Laser printers, an alternative for Inkjet?

Introduction

When looking for a new printer, the choice usually comes down to two technologies, Inkjet and Laser. Inkjet printers are lighter and more compact than the laser varieties, but they are also a lot slower. Inkjet printers are capable of producing photo realistic images, laser printers do not really excel in this area. The biggest advantage for the inkjet printer up to now, however, was its price, an inkjet printer is usually a fraction of the price of a colour laser printer.

In the last few months this perspective has changed somewhat, and a real price war has been going on between manufacturers. An entry level colour laser printer can now be purchased for around 300 pounds or cheaper, an amount at which a laser printer is definitely worth considering. The initial price is still quite a bit higher than that an inkjet printer, but the difference can be earned back in usage.

One of the attention points when buying a colour laser printer is the eventual price per page, as manufacturers seem to adapt the same strategy as inkjet printers nowadays; sell the printer for a very low price, and make your profits out of selling toner cartridges. A combination of four new toners (black, cyan, magenta and yellow) will set you back at least 250 pounds, while some companies like Samsung, Konica Minolta, Lexmark and Canon ask more than 300 pounds for a new set, thus exceeding the initial buying price of a laser printer. The cost does not stop at toners, however. Most of the printers we tested require a new drum after a certain amount of prints, a device which as a rule will cost another 150 pounds. A trick that we know from inkjet printers has been applied to laser printers as well, the toners that come with the printer are usually not as full as a retail pack. This is to ensure that consumers will not just buy a new printer when the toner cartridges are empty, but will come back for new toners. The point is clear, when buying a colour laser printer the initial buying price is not the most important issue.