Best printer under $60?

So, looking for a solid color printer for under $133. Gotta be able to find cheap generic ink... don't want one of those crappy 3-in-1 things, just a regular printer. Is there even anything decent at that price point?

Dennis Ramirez53 said:So, looking for a solid color printer for under $133. Must have cheap third-party ink available. I don't want any of those crappy 3-in-1 things, just a regular printer. Is there even anything out there at that price point?

The answer is no.

The closest thing you'll find is an Epson D92 + with permanent cartridges plus 88 ink cartridges. Only problem is, you won't find that sitting on a shelf at a local Best Buy. Plus, it’s still gonna blow past your $33 budget.

Maybe a newer Canon IP 2500 with a refill kit would be close, provided you're obsessive about never letting the cartridges run dry. But let's be real—that's hard to do, so the whole idea falls apart pretty fast. It's the same deal with the cheapest HP models. And the newest Epsons only give you like 3ml per color.

On the flip side, you can actually grab a new Ricoh GX3350 within that budget. You get it for that much with 4 x 10ml tanks. So, right off the bat, you've got 3 times more ink than a new Canon Epson or HP at this price. But there's no free lunch here either. A new set of inks (4 x 30ml) will run you roughly 4 * $73 plus tax. And every time the printer runs a head cleaning, it gulps down about 2 * 3ml of ink. Basically, one single head cleaning eats up half of what you'd get in a standard Canon Epson or HP ink pack. Of course, nobody tells you that—except maybe Ricoh or rustysurfer79. And Ricoh definitely isn't going to volunteer that info.

So yeah, once again: the answer is no.

Thanks for the reply. 🙂 I should've just asked for a recommendation right away—what would be the actual best buy here? Basically, if the upfront cost is a bit higher, I’d rather pay more now so I don't end up blowing a ton of cash $50 on ink later, since I want to stick to cheaper generic cartridges. How does it work with laser printers though? Do they use the same kind of toner as inkjets, and what's the deal with the price and how long it actually lasts?

Dennis Ramirez53 said:Thanks for getting back to me. 🙂 I really should have just asked for a recommendation right away—what’s actually considered a "best buy" here? Basically, if the upfront cost is a bit higher, I want to make sure I'm not constantly dumping money $50 into ink, but rather being able to just grab some cheap third-party refills. How does it work with laser printers? Do they use the same kind of toner as inkjets use ink, and what's the deal with the cost and how long it lasts?

You see, whenever someone asks a question like this, you always get another interested party jump in to run their own little market analysis. They try to organize things so they can pitch you an "optimal solution." It's a setup where the user gets a deal, but the seller secures their own profit and keeps their specific software running.

The real issue is that such a solution isn't a universal thing. Most big-picture solutions out there are designed primarily to milk the customer later on through proprietary supplies.

But, if someone comes to you locally offering that "perfect" alternative, it starts feeling less like they're helping you and more like they're just forcing their own specific ecosystem on you. That makes having an objective conversation about it pretty tough.

So, we're really only talking about a very specific scenario that fits those exact needs. In almost any other context, that kind of setup just doesn't make sense for a few different reasons.

rustysurfer79 said:You see, when someone drops a question like that into the void, what usually happens is that some other interested party—someone with a bit more foresight—steps in to perform their own little market analysis. They basically organize themselves around the problem to pitch the perfect solution. It’s a delicate balancing act, really—finding that sweet spot where the customer actually sees a real saving, while ensuring the provider secures their own profit margins and keeps the whole application running smoothly without any hiccups. It’s all about maintaining that continuity, I suppose.

I’d say your issue lies in the fact that such a solution isn't really a global fix. In other words—if you look at any "universal" solution out there—they’re almost always designed with one primary goal in mind: ensuring some printer manufacturer can squeeze more profit out of you down the road. It's all just part of the cycle, really.

The problem with these local setups—if someone actually comes to you offering that kind of solution—is that it starts feeling less like helpful advice and more like they're just trying to force their own software down your throat. It stops being about what’s actually good for you and turns into a blatant attempt to dictate which tools you use. Honestly, once that dynamic shifts from utility to control, it becomes nearly impossible to have a real, objective conversation about it. Everything gets clouded by that underlying sense of being pushed around.

Look, we can only really discuss this if we're talking about a very specific set of circumstances—you know, those rare instances where the settings actually align with what’s being asked. In any other context, or frankly, in any other environment, that application is just completely ill-suited for the job. There are too many reasons why it fails to hit the mark outside of such a narrow window.

Cut the nonsense—I’m asking a straightforward question here, so let's just stick to a clear, direct answer.

P.S. You really need to ditch this dealer—and fast.

Mark Hill90 said:Stop talking nonsense. You're giving an answer that's pretty obvious to everyone.

p.s. you seriously need to find a new dealer

And maybe try changing your tune a little.

Actually offer something constructive instead.

Like:

I use the HP Printer .......
The ink costs me about .....
With that much ink, I can get about ....... prints.
So far, I've managed to print ..... copies using this setup.
Total cost has been about $.......

And honestly, I'm super/not really/somewhat happy with it.
In the future, I'll probably switch to .......

Let's all just try being a bit more helpful and real with each other.