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Most families and small businesses start colour printing with an inkjet printer. The upside of inkjet printers is that they are inexpensive to buy and operate. The downside, however, is that the cartridges seem to run out very quickly, particularly when the printed page is covered in colour images.

When the disadvantages present themselves, many people start to consider buying a colour laser printer.

Laser printers use a dry substance called toner, and the cartridges that hold toner are much larger than inkjet cartridges and tanks.

Toner is unique to each printer. The actual toner particle, when viewed under a microscope forms a shape that requires the particular process of its allocated printer to form the perfect image that you asked it to print.

To ensure that toners are not mixed up, toner cartridges are shaped differently. A manufacturer will sometimes create a number of printers in a range that use the same cartridge, but a new range will usually mean a new type of cartridge. This can cause confusion when your company grows and decides to add new laser printers to their office.

The colours
Like inkjet printers, colour laser printers have four coloured toners - black, cyan(blue), yellow and magenta(pink/red). Mono laser printers only print in black.

High and low-yield (capacity) cartridges
When you buy your laser printer, the supplier generally includes half-filled, or low-yield, cartridges. With many printers it's possible to purchase high-yield cartridges (or ink tanks). These high-yield cartridges are always more economical, as the low-yields are usually half the capacity but much more than half the price. Be aware that many of the large stationery suppliers don't stock high-yield cartridges. Why would they when low-yield cartridges mean you come back more often and pay more for your cartridges?

Other consumables
Many colour laser printers have additional consumables that need to be replaced. For example, a printer might have inexpensive toner tubes that are under $100, but also have a maintenance kit, fuser unit and drum unit that need to be replaced after 5 to 10 toner cartridges. These items can cost many hundreds of dollars, and need to be factored into your budget/cash flow and your cost per page analysis.

Laser printer manufacturers often change the design or capacity of cartridges when they introduce new models. Finding the right cartridge for your laser printer can sometimes be confusing.

The experts at The Cartridge Family have eight years of cartridge and printer knowledge, and can easily guide you to the best solution to your laser printer and consumable needs. Even if you're standing in the printer or cartridge aisle and considering your purchase, call us for free advice.

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