Laser printers use toner powder rather than ink fluid to produce a print, we will show you why this can have its benefits and other benefits of a laser printer over an inkjet printer.
1. Toner Cartridges
Firstly lets look at the toner cartridge on a laser printer.
You will more often then not find a toner cartridge will print more pages / have a higher yield then your average ink cartridge meaning you have to replace them less. They are normally more expensive to buy outright initially but the CPP (Cost Per Print) is what you truly need to pay attention to.
A middle of the road toner cartridge may have a yield of 2,500 prints... in comparison to a middle of the road inkjet printer that may only get around 800 prints (and cost you more!)
Here is a quick price example of a toner cartridge and ink cartridge comparison on two $600 colour multifunction printers.
HP Colour LaserJet Pro M477DW found online around $600 Black Toner $205 @ 6,500 prints
HP Officejet Pro X476dw also found around $600 Black Ink $115 @ 3,000 prints
2. Maintenance
Laser printers have four main consumables toner cartridges, drum units, a transfer belt and a fuser unit. With the units such as a transfer belt and fuser unit typically being replaced at a much longer interval then a toner cartridge. Most printer issues such as print quality deterioration, smudging and lines on prints and copies are easy to troubleshoot by eliminating the cause from each part.
3. Paper Jams
Getting a paper jam in a laser printer is really no big deal. Because laser printers are typically designed for the office environment and handle a larger print volume, they are expected to jam occasionally. Most laser printer models give you the ability to take out the major components of your machine easily. Making removing even the toughest of paper jams seem quite easy.
4. Duty Cycle & Shelf Life
With laser printers using a toner powder for the consumable and not an ink fluid you will have zero issues leaving your printer off for months at a time. No leaked ink cartridges or dried print heads in sight. All you need to do is give your paper tray rollers a quick clean as you can experience paper jams from dust on the roller if it has been sitting for some time.
5. Pint Speed
Last on the list is print speed, as it isn't a large factor in a lot of consumers decision making process. But, for those of you that speed matters a laser print might be your only choice. Because there is no 'drying time' on a laser printer you can get a much faster print output speed, with most entry level laser printers offering a standard 20 pages minute print speed.