Suggestions for All-In-One Printers

On Thu, 03 May 2007 14:20:25 -0500, Journey <rainbow@oasis.com> wrote:

>On Thu, 03 May 2007 13:21:45 -0400, Daniel G.
><Quadzila@REMOVETHISoptonline.net> wrote:
>
>>Hi All,
>>I'm planning on buying an AIO ink jet printer but wanted to get some
>>opinions, if possible. I cant spend more than $350. I'm looking for
>>something w/scanning & printing capabilities. Fax would be good too
>>but not a requirement. I'm not to concerned w/speed or photo print
>>quality. I'm disabled w/limited dexterity and am looking for something
>>w/an ADF and duplex capabilities.
>>
>>I was considering the Canon Pixma MP 830 and HP 7680 as they've got
>>some good reviews. I have read that the Canon and many other AIO
>>printers w/duplexiong are prone to paper jam & some are difficult to
>>fix, this would be a problem for me so I'd want something that doesn't
>>jam often and is fairly easy to get going should it jam. Thanks for
>>any info!
>
>(crosspost removed)
>
>I like my HP Deskjet 7410. It's wireless, so I can place it wherever
>I want in my apartment. It has great paper handling capabilities. It
>scans and prints duplex. I can scan duplex directly to .pdf. It does
>an OK job as a photo printer.
>
>While the retail price is stated to be $399-$499, it can be had for as
>little as $199 if you keep your eye on the coupon sites.

I was at Office Depot today and saw the HP 7410 on sale for $249,
which is a good deal.

Can anyone give me some idea of how a laser printer is less expensive
/ page than an inkjet... Also, how do color lasers compare?

-----Original Message-----
From: Journey [mailto:rainbow@oasis.com]
Posted At: Thursday, May 03, 2007 8:02 PM
Posted To: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell
Conversation: Suggestions for All-In-One Printers
Subject: Re: Suggestions for All-In-One Printers

On Thu, 03 May 2007 14:20:25 -0500, Journey <rainbow@oasis.com> wrote:

>On Thu, 03 May 2007 13:21:45 -0400, Daniel G.
><Quadzila@REMOVETHISoptonline.net> wrote:
>
>>Hi All,
>>I'm planning on buying an AIO ink jet printer but wanted to get some
>>opinions, if possible. I cant spend more than $350. I'm looking for
>>something w/scanning & printing capabilities. Fax would be good too
>>but not a requirement. I'm not to concerned w/speed or photo print
>>quality. I'm disabled w/limited dexterity and am looking for something
>>w/an ADF and duplex capabilities.
>>
>>I was considering the Canon Pixma MP 830 and HP 7680 as they've got
>>some good reviews. I have read that the Canon and many other AIO
>>printers w/duplexiong are prone to paper jam & some are difficult to
>>fix, this would be a problem for me so I'd want something that doesn't
>>jam often and is fairly easy to get going should it jam. Thanks for
>>any info!
>
>(crosspost removed)
>
>I like my HP Deskjet 7410. It's wireless, so I can place it wherever
>I want in my apartment. It has great paper handling capabilities. It
>scans and prints duplex. I can scan duplex directly to .pdf. It does
>an OK job as a photo printer.
>
>While the retail price is stated to be $399-$499, it can be had for as
>little as $199 if you keep your eye on the coupon sites.

I was at Office Depot today and saw the HP 7410 on sale for $249,
which is a good deal.

Can anyone give me some idea of how a laser printer is less expensive
/ page than an inkjet... Also, how do color lasers compare?

----

Are you looking for duplex printing or duplex scanning. BIG difference.
The 7410 doesn't duplex scan. You have to go to the 76xx (80 is the
minimum) for that. NONE of the inexpensive lasers do duplex scan.
Believe me, if they did, I'd own one.

On May 3, 10:21 am, Daniel G. <Quadz...@REMOVETHISoptonline.net>
wrote:
> Hi All,
> I'm planning on buying an AIO ink jet printer but wanted to get some
> opinions, if possible. I cant spend more than $350. I'm looking for
> something w/scanning & printing capabilities. Fax would be good too
> but not a requirement. I'm not to concerned w/speed or photo print
> quality. I'm disabled w/limited dexterity and am looking for something
> w/an ADF and duplex capabilities.
>
> I was considering the Canon Pixma MP 830 and HP 7680 as they've got
> some good reviews. I have read that the Canon and many other AIO
> printers w/duplexiong are prone to paper jam & some are difficult to
> fix, this would be a problem for me so I'd want something that doesn't
> jam often and is fairly easy to get going should it jam. Thanks for
> any info!

