Today's Inkjet printers are capable of
producing everything from production-quality prints to consumer-grade images
and text, quickly, quietly, and affordably. As a result, however, there's a
world of difference among them when it comes to features and price. Keep the
following in mind when shopping for a new inkjet printer.
Consumable Conundrum
The up-front cost of an Inkjet printer
might be your primary purchasing consideration, but don't forget the long-term
expenses you will incur to keep the printer churning out pages. Thankfully,
many printer manufacturers list the number of pages you can expect to get out
of the respective color and black cartridges. To determine the cost per page,
simply divide the ink cartridge cost by the number of pages the printer will
print per color and black cartridge.
Inkjets Know Photos
Image quality is often a top priority, but
if photo printing is important to you, select a photo-oriented printer to get
the best results. Conversely, avoiding a photo printer can lower your cost per
color page, which will definitely add up over time.
Networking Necessities
Your home or office network is the
lifeblood of your PC-based work and play, so it follows that the computers on
your network should all have access to the printer, either wired or wirelessly.
Most inkjet printers offer some form of connectivity, either built-in or via an
optional wireless accessory. Some printers take it a step further and let you
email documents and photos from your smartphone while you're out of the office,
and others still offer direct printing from an iPad or iPhone on your wireless
network.
The Extras
Extra features can add functionality, ease
everyday use, save energy, and more. Many inkjets currently offer
touch-sensitive displays, ENERGY STAR qualifications, scanning and copying
capabilities, and even smartphone apps.
What follows is a series of inkjet printers
suitable for home or business use along with pricing and a few highlighted
features. Just turn the page to get the most printer for your money.
Brother MFC-J625DW
$129.99 (ESP)
www.brother-usa.com
This compact AIO (all-in-one) makes it easy
to print, copy, scan, and fax. Built for small or home office environments, the
MFC-J625DW features 802.11 b/g/n wireless networking, auto duplex (2-sided)
printing, and a 20-page document feeder for unattended fax, copy, and scan
jobs. The 1.9-inch touchscreen color LCD makes using it a cinch, and it's
capable of 12ppm (pages per minute) black and 10 ppm color speeds.
Canon PIXMA MX360
$79.99
www.usa.canon.com
The PIXMA MX360 Inkjet Office All-In-One
utilizes a 30-sheet auto document feeder for copying, scanning, and faxing at a
small and home office pace. Dual Color Gamut Processing Technology enables your
copies to shine as brightly as the originals. Other features include support
for password-protected PDFs, borderless printing, PictBridge, optional
Bluetooth, and Easy-WebPrint EX, which ensures you're only printing what you
want from the Web.
Canon PIXMA PRO-1
$999.99
www.usa.canon.com
Canon's PIXMA PRO-1 is the right tool for
the job for professional photographers. This printer uses a 12 LUCIA pigment
ink system to deliver more lifelike images than ever. The printer also utilizes
ink tanks that are 2.5 times larger than conventional ink tanks. Other features
include built-in Ethernet networking and support for two-way paper feeding and
professional photo printing on a variety of photo paper types.
Dell V313W All-In-One Printer
$179.99
www.dell.com
The Dell V313W wireless AIO is a small
business workhorse capable of producing professional-looking documents and
borderless photos, as well scanned and copied documents and images. Dell also
includes some nice software, including optical character recognition software,
Dell Ink Management software, and PictBridge software, which lets you print
images from your camera without a PC. The LCD also makes using this printer
simple.
