Combo Printer, Fax, Photocopier and Scanner

cormie

Hi,
I am interested in getting a combo Printer, Photocopier Scanner and Fax Machine. I wouldn't like to spend any more than €120 or so. It would be great if the printer could print lab quality prints. Pages Per Minute etc don't really matter, just a good quality printer that is cheap to maintain (whether using third party or manufacturer cartridges).

I would like the scanner, fax and photo copier to be flat-bed.

If anyone has any info, please share:)

And if any have a free paper shredder included, that's a plus too!

vox

Dell have them for less than 120 including vat and delivery. They are decent enough.

http://www1.euro.dell.com/content/products/category.aspx/printer?c=ie&cs=iedhs1&l=en&s=dhs

C Fodder

Or buy a cheap HP PSC in any computer shop 99 - 119 and you can get the ink anywhere not just from dell

cormie

Thanks for the tips. Is it just as well to get this in an Irish retail shop as online because delivery would be quite allot from an online shop.

Which would be better between the HP and the Dell so? I have some personal issues with Dell so I would prefer the non Dell type if they are the same price/quality etc. And yes, getting replacement ink from Dell would be a pain!

Is there any of much better quality around for an extra €10 or so?

Will these do lab quality photo prints?

kasintahan

€120 "Lab Quality" All in One?

Sorry mate, not possible.

Digital Labs use 7/8 colour printing processes, matched paper, gloss and coatings.

Don't believe the hype about lab quality from home unless you're looking to spend €300 plus on a photo printer (Epson R series are good).

You will end up paying as much per print in ink and paper though, and quite possibly more.

cormie

Thanks for pointing that out.

So out of all the combos out there, which would be the best to go for? Best quality and best for low cost replacements, ease of use etc. Also, are there any that can fax without the need of the pc? Just over the phone line so I can receive faxes too through it.

Sponge Bob

epson rx420 around €150 argos, and good clone carts for about €2.25 each in 7dayshop see .

http://www.7dayshop.com/catalog/normal_search_result.php?PHPSESSID=&keywords=rx420&desc_search=1&x=8&y=10

avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell

cormie

Yeah, I'd like to avoid Dell myself.

Is there any out there with a Fax you can hook up a phone line up to? Is the epson rx420 the best option if there is no fax option to get?

heggie

epson dont ever make fax all in ones, so your limited to hp or lexmark really, not sure if canon do fax, i think they do. Stay away for lexmark too.

cormie

Is there any particular model of HP or Cannon that do independant (only phone line required for sending and receiving) faxing do you know?

Thanks for all the feedback thus far.

heggie

all hp are i think, again not sure about canon. I think all all-in-ones dont need a pc to send the fax's

cormie

Cool thanks,

So would the fax Combos have a touch tone telephone to dial in the number to send the fax to or how does it work? Do you input the number somehow? How?

If I could get a Canon with a fax, would it be better than a HP for the same pricE?

Jammer

theres fax services built into XP. the faxes on printers arent great. Recieving a fax is an exact science. Get a RX420 as mentioned, best value for money around that price range.

cormie

Hi again,
thanks for the advice.

I picked up an Argos Sale catalogue today, offers valid until July 29th.

Scanner All in ones:

HP PSC 1350, Was 199.99, Now 132.49
HP PSC 1315, Was 149.99, Now 99.99
Lexmark X5250, Was 149.99, Now 74.99
Lexmark X1180, Was 89.99, Now 59.99
Canon MP370, Was 219.99, Now 144.99

Now on the Canon one, from Amazon it works out at about €180 so is €144.99 a good deal from Argos? Which of the above is the best deal would anyone know? Would it still be better to go for the twice suggested RX420 over any of these?

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated as if these deals are good I'd like to avail of them before the sale ends.