Not HP. The driver set for their all in ones is mega-bloated. And
buggy. Ruining what would otherwise be a good unit.

I've not used a canon all in one, so can't comment.

On 7 May 2007 22:31:49 -0700, "paulmd@efn.org" <paulmd@efn.org> wrote:

>On May 3, 10:21 am, Daniel G. <Quadz...@REMOVETHISoptonline.net>
>wrote:
>> Hi All,
>> I'm planning on buying an AIO ink jet printer but wanted to get some
>> opinions, if possible. I cant spend more than $350. I'm looking for
>> something w/scanning & printing capabilities. Fax would be good too
>> but not a requirement. I'm not to concerned w/speed or photo print
>> quality. I'm disabled w/limited dexterity and am looking for something
>> w/an ADF and duplex capabilities.
>>
>> I was considering the Canon Pixma MP 830 and HP 7680 as they've got
>> some good reviews. I have read that the Canon and many other AIO
>> printers w/duplexiong are prone to paper jam & some are difficult to
>> fix, this would be a problem for me so I'd want something that doesn't
>> jam often and is fairly easy to get going should it jam. Thanks for
>> any info!
>
>Not HP. The driver set for their all in ones is mega-bloated. And
>buggy. Ruining what would otherwise be a good unit.
>
>I've not used a canon all in one, so can't comment.

(Removing Cross-Post, just because I have heard it's not good to
cross-post; maybe someone can clue me in as to when it's good to
remove them and when not to)

I agree about HP driver bloat. HP should be worried that not only
here but all over I see people commenting on it. The executives are
probably out of touch and I doubt that many people within the
organization would be effective in creating an approved report that
they would read. I hope at least one of their execs actually uses
their products and realizes the bloat problems, and that one of them
actually takes the time to read newsgroups related to printers.

The HP7410 Monster that I have may not really be a monster in
comparison to some of the laser printers that I am now looking at
(probably not one of the ones I would end up buying unless they happen
to be within my price range. Anyway the HP 7410 has great paper
handling, which is why I like it. I don't use it for direct scanning
other than for import from within Adobe Acrobat. That's fine, because
my Canon LED scanners are far better for the task. The HP scan
program is atrocious, and doesn't even scan to PDF. Duplex scanning
into PDF from within Acrobat is a testament to it's great paper
handling. Duplex printing is also a strength, as well as it being a
wirelessly networked printer. Duplex copying is also good, and when I
had a dedicated phone line it did a great job with faxing.

I don't know if other all-in-one printers are as good at paper
handling. If they are, then I would go with something else that is.

I am impressed with my Canon scanner, and I am impressed with my Canon
wirless inkjet, I think it's the iP5200r. I use it as a standalone
photo printer since I have the 7410 as my current everyday printer. I
don't know if a Canon all-in-one puts it all together but I would look
there first if I didn't already have the HP.

The HP 7410 is on sale at Office Depot for $249, with a $250 rebate.

On Tue, 08 May 2007 03:25:40 -0500, Journey <rainbow@oasis.com> wrote:

>On 7 May 2007 22:31:49 -0700, "paulmd@efn.org" <paulmd@efn.org> wrote:
>
>>On May 3, 10:21 am, Daniel G. <Quadz...@REMOVETHISoptonline.net>
>>wrote:
>>> Hi All,
>>> I'm planning on buying an AIO ink jet printer but wanted to get some
>>> opinions, if possible. I cant spend more than $350. I'm looking for
>>> something w/scanning & printing capabilities. Fax would be good too
>>> but not a requirement. I'm not to concerned w/speed or photo print
>>> quality. I'm disabled w/limited dexterity and am looking for something
>>> w/an ADF and duplex capabilities.
>>>
>>> I was considering the Canon Pixma MP 830 and HP 7680 as they've got
>>> some good reviews. I have read that the Canon and many other AIO
>>> printers w/duplexiong are prone to paper jam & some are difficult to
>>> fix, this would be a problem for me so I'd want something that doesn't
>>> jam often and is fairly easy to get going should it jam. Thanks for
>>> any info!
>>
>>Not HP. The driver set for their all in ones is mega-bloated. And
>>buggy. Ruining what would otherwise be a good unit.
>>
>>I've not used a canon all in one, so can't comment.
>
>(Removing Cross-Post, just because I have heard it's not good to
>cross-post; maybe someone can clue me in as to when it's good to
>remove them and when not to)
>
>I agree about HP driver bloat. HP should be worried that not only
>here but all over I see people commenting on it.

