Finally, the manufacturers are listening to me

yustr · 09-26-2005, 08:39 AM

For years, I’ve been saying that they should just give printers away. After all the ink cartridges cost so much they’ll more than make back the cost of the printer.

Well this weekend I bought a laptop and got a free Lexmark printer. Not actually free; I had to buy it but got rebates worth the full purchase price.

I don’t actually need it so I’ll probably donate it to a local not-for-profit. I also got a D-link wireless router with the same deal. (I don’t need that either so if anyone does PM me.)

**Ha-y-n** · 09-26-2005, 01:05 PM

printers are so cheap now that when you run out of ink just buy a new one, instead of replacing the ink. Cheaper.

ebackhus · 09-26-2005, 01:08 PM

I hate Lexmark... Nothing but crap in my opinion. I'm thinking of just investing in a color laser system.

**Ha-y-n** · 09-26-2005, 01:12 PM

i don't hate lexmark, but yah they are crap. that is why it was free

**40sondacurb** · 09-26-2005, 03:37 PM

walmart sells Lexmarks, Lexmarks = crap.

yustr · 09-26-2005, 03:55 PM

Nonsense....

But that's not my point. I have a very nice Epson printer that replaced a great HP that was damaged in my move. The HP cost a couple of hundred (when the wife says "Wow" you buy it regardless of the price). The Epson cost maybe $150 but makes really good photo prints. But buying ink for either I've spent many times the price of the printer. So, they should have given me the printer just to make me buy their ink...

ebackhus · 09-26-2005, 04:35 PM

I've always liked HP printers. I hate their computers. I've never owned an Epson but everyone I know who has or does sing songs of praise for their quality. I paid about $90 for my HP (5740) and so far I'm still on the original tanks. I don't print much so my cost is less over time.

**Fox** · 09-26-2005, 05:03 PM

Lexmark makes utter crap.

Epson, HP (to a lesser extent), and Xerox (for commercial grade printing) all make decent printers.

**JeremyC** · 09-26-2005, 07:30 PM

(raises hand)

Ill take any printer

i just need somehting thatll print regular typing for college

**40sondacurb** · 09-26-2005, 08:05 PM

go to walmart and get ta lexmark. their cheap as heck and do color

I bought one but it didn't come with the usb cable REQUIRED to operate the dang thing.

but lucky for me I had an extra one.

mimo2005 · 09-26-2005, 10:21 PM

when i first bought my first printer back in 98 , i decided to see what was the cheapest ink tank before buying the printer ....and the answer was the brand "canon" since then, i am very happy with it .
I even upgraded this year with a better serie but still with canon ,they are fast and reliable .

hey yustr , they gave you the printer because you bought the laptop ,not because it is free ,it is a bundle ,also why do you want get rid of the D-link wireless ?
You night need it for your laptop ????

yustr · 09-26-2005, 10:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mimo2005

when i first bought my first printer back in 98 , i decided to see what was the cheapest ink tank before buying the printer ....and the answer was the brand "canon" since then, i am very happy with it .
I even upgraded this year with a better serie but still with canon ,they are fast and reliable .

I had an old Canon B200 that served well for many years.

hey yustr , they gave you the printer because you bought the laptop ,not because it is free ,it is a bundle

I know. My point is they SHOULD be free, even if I don't buy anything. Just make me buy their ink. If gas prices keep going up, maybe Shell should start giving away cars that can only be refueled at their stations.

,also why do you want get rid of the D-link wireless ?
You night need it for your laptop ????

I'm already running a Belkin wireless network - it works great. BTW: that router was $9 after rebates. What's up with prices? I recently bought a 180GB HD for $40. New at Staples.

**40sondacurb** · 09-27-2005, 12:11 AM

yeah, tech prices are really settling. I guess as the need for this stuff becomes more and more mainstream the prices for the less than spectacular products is just going to keep falling.

**JeremyC** · 09-27-2005, 07:22 AM

(raises hand)

ill also take a dlink wireless router.....

yustr · 09-27-2005, 07:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JeremyC

(raises hand)

ill also take a dlink wireless router.....

Make a small donation to TSF and they're yours.

mimo2005 · 09-27-2005, 09:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JeremyC

(raises hand)

ill also take a dlink wireless router.....

hurry up make the donation , it is worth it ...

and yustr , it is nice of you to offer them to who might need them .

good people ...in this forum ...good people .

**Fox** · 09-27-2005, 10:45 AM

Canon makes a pretty good printer.