Thanks

digitally-yours

Hi
i am interested in one too
i think this is the best one as far as performmance

Canon Smartbase MP370 Multifunction Printer

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/tg/stores/detail/-/electronics/B00029HBHO/system-requirements/ref=ed_tec_dp_2_1/202-9815138-8715813

where you can get this one cheapest any idea??

or anyone has better alternative
the next best thing i had in mind is this
HP psc 1350 - Multifunction ( colour ) - copying (up to): 17 ppm (mono) / 12 ppm (colour) - printing (up to): 17 ppm (mono) / 12 ppm (colour)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/tg/stores/detail/-/electronics/B0000DJQ50/system-requirements/ref=ed_tec_dp_2_1/202-9815138-8715813

any ideas

Sponge Bob

Canon (in fairness) are the cheapest original cartridges and would be my second choice after Epson. I would never buy any other apart form Canon and Epson .

You can get original Canon Carts for that printer for about €6 each here

http://www.7dayshop.com/catalog/default.php?cPath=777_2_203_20301&sort=2a&&page=2

The worst are Lexmark, followed by Dell, followed by HP .

cormie

Ok so basing on that info it's between the Epson RX420 and the Canon MP370.

Now I had a look at an old Argos Catalogue, a few months old, and I saw both the RX and the MP, the RX was €150 and the Canon was actually €220. So judging by this, is the Canon the better deal to go for if they are both now €150?

cormie

Just read the customer reviews on Amazon, the Canon sounds the business alright. Oh and the Canon in the sale is €5 less than the Epson:D

cormie

If anyone could answer soon I'd be grateful, I'm about to go and buy one. I'm more inclined to buy the Canon at this stage. Should I go for the rx instead? why? Thanks.

ButtermilkJack

I take it you don't need fax capabilities anymore? Both these models are printer/scanner/copier only. No standalone fax.

I'm looking for a printer/fax/scanner/copier too and will update wih anything I come accross. I need network abilities too. Not sure if this throws up any problems?

cormie

I would like the standalone fax included yes, but is there any out there that do this?

How is the fax software on XP? I tried to use it before but it never worked.

Are you able to send and receive fax over broadband?

ButtermilkJack

Found these on elara.ie

HP OfficeJet 4110
Photo Quality All In One Printer Scanner Copier Fax
€206.16

HP OfficeJet 6210
Flatbed Print Fax Scan Copy
€305.28

HP Photosmart 2610
Flatbed Printer Fax Scanner Copier
€308.92

Not sure about the XP fax and broadband?

cormie

Elare seem like a bit of a rip off, they have the Canon one for €230 inc vat compared to €145 at Argos. With them flatbed prices, even on amazon.co.uk they are pretty steap, €289 for the HP Photosmart 2610. I'm not prepared to pay another €145 for just the fax element and Canon are said to be better than HP so I think I'll just have to resort to using the XP Fax service. As long as I have a scanner and photo copier I Should be ok as I people rarely use fax anyway??? I have access to a fax machine anyway if I really need it.

Have you an oppinion on which to get between the Canon MP370 and the Epson RX420?

cormie

Ok, I'm about to go out and buy the Canon MP370, if anyone has any final words of advice, please say them now

ButtermilkJack

The OfficeJet 4110 looks like a good machine. It's not flatbed, but I'm sure you could find it cheaper elsewhere. I agree, elara seem a bit dear.

As far as I'm aware, using a computer as a fax means you need it on at the same time as the person is sending through the fax. No? Would it not be better to buy a fax/scanner.... and leave it plugged into the phoneline (which is vacant anyway if using BB). I know I'd prefer that option.

I'll have a look at the other two models and get back later. I'd probably go for Canon over Epson anyway.

ButtermilkJack

Just saw www.officeevolutions.ie

They let you try before you buy. i think they just deliver it to you and away you go. Not sure if it's just for businesses though. Might be worth a call.

cormie

I need a flatbed. If there was a flatbed with telephone line fax, copier, printer for about €150 I'd probably get that. Although some of the features on the Canon above are very handy and may be used more than the fax. It would be handy to have a fax machine though. If my house phone was being used when a fax was coming through, what would happen? Could maybe just keep an eye out for a 2nd hand fax machine/phone?

cormie

The 4110 is available here for about €110 or so. It's a pitty it's not a flat bed! The lowest price for the 2610 I saw was about £170 which is pretty dear. What's the difference between the 2610 and the 6210? They are both the same price really. Also, HP aren't supposed to be the best, so I've heard.

