Best cheap printer for Mom?

No SPAM Sam (nospamsam.3.gkar@spamgourmet.com) writes:
 > Kent S. <kschw80232 DeleteThis @Yank_This_Yahoo.com> wrote:
 >
  >> What are my choices for an inkjet printer for Mom?
  >> About a year ago at 75 years old I gave her a rev B iMac loaded with
  >> ram, OSX, internet explorer, Mail and solitaire.
  >> After teaching her the basics of Mail and Explorer she is ready for a
  >> small, low usage, cheap, low hassle printer to print email and web
  >> pages.
  >> Since her usage will likely be extremely light I need a printer that
  >> doesn't clog easily or need nozzles cleaned or aligned often because I
  >> will be the one that will be called on to go do it. This probably rules
  >> out the cheaper Epsons.
  >> Cartridge capacity isn't really an issue although cartridges that expire
  >> by date would be.
  >> Does such a printer exist? What do you think?
  >>
 > You've pretty much ruled out all the inkjet printers. Try looking for a
 > used laser printer.

That seems like a really good solution. I bought an inkjet two and
a half years ago, and was terribly disappointed by how fast I used
the refill. Someone with low useage wouldn't suffer that way, but might
still need to replace or refill the cartridges because they dry out.

Two years ago, I bought an old TI laser printer for $25 at a school
rummage sale. The toner in it lasted a year and a half, and I used
up at least 500 sheets of paper (and maybe as much as 1000). It
was a relatively obscure model, and before I got around to tracking
down new toner, or decide if I should risk expending money on toner
(I had no idea what shape the printer was in otherwise), I found
another cheap laser printer.

The second one was an HP Laserjet 4P, which I paid $15 at a Rotary Club
sale. The page count was only 4000. The toner cartridge was not an
original, and I suspect when it was donated the owner put in a close
to empty cartridge, since the page count didn't really match two
complete cartridge worth of pages. I had to shake the toner cartridge
in order to print, but then it went on for another five hundred pages.
I actually bought a replacement toner cartridge last week, because this
is a fairly common printer and seems in great shape.

If I can find such deals, I'm sure others can too, since I did not
look that hard. Someone who prints infrequently might go a long
time with the 500 or so pages that the old cartridge printed on
the 4P, and at only $15. One could then move to another printer,
with an equally used cartridge, if the price of a replacement cartridge
was seen as too much.

Michael<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Best cheap printer for Mom? 

Well, these used lasers you're talking about are only black and white. Mom
never wants to print color, maybe pictures of the family e-mailed to her? I got
a canon i850, it is cheap, fast, quiet, easy to use, the ink is cheaper than
epsons or HP, the photo prints on photo paper look fabtastical, the B&W prints
pop out literally in 3 seconds per page or less. $ ink tanks mean you only
replace the color that's short, you never throw away a color cartridge because
only one color is out. Fresh canon OEM tanks are 10 bucks.
 >> Stay informed about: Best cheap printer for Mom? 

In article <20031030224922.06956.00000053.DeleteThis@mb-m23.aol.com>,
msu1049321.DeleteThis@aol.com (MSu1049321) wrote:

 > Well, these used lasers you're talking about are only black and white. Mom
 > never wants to print color, maybe pictures of the family e-mailed to her? I
 > got
 > a canon i850, it is cheap, fast, quiet, easy to use, the ink is cheaper than
 > epsons or HP, the photo prints on photo paper look fabtastical, the B&W
 > prints
 > pop out literally in 3 seconds per page or less. $ ink tanks mean you only
 > replace the color that's short, you never throw away a color cartridge
 > because
 > only one color is out. Fresh canon OEM tanks are 10 bucks.

This is tempting since Mom definately needs color although I was
thinking cheaper on the printer and probably more on the cartridges
would be OK. The i850 model seems to be replaced by a i860 which
shopper.com shows in the $123 to $156 range. Maybe the i450, i470, or
i560 would be better. Anyone using one of these? I don't think she needs
a fast printer since she is retired and has plenty of time left. ;-) I
have never owned a Canon. Are they really easy to use?



--
"Within the computer industry, the description, 'more like a Macintosh'
is always a high praise. The description 'more like Windows' is rarely
used as praise."Seattle Times 6/18/1995
Kent S.<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Best cheap printer for Mom? 

