PC Peripherals First time printer buyer: Advice needed

S

sz1266

Disciple
Hi folks,
I am looking to buy a printer for the first time, for home usage. My requirements are these:

- It should support printing from a Mac / iPhone / iPad wirelessly
- I will be printing about 10 pages per month
- It should support copy and scan functions as well
- It should allow me to print photos occasionally

Since my usage isn't very high, I believe I may want to prefer inkjet over laser unless there is a serious negative constraint about inkjet printers. It's okay if I have to buy a separate printer just for photos.

Please advise.
 
i can't suggest you any specific model as i don't use Apple products. Canons generally have more tech-savvy features.

inkjet printers demand regular maintenance whether you use them daily or once a month. invest in an inkjet only if you can waste time on it. all-in-ones (AIO) have more tendency to go bad than the single functions. e.g., if something goes wrong with the print module then you can't bypass it to use the scan function, which should work independently of the print function. lots of people say that their AIO can scan despite ink issues... but i don't know if it's true because the sole purpose of making inkjets for home use is to make people spend money on inks. you can get far cheaper prints with 3rd party inks but refilling requires time and patience. genuine inks will make you go bankrupt.

if your work is critical or you want your printer/scanner to work whenever you want then buy separate products or a laser printer. a laser printer too has its own set of problems but they have more chances of working after a month of no use than an inkjet.

if you have non-tech-savvy people at home then buy an AIO inkjet (or AIO laser if you have lots of money)... because copy function is going to give them a headache on single function machines.
 
There is a Canon PIXMA which should do the job just right. I will have to ask around for the model number. Fits right up your alley.
 
vivek.krishnan said:
There is a Canon PIXMA which should do the job just right. I will have to ask around for the model number. Fits right up your alley.
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The problem with Canon Pixma printers is the cost of cartridges. Canon cartridges are priced exorbitantly and cannot be refilled easily. I've also been using a Pixma 3570 and have faced these issues. HP cartridges on the other hand come cheap and can be refilled almost anywhere.
 
^^ you know nothing about printers.

world over, people who want professional quality results, opt for Canons. because their "refilled" cartridges perform thousand times better than the competition. i am not referring to easy-refills or non-messy jobs... but the reliability/operation of refilled Canon cartridges.
 
Criminal said:
^^ you know nothing about printers.

world over, people who want professional quality results, opt for Canons. because their "refilled" cartridges perform thousand times better than the competition. i am not referring to easy-refills or non-messy jobs... but the reliability/operation of refilled Canon cartridges.
Click to expand...

Calm down child. Read the OP's requirements, did he ask for a professional grade printer? Now read my response, did I talk about Canon's reliability or operation? I shared my personal experience of my home printers and their expenses. For someone who needs to print 10 pages a month, do you really suggest buying a Canon printer with cartridges in the range of INR 900-950? Or would you suggest buying a similar priced HP printer with cartridges in the range of INR 500?

Here's a price wise comparison for those interested:

Canon Pixma MG3570 printer cost: INR 6290 Amazon
B/W cartridge cost: INR 910 on Amazon
Coloured cartridge cost: INR 1300 on Amazon

On the other hand:

HP 3545 printer cost: INR 6300 Amazon
B/W cartridge cost: INR 510 Amazon
Coloured cartridge cost: INR 525 Amazon

Please note, both these printers can print via WiFi and are AIO. I currently use both of them for home use and don't find any difference in their print quality. I occasionally take coloured print outs for my kids schoolwork and they both print equally well. The issues that I face with Canon cartridges are that no one in or around my area can refill its cartridges, whereas every other local shop refills HP cartridges for cheap. Heck, I've even stopped re-filling them as they're relatively cheap.

I may not know a lot about printers as you stated, however my experience with both these brands give me the liberty to post my suggestions to other people in a similar situation, isn't it?
 
coolcowboy said:
Calm down child.
Click to expand...
coolcowboy said:
I may not know a lot about printers as you stated, however my experience with both these brands give me the liberty to post my suggestions to other people in a similar situation, isn't it?
Click to expand...
sorry about my comments. i take back my words. i thought you had written that blog. canon and hp use different printing technologies. no point comparing them - including my opinion about refilling.
 
I am user of HP 3545 for more than an year. Usage pattern is very similar to what's mentioned in OP. Use it for kid's school assignment.. Printing wirelessly from phone, tablet, laptops. Happy with performance and fearures
 
Thanks for the replies, everyone. HP 3545 looks good. How many photos will I be able to print in 4" x 6" using one colour cartridge?
 
step 1: find a printer model and cartridge model
step 2: go to aliexpress and check if refillable cartridges are available for that cartridge model. with autoreset option etc...
step 3: figure out if the droplet size of the printer is good enough for the pigment ink (pigment inks good for photos, dont fade but clog, dye based good for daily usage but awful color and they fade)
step 4: buy 100ml bottles of ink, refillable cartridges, printer at once. then using test prints, photoshop and other tools to figure out the correct color gamut of the ink that you've bought and set it accordingly. you will waste around 50-100 prints in this process.
step 5: set up a sweat shop for printing.
step 6: learn the evil laugh
 
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