


If you print a lot of photos, you can opt for HP’s Instant Ink program (a six-month trial is included with your initial purchase), which brings the cost of each color page to as little as 2.9¢, including glossies. But it also prints beautifully (and quickly), scans well, has great apps for PCs and mobile devices, and prints for an affordable 2.2¢ per page in black or 8.9¢ per page in color. With that in mind, we’re rounding up the best at-home printers according to the people. (See our introduction to this series here.) Our recommendations range from our deputy editor’s beloved minimalistic laser printer to something called the EcoTank, which saved a Hollywood screenwriter from his nightmare with ink.The HP OfficeJet Pro 9015e is likely to be the easiest printer you’ve ever had to set up, and that alone is enough to recommend it. There are color laser printers, but they’re often prohibitively expensive for personal use. If you want to print in color, you probably want to stick with inkjet printers. Plus laser printers are faster and have superior print quality with text that looks much more precise and clear. And while inkjet printers can be much cheaper, they don’t tend to last as long as laser printers, and you do have to factor in the cost of more frequent ink refills. Inkjet printers use liquid ink, while laser printers use a powder ink that’s melted on the page.

The biggest thing to consider is whether you want an inkjet or a laser printer. Most at-home, nonprofessional printers are all-in-one units, which means they include some form of scanner and fax machine, but if you don’t need those features, you can save a little money by finding a print-only machine. It’s not particularly hard to find a printer that will suit your day-to-day needs. For most of us, a small and discreet printer that can handle the occasional online form or shipping label will be plenty. Unless you’re a lawyer or an author, or in some other profession that relies on printing a lot of documents, you probably don’t need one of those gargantuan, gray, rectangular printers. But one thing most of us don’t think about having until we actually need it is a printer. Over the past two years, your home may have suddenly transformed into a makeshift office complete with a comfortable desk and chair, a wireless keyboard, and a wireless mouse.