Kent S. <kschw80232 RemoveThis @Yank_This_Yahoo.com> wrote:

 > In article <20031030224922.06956.00000053 RemoveThis @mb-m23.aol.com>,
 > msu1049321 RemoveThis @aol.com (MSu1049321) wrote:
 >
  > > Well, these used lasers you're talking about are only black and white. Mom
  > > never wants to print color, maybe pictures of the family e-mailed to her? I
  > > got
  > > a canon i850, it is cheap, fast, quiet, easy to use, the ink is cheaper than
  > > epsons or HP, the photo prints on photo paper look fabtastical, the B&W
  > > prints
  > > pop out literally in 3 seconds per page or less. $ ink tanks mean you only
  > > replace the color that's short, you never throw away a color cartridge
  > > because
  > > only one color is out. Fresh canon OEM tanks are 10 bucks.
 >
 > This is tempting since Mom definately needs color although I was
 > thinking cheaper on the printer and probably more on the cartridges
 > would be OK. The i850 model seems to be replaced by a i860 which
 > shopper.com shows in the $123 to $156 range. Maybe the i450, i470, or
 > i560 would be better. Anyone using one of these? I don't think she needs
 > a fast printer since she is retired and has plenty of time left. ;-) I
 > have never owned a Canon. Are they really easy to use?

How hard is any printer to use? I have a Canon and I do indeed like the
fact that each color has its own tank. However, like any inkjet, if it
isn't used regularly the ink dries out and the heads need cleaning.

If mom prints every week or two things will be okay but if she prints
once a month she's gonna have to learn how to deal with dry ink.<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Best cheap printer for Mom? 

Canon? Very easy to use. They self-clean after laying idle for a few minutes,
and self-store the print head in a sealed pocket so you don't tend to get dried
up heads or clogs. I got the i850 because it was the cheapest model that still
did very well on phot reproduction. If you go with a cheaper/lesser canon, I
can't vouch for the photo quality, but on mine, ooh la la!;-) If you give her
a cheaper one, buy the best photo paper for her picture prints, it will make up
some for it. Easy for mom? They only have two buttons, ON and reset. If you
jam, run out of paper, or ink, a yellow light blinks on the printer, and the
computer tells you in plain english what is wrong and how to fix it. Example,
you run out of paper, put more in, hit the reset button, back in business.

I went to Staples the other week for refills on some tanks. They have a
printer ink guarantee: if it's not in stock, it's ten bucks off. They had just
run out of my c,m, and y tanks, 11 bucks each, so I wound up paying only three
dollars for the refills, SWEET! c-)
 >> Stay informed about: Best cheap printer for Mom? 

Kent S. wrote:

 > This is tempting since Mom definately needs color although I was
 > thinking cheaper on the printer and probably more on the cartridges
 > would be OK. The i850 model seems to be replaced by a i860 which
 > shopper.com shows in the $123 to $156 range. Maybe the i450, i470, or
 > i560 would be better. Anyone using one of these? I don't think she needs
 > a fast printer since she is retired and has plenty of time left. ;-) I
 > have never owned a Canon. Are they really easy to use?

Ever owned a StyleWriter? The StyleWriter was a re-packaged Canon
(though I forget exactly which). The printing mechanism largely takes
care of itself.

A small contribution to the thread: I'd avoid Lexmark. Their cartridges
definitely dry out too easily when not put to regular use. I figure so
far the printer has cost me $25 a page...

So I think I'll look at this i860 as well.<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Best cheap printer for Mom? 

In article <20031101205051.29188.00000104.RemoveThis@mb-m29.aol.com>,
msu1049321.RemoveThis@aol.com (MSu1049321) wrote:

 > Canon? Very easy to use. They self-clean after laying idle for a few minutes,
 > and self-store the print head in a sealed pocket so you don't tend to get
 > dried
 > up heads or clogs. I got the i850 because it was the cheapest model that
 > still
 > did very well on phot reproduction. If you go with a cheaper/lesser canon, I
 > can't vouch for the photo quality, but on mine, ooh la la!;-) If you give
 > her
 > a cheaper one, buy the best photo paper for her picture prints, it will make
 > up
 > some for it. Easy for mom? They only have two buttons, ON and reset. If you
 > jam, run out of paper, or ink, a yellow light blinks on the printer, and the
 > computer tells you in plain english what is wrong and how to fix it. Example,
 > you run out of paper, put more in, hit the reset button, back in business.
 >
 > I went to Staples the other week for refills on some tanks. They have a
 > printer ink guarantee: if it's not in stock, it's ten bucks off. They had
 > just
 > run out of my c,m, and y tanks, 11 bucks each, so I wound up paying only
 > three
 > dollars for the refills, SWEET! c-)

Sounds good. Looked at the i560 at Best Buy at about $100. Sample photo
looked pretty good and fairly fast. Individual $1 cartridges. How hard
are they to change or to figure out which needs changing?


