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Ask HN: What printer do you recommend for rare printing?

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Re: Ask HN: What printer do you recommend for rare printing?

#121

Post by Sohcahtoa82 »

einpoklum wrote: post #108
fyfy18 wrote: post #55

I bought a Dell multifunction colour laser printer / scanner / fax (C1765NF) around 8 years ago. It is perfect for occasional usage, and a full set of toners is only £25. Unfortunately they sold their printer branch and no longer make them. I believe there's only two companies making laser printers now (HP and Brother?), so there isn't really much choice. As others say you might be better off getting something on eBa…

> I believe there's only two companies making laser printers now Oh no, not at all: Samsung, OKI, Epson, Canon, Xerox, Kyocera and maybe others all have multiple models of B&W laser printers.

> Xerox

Which may become HP soon.

Re: Ask HN: What printer do you recommend for rare printing?

#123

Post by cdumler »

I bought a DCP-8085DN years ago and it's been zero maintenance. What you really want to consider is getting a business class printer laser printer. They're expected to handle a real load, so they last. Look at the software connectivity. I can print and scan straight from my iPhone/iPad.

Re: Ask HN: What printer do you recommend for rare printing?

#125

Post by blablabla123 »

wpskidd wrote: post #103
blablabla123 wrote: post #102

Inkjet is fine, I paid for mine 70 or so and about 40 for a 5 year warranty extension. I think the biggest problem is dust though, so when not using it, consider removing the paper and closing all the lids. My Canon with built-in scanner now survived 2 years without any problems. And the drivers work well, at least on macOS. Also I can print labels with it.

One caution: I don’t know if it is still a thing, but inkjets used to dry out pretty badly if you left them idle for too long. Sometimes a thorough cleaning would work, but sometimes not. I push non-technical family members to get cheap laser printers.

I know somehow who had an inkjet that he used maybe twice a year. It just worked for years, he never even had to replace the ink I think. But when we didn't use it, he closed all the lids and put it back into the shelf :D

So now I try something similar but not that strict. Also I like about inkjet that it can print photos etc.

Re: Ask HN: What printer do you recommend for rare printing?

#127

Post by RandomBacon »

einpoklum wrote: post #106
hprotagonist wrote: post #8

Any base model brother laser printer, preferably any that support wifi printing. i’ve had one for 7 years, and replaced the toner exactly once.

Many Brother printers are poorly-supported or simply not supported on Linux. For example, I have an MFC-L2710DW (not what you would get for rare printing I suppose), and the official driver is always acting up: Delays of minutes (!) before starting to print, or simply not printing at all for some odd reason, but then obliging me if I power-cycle the printer. Maybe. So, these printers may be fine, but check driver ava…

Maybe it's your printer and/or computer?

I've used three different Brother laser printers with two different computers, over a couple of years on Ubuntu, and haven't had any delays like that.

Re: Ask HN: What printer do you recommend for rare printing?

#128

Post by RandomBacon »

einpoklum wrote: post #107
koolba wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes they’re great for low volume printing and the Linux support is great too. Newer models track the number of printed pages and nag to replace the toner. You can instead reset the page counter and continue printing. Exact steps vary by model but easily found online.

I'm sorry, but that's just not true, at least not in general. For many models, the Linux support is mediocre-to-none.

I've had three different models of Brother laser printers, Linux support has been good with each one.

If some reads this and is worried about it, just search reviews for the model number and Linux.

Re: Ask HN: What printer do you recommend for rare printing?

#129

Post by [deleted] »

jjjbokma wrote: post #110
hprotagonist wrote: post #8

Any base model brother laser printer, preferably any that support wifi printing. i’ve had one for 7 years, and replaced the toner exactly once.

I own a Brother HL-L2350DW and can highly recommend it. It has wireless and does AirPrint. Works great from iOS and macOS.

[deleted]

Re: Ask HN: What printer do you recommend for rare printing?

#130

Post by Meph504 »

avhon1 wrote: post #59
kube-system wrote: post #27

You want a laser printer. Inkjets will clog up with infrequent use, but lasers won't. HP makes some interesting compact laser printers these days that could easily be stored away while you're not using them -- something like the HP LaserJet Pro M15w might be nice for infrequent use.

That sure is a compact laser printer! And it only draws 210 watts while printing! Unfortunately, I was disappointed by this part of the description: > Dynamic security enabled printer. Only intended to be used with cartridges using an HP original chip. Cartridges using a non-HP chip may not work, and those that work today may not work in the future. DRMed toner cartridges with OTA "security" improvements? That sounds…

Yeah FYI if you don't hunt down the minimal base driver, the default software that comes with the printer, and available on the HP site, has a phone home auto updating DRM database.

We have 25 printers just decide that they would no longer work with the toner they had been using for 3 months.

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