[etni] fw: More about printers
- From: "Ask" <ask@xxxxxxxx>
- To: <etni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 23 Aug 2005 22:46:34 +0200
From: Rivka Lewenstein - rlewen@xxxxxxxxx
Subject: More about printers
This is not an EFL topic, but I think it's still suitable for this
forum since we teachers print out so many papers...
Following Lev's post last week about why it makes economic
sense to buy a b & w laser printer rather than a regular color
inkjet, the two of us had a rather long and very interesting
e-mail discussion, which he thought might be of interest to the list at
large.
My argument was not so much against laser printers as it
was in favor of specific inkjets. In his original post, Lev
pointed out that he can get a laser toner which prints around
7,000 pages for only 200 shekels, and compared that with an
inkjet cartridge which prints only around 500 pages but costs
90 shekels or more. Therefore, despite the much higher price
of a laser (approx. 1,500 shekels), you can end up saving quite
a bit of money on ink costs by buying a laser rather than an inkjet.
My reply to Lev was that while in general he is correct
in his argument, there are exceptions to the rule. Most inkjet
cartridges do indeed cost a small fortune, but generic cartridges
for Canon printers can be gotten for as little as 14.5 shekels
a cartridge (both black and color!). We made a calculation based
on a 500 shekel printer and slightly more expensive Canon
cartridges (the ones I use for my printer are 25 shekels each)
and the price for printing 20,000 b & w pages (20,000 pages
is apparently the average life of a printer) came out virtually
the same for both a laser and inkjet. Take a printer with the
lower-priced cartridges and the price actually comes out
much lower. Plus, the inkjet gives you the capability of printing
in color if you so desire, not to mention that there is an
all-in-one within that price range which also serves as
a scanner and photocopier.
On the other hand, I agreed with Lev that the printing
quality for a laser is definitely better, but honestly, how
many of us need that higher quality printing? Inkjet quality
is excellent, as far as I'm concerned.
The goal of this message is not to advertise Canon
printers, although I am a very loyal customer! Rather, it's
to emphasize that there are different affordable printing
options. The most essential thing is to do research BEFORE
you buy. Check out not only the prices of printers, but also
the ink prices (including generic inks, unless you're unwilling
to go that option, in which case lasers are surely cheaper).
Find out if other users are happy with their printers, if the
printers hold up in the long run, etc. You don't want to be
like the person I read about who threw out his printer
each time he finished the first cartridges which came
free with the printer, because he realized that buying
new cartridges cost more than buying a new printer! (true story)
All the best,
Rivka
P.S. If you're interested in more details about the printer
model, cartridge store, etc., I'll be happy to provide them
off-list. And no, I don't get percentages :-)
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