in praise of Hewlett Packard printers

[dellzeqq]

so - the A3 Brother printer is hors de combat, but the £49 HP printer has just turned out the most fabulous 600dpi prints I've ever seen. It took for ever to do seven pages, but why, oh why would anybody buy any other brand of cheap printer?

Architectural offices usually run on huge A3 printers with rental agreements. They break down all the time and cost a fortune to keep running. The only office I ever worked in that got it right had little HP deskjets scattered around the place that cost about £100 a go. If one broke down we'd simply nick the boss's credit card and order a new one for next day delivery. Sure the ink costs a mint, but set against the cost of the schlep across to the office printer, the waiting in the queue for your stuff to come out and the wait for a mechanic to come in and tell you that the part is in Japan........

 

[Aperitif]

I have been churning out crap stuff on a HP Deskjet 1220C for five years...and it has put up with me, save for a 'holiday' with Tesco ink. As long as work pay - that's cool. Otherwise, I like the cheapo mono Samsungs or, for colour quality, Canon ip4700. Also, for colour laser stuff HP is beaten by Dell...3130 something or other. Got one upstairs and it works a treat.
But, the HP is robust, agreed. Slow, but robust. Like me. A bit. Well, half. OK slow.

 

[tyred]

You'd be better of with a Canon.

 

[dellzeqq]

I think the 1120C and 1220C were the absolute best HP printers - like a mid 80s Dawes Galaxy. We got tens of thousands of prints off one of them. Sadly they no longer make A3 desktops - hence the crap Brother 6690 beside me

 

[rh100]

I've got a 1220c also, I bought it years ago off the cheapy shelf at PC World for about £80 or so, it rarely gets used but when it does it does so reliably. The photo prints arne't too bad either considering its age.

My main printer is a Canon IP5000, it does everything I want, photo prints (has a separate tray that will adjust to 6x4 paper - saves wastage using A4 etc), border-less prints, duplex, quiet mode on a timer even. It's a few years old aswell - but won't need to replace until it breaks. Highly recommended.

For bulk use - invoices etc you can't go far wrong with a Samsung Mono laserjet. Toners aren't cheap though.

 

[Proto]

Still using a HP laserjet 6P daily. Don't know how old it is but in PC/Peripheral terms it's ancient. 10 or 12 years old?

Not as ancient though as the NEC P30 Pinwriter (yes, dot matrix!) that is also doing sterling work printing our despatch labels. I think we bought this in 1987.

 

[Aperitif]

Should add that I also have a 4050 in regular service for B+W stuff/ labels etc.
One of my colleagues likes these printers so much he named his pet after them - but it ran away.

He was last heard singing "Hewlett the dog's out"

 

[swee'pea99]

The only things that will survive the nuclear holocaust will be cockroaches and Laserjet printers.

 

[dellzeqq]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

the scanner just went down!

whoops!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[dan_bo]

The HP 2100's are chuffing hardcore.