Types of Printers

A computer without a printer is sort of like a car without wheels. It’s nice to have, but you can’t go far like that!

Often I hear parents as they are shopping for a printer talk about the price of the printer. Price is important, but there are more important factors. If you want color, most people go with an ink jet. These printers are usually inexpensive to purchase – however, the per-page cost is quite high due to the cost of ink jet cartridges. However, if you do not print very much, these types of printers are hard to beat.

In the past, laser printer ink was only black and white, but now they print in color as well. They cost more to purchase, but their printing per-page cost is lower. Here you can see the equivalent of an ink jet cartridge. It is called a toner cartridge. They cost more, but often you can print 3000 – 5000 pages per cartridge, compared to a few 100 pages for a ink jet printer.

So the first question you should ask yourself is “How much will I print?”. The second question should be “Will I need color?”. Then you can decide how much you want to spend on the type of printer that fits your needs.