Today, printers for home and office are more affordable and accessible than ever.

Of course, the cost of these printers depends on how modern their functions and capabilities are, but they all fully fulfill their main function—they print. Some cheap printers even have mobile and duplex features.

We’ll tell you which of these modern printer functions you should pay attention to as well as recommend specific devices at affordable prices.

To start, what are the differences between printers that have a significant gap in price?

The speed at which they print

This is expressed as the number of pages printed per minute (ppm). For expensive printers, the print speed varies, but it’s about 40 or more pages per minute. For cheap printers, the print speed is about 10 to 20 pages per minute. If you’re not limited in time, then you don’t need high printing speed, and you can save money by compromising on this feature.

Print quality for text and images

These parameters are noticeably better in expensive models, especially laser printers, which are ideal for those who are professionally engaged in printing, or regularly print advertising materials.

However, if you only need to print text, an inexpensive printer will be enough.

Service life and operation

Expensive does not mean reliable. Any printer that performs a large volume of tasks is subject to the wear and tear that comes with a significant workload, even an expensive one. So if you plan to only use the printer lightly (even if daily), an inexpensive printer can last just as long if not longer than an expensive model that’s used heavily.

Monochrome or color print modes

There is no need to spend extra money in this area if you plan to print primarily in black and white. Firstly, color printers are more expensive than monochrome ones, and secondly, you will incur additional costs for the purchase of color consumables.

Cable or wireless printer connection

Any printer can be connected to a computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone via a cable (usually USB), or via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. The advantages of a cable connection are a stable connection, easy printer setup, and fast processing of print jobs.

However, if you plan to connect the printer to different devices at the same time, make sure the printer you choose has a wireless connection too.

Printing on both sides

Some printers allow you to print on both sides of a sheet of paper. This is a useful feature, as it saves paper. Unfortunately, this function is not often found in budget models. Usually printers that have this feature are the more expensive devices.

Scan and copy capabilities

Thankfully, even budget-friendly options can be multifunction, which means they can not only print, but copy and scan as well.

To be continued…