The Battle Of The Printers Which One Will Win ? Inkjet Vs Laser
By Richard Sherland

Printing with inkjets can cost almost ten times as much as with a laser printer. But do you really need a laser printer? This article will bring out the facts so that you can make an informed decision. Print quality is exceptional in both cases so what should you as a consumer be looking for?

At first glance it looks as though the inkjet is by far the lowest cost printer, however when you factor in the cost of ink it turns out that the laser wins hands down. Most ink cartridges result in a higher cost per page figure when compared to laser toner. Cheaper models typically use a cartridge with less ink than those for more expensive inkjets, thus the more expensive models are cheaper in the long run. Others use a 3-in-1 cartridge that requires users to replace the entire cartridge even when only one color is empty.

When evaluating your printer purchase, it is important to evaluate the number of users, how the device will be used, desired print speed, need for color, cost of the printer vs. cost of the supplies and the warranty. Color laser have come way down in price, but they still cost more than inkjet printers. Inkjet do a superior job with photographic images. Laser do better with text. Both can do an excellent job with non-photographic graphics. But right now there are some laser that print black for under $100.00. There are color laser 3 in1 for around $400.00 so if you do more than 50 pages per day these might be a good bet.

1. SAMSUNG SyncMaster 19" TFT LCD Flat-Panel Monitor 930B - $278.99
Features: *30-81kHz horizontal frequency, 56-75Hz vertical *Includes - D-sub VGA cable power cord users guide, monitor driver, Natural Color and MagicTune software (Mac version of MagicTune available on Samsung.com for download) *19 (diagonal) TFT LCD Flat-pa
2. Acer AL1912 Flat Panel 19" LCD Monitor (ET.L2302.022) - $397.99
Features: *Wide 140-degree horizontal and vertical viewing angles *250 nits of brightness, 500:1 contrast ratio, 16 ms response time *Simple setup supports optional wall mount *PC compatible 3-year warrantyGreat
3. Samsung SyncMaster 213T 21" LCD Monitor - $694.01
Silver Features: *Dual digital and analog inputs for maximum versatility *Wide 170-degree viewing angles *250 nits of brightness, sharp 500:1 contrast ratio *2-year warranty PC and Mac compatibleForm Function and
4. HP Printing Mailbox for use with Presto Service - $9.50
Features: *The HP Printing Mailbox automatically downloads and prints Presto e-mails over a standard phone line, without interrupting voice calls. It uses plain 8.5 x 11 paper and one standard HP print cartridge. *Presto Service only delivers messages from family and fr
5. Viewsonic VP191B ThinEdge 19" LCD Monitor - $799.99
Features: *Accepts standard analog and digital DVD-I inputs *600:1 contrast ratio, 170-degree viewing angles *16 ms response time wall-mountable *PC, Mac, and HDTV compatible 3-year warrantyProduct DescriptionThe inno
6. Sony MFM-HT95 19"LCD Monitor with TV Tuner (Silver) - $588.24
Silver Features: *Analog and digital inputs, built-in NTSC TV tuner HDTV compatibility *170-degree horizontal and vertical viewing angles *XBrite technology, 1,000:1 contrast ratio, 450 cd/m2 of brightness *Stereo speakers and subwoofer PC/Mac 3-y
7. Hewlett-Packard HP Photosmart 130 Color Printer - $83.99
Features: *Up to 4,800 x 1,200 optimized color dpi on HP Premium Photo papers *Prints a borderless 4-by-6-inch photo in less than 3 minutes *Small and lightweight for easy transportability *HP Memories disc-creator software for albums and slide shows
8. Samsung SyncMaster 192MP 19" LCD Monitor with TV Tuner - $299.00
Silver Features: *Analog, digital DVI-D, video, component, and TV source inputs *170-degree horizontal and vertical viewing angles *700:1 contrast ratio, 250-nit brightness, 25 ms response time *Picture-in-picture, MagicBright technology, 3-year warr
9. Dell 924 Photo All-In-One Inkjet Printer - $84.99
Features: *Max Resolution Color: 4800x1200 dpi *Port(s) Total (Free) / Connector Type: USB (cable not included), PictBridge *Monochrome: Up to 17 cpm, Color: Up to 12 cpm *Min Operating System: Microsoft Windows 2000/XP/XP 64 BitProduct D
10. HP Deskjet 3745 Color Inkjet Printer - $55.50



It may be fun but printing color photos can be very expensive for instance many times you can get only 8 or 10 full-page photos. If the cartridge costs 30 to $40.00 that means it costs 3 to 4 dollars per page. It pays to try refills or compatible cartridges because you can usually cut you costs by 50 to 75 %. It's important to realize that a typical inkjet printer may put out 200 pages per cartridge doing text printing. The laser may put out 2500 to 8000 pages or more. While the initial cost of the toner cartridges may be more in the long run they The cost per page is far less.

What it all boils down to is if you're the kind of person who prints something once a week a cheap inkjet is probably the best for you. But if you print daily or have a business or home business you probably should take a serious look at lasers.

In the last 15 years I've seen go from printing clearly visible dots to inexpensive that can print lab quality photos. While the are cheaply made the print quality is truly amazing. So no matter what you choose you can buy for hundreds what would have cost you thousands 10 years ago.

Richard Sherland has been in the cartridge refill business for six years.He is affiliated with Global Inka factory printer cartridge and computer accessories manufacturer he also has an ezineFree information on many subjects