There are many advantages and disadvantages to owning laser and inkjet printers. Inkjet printers require the use of inkjet cartridges, sometimes as many as four cartridges for black, red, yellow, and blue (or cyan), in order to allow for color printing as well as black and white printing. Laser printers normally only print in black and white and require the use of a toner cartridge instead of color inkjet cartridges. It is possible, however, for laser printers to print in color, but these machines cost over a thousand dollars and are best suited for printing businesses because of their size; therefore, the most common laser printers print in black and gray scale only.

Printer ink cartridges do run and smear if not allowed to dry completely, but they usually only take a few minutes to dry. Once dry, however, colors can still run if they get wet. Laser printers, on the other hand, are like copy machines in that they use toner instead of ink to infuse the burned laser image onto the paper. These copies dry much quicker than with inkjet, and will not run if they get wet. Laser printers also work much more quickly than inkjet printers in regard to the quantity of pages that can be printed. Pages that require color printer ink take longer to print than those that use only black ink because of the additional complexity for the machine to print the proper shading of each individual color.

Laser printers are most commonly found in businesses and home offices because of the quality and speed of the printing they provide, whereas inkjet printers are most often found in artistic studios and for general home use. Many people prefer the inkjet printer over the laser printer for personal use because they can print home photographs and other graphics and text in color for much less than with a laser printer.

Printer ink comes in a wide variety of brands and prices. It is important when purchasing ink and toner to know what the make and model number of the printer is in order to buy the correct ink or toner for the printer. Often, people bring the flap from the old printer ink package in order to ensure the correct purchase is made. Many office supply stores will accept returns as long as the returned item is not opened.

Inkjet printers are often outdated before laser printers. Attaining quality service personnel and replacement parts for outdated printers, either laser or inkjet, often costs far more than the initial purchase. By ensuring that a quality printer that will best meet printing needs is initially purchased, the owner can easily save money in the long-term.

Tags: inkjet printers, laser printer, laser vs. inkjet printers

This entry was posted on Friday, August 21st, 2009 at 10:52 am and is filed under printer ink reviews.