Home Printer Buying Guide: How to Choose the Best Printer for Your Needs

Supply Costs

Remember the mantra “give away the razor, sell the blades”? That century-old business model is still alive and well in the printer business, where many companies entice consumers with unimaginably low prices on their budget printers, knowing they can milk them over and over again when it’s time to replace the ink cartridges.

Research the cost of replacement supplies before you buy any printer to know what you’re in for when the initial cartridges finally run dry. Depending on how often you plan to print, it can actually be worth it to purchase a more expensive printer in order to buy into a cheaper line of cartridges. Also, look into the possibility of refilling your own cartridges, which can cost dramatically less than buying new every time.

Duty Cycle

Why do office printers with features similar to home models cost so much more? Longevity. Those cheap home machines weren’t built to supply a stream of paper to an entire office, a number reflected in the manufacturer’s suggested “duty cycle,” which is the number of pages it can printed in a month without damaging the printer. A home printer, for instance, might be rated for 750 pages, while an office printer might hit 8,000 pages. Keep in mind that these are maximums – you should operate well below them unless you want to shorten the life of your printer by pushing it right to the brink. However, most printers marketed for consumer use should hold up just fine under casual printing.

Networking Capability

Do you plan to print from multiple computers? Investing in a printer with networking capability will make that process much easier. Although you can configure any printer (connected to a single computer via a USB cable) to be shared on a network, it will rely on that computer for access to the network. Unless you want to keep a computer blazing 24 hours a day just for print capability, you’ll want a printer with its own built-in networking capability. An Ethernet jack will force you to put it somewhere near your router, but Wi-Fi can prove especially convenient, since it will allow you to place your printer in a central location where all members of the household can easily pick up their documents – like the living room.

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