Gaucho100K

Not sure we have a thread on Multi Function (all in one) type printers. Im looking for recent experiences that folks have had with HP, Canon, Brother and Epson machines, as part of my research to decide which machine to purchase.

Im kind of on the wall about whether to go Ink-Jet or Laser, and while Im open to any of the above brands (and potentially others also), my past purchase experience has mostly been with HP products, so the three models Ive been looking into with more detail are...

HP OfficeJet Pro 8740
HP PageWide Pro 477 DW
HP PageWide Pro 577 DW

My budget is somewhat flexible... Im looking to spend something in the range of $300 to $650, depending on specifications and estimated per page printing costs.

Thanks to all in advance for any info/experience/comments you would care to share !!! ^

Doc Savage

One of the main things to consider is ink cost. Some companies sell the machines relatively cheaply, but you are forced to use proprietary ink cartridges priced absurdly high.

I've had good luck with Brother all in one machines, but can get generic ink cartridges cheap off Amazon in the US. Not sure what your situation would be in AR.

DenverBrian

Brother and Canon are my only two recommendations for inkjets these days. HP is expensive and puts too much crapware on your computer. Epson's ink cost is low, but this is because they use a print head that is subject to clogging if you don't use the printer consistently on a daily basis, and it can easily turn your Epson into a boat anchor.

OverThereTooMuch

I currently have an OfficeJet Pro 8500. I don't use it very often though, and that seems to cause all sorts of problems with the quality. I have to clean the printheads frequently, which blasts through the (ridiculously expensive) ink. I've used HP printers for as long as I can remember. Typically they've been high quality, but I've had problems with the last 2 I've had.

Based on reviews & feedback from other users, my next printer will be an Epson. Something in their WorkForce line. Most of the specs seem to be comparable to the HP, while the price is a lot less. Did notice that color print speed for the 3640 is about 50% of the latest HP units.

YVR Cockroach

If you have friends in the PRC, it might be good to ask them what printers are used that have, as an aftermarket accessory, huge refillable ink tanks with hoses feeding them to the printer head. Best idea I've seen if you have the volume.

msb0b

If you print photo or label CD/DVD, then inkjet is a must. Otherwise go laser.

A couple of friends and families have Brother color and mono laser MFCs. They are workhorses. No trouble at all beyond the usual supplies and wear and tear parts.

I noticed some wide format printers listed. Is that a desired feature? They cost a lot more than the equivalent A4/Letter printers.

KCZ

I've had several Canon all-in-ones that I've been very happy with. However, I've had to replace them almost every time a new version of Windows is released due to lack of new drivers. Other than that, they were easy to set up, printed great, and didn't use an inordinate amount of ink. Their tech support has been pretty good on the rare occasion I've had to call them. I'll keep buying Canons and freecycle the old ones.

I had one HP that printed great but was a royal pain mechanically. It was plagued by paper jams, time-consuming head-cleaning, turning it off to reboot it, etc. The day that I picked it up, carried it out to the garage, and dropped it in the trash barrel was one of the most satisfying days of my life.

deniah

i've bought sooo many canons ink jets over the dasy, standalone and multi-function units.

they were all great at the beginning, and in the medium term, but eventually ran into ink issues. comparatively still more appealing than hp equivalents.

but in retrospect, it was silly to have purchased them so many times. if i needed a home printer again - without a question a Brother B&W laser, and standalone scanner.

nothing beats made-for-purpose devices. if i needed any color printing, id just do it at the office

Dodge DeBoulet

I'm done with ink, after a half-dozen HP ink sponges over the last 15 years.

I purchased a Brother MFC-L2740DW last year and it's rock solid. I don't do a lot of printing; for me that's an argument against inkjets, since the ink gets "used up" even when the printer is idle for long periods. It's nice not to have to worry about it deciding to run a cleaning cycle when I'm trying to make a copy or print something I need to get out the door, though.

2-sided printing is a breeze, and 2-sided scanning is very fast (it scans both sides of the page at the same time). Copies are painless as well.

It's monochrome, but the toner is very cheap compared to ink and you don't have to worry about it drying out. Given your price range, though, you could look into color lasers if B/W isn't enough. I haven't missed color printing, but Mme. DeBoulet has an older Epson for her color output needs.

Re: the CD/DVD comment above . . . I had to burn one a couple of months ago; some wedding pictures for a technophobe friend that didn't understand Google Drive. Brought back memories

And regarding single- vs. multi-function: I don't have a dedicated print/copy room, so desk and credenza space is valuable. Multi-function has always worked for me; out of the 6 printing devices I've used over the last decade and a half, only one of them has had the scanner crap out before the print mechanism.

DeafFlyer

We used HP for years, but decided to get an Epson last year. It was great at first, but now something keeps going wrong. We will get a Brother laser and keep the Epson as a scanner.

gfunkdave

I've had an HP CM1312nfi MFP for years that has never given any trouble at all, but then again I usually print maybe a page a month.

My parents have a Brother MFC that gets fairly heavy use (it's the home office printer for my mom, who is an analogue girl living in a digital world, as my dad says) and hasn't had any trouble in the 5+ years my parents have had it.

I'd avoid the inkjets for the reasons outlined above. We bought my mother in law an Epson inkjet a couple years ago and its ink jets are perpetually clogged.

Gaucho100K

Thanks to all for the feedback.... Ive been using an OfficeJet Pro 8500 for 5+ years and have never had any issues with printheads or clogs. I use only original HP ink... have to say Im surprised with the mentioned problems with the inkjet technology. The printer gets moderate use, and does not go for longer than 3 or 4 days without use, perhaps that is the reason...??

Would welcome other suggestions, feedback & experiences.

Thanks !!! ^

goalie

I have used HP printers from a basic single function all he way up to multi-function "for the longest time" and when my last printer finally died, I switched to the Espon WorkForce WF3640 and I've never looked back. It's not an ink hog, the print quality is great (even in fast draft mode), set up was a snap and the 500 sheet tray capacity (250x2) is nice as well. The rear feed slot printing is a little funky but other than that, Ive had no complaints. I picked it up at OfficeMax for $99 and the prices run between $119-$99 (just have to catch it at the right time )

timfountain

I also dumped ink based printers about 3 years ago, mainly due to the fact that I don't print a lot and every time I went to use the inkjet, it was either out of ink, gummed up or just didn't print consistently well.

I now have a Laserjet 1302n for mono printing. The 1320n is a solid workhouse in the old-style HP design, i.e solid and well made. I recently changed the rollers and paper pickup/ transfers for $10.

I also have a 4-in-one HP Laserjet Pro 200 Color MFP M276NW (yes, that is what is written on it!), which is a color scanner, printer, fax and copier. It is a newer HP so a lot more plastic and it gets through toner cartridges seemingly a little too quickly mainly because they are small @ ~600 sheets and expensive @$65. It is fast though.

Loren Pechtel

I've got multiple pieces of Brother equipment, all of it has been well behaved and the consumables costs are reasonable.

Inkjets are good if you use them frequently but they tend to dry out if you don't--a decent inkjet will expend some ink into an internal tank to avoid drying out but this makes them a very bad deal for light printing. Inkjets are still superior for photo printing and they can print onto things that lasers can't but otherwise I wouldn't consider them these days.

HP used to be very good, albeit pricey, gear. These days I say HP stands for Huge Problem. My last personal experience with HP gear was a printer that used the system CPU to do much of the workload--and had buggy drivers. If anything went wrong with the printout you had to reboot the computer to get your printer back. That was the last straw for my employer at the time but since then I've heard plenty of gripes about HP, I see no reason to think they've shaped up since.