color inkjet ink vs. color laser printer toner?

My wife & I have a Canon i860 color inkjet printer. We use it only
about once every 3 months. Each time one or more of the cartridges
are shown as low or dried out & we have to replace many of the ink
cartridges, even though they have not been used fully.

Would this expense & ink replacement time be lessened if we trashed
the inkjet & purchased a color laser printer?
It is said that the toner is powder that does not dry out. But are
there other problems using color laser printers?

Is the consumable expense about the same, more, or less for laser
color vs. inkjet color.

All opinions welcomed! Aaron

aaronep@pacbell.net wrote:
> My wife & I have a Canon i860 color inkjet printer. We use it only
> about once every 3 months. Each time one or more of the cartridges
> are shown as low or dried out & we have to replace many of the ink
> cartridges, even though they have not been used fully.
>
> Would this expense & ink replacement time be lessened if we trashed
> the inkjet & purchased a color laser printer?
> It is said that the toner is powder that does not dry out. But are
> there other problems using color laser printers?

Since you use a printer so infrequently cost isn't a concern. I think
it depends on what you use it for. It you print photos then a laser
printer in no substitute for a the i860. If you print other things then
a laser might be the best choice. There are programs that will
automatically print a page every so often to keep the print head from
drying out. The cartridges and print head should not dry out even under
long periods of non-use.

> Is the consumable expense about the same, more, or less for laser
> color vs. inkjet color.

IMO, for your situation, cost of consumables isn't really an issue.

Aaron,

In my opinion, a laser printer is a solution. My opinion is based
purely on my experience with ink printers.
The only plus i can give to inkjets is that they produce better
photos. But if you print rarely, be sure the printer's printhead will
get clogged!

Nowadays you can find a good color laser printer making good photo
prints (but they are very very expensive).

So, if you do not need to print photos, my piece of advice is to get a
laserjet...

Nik | www.rechargeast.blogspot.com

aaronep@pacbell.net :
> My wife & I have a Canon i860 color inkjet printer. We use it only
> about once every 3 months. Each time one or more of the cartridges
> are shown as low or dried out & we have to replace many of the ink
> cartridges, even though they have not been used fully.
>
> Would this expense & ink replacement time be lessened if we trashed
> the inkjet & purchased a color laser printer?
> It is said that the toner is powder that does not dry out. But are
> there other problems using color laser printers?
>
> Is the consumable expense about the same, more, or less for laser
> color vs. inkjet color.
>
> All opinions welcomed! Aaron

<aaronep@pacbell.net> wrote in message
news:1182732558.728870.249460@z28g2000prd.googlegr oups.com...
> My wife & I have a Canon i860 color inkjet printer. We use it only
> about once every 3 months. Each time one or more of the cartridges
> are shown as low or dried out & we have to replace many of the ink
> cartridges, even though they have not been used fully.
>
> Would this expense & ink replacement time be lessened if we trashed
> the inkjet & purchased a color laser printer?
> It is said that the toner is powder that does not dry out. But are
> there other problems using color laser printers?
>
> Is the consumable expense about the same, more, or less for laser
> color vs. inkjet color.

Why not print out a simple page with colour every week or so, to stop the
inks drying out? That`d be the cheapest solution :-)

"Nik" <kolik13@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1182767474.890231.324480@w5g2000hsg.googlegro ups.com
> Aaron,
>
> In my opinion, a laser printer is a solution. My opinion
> is based purely on my experience with ink printers.
> The only plus i can give to inkjets is that they produce
> better photos. But if you print rarely, be sure the
> printer's printhead will get clogged!
>
> Nowadays you can find a good color laser printer making
> good photo prints (but they are very very expensive).
>
> So, if you do not need to print photos, my piece of
> advice is to get a laserjet...

I'd go along with that. Although I've had excellent results printing full
page photos on A4 paper with my HP Colour Laserjet 2605dn (an excellent
printer which I heartily recommend, BTW).


Ivor

> > So, if you do not need to print photos, my piece of
> > advice is to get a laserjet...
>
> I'd go along with that. Although I've had excellent results printing full
> page photos on A4 paper with my HP Colour Laserjet 2605dn (an excellent
> printer which I heartily recommend, BTW).
>
>
> Ivor

Yes, you are right. Still, count how much a full photo page on A4
paper costs you on your HP Colour Laserjet 2605dn

Regards,
Nik | www.rechargeast.blogspot.com

>>>>>>>Would this expense & ink replacement time be lessened if we trashed
the inkjet & purchased a color laser printer?



I wouldn't trash that printer. I have a question, are you using OEM
ink." I have a canon printer and when I use OEM ink, it doesn't dry
as fast.

However, if you can find a color laser printer for cheap, then get
it. I've seen them advertise on slickdeals.net for $100.00 at times
after rebate. The size of the laser printer will be bigger.

Stan

"Nik" <kolik13@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1182970496.738626.225030@o61g2000hsh.googlegr oups.com
> > > So, if you do not need to print photos, my piece of
> > > advice is to get a laserjet...
> >
> > I'd go along with that. Although I've had excellent
> > results printing full page photos on A4 paper with my
> > HP Colour Laserjet 2605dn (an excellent printer which I
> > heartily recommend, BTW).
>
> Yes, you are right. Still, count how much a full photo
> page on A4 paper costs you on your HP Colour Laserjet
> 2605dn

As I probably print less than a dozen or so of them in a year, I really
couldn't care less ;-)

Ivor