If you can find one of these, I'd highly recommend the Canon BJ-30 (bubble jet) printer. It's extremely small, prints black and white on regular-sized paper, and the ink is dirt cheap on ebay- I'm talking less than 5 bucks for a pack of 3 cartridges.

I'm not sure if you can find them new anymore, but chances are you could probably find this thing for cheap: for instance, this one is about to go for 6 dollars.

There's another one in ebay stores for 14 bucks, but it comes untested without a power supply.

mimo2005 · 09-27-2005, 03:33 PM

this the one i have

and if you bring back the empty inktank to staples ,you get a discount on the new ink tank purchased , so i pay for a brand new one something like 5 bucks

**DumberDrummer** · 09-27-2005, 03:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 40sondacurb

go to walmart and get ta lexmark. their cheap as heck and do color

I bought one but it didn't come with the usb cable REQUIRED to operate the dang thing.

but lucky for me I had an extra one.

I hate that... we spent like 20-30 dollars on a printer, and it didn't come with the cable.

My dad almost went back with a shotgun..... the cable was another 20.

**Spatcher** · 09-27-2005, 05:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DumberDrummer

I hate that... we spent like 20-30 dollars on a printer, and it didn't come with the cable.

My dad almost went back with a shotgun..... the cable was another 20.

LMAO!!!

I have a Epson Stylus CX4600, which I don't mind, but the color printing bites hard. When I had Fedora on my comp it didn't even have drivers so I had to update the OS to get all the drivers. And what ticked me off, is I guess I didn't do something right when I took out my empty ink cartridges, so when I put in the new ones ($37) I had to clean the printer heads (which ate up too much ink). But my color printing is terrible!! Green looks like a tealish color. I have to print it off of my dad's HP printer which I hate because I'm too lazy to go into the next room with a floppy, open Word or whatever, suffer because I have fonts that my dad doesn't have, then print. Half of the time the printer doesn't even start and ......

I agree printers should be free, well basic printers.

09-26-2005, 08:39 AM	#1 (permalink)
yustr Asst. Manager, The Conversation Pit Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Connecticut shore Posts: 6,061 OS: XP Pro My System	Finally, the manufacturers are listening to me For years, I’ve been saying that they should just give printers away. After all the ink cartridges cost so much they’ll more than make back the cost of the printer. Well this weekend I bought a laptop and got a free Lexmark printer. Not actually free; I had to buy it but got rebates worth the full purchase price. I don’t actually need it so I’ll probably donate it to a local not-for-profit. I also got a D-link wireless router with the same deal. (I don’t need that either so if anyone does PM me.) __________________ If there are lawyers or politicians involved, logic may be a very poor tool for reaching a conclusion.

09-26-2005, 01:05 PM	#2 (permalink)
Ha-y-n 12-0, GO WARRIORS! Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Hawaii Posts: 682 OS: WinXP Pro	printers are so cheap now that when you run out of ink just buy a new one, instead of replacing the ink. Cheaper. __________________ bRiAn Harddrive Diagnostic Tools, MemTest86

09-26-2005, 01:08 PM	#3 (permalink)
ebackhus Manager, Design Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: SATX Posts: 14,313 OS: WinXP Pro SP3/Windows 7 RTM My System Blog Entries: 28	I hate Lexmark... Nothing but crap in my opinion. I'm thinking of just investing in a color laser system. __________________ ----------------------------- There are no dumb questions, unless a customer is asking them. Help in the fight against cancer and other serious illnesses.

09-26-2005, 01:12 PM	#4 (permalink)
Ha-y-n 12-0, GO WARRIORS! Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Hawaii Posts: 682 OS: WinXP Pro	i don't hate lexmark, but yah they are crap. that is why it was free __________________ bRiAn Harddrive Diagnostic Tools, MemTest86

09-26-2005, 03:55 PM	#6 (permalink)
yustr Asst. Manager, The Conversation Pit Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Connecticut shore Posts: 6,061 OS: XP Pro My System	Nonsense.... But that's not my point. I have a very nice Epson printer that replaced a great HP that was damaged in my move. The HP cost a couple of hundred (when the wife says "Wow" you buy it regardless of the price). The Epson cost maybe $150 but makes really good photo prints. But buying ink for either I've spent many times the price of the printer. So, they should have given me the printer just to make me buy their ink... __________________ If there are lawyers or politicians involved, logic may be a very poor tool for reaching a conclusion.