--
"Within the computer industry, the description, 'more like a Macintosh'
is always a high praise. The description 'more like Windows' is rarely
used as praise."Seattle Times 6/18/1995
Kent S.<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Best cheap printer for Mom? 

They snap in, easy. Computer tells you ink status, or you can pull one out to
look.
 >> Stay informed about: Best cheap printer for Mom? 

 > From: "Kent S." <kschw80232 DeleteThis @Yank_This_Yahoo.com>
 > Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hardware.misc
 > Date: Fri, 31 Oct 2003 17:20:53 -0700
 > Subject: Re: Best cheap printer for Mom?
 >
 > In article <20031030224922.06956.00000053 DeleteThis @mb-m23.aol.com>,
 > msu1049321 DeleteThis @aol.com (MSu1049321) wrote:
 >
  >> Well, these used lasers you're talking about are only black and white. Mom
  >> never wants to print color, maybe pictures of the family e-mailed to her? I
  >> got

 > This is tempting since Mom definately needs color although I was
 > thinking cheaper on the printer and probably more on the cartridges
 > would be OK. The i850 model seems to be replaced by a i860 which
 > shopper.com shows in the $123 to $156 range. Maybe the i450, i470, or
 > i560 would be better. Anyone using one of these?

Check eBay.. I got a used HP 780CSE for around $30 plus shipping a year
ago.. mostly lightweight printing needs.. (has economy print mode) haven't
changed the (used) cartridge yet.. no evidence of drying up plus it's on
24-7 .. has Mac & Centronics connectors..

d.<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Best cheap printer for Mom? 

 > From: Steven Fisher <sdfisher.TakeThisOut@spamcop.net>

 > Ever owned a StyleWriter? The StyleWriter was a re-packaged Canon
 > (though I forget exactly which). The printing mechanism largely takes
 > care of itself.

iirc.. all the Apple ink jet stylewriters printers I owned were were Canon
oem

Apple Color SW2400 --> Canon 4000
Apple Color SW2500 --> Canon 4100

d.<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Best cheap printer for Mom? 

In article <BBD57804.17385%don.romero@verizon.net>,
Don Romero <don.romero.DeleteThis@verizon.net> wrote:

  > > From: "Kent S." <kschw80232.DeleteThis@Yank_This_Yahoo.com>
  > > Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hardware.misc
  > > Date: Fri, 31 Oct 2003 17:20:53 -0700
  > > Subject: Re: Best cheap printer for Mom?
  > >
  > > In article <20031030224922.06956.00000053.DeleteThis@mb-m23.aol.com>,
  > > msu1049321.DeleteThis@aol.com (MSu1049321) wrote:
  > >
   > >> Well, these used lasers you're talking about are only black and white. Mom
   > >> never wants to print color, maybe pictures of the family e-mailed to her? I
   > >> got
 >
  > > This is tempting since Mom definately needs color although I was
  > > thinking cheaper on the printer and probably more on the cartridges
  > > would be OK. The i850 model seems to be replaced by a i860 which
  > > shopper.com shows in the $123 to $156 range. Maybe the i450, i470, or
  > > i560 would be better. Anyone using one of these?
 >
 > Check eBay.. I got a used HP 780CSE for around $30 plus shipping a year
 > ago.. mostly lightweight printing needs.. (has economy print mode) haven't
 > changed the (used) cartridge yet.. no evidence of drying up plus it's on
 > 24-7 .. has Mac & Centronics connectors..
 >
 > d.
 >
Looks like it will be the Canon i560 for Mom for christmas. Right price
range, cheap individual cartridges and hopefully simple so Mom won't
call me with too many questions. I'll let you know how it works out.
Thanks for all your replies and advice.

Kent S.
--
The one thing Apple's providing now is leadership in colors.
-Bill Gates 1999
The one thing Microsoft's providing now is leadership in viruses.
-Steve Jack 2003<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->
 >> Stay informed about: Best cheap printer for Mom?