My Officejet G55 has failed. I urgently need a replacement, so on Sunday I’ll be visiting PC World. I need something that has a flatbed A4 scanner, prints in colour, prints both normal paper and photographs, and can act as a copier. And it should be cheap to buy and cheap to run.
Must work with 64 bit Vista and 64 bit Windows 7.
The front-runners seems to be the Canon MP190 or MP240, except they’re apparently quite expensive to run.
I’ve been very happy with my HP Photosmart Premium (C309a). It does everything you’re asking for, plus it has a special tray just for ~5x7 photo paper, prints duplex automatically, and has a print-on-CD function.
It’s ~$175 at Costco, or ~$200 listed at Amazon. Ink isn’t the cheapest in the world.
How about two devices? I think a laser printer would be cheaper to run than an inkjet printer. However, color laser-based MFP devices are big and expensive, while B&W ones are relatively cheap. You can get a B&W Okidata laser all-in-one from Staples for $130. And the HP Color LaserJet CP1215 Printer is available for $150, because of a $150 rebate available for a few weeks. (I’m not sure how these prices translate, especially that discount on the color laserjet.)
The Brother products have gotten really good reviews. I bought the MFC-885CW and I have been really happy with it. This particular model is probably more than you want to spend, but they have a whole range of models – cheap ones too.
Turn in some crappy old printer you pick up at Goodwill for an extra $50 off one of the Hp Officejet Pro All in One.
These can be bought from Hp direct for very good prices but returning the printer to recycle is a big pain and a lengthy process.
Staples, Office Max, Office Depot etc. will take the trade in and give you the $50 immediately. Combined with other promotions they have going you can get a very good deal.
My understanding is that the 8500 and all the Eco-easy come with full ink cartridges which saves some money.
Tonight I bought an Officejet pro 8000 (meaning just a printer, not all in one) for $24.99 after sale price, instant rebate, and HP’s rebate at Office Depot. These go for between $75 - $150.
All their sales change on Saturday nights, so I’ll pull another dead printer out of the basement on Sunday and go get an all in one from which ever deal is best next week.
I forgot to say the printer you turn in can be in any condition so don’t give them the ink cartridges. You get $3 apiece for them on your rewards card.
I took the 3 color and the black out of the machine right in front of the clerk and that $12 went on my card toward future purchases. So I really have $12.99 invested in a fairly decent printer.