Hello everyone! So I want to know what printer everyone has that they LOVE! We have a Canon Pixma all in one printer that is great…except the thing just drinks ink! Which the ink is not cheap. It is ready to be refilled again and this will be the 3rd time this year. 
With starting to homeschool our DD I can’t keep filling the ink up in that thing. So I am wanting to get a second printer just for printing in black and white. I can still use the Canon for the occasions I print in color, so I am really interested in what printers you ladies use that you love and that are great on their ink usage. Also if you know about how many pages you can print before you have to replace the ink that would be wonderful. But, any information would be appreciated! Thanks.
I have a black-and-white laser printer that I love. It’s a Brother HL-2270 which I think may be discontinued, but there may be an updated version available. Laser ink is relatively cheap. Third-party ink is very cheaper and lasts a long time.
I was having the same problem…burning through ink (and money) like crazy. I ended up getting this Brother laser printer. So far I love it. Prints fast, is wireless, and can make copies too.
I just had to change the starter toner that it came with, and I bought a 3rd-party one on Amazon. I am hoping it works because I never had much luck with the off-brand ink cartridge for my inkjet.
Here is another (cheaper) option but I went with the first one because it can make copies.
We use the Brother HL-3170 CDW and love it. I don’t have all the specs handy, but here are some of the main features that we like. It is a network printer, so we can all share it. The ink seems to last a long time. It prints pages quickly. The pages look amazing. We have had good success with the toner refills, which lower the cost of ink when we do replace it.
If you do a search on the community here (use the magnifying glass in top right) there are several other printer posts that may have additional information. You might also be able to just browse the Tech Tips category:
https://community.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/c/tech-tips
Good luck!
I have an ancient HP Deskjet F4135 All-In-One.
Fairly economical on ink and the best part is that HP has a website that you can order from and with an account - free next business day shipping. . . .and better prices than even the box stores in our area.
I don’t keep track of # of pages, I just get on line and reorder with the next business day shipping and the order is most always here before lunch (coming from Tennessee to Wyoming)
I hope this helps some of you. I have posted before that we use a CIS–continuous ink system–in our HP laser printer. We spend $40 A YEAR on ink. And I print everything!
I have no affiliation, but we found that DIYinks store on eBay is the best–they answer the phone and are friendly and helpful!’
http://stores.ebay.com/doityourselfinks
Blessings, donna
I have a Canon Pixma as well. With the encouragement of the IT guy from school (I’ve recently retired) and a couple of other IT guys, I’ve bought cheap ink with no problem. $10 dollars for all 6 colors!!! at Amazon and/or ebay.
After hundreds of copies I had to do a clean up with the help of a you tube video. It was easy and the Canon keeps on printing.
Hope this encourages you.
Judy
We have used several Brother laser printers and have loved them all. I had six in the accounting firm my husband and I worked in, one at our small business and one at home (husband has used it through Ph.D. Program and law school and a year of me being a teacher and a year of me doing homeschool preschool. We replace toner about one time per year with heavy use). I have never experienced a problem with any of them (three different models).
I have this one
It came with a half filled tank and I have printed approx 500 pages so far. Honestly, I don’t check the gauge when I print, so I’m not sure if it’s reading low or not. It’s not faded or anything. We are very happy with it. I wanted a compact one and this fits very well on our book case. It also prints with no problems on card stock if that is something you do.