Printer Recomendations.
I'm looking for a new printer, my Epson Stylus Photo 780 has died after less than 6 months of use... I'm wary of Epson but their new C80 is getting rave reviews... can anyone attest to their personal choice? Lexmark, HP, and the such? i only do black and white prints... but i do a lot of them, I'm tired of low quality ink jets but i really don't know whats out there. Any high end pure black and whites?
Comments
there's currently a $30 rebate on the c80...
Bought a Lexmark Optra 310 laser printer for $399, and I love it. I just looked on Macconnection, and saw they have a new model called the E210 that's $150 with a rebate of $50.
In my opinion, inkjet printers are a ripoff. They sell you $99 printers whose ink runs out after 50 pages. THAT'S when they get ya - $50 for new black and color cartridges.
Get a laser printer. You'll love it.
ink jets are cheap and fairly good these days. just don't buy the low end ink jet. you're better off buying a majic marker and some newspapsers! second teir ink jets like the c80 are a good value. high end ink jets are a waste of money. go for a decent laser or a dye sub if you need color.
I've decided a low end laser is well within my budget ($100-250), however theres only two in this price range; after that they are in the $300+ range.
1)Lexmark E210 +-$150
2)Samsung ML-1210 +-$180
After several reviews of ea. and comparing the two the ML-1210 is repeatedly the better performer and value. I should have mentioned that I am 100% pure OS X so obviously X drivers are a must, thankfully the Samsung is supported, the Lexmark is not... but as us Mac users know we cannot judge by PC product reviews, if the software is not up to par the hardware can be literally useless. (a certain sound card comes to mind, and my sony burner... useless until toast came along, and useless since OS X came along) Anyone have experience with Samsung printers? I personally never have... the ML-1210 is really looking good so I hope I'm set. Thought others might benefit from my brief research.
On a side note the Samsung has a 66mhz RISC processor!, and twice the ram of the Lexmark (8mb)
Would this be more powerful than my original powermac? a 6100/60 601e @ 60mhz ?
[ 03-10-2002: Message edited by: janitor ]
[ 03-10-2002: Message edited by: janitor ]</p>
<strong>If you're doing black and white maybe you should go for a laser. As for inkjets, the HP and Lexmarks do best for black and white-the deskjet 960 or 990 are good, but they have ben recalled due to a fauly power cord so they may not be around for awhile. The Lexmark Z53 is a good choice but th ink runs out too quickly...............</strong><hr></blockquote>
ah, now you tell me!!! i just bought a HP deskjet 960cse this afternoon. <img src="graemlins/surprised.gif" border="0" alt="[Surprised]" /> didnt open it yet, since i was contemplating exchanging it for the better 990cse. double-sided printing is an enticing feature....
in any case, i guess i can call HP and have them send me a replacement cord.
[ 03-11-2002: Message edited by: mac's girl ]</p>
Seems everyone's getting away from adding that into their printer these days. You have to look long and hard for a used HP 5MP or 6MP which in my opinion is better than some of the low end non postscript printers out there.
Then again, if you just need the few fonts (35 usually) that's provided, then never mind.
in any case, i guess i can call HP and have them send me a replacement cord.>
Funny, its illegal to sell them during a recall. Anyway, HP can send you a replacement like you said. The 960 is a good machine, I think you'll like it. The 990 isn't worth the extra $100 unless you REALLY want 2 sided printing right now. You can always add the duplexer ffor $80 later on............
<strong>
Funny, its illegal to sell them during a recall. Anyway, HP can send you a replacement like you said. The 960 is a good machine, I think you'll like it. The 990 isn't worth the extra $100 unless you REALLY want 2 sided printing right now. You can always add the duplexer ffor $80 later on............</strong><hr></blockquote>
yeah, i thought it sounded illegal for them to be selling a recalled printer. i still didnt open the box, cuz im not sure if the 990cse prints better than the 960cse. one HP tech told me it was the same, but one review at pcworld (i think) said the 990 printed better. i really dont want to shell out another $100 for some fancy features. but the print quality is what's gonna swing my decision. btw, i havent seen the two side by side in any store where they i could print a test page from them. does anyone know if they are equal or if the 990 is better?
<strong>I sell them. The 960 output is identical to the 960. Same cartridges, same engine. According to my tech guy the 960 is more reliable because the 990 has trouble with the increased speed. I'd stick with the 960........................................</strong><hr></blockquote>
thanks mate. i will stick with the 960 in that case.
My bad. The 960 is identical to the 990...................
<strong>>don't you mean the 960 and not the 960 <
My bad. The 960 is identical to the 990...................</strong><hr></blockquote>
hey steve,
it's ok, i know what you meant.
btw, when are those new 4800x1200 dpi printers coming out. i heard about HP's announcement. should i just wait for one of those?
<strong>OK. thank you. thank you. thank you. for your responses!
I've decided a low end laser is well within my budget ($100-250), however theres only two in this price range; after that they are in the $300+ range.
1)Lexmark E210 +-$150
2)Samsung ML-1210 +-$180
After several reviews of ea. and comparing the two the ML-1210 is repeatedly the better performer and value. I should have mentioned that I am 100% pure OS X so obviously X drivers are a must, thankfully the Samsung is supported, the Lexmark is not... but as us Mac users know we cannot judge by PC product reviews, if the software is not up to par the hardware can be literally useless. (a certain sound card comes to mind, and my sony burner... useless until toast came along, and useless since OS X came along) Anyone have experience with Samsung printers? I personally never have... the ML-1210 is really looking good so I hope I'm set. Thought others might benefit from my brief research.
On a side note the Samsung has a 66mhz RISC processor!, and twice the ram of the Lexmark (8mb)
Would this be more powerful than my original powermac? a 6100/60 601e @ 60mhz ?
[ 03-10-2002: Message edited by: janitor ]
[ 03-10-2002: Message edited by: janitor ]</strong><hr></blockquote>
Yes the better choice is the Samsung, my wife own one, and she is very happy with it.
She use to have an oki 8im orange (same color as her i mac DV 400) who never worked well: this was a f***g machine
<strong>The new HPs are coming out in the summer. Don't know much about them but you will probably need special (expensive) paper to get that resolution. I don't know what the prices will be so thats a tough call............................................</strong><hr></blockquote>
as if the price of ink wasnt enough... :eek:
it's probably overkill anyway. the photos i made on my epson at 1440 dpi (using the heavy photo paper) rivaled that of a lab. and the HP 960 goes up to 2400. i havent tested it yet, as i "forgot" to buy a USB cable...LOL. (doesnt anything come with a cable anymore?????)
thanks steve.