09-26-2005, 03:37 PM	#5 (permalink)
40sondacurb Don't be a menace Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 6,285 OS: Vista sp2	walmart sells Lexmarks, Lexmarks = crap.

09-26-2005, 04:35 PM	#7 (permalink)
ebackhus Manager, Design Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: SATX Posts: 14,313 OS: WinXP Pro SP3/Windows 7 RTM My System Blog Entries: 28	I've always liked HP printers. I hate their computers. I've never owned an Epson but everyone I know who has or does sing songs of praise for their quality. I paid about $90 for my HP (5740) and so far I'm still on the original tanks. I don't print much so my cost is less over time. __________________ ----------------------------- There are no dumb questions, unless a customer is asking them. Help in the fight against cancer and other serious illnesses.

09-26-2005, 05:03 PM	#8 (permalink)
Fox TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 7,752 OS: XP Pro, CentOS My System	Lexmark makes utter crap. Epson, HP (to a lesser extent), and Xerox (for commercial grade printing) all make decent printers. __________________ Antec Neo Power 500W, ABIT IP35-E, Intel E2180@2.66Ghz, Corsair XMS2 2x1GB DDR2-800, PNY 8800GT, 320GB Seagate * lazy college student alert *- If I've inadvertently ignored a thread, please Let me know about it Have I helped you solve your problem? Donate to Techsupportforums Klart Skepp!

09-26-2005, 07:30 PM	#9 (permalink)
JeremyC Resident Alchemist Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Virginia Posts: 1,148 OS: SuSE 10.0/XP Pro	(raises hand) Ill take any printer i just need somehting thatll print regular typing for college __________________

09-26-2005, 08:05 PM	#10 (permalink)
40sondacurb Don't be a menace Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 6,285 OS: Vista sp2	go to walmart and get ta lexmark. their cheap as heck and do color I bought one but it didn't come with the usb cable REQUIRED to operate the dang thing. but lucky for me I had an extra one.

09-26-2005, 10:21 PM	#11 (permalink)
mimo2005 Manager, Emeritus Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 11,142 OS: xp	when i first bought my first printer back in 98 , i decided to see what was the cheapest ink tank before buying the printer ....and the answer was the brand "canon" since then, i am very happy with it . I even upgraded this year with a better serie but still with canon ,they are fast and reliable . hey yustr , they gave you the printer because you bought the laptop ,not because it is free ,it is a bundle ,also why do you want get rid of the D-link wireless ? You night need it for your laptop ???? __________________ TSF has outgrown its server, again. Please help "Gutta cavat lapidem, non vi sed saepe cadendo"

09-27-2005, 12:11 AM	#13 (permalink)
40sondacurb Don't be a menace Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 6,285 OS: Vista sp2	yeah, tech prices are really settling. I guess as the need for this stuff becomes more and more mainstream the prices for the less than spectacular products is just going to keep falling.

09-27-2005, 07:22 AM	#14 (permalink)
JeremyC Resident Alchemist Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Virginia Posts: 1,148 OS: SuSE 10.0/XP Pro	(raises hand) ill also take a dlink wireless router..... __________________

09-27-2005, 10:45 AM	#17 (permalink)
Fox TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 7,752 OS: XP Pro, CentOS My System	Canon makes a pretty good printer. If you can find one of these, I'd highly recommend the Canon BJ-30 (bubble jet) printer. It's extremely small, prints black and white on regular-sized paper, and the ink is dirt cheap on ebay- I'm talking less than 5 bucks for a pack of 3 cartridges. I'm not sure if you can find them new anymore, but chances are you could probably find this thing for cheap: for instance, this one is about to go for 6 dollars. There's another one in ebay stores for 14 bucks, but it comes untested without a power supply. __________________ Antec Neo Power 500W, ABIT IP35-E, Intel E2180@2.66Ghz, Corsair XMS2 2x1GB DDR2-800, PNY 8800GT, 320GB Seagate * lazy college student alert *- If I've inadvertently ignored a thread, please Let me know about it Have I helped you solve your problem? Donate to Techsupportforums Klart Skepp!

09-27-2005, 03:33 PM	#18 (permalink)
mimo2005 Manager, Emeritus Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 11,142 OS: xp	this the one i have and if you bring back the empty inktank to staples ,you get a discount on the new ink tank purchased , so i pay for a brand new one something like 5 bucks __________________ TSF has outgrown its server, again. Please help "Gutta cavat lapidem, non vi sed saepe cadendo"