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Printer Shopping

Oh how the mighty have fallen.

Prices, that is.

An important part of the computing puzzle, printers once commanded hefty prices, usually in the $200-$300 range for an adequate ink-jet printer.

Today, you can often find new full-color printers for as low as $19, which sounds like a real bargain.

Until you calculate the real price.

When trying to decide which printer to buy, ignore the sticker price.

Printer manufacturers have learned the basics of “dope-dealer marketing” which Microsoft has perfected.

“Dope-dealer marketing” is the technique where manufacturers offer something for outrageously low prices to lure in customers, then jack up the price once customers are addicted to their product.

Microsoft used the technique for Windows, practically giving the software away in the mid 90’s to any computer manufacturer willing to install it on their new computers.

Now that Microsoft Windows is the preferred operating system on nearly 80% of the desktop and laptop computers in the world, a new version of Windows 7 can cost as much as $200.

Printer companies have learned this trick as well, offering printers for ridiculously low prices, only to extort users for unreasonably high prices on replacement ink cartridges that will only work with that printer.

The smart computer buyer will pay less attention to the price on the printer and more attention to those ink cartridges.

When shopping for a printer, be sure to find out which ink cartridge it uses.

Then check around for the price of those cartridges, along with the amount of ink.

Be careful about the ink measurements, which are often done in decimals, meaning fractions of an ounce.

(.2 oz. is less than 1 oz.)

While it’s not exactly accurate to compare the ink volume, since some printers use more ink to print a page than others, it is a quick and easy number to use for comparative purposes.

For example, if one $30 cartridge holds .75 oz. of ink, and another one holds .5 oz. of ink for $20, the $30 cartridge is a better deal because it holds more (and, theoretically at least, should print more pages than the .5 oz. cartridge).

For a more accurate calculation (which should be done at home while shopping online, since trying to do this advanced math on your fingers while standing in aisle five might be a bit cumbersome), check the specs for each printer and ink cartridge.

Find out the estimated number of copies each cartridge will produce, then divide it by the cost of the cartridge.

Then, take that figure and multiply it by 10,000 copies, which is the usual lifespan of these lower-end printers.

Add in the purchase price of the printer itself, and you have the amortized cost of the printer over its life.

For example:

Printer #1 costs $49.  The cartridge is $30, and is estimated to produce 600 copies.

The per-page cost of the ink comes to about five cents per page, or $500 for 10,000 pages.  Add in the $49 price of the printer, and your total cost for 10,000 pages is $549.

Printer #2 costs $99.  The cartridge is $20, and is estimated to produce 500 copies. 

This represents a per-page cost of four cents a copy, which equals $400 for 10,000 pages.

When you factor in the $99 cost of the printer, your total outlay for 10,000 copies is $499, meaning the more expensive printer is actually cheaper in the long run.

Another factor to consider is whether a generic variety of ink is available for a particular printer.

Some of the more popular printers have knock-offs of their cartridges which are much cheaper than the manufacturer’s brand.

Many of the cheaper printers will only take OEM (Original Equipment by the Manufacturer) cartridges made specifically for that model, which is a tell-tale sign of a higher overall printing cost.

While arguments could be made over the superior quality of competing brands, the truth is that Hewlett Packard is often the standard in ink jet printing, which means there are often plenty of generic cartridges on the rack which will fit.

You also want to avoid off-brands that sport low prices, but require hard-to-find OEM cartridges that you can’t get at Wal Mart.

An example is Dell, which makes good computers.

But to buy replacement ink for the $20 printer they want to throw in, you have to go back to Dell, and that price ain’t cheap.

The most important thing to remember is that, regardless of the price on the sign, a printer should never be a knee-jerk impulse purchase.

Do your homework.

The money you save just might be your own.

If you have a question or need advice about a computer problem, e-mail it to help@compuhelpus.com and we'll try to answer it here in a future column. Or to schedule an appointment for a Computer Help technician to come to your home or business in the Mesquite, Nevada area, call (702) 346-6357 and mention this story for the lowest rate in town.