Laserjet Toner?

I am thinking about buying an HP laserjet printer in the near future. I've only owned inkjet printers before this, and I'm tired of having to replace the inkjet cartridges because they dry up before I can finish using them. Also, they're not cheap, as you well know.





We don't use our home printer everyday. Sometimes we don't even turn it on more than once a month. What I was wondering is - does laserjet printer toner become unusable if not used for a long time, like the inkjet ink does, or does it last for a couple of years. I'm thinking that laserjet toner is in powder form already, so it can't dry out since it's already dry? Am I wrong. To replace the toner cartridge would be around $70, which isn't cheap either, but I'm hoping it lasts longer than the inkjet cartridges do. Thanks for any info you can give me.Laserjet Toner?
13 year certified printer tech chiming in.





It's a good decision to move to laser. The machines are more reliable and toner shelf lifes are longer. Expect that your cost for consumables (toner) to cost approximately 1/3 to 1/2 per page of the cost of inkjets. You'll pay more when you replace the cartidge but the yields are higher. Toner usually has a shelf life of around 2 years. After that it will start printing light and gets clumpy with more time.





Toner is made of an iron oxide particle (Micro sized iron filing) that is coated with plastic. Over time, as with other metals, the iron oxide particle will start to decay (like rust) and separate from the plastic. In higher humidity it happens faster, dry climates, slower. But as a rule of thumb, use the two year time frame.





Yields per cartridge vary widely. The more printer you buy, the chaper the cost per page. For your stated volume I would recommend the HP 1020 or 1022 for black and white printing. Both are under $200.00 and really quick.





What ever you choose, I would recommend HP as they have a lion share of the market and they last longer and are easiest to get repaired if something breaks.





I service 17 manufacturer's printers but I only recommend one for general printing. That's HP.





Hope that helps you.Laserjet Toner?
Yeah they don't dry out because they are already powder.


The toner costs a bit more than ink (unless you replace both back and color cartridges), but you usually get a 5000 page yield out of the laser toner cartridges. A laser is a good investment, you'll get many years of use out of it, and with moderate use you'll probably never change the toner
shut up
You're right - toner won't dry out or evaporate like ink, so it lasts way longer !!!