Best printer for a small home office?

Hey everyone.

I'm looking for some recommendations for an all-in-one printer for a small home office. Needs to be wireless, white—because, you know, the wife prefers the aesthetic—laser, capable of handling about 1,000 pages a month, and with reasonably priced original toner cartridges.

I was checking out this one but I can't quite tell if it's actually any good.

When you’re shopping for a printer, don't let the sticker price fool you. You have to look at the cost of the toner or ink and—more importantly—whether there are actually any third-party replacements available. You also need to calculate the actual yield; check the ratio of what the cartridge costs versus how many pages it actually spits out. The hardware itself is always cheap—it’s a deceptive bargain when you factor in the long-term drain on your wallet. Manufacturers aren't making their real money on the machine; they're bleeding you dry through the consumables.

Sophia Fowler87 said:Hey everyone.

I'm looking for some advice on a 3-in-1 printer for a small home office. Needs to be wireless, white (you know how it is with the wife :-)), laser, and able to handle about 1,000 pages a month without the official toner costs killing me.

I was checking out this one but I can't tell if it's actually any good.

Just a heads up, you'll probably burn through 8 toner cartridges *$150. That's just my guess.

rustysurfer79 said:Assume you’ll burn through 8 toner cartridges *$150 within the 12-month warranty period alone. Just saying...

That’s exactly what I was afraid of—any better suggestions?

Look, let’s be real about page yields. The box might claim 1,500 pages, but you’re realistically looking at closer to 1,000 before things go south. Prices fluctuate wildly depending on which printer model you decide to babysit. And while sure, you can get these cartridges refilled, don't expect it to last forever. Eventually, the drum wears out, and you'll end up with those annoying vertical streaks running down every single page. Keep all that in mind before you commit to a machine.

Generally speaking, Samsung printers tend to be more budget-friendly when you actually crunch the numbers on cost-per-page compared to HP.

Now, HP used to offer an inkjet line where, if you stuck with their original color ink, your cost per page could dip below 5 cents. The catch? You'll pay a hefty premium upfront—anywhere from $150 to $200 depending on whether you need Wi-Fi or other bells and whistles.

Sophia Fowler87 said:That’s exactly what I was worried about. You got any better ideas?

If you're looking for something new, honestly, it all ends up being the same thing. Every manufacturer is just constantly spying on what the guy next door is doing. They all basically run on the same logic.

I don't think laser or MF are long-term moves, mostly because using them feels like you're just leaving a scanner sitting right on top of a kitchen oven.

Sophia Fowler87 said:That’s exactly what I was worried about. Got any better ideas?

So here’s the deal:
If you need to hit 1,000 pages a month, you’ve gotta look at a printer that uses a toner cartridge rated for something like 4,000 pages.

Basically, you're buying toner every three months. But if a brand-new machine with those specs is too pricey, you might consider a used one that takes a similar high-capacity cartridge.

But there’s a catch.

The thing is, for the newest models, finding cheap third-party toner is almost impossible. With older, used printers, though? You can find compatible cartridges everywhere.

And here’s catch number two.

Nobody is crazy enough to sell a used printer with super cheap toner unless the machine itself is basically worn out.

So, you end up right back where you started.

However, if you grab a bundle—like a 3-pack of toner plus a "free" printer—you usually get around 14,000 pages total. That printer might be rated for 200,000 pages, but it'll likely only have about 10,000 on it. Basically, you're paying for the toner and getting the printer as part of the deal.

Meaning, if you go the new route, after a year you've spent roughly $333. But if you play it this way, you could get that same amount of printing done for about $1200 plus $333.

Just my two cents.