Note: upon re-reading this, I ramble off the topic of all-in-one
printers, but I think there is good discussion. It's 3:41a.m. as I
stay up moving data off a P4 that I've sold which is my excuse. I am
putting this header here so that if someone is looking for all-in-one
information which is the subject of this thread, you may want to skip
this. The following explains, I think, the difficulty someone may go
through after having been loyal to a specific brand, seeking to move
on ...

Here it is:

Further comment on my use of HP. I, and I am probably not alone, have
perceptions of HP being the best, because at one time they were the
best.

That's when the HP inkjets were the fastest and most reliable, as
Epsons and others eeked out prints at much slower rates, and had more
problems with ink clogging or reservoirs that would fill up when ink
was sprayed to clean their print heads (I think this applied to some
models of Epson).

HP was seen by many as being better because the print head is thrown
away with the print cartridge, and thus print head issues seldom
occurred with HPs. This perception probably carried on even after it
was less relevant.

My thoughts about this were still frozen in time. The print driver
bloat convinced me to try my Canon printer because the Canon is
wireless and I saw good reviews about it which were substantiated when
I used it. It does well with printing, uses multiple "ink wells"
produces great output (superior photo output) and does duplexing very
well.

Now I trust Canon, but there is still a part of me that gravitates
towards HP but now that is changing. I just feel lost in the sea of
printers that is out there so I want to take refuge in what I know.

I think that people who had good experiences with the HP laser printer
discussed in another thread (version 4 something) probably also look
first to HP, are not happy with the drivers, and then are lost about
what else to look at.

Well, it's time to leave sight of the shore.

But what compass does one follow? Reviews might be influenced by
companies that advertise for the review site, in fact that's likely. A
laser printer is touted by a review like PC World, but when I look
into user reviews I see that particular versions of Brothers
consistently are noted for power consumption, others rated highly are
noted for making disconcerting loud clicking noises at periodic
intervals.

So, finding a good all-in-one is similar but even more complicated
than changing from one standalone brand to another.

For my laser search, I am going to pay attention to ratings, but it's
in the user reviews that I usually find the downsides that can save me
a lot of time if the downsided consistently in user reveiws are show
stoppers.

If things look OK after user reviews, and I can find an OK bargain,
then I will probably buy locally for easy return if I don't find it
useful. For a laser printer I need to keep in mind the cost / page
because I am going to use it for medium volume printing, and I need to
keep that foremost.

In writing I clarified some things for myself and feel more focused in
my laser hunt. Maybe I touched on some others' thoughts as they go
about their printer search.

On May 3, 1:21 pm, Daniel G. <Quadz...@REMOVETHISoptonline.net> wrote:
> Hi All,
> I'm planning on buying an AIO ink jet printer but wanted to get some
> opinions, if possible. I cant spend more than $350. I'm looking for
> something w/scanning & printing capabilities. Fax would be good too
> but not a requirement. I'm not to concerned w/speed or photo print
> quality. I'm disabled w/limited dexterity and am looking for something
> w/an ADF and duplex capabilities.
>
> I was considering the Canon Pixma MP 830 and HP 7680 as they've got
> some good reviews. I have read that the Canon and many other AIO
> printers w/duplexiong are prone to paper jam & some are difficult to
> fix, this would be a problem for me so I'd want something that doesn't
> jam often and is fairly easy to get going should it jam. Thanks for
> any info!

At my work we have made use of several HP 7410's. Our experience has
been that they are somewhat finicky to configure on our network and
then they will work fine for about 18 months and then die. I have a
Canon MP600 at home and am extremely pleased with it. Fast, quiet,
small and it prints great photos, as well as documents.