Every day our customer service team fields a variety of questions from customers. They say that no question is a bad question, and I am inclined to agree with that, but I would have to say that some questions are far more interesting than others. With that in mind let’s cover some of the most basic questions we receive.

Should I buy an inkjet or a laser printer?
A great question, and a lot really depends on what type and how much of that type of printing you plan on doing. Inkjet printers are much cheaper than laser printers, and are great for printing color photos. The vast majority of home users end up purchasing an inkjet printer. Mostly because of the cost of the machine and the versatility it provides. With an inkjet you can print documents, photos, fabric transfers, etc. Most people will warn though that what you spend on inkjet cartridges will rapidly add up. They are very small (in comparison to laser toner cartridges) and thus don’t hold much ink.

Laser printers will cost you more up front but they do print a lot faster than inkjet printers. Their cartridges hold a lot of toner powder, so you will get a lot more pages of print. Typically 1,000+ pages with a laser toner cartridge as compared to 300-400 for an inkjet cartridge. Toners do text printing very well, and this is still where their strength is. The last few years have seen the introduction of the color laser printers. Printer manufacturers have realized the importance of the use of color in documents, but they have not put much in to creating a color laser printer that can do photos very well. It seems that their research and development is going in to creating high quality photo inks for inkjet printers.

Our opinion: Take a look at your needs. If you just need a good general use printer for around the home or office then go with an inkjet. You’ll be very pleased. If you are printing close to 1,000 or more a month, and these are mostly in black and white then go for the laser. The initial cost will be offset by the lesser cost of the toner cartridges, they number of pages they provide, and the speed at which you will be able to print. Can’t decide? Do like a lot of our customers have - get one of each!

Can I get a fax and copier with my printer?
You certainly can! The new generation of multifunction machines are amazing. I’ve got an HP OfficeJet 5610 All-in-One sitting to my left. Love it! These machines provide printing, scanning, copying, and faxing in to one machine. You’ll pay more for a multifunction that would would for just a standard inkjet printer, but your office will be less cluttered with equipment.

Our opinion: If you need a versatile machine and are not overly worried about producing photo lab quality pictures then go with a multifunction.

Where can I get printer cables?
A very common question. There are very few printers these days that come with all of the cables you need to complete the set up process. On the flip side, the stores are very good at making sure the customer is reminded of their need for a cable. All new printers now take USB cables. It makes the set up a lot easier. There are still a few out there (we have one of those too - HP LaserJet 2100) that still uses the parallel cable (anyone remember those?). The new push in printer connectivity is wireless (WI-FI) and Bluetooth. Both eliminate the need for any cables at all.

Our opinion: For now stick with the USB. WI-FI and Bluetooth connections are rapidly improving but there is still a lot that goes in to setting up and maintaining their connections.

If you have questions you would like answered. Take a second and post them here. We’ll be sure to post an answer back.