Printers are crucial for personal and office functions. However, choosing the right one for your needs can be challenging with so many home and office printing options. This buying guide will help you decide which printer to buy based on your needs, budget, and lifestyle.
You must evaluate a few key factors before deciding on the right printer. As you shop around, you’ll see that printers come in various sizes, prices, and form factors with varying price points. Your specific needs will dictate the printer you buy.
Here are the key areas to consider before investing in a Set up new printer:
How much will you spend and what is your budget?
What are your printing needs and what you want to print?
Do you need a basic single-function printer or need a complex printer?
Do you need to copy, scan, and fax or only need print only function?
Do you need a specialized photo printer, if you are a photographer?
Do you need to print on the go?
Given the vast range of pricing for printers, it’s critical to assess your demands and select a printer with the characteristics you require. When purchasing a printer, running costs should also be taken into account. For instance, you might need to buy laser toner or ink cartridges.
Here’s an idea of what you can expect.
What You Can Expect
Printer Below > $100
For this price, you’ll likely get an inkjet printer. Most will copy and scan as well. These printers are usually ideal for one to five users, use regular photo paper, have a resolution of around 4800 x 600 dpi, and print at about 8 ipm (B&W) and 4 ipm (color).
Printer in range $100 – $150
You’ll find inkjet and some photo printers in this range. You may also find some lower-level laser printers, although they will probably print only black and white. A typical inkjet printer in this range will have all-in-one capabilities, print speeds of up to 14 ppm, and print resolution up to 4800 x 1200 dpi.
Printer in range $150 – $250
A typical laser printer in this range will feature built-in Wi-Fi, print speeds of up to 36 ppm, and a print resolution of up to 2400 x 600. A typical inkjet printer in this range will feature all-in-one capabilities, print speed up to 20 ppm, and up to 4800 x 1200 dpi resolution.
Printer in range $250 – $500
Features will vary widely. You may see an inkjet color all-in-one with wide-format capabilities, 25 ppm speeds, and up to 4800 x 2400 optimized dpi resolution. A laser printer in this category may offer mobile and cloud-based printing, 40 ppm speeds, touchscreens, and energy efficiency.
Printer above $500 +
You’ll begin seeing printers with more enterprise-friendly features, such as color laser multifunction printers with automatic duplex capabilities, networking features, and more.
After you identify a printer you like, check similar models by other manufacturers to see if there’s a significant cost difference.
Your first job is to assess the workload you’ll need a printer to handle. Some printers can print thousands, or even tens of thousands, of pages in a month. These office-style printers work well for small businesses and global offices.