Best color laser printer?

[Quiz]

I have gone through quite a few color ink printers. My latest/current one is an HP all-in-one printer. It has a very long "warm-up time" and ink seems to dry up on its own. Ink goes from full to empty in a few months without even printing much. Paper gets jammed or doesn't get sucked-in sometimes.

Because of this, I am thinking that I should just forget "home" printers and looking into "business" or "office" level printers. Any recommendations for a color laser printer? If it is an all-in-one, it will be a plus. Should also have an Ethernet port so that I can connect to it from anywhere.

PS: If a printer has an Ethernet port and I connect it directly to the Internet, can I connect to the printer from anywhere?

 

[tiraides]

The "best" color laser printer is highly subjective. You'll have to make a few compromises depending on how much you're willing to spend. So, how much are you willing to spend?

If you want a relatively inexpensive printer with Ethernet connectivity, you could go with the HP Laserjet Pro 200 Color M251nw (yes, that's the full name). The HP M251nw is a standalone printer (versus a multifunction machine) that comes with 10/100 Ethernet and 802.11b/g/n wireless connectivity. HP also has the M276nw, which adds a flatbed scanner, an auto document feeder (or ADF), and scanning and copying functions onto the M251nw.

Unfortunately, the M251nw and the M276nw are two of HP's lower-end color laser printers, so they each have a noticeable warm-up time and you don't have built-in duplexing (the ability to print on both sides of the paper). The text quality is good, but the more expensive printers tend to produce better quality text (especially at 5-point or smaller font).

People generally recommend Brother over HP as Brother printers are usually more price-competitive in terms of features. For example, you can buy the Brother HL4150CDN, which is a standalone printer with 10/100 Ethernet and built-in duplexing, for a little less than the HP M251nw. For a little bit more, you could buy the Brother HL3170CDW, which adds wireless connectivity to what the HL4150CDN has.

The cheapest Brother color multifunction printer I found was the MFC9130CW, which has print, copy, scan, and fax functions. However, it lacks built-in duplexing and wired Ethernet; you can only connect wirelessly or via USB. Other Brother printers have those features, but as with HP, you'll have to pay for the privilege.

Before I forget, the starter cartridges normally last between 500 to 1000 pages depending on the printer. The cost of replacing all four OEM cartridges at the same time usually exceeds the cost of the printer. And the picture quality of a laser printer, albeit serviceable for most people's needs, will never be as good as an inkjet photo printer.

To answer your question about connectivity, many printers with Ethernet or wireless capabilities have apps that allow you to print from mobile devices. If you wish to print from a PC, however, you'll need to have the printer drivers installed beforehand.

 

[Kelvarr]

I was also getting tired of the ink charade, and decided to bolt for a Laser Printer. I settled on a Brother MFC9340CDW, and I love it. Super easy to install, and super easy to use. The ONLY problem I've had was when I was trying to print on some 4x6 Index cards. Not so hot for that, but otherwise, I'm loving it.

I got mine at Office Depot for $222 out the door, thanks mainly to a Staples 50% off coupon that failed to specify "technology" or "printers", although it did exclude "ink and toner".