PRINTERS
Inkjet Printers
PROS:
- Great for photos. Inkjet printers do a better job of blending smooth colors than laser printers.
- Inkjet printers have a low start-up cost. Printers are less expensive than laser printers and inkjet ink cartridges are cheaper than toner cartridges.
- Inkjets can print onto many types of paper
- Almost no warm-up time is needed before printing.
- Inkjet printers tend to be smaller, lighter and easier to maintain than laser printers.
CONS:
- Inkjet ink is expensive.
- Inkjet ink is water-based
- Ink cartridges need frequent cleaning. Although printers perform this maintenance automatically, it wastes lots of ink.
- Inkjet printers are getting faster, but are still very slow compared to laser printing.
Laser Printers
PROS:
- Laser printers can print faster than inkjet printers.
- Laser printers produce perfect sharp black text. If your print jobs are mostly text with occasional graphics, laser is the way to go.
- Laser printers are better prepared to handle high-volume print jobs.
- Price-by-price comparisons favor laser printers over inkjet printers for documents that aren't graphically complex.
CONS:
- Although laser printers work faster, they take time to warm-up.
- Although toner is cheaper in the long run, upfront costs for laser printing are more.
- Laser printers can't handle a variety of paper or printing materials like inkjets.
- Home laser printers can handle simple graphics, but smooth photographs are a challenge. If you want to print photos, go for inkjet.
- There are some compact laser printers on the market, but in general, laser printers are bigger and heavier than inkjet.