Table of Contents
Introduction
With the ever-increasing digitalization rate, our world gets more and more accustomed to daily e-books and devices such as tablets. The once frequent use for printers has waned quite a bit. This is also connected to the growing realization to bring to fruition a paper-free, environmentally friendly world. However, the need still exists in the form of the once-in-a-blue-moon document, which requires a hard copy, for example, your kid’s assignment or office paperwork.
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All of this has led to most printers taking a back seat, collecting dust for more than a few weeks at a time. Hence, many people need printers for infrequent use.
Things That Happen When a Printer Is Infrequently Used
Such infrequent use leads to the ink cartridges of most run-of-the-mill printers drying out, forcing you to buy expensive new cartridges every time a need for printing arrives.
Thus, it is quite vital to have the right information for knowing which sort of printers work well over time and can, even with infrequent use, store ink cartridges reliably over a long period to avoid unnecessary costs.
5 Best Printers for Infrequent Use
Although there was no such printer designed while keeping infrequent usage in mind, there are some which can suit this sort of requirement to an extent. Let us take, for example, inkjet and laser printers. An inkjet printer generally dries out more quickly than a laser printer; this is mainly due to the fact that laser printers come equipped with a toner, which prevents the ink from drying out over a more extended period.
In such scenarios, it is best to buy a printer that is most suited to your needs rather than a printer that boasts the overall best performance. Hence, we bring you a list of the five best printers for infrequent usage.
Canon PIXMA TR4520
The Canon PIXMA TR4520 is a truly unique product designed with an exceptional output, especially considering the price range in which it’s available. Mostly suited for low duty requirements, the PIXMA TR4520 comes equipped with a USB port and is compatible with both Windows and Mac OS systems.
The machine, with the paper tray empty, can automatically store incoming fax and is also compatible with AirPrint and Google Cloud Print. The device also has a paper tray capable of supporting 100 sheets.
It is also relatively easy to set up using Canon PRINT. There are also other applications that allow graphical tools for editing and are also compatible with the printer itself. This will enable them to print directly to the printer.
Key Features
- Maximum printing resolution is 4800 x 1200 DPI
- The highest printing speed goes up to 8.8 ipm (monochromatic), and up to 4.4 ipm in color
- Color resolution is 4800 x 1200 DPI
- Ink palette supported colors: Cyan, magenta, yellow, pigment black
- Inkjet Technology: Canon FINE (full-lithography inkjet nozzle engineering)
Pros
- PIXMA TR4520 can produce stunning and vibrant photos.
- It can produce documents with very fresh texts even while using font sizes that may be very small.
- It provides borderless printing.
- This printer is a very small product, which saves desk space.
- It is compatible with Alexa voice to provide hands-free mode.
- It is very simple to use and set up.
Cons
- The PIXMA TR4520 has a considerably slow speed while printing documents and photos.
- It is unsuitable for any heavy-duty tasks as it has very high running costs.
- With the multicolor ink cartridge, you will have to replace the entire cartridge even if only one of the colors runs out.
Verdict
The Canon PIXMA TR4520 is an exceptional machine for infrequent usage, considering its price tag. Although it does have high power requirements when considering the fact that its use is supposed to be irregular, you can ignore such a drawback. With great graphical outputs and fresh texts even with a tiny font, the PIXMA TR4520 is one of the best all-in-one printers with great efficiency. Furthermore, its compact design is very suitable, considering its mostly idle nature in this case, which makes it highly adjustable in a wide range of scenarios.
Brother Compact Monochrome Laser Printer, HL-L2350DW
The Brother Compact Monochrome Laser Printer is an introductory level printer that best suits those who have a small budget and even small offices. It allows for high speed and quality printing at a relatively low cost. Its special high replacement yield cartridges allow for double the print-outs at a rate of 30 pages per minute.
With the Brother Compact HL-2350DW, you can print out both legal and letter-sized documents. You can also send printing commands from a laptop, computer, smartphone, or even a tablet. The printer can, however, only print in black.
The Brother Compact has a maximum monthly duty cycle of 15,000 pages and a recommended monthly print volume of 2,000 pages. It also provides a steady and robust design, which helps to ensure the printer can physically keep up with a larger workload.
