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All-in-One Printers: HP v. Competitors

In the past choosing a printer wasn't much of a problem as the choice was almost always HP. I'm discovering their printer products have become less reliable and am looking for some experiential guidance as I try and locate a reliable All-in-One that is prudent on the ink cartridge side and robust in resolution. The functions I am mainly interested are printing, scanning and copying. Faxing and loading photos at the printer does not interest me. I checked CNET's web site and discovered a conflict where CNET rates HP high but reviewers seem to tear them up indicating dissatisfaction with HP overall. I have to admit I am apprehensive about purchasing a non-HP printer but when it comes down to quality and reliability, I may have to kick HP to the curb. I've witnessed two HP All-in-One's with scanner failures which would be costly to repair; they are currently good for printing only. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

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michko

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eegpt

ASKER

Thanks Michko, my feeling about those reviewers is that you may have a negative responder that has limited technical skills and decides it's HP's fault. I have to admit the reviews for HP are predominantly positive (CNET) but the negatives tend to drag the overall score down. Individual ink cartridges and making Faxing an option are improvements I see within HP. Is there any particular model I should review?

Thanks

michko

What model to review depends on a lot of factors. Black & White, or Color? Networked or stand-alone? What size paper to print? What printing speed? etc.

HP has a pretty good multi-function buying guide at this link:
http://www.hp.com/sbso/buyguides/pg_printers.html

You can also use their "Help me choose" tool. If you haven't used it, it just walks you through some basic questions, then recommends some solutions that fit your needs.

As far as personal experience, we've got a Laserjet M4345, a Laserjet 3052, and couple Photosmart C4200s that we're pretty happy with.