Sponge Bob

if you need to receive fax only (not send) try this

its free .

cormie

Thanks for that link, but don't you have to reside in the UK? You can only receive faxes from UK numbers and you probably have to be in the UK too:(

Any others like that for free without them restrictions?

I think I might just go for the Canon. I reserved one in Argos in Stephens Green anyway, it's open till 8 tonight so I have then till decide, and I get free parking after 7pm! woooo!

I've only ever needed to fax something once, it could have been emailed if I had a scanner though. Which I will have once I have this. I was also doing business through email and they had an error with their email account and couldn't use it for a day or two, the fax would have been handy then. I'm not sure if it would open new doors for poker.ie either. I doubt having a fax would make much of a difference in this day and age really.

What do you folk think?

cormie

Just checked ebay.ie anyway, saw a fax machine there, the guy bought it 2nd hand and has never used it, starting bid is £0.99. There are probably going to be another few like this posted so I think if I do eventually need a fax, I'll just get a 2nd hand one, it will only be used once in a blue moon and I don't think it's worth the sacrifice of the features of the Canon model to go and get a HP one with the built in fax, and with the 2 combined I can do the same job anyway.

cormie

Well I just bought the MP370, haven't tested it yet but first complaint, no buckin usb lead, you'd think when packaging a product like this with ink and everything they'd slip in a lead that would probably cost them about €1 :rolleyes: hopefully that's the last complaint I have about it:)

is_that_so

cormie wrote:

I would like the standalone fax included yes, but is there any out there that do this?

How is the fax software on XP? I tried to use it before but it never worked.

Are you able to send and receive fax over broadband?

If you are in business, or VAT registered I'd look at Viking Supplies as well.
www.vikingdirect.ie

As regards the fax, it MUST use the phone line only. You can't use it on BB. So plug it into phone line socket. I think you may need software if you want it to handle phone and fax through PC. But google away for that

cormie

ButtemilkJack, you may want to check out the MP390, it's the same as the MP370 but it has a fax too, I was looking at the setup sheet for mine and saw a diagram with phone sockets I got very excited and saw (MP390 only) ah well. I've been offered a free fax machine already!!! wooo!

I checked out Viking, I just compared one printer MP730 to Amazon, it works out at about €360 from Amazon but it's €440 from VD :rolleyes:

I think I got a good deal anyway??

ButtermilkJack

Sounds like you done well mate. By the way, after years of buying printers, I've come to accept the fact that no printer manufacturer has ever supplied a usb cable. Like you said, probably €1 or €2.

I'll check out that Canon printer with fax, cheers!! Hope all goes well with the purchase.

cormie

Thanks, same for you:)

now where is the best place to get a cheap cable? It says USB cable (Less than 16 3/8 ft./5 m)... that doesn't make allot of sense to me. Will the one 2 down here do? Are all them cables there USB 2 or is the last on only USB 2? I take it I need the USB 2 one for €5 since it says here "USB 2.0 high interface".

Are they generally only €5? They are from €10-€20 in argos :mad:

silent

the canon mp370/390 looks nice on paper but it's drawbacks are:
loud printing
slow - slowest all in one in the price range
ink use - using common color cartridge not seperate tanks for each ink
a lot of people reviews I read complained about build quality too
text print is supposed to be not as good as other printers, photo/graphics is excelent though

if you can up your budget a bit - it's worth it IMHO - take a look at the canon mp780
have one myself, fantastic printer
- has duplex (though note that duplex is about 1/3 of the speed than standard)
- has ADF (automatic document feeder) for scanning - very handy
- ability to print on printable cd's/dvd's
- two paper sources (cartridge and inline)
- very quiet, fast text print can be heard but photo print is inaudible almost, has even a night mode that reduces noise even further for text printouts
- 5 ink cartridges, 2xblack 1x cyan, 1x magenta, 1x yellow. and original canon ink is cheap too. replacement non-canon tends to smear with black on photo output
- a4 borderless of course
cons:
- no ethernet connection
- no linux drivers for anything but the printing part but that's common sadly

the mp730 is a nice printer as well, worth a look. edit: just saw that you bought the mp730, a very good choice
check pcmag.com for very good reviews IMHO, as well as epinions.com too

cormie

just saw that you bought the mp730, a very good choice

Hi,
Thank you for your feedback. Just on what you said above, I actually bout the mp370, do you still have the oppinion it was a very good choice?