Key Features
- Offers print speed of 30 pages per minute at below 50dB
- Programmed dual-sided print
- Massive 250-sheet paper input
- Features built-in wireless network
- Contains around 700-page* inbox toner (*Cartridge yield stated in agreement with ISO/IEC 19752)
- Easy setup and usage
Pros
- The Brother Compact has an overall decent print quality.
- It is available at a relatively reasonable price.
- It has a small footprint.
- This printer is considerably fast for a device considered entry-level.
Cons
- The device has no support for external drives.
- The device also lacks an Ethernet port.
Verdict
All things considered, the Brother Monochrome has many cost-saving features. It provides automatic duplex (double-sided) printing, and its toner save mode also helps to cut down on toner costs.
The Brother genuine high-yield toner provides for twice the prints, allowing for great black and white documents with cost-efficient printing.
Canon PIXMA TS6220
The Canon PIXMA TS6220 produces high-quality photos and documents at a similarly high speed. You can consider this product the fastest of this list, and the quality or sharpness which it produces is comparable to those of a laser printer.
It not only prints at an amazing rate but also scans similarly, and even fonts as small as a size six print out with a very fresh look. It offers many features, from borderless printing up to 8.5-by-11 to duplex printing and multiple options for copying. The PIXMA TS6220 can produce very detailed outputs up to 4800×1200 DPI and scan with 1200×2400 resolution.
Canon’s very own message in-print software allows the printing of hidden messages which you can read through the app. Other than that, there are tons of other features that you can access through Canon’s range of software for phones and computers.
Key Features
- The maximum resolution is 4800 x 1200 DPI
- It offers the printable expanse of 8.5 x 14 inches
- Printing speed is 15/10 ipm (black or color)
- You can also get borderless prints of 8.5 x 11 inches
- Five separate cartridges of ink
- Compatible for automatic duplex prints
- 3-inch touchscreen
- Wireless printing and setup
Pros
- The printer provides good mobile device support.
- It has two paper input trays.
- It also has an exceptionally great paper print quality.
- The PIXMA TS6220 is quite simple to set up and easy to use.
- It has a foldable LCD touchscreen, which provides easy navigation.
Cons
- The device has a very high cost of running per print.
- It is unable to print from USB drives directly and also lacks SD card slots.
- The touch screen is sometimes prone to lagging and becoming unresponsive.
Verdict
The Canon PIXMA TS6220 offers high-end features that are unusual considering its price. It is best compatible with low quantity printing of high quality. Furthermore, the expense of replacing its cartridges makes it the most suitable option for infrequent usage.
HP OfficeJet 5255
The HP OfficeJet 5255 is a convenient-to-use casual printer supporting numerous formats of paper and producing detailed and vibrant photos. It is genuinely a device that outshines its costs, considering how much it offers within its price tags. This printer has a wide array of connectivity options, allowing connections from a computer, laptop, mobile, and tablet. It even has Bluetooth connectivity.
A small grayscale touchscreen allows for easy navigation, and the HP Smart App further simplifies tasks for users by letting their smartphones handle the device remotely. It also comes equipped with an automatic feeder with a 35-sheet capacity and supports borderless printing with great attention to detail. It can also scan multiple documents in one go.
Key Features
- Printing speed, black (ISO, laser comparable): Up to 10 ppm
- Printing speed, color (ISO, laser comparable): Up to 7 ppm
- Res (black): Up to 1200 x 1200 rendered DPI (when printing from a computer)
- Res (color): Up to 4800 x 1200 optimized DPI color (from a 1200 input DPI and select HP photo papers)
Pros
- HP OfficeJet 5255 has good print quality overall.
- It has competitive running cost with Instant Ink.
- The photos output is of high quality.
- It has a 35-sheet ADF and dual-band Wi-Fi connectivity.
- The product has reasonable pricing.
- The interface and HP Smart App driver is useful.
Cons
- The running cost without Instant Ink are high.
- It has no multiple paper input tray.
- The ADF lacks auto duplexing function.
Verdict
The OfficeJet 5255 is a well-rounded printer emphasizing efficiency. Considering that it is for infrequent use, most of its drawbacks become null such as its high noise level while operating as it is something which you can occasionally ignore. It is a simple machine that has a professional level output.
