Mark, are you saying that the inkjet is better for photos and other color images?  The inkjet I have now (less than 2 years old) I like a lot less than my previous inkjet (which I gave away) because the characters are too thick and not thin and sharp like my laser was (which I also gave away about 8 years ago because I wanted color and because if I had a lot of font changes or graphics it would print different parts of it on different pages).

Would my HP Deskjet 6540 print better pictures (that I have scanned from home magazines) than a color laser?  Maybe I should get a BW laser and keep the Deskjet?  If I do that, is there a way (or gadget) that will allow me to switch printers easily?  What about the drivers?  Do you know if there is one that works with Windows AND Linux?

Thanks,
AnnaSummers


----- Original Message ----- 
From: Mark Rode 
To: [log in to unmask] 
Sent: Tuesday, November 17, 2009 1:18 PM
Subject: Re: Needing a printer recommendation...


Three and a half years ago I got fed up with dried up InkJet 
cartridges, and cheap laser printer failures. My  desktop monochrome 
laser had just died, and Staples extended warranty refunded my 
money,  so I went looking for a new laser. It just so happened that 
they had a OKI 3200n (no longer available) color laser on sale, and 
with my refund it was affordable. Staples had it displayed working so 
you could print out the fabulous sample picture which was no doubt 
fine tuned for this particular printer.

  The printer is huge, something you would see in a school or office, 
it is full of cartridges, which are very expensive to replace, but 
for three and a half years it has worked without a single problem 
putting out beautiful color prints that don't smear ,or fade. My OKI 
is not as good a photo printer as a high end inkjet photo printer, 
but they are good enough for me.

There are a lot of cheaper, smaller, desktop lasers out there now, 
but the large ones still have their advantages. They are built to 
last, and are more robust. They come with network connections, more 
RAM, and things like duplex printing = both sides at once, which I am 
addicted to. Color lasers are perfect for those who only print 
occasionally because laser toner does not dry up, and doesn't have a 
shelf life. The toners are supposedly good  for 1500 copies, far less 
then your typical monochrome laser cartridge, but I currently have 
1896 pages printed with 20 to 30 percent left on the four toners.  I 
have had it three, and a half years and I probably have another 9-14 
months on the original toners, before I have to start replacing 
cartridges. Fortunately, I have 90-95 percent of my belt, my fuser, 
and 60 percent of my drum life left.


                         PCBUILD's List Owners:
                      Bob Wright<[log in to unmask]>
                        Mark Rode<[log in to unmask]>