The price of a printer, although important when making a purchase decision, is by no means a true indication as to how much that printer will end up costing you by the time you’re ready to replace it. You’ll also want to look at how much it will cost you to operate the device. This, of course, is dependent on the price of the consumables that are compatible with the printer.
It’s a good idea to be suspicious of printers with a low price tag. As a general rule, the cheaper the printer the more expensive the cartridges.
Point in case, the Canon iP2600. The screenshots below were taken from Canon’s official online store on September 9th, 2014. Notice that that right off the bat you’re paying more for the ink than the device itself. Not to mention the fact that there are no high yield cartridges available for this printer, which would have at least helped to cushion the cost of the cartridges just a little. For someone who prints even semi-regularly, the cost of replacing ink for this printer would soon become a financial headache.
So which printers offer the lowest cost of operation? Well, that’s partly dependent on how often you print. But let’s imagine you and others in your household print on a weekly basis for a variety of purposes, ranging from book reports to photos to online documents. In that case, you’ll want to pay special attention to the cost of the consumables.
Besides having low-costing consumables, cartridges for these printers also offer an exceptional yield, lowering the cost per page and the running cost of the device.
1. Canon PIXMA iP8720
- With a print speed of 11.5 pages a minute, this printer can print sharp text and excellent color graphics with a speed that rivals many laser printers
- Boasts wide-format capabilities, including pages up to 11×17 inches, spreadsheets, posters and photo enlargements
- WI-FI capable
2. HP OfficeJet Pro 251dw
- Includes an LCD display for viewing and editing images
- Automatic duplexing allows you to print on both sides of a page
- Wi-Fi and Ethernet networking capabilities
3. Brother HL-2270DW
- Fast print speed
- Low-cost text printing in black
- Low price for the device and consumables
4. Dell B1163w
- A fast mono laser printer with a strong overall performance
- Inexpensive to print and a low purchase price makes this an economical buy
- Wi-Fi capable, but not Ethernet connectivity options
5. Epson Expression Premium XP-810
- All-in-One functionality, including scan, fax and copy
- Excellent photo quality, and fast print speed
- Includes a PictBridge port for direct printing from a camera
6. HP OfficeJet Pro 8610
- Among the fastest in its class when printing black text, while maintaining excellent quality
- Boasts quick printing speed in color
- All-in-One functionality, including wireless networking and a large LCD display
7. Canon PIXMA MX922
- Excellent photo quality and includes a tray to accommodate 5×7 photo paper
- Wireless capability
- Fast print speeds, especially for photo printing