HP ENVY 5055
The HP Envy 5055 is one of the best feature-packed budget printers. It is a noise efficient device which ranks relatively low on the scale in terms of power consumption. Although its paper tray is ideal for A4-sized paper, it can also support smaller formats (minimum being 3×5 inches).
The printer also supports borderless printing for all the sizes it supports. It is relatively easy to set up and use through the HP Smart App. The app also allows for printing from social media and also monitor ink levels. The printer comes equipped with a Bluetooth adapter and also supports AirPrint and Google Cloud Print.
Key Features
- Max print res: Up to 1200 x 1200 DPI (monochrome) / up to 4800 x 1200 DPI (color)
- Max print speed: Up to 20 ppm (monochrome) / up to 17 ppm (color)
- First print out time color: 19 sec
- Res B/W: 1200 x 1200 DPI
- Maximum res color: 4800 x 1200 DPI
- Printer drivers/emulations: PCL3 GUI
- Max print speed B/W (ppm): 20 ppm
- Max print speed color (ppm): 17 ppm
- Ink palette supported (colors): Cyan, magenta, yellow, pigment black
Pros
- The HP Envy 5055 has a low upfront cost.
- It has an attractive design and durable build.
- It supports multiple media types and sizes.
- The running cost is low if you opt for HP Instant Ink.
- It is compatible with multiple wireless devices.
- It provides great photo print quality.
Cons
- The running costs are high if you don’t take HP Instant Ink.
- Its touchscreen is not very responsive.
- It has no support for an SD card or Ethernet cable.
Verdict
The Envy 5055 is a great companion for infrequent at home or office usage. However, its cartridges are prone to running out over 100 sheets of paper, which can render its low power consumption usage useless as the running cost stacks up high. In light usage, the printer also allows you to take advantage of the HP Instant Ink scheme.
What To Look for When Choosing a Printer for Infrequent Use
When you are searching for a printer you buy, you probably have a set usage scenario in mind, especially if you’re choosing one for infrequent use. When you do that, there are a few factors that you should keep in mind.
Monochrome or Color
The two main and only models are monochrome and color printers. Monochrome printers can only print out documents in white and black and are unmatchable in results when it comes to such documents. On the other hand, color printers can match wide criteria when it comes to print-outs. However, their versatility comes at the cost of their high running price.
Handling Difficulty
Other than that, you will want to settle for a printer that is relatively easy to handle. A top-tier printer that can take you hours to figure out and get working has already lost half of the value it stood for when you bought it. Ease of use can include user interaction through applications or intuitive control panels. Such devices not only make navigation easy but, in turn, also increase the efficiency associated with the device.
Versatility
The final criteria to consider when opting for a printer is to determine the kind of versatility you want the printer to come with. Different printers provide various ranges of tasks that they can accomplish. An example would be a printer that can even offer faxing instructions.
In such a scenario, versatility does not necessarily equal efficiency. There is no need for an overly versatile printer if all you want to do is print regular black and white documents. In such a case, all the other functions are simply useless.
Recommendation
Of all the printers discussed above, the Canon PIXMA TS6220 undoubtedly tops the list with five individual ink cartridges and outputs of up to 4800×1200 DPI and scans of 1200×2400 resolution. The PIXMA TS6220 boasts the highest speed of all the printers discussed above.
The speed comes into account not only while copying but also while scanning and performing other tasks. Not only that, but its outputs are also comparable to those of a laser printer in sharpness. With a simple-to-use interface and design, the device checks all the marks a good printer must have.
While it does have its disadvantages, for example, an automatic document feeder and the lagging touch screen, which can periodically become unresponsive, it is nothing that you cannot fix. The absence of the automatic document presents an issue that can be ignored, especially if the printer’s usage is supposed to be infrequent and the lagging and unresponsiveness can be fixed through a simple reboot.
The machine offers a jam-packed display of high-end features, which truly makes it deserving of being chosen as the best amongst the list for infrequent use.
Final Words
You can belong to any group of consumers searching for this product: Be it a high-end company or a small startup, or even a household, there are always scenarios where a print or two is needed. What you should know is that a printer suiting infrequent usage is almost always going to be inconvenient for heavy use. That is what makes it fitting for a vice versa criteria. Determining your usage according to your own printing needs comes first, and thus, the final decision remains solely in your own hands.
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