.
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Post by Scuderia_Alan »

I'm not sure whether you're aiming for a laser or inkjet so I hope this helps.

We had to buy a new printer last year and we ended up getting the Brother MFC410 inkjet mainly for the scanner/copier and ethernet connection but it also had a fax and card-reader and slightly more sturdy looking build. We also chose it for what we thought was cheaper ink after escaping the clutches of HP's ink which was drop for drop more expensive than champagne.

Unfortunately what we didn't count on was that it seems to drink ink quicker than the HP and that it refuses to print even in B&W if any of the colour cartridges are empty. Other than that the networking, scanning, copying and faxing are fine and the quality seems ok. I have no idea what can be considered quiet but it was quieter than our previous two HPs. What we noticed to our disappointment when comparing printers is just how cheaply and badly new printers are being manufactured with flimsy plastic panels and ridiculous securing and opening mechanisms that could break sooner than the paper being printed.
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Post by 9ra55h0ppaH »

my family has recently bought a HP all-in-one thing, we were originally going to buy a brother one, but the guy at the store brang to our attention, that even though the brother cartridges were about 30% cheaper, the HP ones had almost double the ink in them :)

by the way, i cant fault the thing, does everything i tell it to, and is very quiet, although it might not be REALLY quiet, but over an old epson, anything could be quiet :D
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J_luo88
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Post by J_luo88 »

What model HP do you have grass?

Also, i had problems with HP previously where after a while, it wouldn't scan the ful page and would always cut a bit off the end. Is that still a problem?
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J_luo88
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Post by J_luo88 »

i just ran to officeworks to have another look, since their cashback offer ends tomorrow. I have two in mind.

HP Photosmart 2575 Colour Ink Multifunction ($229):
Colour printer/scanner/copier
Up to 4800x1200dpi, 30ppm black, 24 ppm colour
Up to 30cpm Black and 24 cpm Colour, up to 50 copies with enlarement/reduction from 50-400%
2400x4800dpi optical resolution with 48-bit colour
100 sheet paper tray
12 months Manufacturers Warranty
Two Cartidge spaces, Black and tricolour

HP Photosmart 3110 Flatbed Colour Ink Multifuncion ($349):
Colour printer/scanner/copier and fax
Up to 4800x1200dpi, 32ppm black, 31 ppm colour
Up to 32cpm Black and 31 cpm Colour, up to 50 copies with enlarement/reduction from 50-400%
4800x4800dpi optical resolution with 48-bit colour
33.6 kbps fax, up to 80 pages fax memory, 60 speed dials, and colour faxing
100 sheet input tray, 50 sheet output tray
12 months Manufacturers Warranty
Six Individual Ink Cartidge Spaces

Which one is worth it more?
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