I checked pricing of the 780 and the 730 and they far out stretch my budget, both being more than double the cost of the MP370 I bought. The noise isn't really a problem, it does have a silent mode too, which I haven't checked. I haven't given it a proper go yet as I haven't even got the USB cable, but there is one hiccup so far, when photocopying, I set it to borderless and it automatically set it to fine quality, when I go to change from fine quality on the lcd, I can't change back to normal. I don't know what I did or how I solve it. Hopefully it's not a fault and can be easily resolved. Any ideas?

Thanks for all the feedback:)

silent

cormie wrote:

Hi,
Thank you for your feedback. Just on what you said above, I actually bout the mp370, do you still have the oppinion it was a very good choice?

I checked pricing of the 780 and the 730 and they far out stretch my budget, both being more than double the cost of the MP370 I bought. The noise isn't really a problem, it does have a silent mode too, which I haven't checked. I haven't given it a proper go yet as I haven't even got the USB cable, but there is one hiccup so far, when photocopying, I set it to borderless and it automatically set it to fine quality, when I go to change from fine quality on the lcd, I can't change back to normal. I don't know what I did or how I solve it. Hopefully it's not a fault and can be easily resolved. Any ideas?

Thanks for all the feedback:)

I think the mp370 too is good value if you can live with it's drawbacks. When I was looking for a all-in-one about 3 months back, the mp390 was one of my candidates but I droped it due to lack of ADF. the mp780 was hella expensive (~350E from amazon.uk) but I'm glad that I got it (the mp750 without the fax part was 50E cheaper, maybe I shoulda gone with that option since I very very rarely use the fax)
anyway, if you don't print too much and don't mind the bit nosier (i'm going by the opinion I found on the net, haven't tested the mp370/390 myself) and lack of adf/duplex and slower operation - I think it's good value for money, certainly better than those ~100E other all-in-ones IMHO.

btw, I tested the borderless on my mp780 - can't select other quality than glossy/photo, plain quality is only possible with non-borderless - on printer this is, haven't tested in driver since I'm booted in linux right now. I can disable the borderless with the cancel button. Maybe your's will be similar.

usb cable - maplin - not the expensive 10-15 'brand' cables, a normal 3m usb2 cable should not be more than 5E. Look for it, they tend to put their expensive brand crap in the foreground though.

cormie

Great, thanks for all the advice. Hopefully the fine quality setting isn't a problem and I'll be able to get back to the way it was. I'll test it later anyway:)

ButtermilkJack

silent wrote:

...if you can up your budget a bit - it's worth it IMHO - take a look at the canon mp780 have one myself, fantastic printer... cons: no ethernet connection...

Hey silent, was thinking of getting one of these after reading your review. Quick question though. You mention it has no ethernet port, I take it the only way to have this available to two machines on a wireles network is to buy a usb wireles print server, right?

ButtermilkJack

Sh1t, just read the specs, not compatible with Mac OS 9.2.2

Ah well, the search goes on.....

Barrie

Sponge Bob wrote:

epson rx420 around €150 argos, and good clone carts for about €2.25 each in 7dayshop see .

http://www.7dayshop.com/catalog/normal_search_result.php?PHPSESSID=&keywords=rx420&desc_search=1&x=8&y=10

avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell
avoid dell

Bought one of these printers last week.(rx420)I had a hp 7600 photo smart didnt like it and the ink was too exspensive.
Excellent printer good quality prints includes 50 free 10x15cm glossy paper.
Im looking at a site which is only charging 85c per cartridge.The site is in the bargain alerts.

silent

ButtermilkJack wrote:

Hey silent, was thinking of getting one of these after reading your review. Quick question though. You mention it has no ethernet port, I take it the only way to have this available to two machines on a wireles network is to buy a usb wireles print server, right?

as with everything there's a catch - no macOS as you say (probably should work somehow at least for printing) - all-in-ones you can share on the net via windows sharing, however only the printer part AFAIK. scanning/fax only on the system where the printer is connected via usb.
wireless print server is possible, as simply sharing via windows (that system needs to be up of course then for the network sharing to work)