I do like computers but buying printers are another thing.

[Son_of_Perdition]

Search and destroy mission today entailed packing up an old working desktop (no one wanted), two printers (1 photo and one 1 multi function blue tooth), cleaning out old documents (more than 7 years old) and tossing up teem cds & dvds containing device drivers (including old tax software). I had outdated electronic gear and enough cable to run a small electronic store.

I thought I had eliminated all my spare stuff at the time of our moving back in 2011. Every once in awhile I need to re-evaluated my priorities. How many coax cables does one family need? How many older storage devices does a retiree require? I had a good sized garbage bag full of these items. A trip to the local Goodwill also helped clear our plate.

I'm fed up with buying a $80-$150 printer. A trip to the local Walmart to pick up a $35 all-in-one for wifi scanning capabilities, since almost everyone accepts electronic documents. I find that we never seem to use up all the toner/ink before it dries out and at $25+ a pop you can justify buying an occasional $29 disposable printer for those must have hard copies then dump them when the ink dries out.

I searched scanners and couldn't find one under $50. $200-300 dollar scanners are a mystery to me when you can scan on a $35 one just as easy to your networked laptop. My wife has taken all her digital photos on a sd drive to Walmart and printed off color copies for pennies each. If need be you can take your jump drive to a local print shop and for small change have that needed paper copy for whatever reason.

 

[SifuPhil]

Since most of my work is Internet-based these days I rarely find a use for printers. My roommate bought one (after consulting with me on what type she needed) and I never really thought about the concept of a "disposable" printer, but it makes sense given the cost of ink refills.

I also used to refill cartridges myself back when I had my businesses, but now I think they have safeguards in the cartridges that won't allow you to do that easily anymore.

PS: my roomie ended up with an HP All-In-One Deskjet 3510, think it was $99 on sale from Best Buy. Thing is, she loves to print out full-color 8"x10" pictures in volume, without adjusting the color saturation or resolution, so she's always surprised when the ink runs out.

 

[Vala]

I bought the cheapest HP all in one printer I could find for $70 and it is as good as any I have ever bought. I set it black to only which doesn't use color and that saves me a lot of money.