Finding a Great Deal for a Little Cash

The Epson Workforce 30 is limited in functionality--you won't get a fax or scanner or copier in this almost-full-size unit--but it what it does, it does very well. In particular, photos look fantastic, in large measure thanks to the DuraBrite ink that Epson uses, but you won't sacrifice basic black-and-white quality either. For well under a hundred bucks, this is a pretty good deal.

An outstanding, low-end all-in-one printer from Canon--what else needs to be said? It retails for just over $100, so it doesn't exactly fit the category; but you get all the features you could want, plus the quality and dependability of Canon. Sure, the LCD is a bit small and it doesn't network, but nevertheless, this is certainly a best buy.

For the money (only about 50 bucks), it's hard to raise a complaint about this HP all-in-one printer. The Deskjet F4280 did an excellent job on black-and-white as well as color graphics, and photos look great as well. While it lacks a fax and is made for casual use only, it still performs as requested. For heavier use, though, the consumables (replacement inkjet tanks) might eliminate any initial cost savings.

For about a hundred bucks, you can hardly go wrong with the Pixma MP480 all-in-one--unless you intend to use it a lot. Then, you're likely to find that the options it lacks (an automatic document feeder, a paper tray) will make a more expensive all-in-one a better choice. And while it's advertised as a photo printer, it's not as portable as other photo printers in this price range, so decide what you're looking for and what you need before you buy.

Ok, heads up: this printer retails for about $150, so technically it's beyond the scope of this piece. But it's a laser printer, which means that your total cost of ownership is ultimately going to be a lot lower than for an inkjet printer, since the toner cartridges last a lot longer than ink tanks. And there's a lot to like about this monochrome laser printer. It's quiet, fast, efficient, and very cool looking. Warm up is only about 15 seconds, quick for a laser, and it cranks out pages at about 15 pages a minute. So if you don't need to print in color, and you like having a futuristic-looking office, maybe splurge a bit and go for the laser.