Thinking of changing printers or buying a new one? Here are five tips that you should keep in mind before taking the plunge.
At the time, printers revolutionized the home technology sector. Having a device that would allow us to extract all the information from the PC on paper quickly and easily was something amazing. Especially for work documents, studies or even images that we wanted to keep. Over the years they have evolved. To the point that they are increasingly fast, accurate, economical and have additional functionalities, such as a touch screen, scanner or connection with the mobile. If you want to change printers or have never directly had one and are thinking of buying it, pay attention. We leave you some tips that you should take into account before taking the step.
1. Decide: Laser Or Ink Printer?
Before buying a new printer, the first thing you have to be very clear about is the use you are going to give it. And it is not worth spending a lot of money if you really only want it to print from time to time. Although we can increasingly find laser printers on the market at cheaper prices, as a rule they are intended for business use, in which a high volume of prints is usually made. Therefore, if throughout the month you calculate that you can get about 50-100 pages, perhaps the best thing is that you rest for an ink printer.
If this number is lower, choosing an ink kit can make a significant difference, both in saving on printing costs and on energy consumption. Now, what are the differences? Basically, laser printers tend to be faster and have higher print quality. Also, paper jams are less and quieter. Of course, they are also usually more expensive in comparison. An example of a laser printer to turn to if looking for an inexpensive model is the Brother DCP-L2530DW. Its speed of 30 ppm ensures fast printing, being able to add up to 250 sheets to its tray for greater paper autonomy.
2. Look At The Price Of The Cartridges
Sometimes we look at the cheapest printer, but we do not realize that when the cartridges are used up, the cure may be worse than the disease. This is because its price can be much more expensive than the printer itself. In this regard, it may be a good idea to opt for models that can be used with compatible ink cartridges. The price is considerably cheaper, but it is true that they present some risks. To give you an idea, some have even ruined printers. It is a risk that may not be worth taking to save a few euros.
Two types of cartridges are usually marketed: normal or long-life. Keep in mind that although the seconds are more expensive at first, if you look at their capacity they end up paying off. Of course, if you are only going to print from time to time, it is best to opt for the standard capacity. And is that the ink ends up drying if you do not use it regularly, and it is necessary to clean the heads when printing again after a long time without doing so. It is an automatic process that uses a lot of ink.
3. Choose A Multifunction
If you are not only going to print, you also need to scan documents or photocopy, we advise you to opt for a multifunction printer. You can find two types: inkjet multifunction or laser multifunction. In the first case, in the same way as inkjet printers, it uses cartridges with liquid ink that mix colors to obtain the desired gamut. The laser all-in-one prints in black and uses a toner with ink in powder form.
Of course, the advantages of having a multifunction are many. The most outstanding are the saving of space, costs and energy. Also, do not think that they are very expensive. To give you an idea, the HP DeskJet 3720 can be purchased for about 60 euros. Copies, scans and prints with thermal inkjet at a speed of 8 pages per minute in black and 6 pages per minute in color. Its maximum monthly printing capacity is 1,000 pages. Buy an HP Printer at pcredcom.com.
4. Better With Screen
If you have the possibility of buying a touch screen printer, do not think about it. The one that has one is much better when it comes to accessing different functions, controlling consumption or viewing certain types of additional information. Everything is automated and becomes easier if we can see on a small touch panel what we are ordering and doing. These screens are as simple to use as a mobile. They may even accept the installation of their own applications to perform a large number of tasks. All this comfortably from the sofa.
5. Take Speed Into Account
In this section we insist again that everything will always depend on the use that is going to be given to the printer. Therefore, if you want one to take out a large volume of folios per month, do not hesitate to also look at the speed. In case you don’t know, print speed is measured in ppm or pages per minute. This is the number of pages that can be printed in one minute under certain conditions. In addition, the speeds that companies usually give are almost always indicative. Many times the real speed is usually much lower. In this way, do not hesitate to keep this information in mind when choosing one model or another.
