Ink Jet vs. Laser

[Runningwolf]

I have an HP office 8600 pro ink jet printer which is know for great color and high quality ink. It doesn't run when wet. After three years it quit printing yellow even after replacing the cartridge and doing all the maintenance.

Needing labels printed I did as many of you do and went to Staples and had them print up 25 pages of laser labels. I have to tell you the difference was amazing. I was really impressed.

I find the difference comparable to having an absolutely perfectly clear wine and the filtering it and watch how it just sparkles. So with that said, printing with my HP Office Jet the cost is 50% less and the labels are fantastic (just not as great as laser), I'll stick with what I have.

I came home and did some things they suggested and it started working again for now. YIPPEEE! I was ready to pull the plug and go get a new one if I had to. I love this printer and would get another one in a heart beat. The ink isn't cheap but it's worth it and a lot cheaper than laser ink.

 

[Julie]

But toner will give you 2000 prints and the inkjet will only give you about 600, it is cheaper to use a laser but I'm not sure if the pic is clearer with a laser. I have an HP 200 Pro color laser and I love how my labels come out but you know me, I don't do a lot of detail on my labels, I like simplicity.

 

[Runningwolf]

Julie the difference in detail and color is awesome. You're correct about the quantity of pages. I am talking about the cost per page not cost of ink. They have the cost broke down for you in most of the stores you go into.

 

[dangerdave]

I'm going the other way, Dan. I've used my old ink jet printer for years. Appalled at the cost of ink, I recently took my labels to a local print shop. What I gave them was a print-out from my ink jet with six labels on a standard sheet of paper. They do laser color copies for 39 cents a sheet. That comes out to about 6 1/2 cents a label! And they look so much better than the original! I trim them out on a paper cutter and glue them on with a cheap Emer's gluestick.

Now, my wine bottles look even better, and I can apply capsules and labels for about 15 cents a bottle! That's a thirty bottle (six gallon) batch for $4.50---capped and labelled. Right on budget!

 

[Runningwolf]

I had them printed on Avery labels. They come off pretty easy. Like I said Laser is Outstanding! I print too many to be running 15 miles to Staples all the time though. If I chose to go this way I would buy one.

 

[TahunaJR]

As a computer professional, I switched over to laser printing years ago due to quality, cost and maintenance. I bought a $50 black laser printer that handles 90% of my printing needs and I refurbed an HP 4500 for my color needs. I won't get into all of the details on the benefits of laser vs ink jet but will say I recommend the switch over whenever people come to me for advice on replacing their latest ink jet.

The only thing I will warn anyone about is making sure you buy adhesive labels specifically made for laser printers. Laser printers operate with a lot more heat. Using ink jet adhesive labels in a laser printer may cause a lot of damage. I have seen people use such and the laser heat will strip off the ink jet labels inside the printer. This causes a mess and usually a costly repair.

Joe R.

 

[Runningwolf]

Joe this is great info thanks for sharing.

 

[ffemt128]

I purchased a brother color laser printer when I needed to do the labels for my nieces wedding. Printer was cheap enough. Almost cheaper to replace the printer if you need to replace all 4 toner cartridges at the same time. After a year and a half of printing almost everything on the laser, I finally have to replace the black cartridge. I'm pretty impressed considering my 6 y/o likes to print things....