Category: Printer & All in Ones

Are you a student who needs an affordable printer for your printing needs?

Tired of paying for expensive prints every time a school project is due?

Having to wait in the long queue at the school’s printing shop during submission deadlines?

Perhaps you are a parent who grimaces at the struggle of your children, and wishes to make their lives easier.

Students (and parents) rejoice! In this article, you will learn how you can save money on printing by investing in the right affordable home printers perfectly suited for your needs.

Why Do Students Need Affordable Printers

But first, let us address the elephant in the room — do children, teenagers and youths need printers?

The short answer is a resounding yes! Here are four reasons why students need low-priced printers at home.

Printing of School Projects and Assignments

With project-based learning and school projects being the norm these days, students need to print reports, essays, photos, and other assignments.

These may sometimes include color printouts of charts and graphs, or captioned photos depicting different locations that they’ve been. It is also common for students to print out lesson plans and notes from their teachers.

Tertiary level students in universities may also need a printer to proof-read long essays or churn out copies of their research reports.

Printing of Personal Fun Projects

Beyond school projects, having an affordable printer also allows your child to stretch her imagination with fun personal projects.

She could design and print out a photo book documenting your last family vacation. Create a sign-board just for her room. Or write a fictitious story involving space aliens and cowboys!

A home printer also allows you to print out family photos — a perfect way to decorate your home during these times.

Expensive Shop Printing Costs

Beyond the above reasons, printing can also be increasingly more expensive at print shops with rising labor and rental costs.

While professional printers may be suited for large volume commercial prints, small-scale printing costs for home users are likely to be high. This is especially so for high resolution color printouts for images such as photos, posters, or other illustrations.

Inconvenience of Printing in School or at a Shop

Faced with mounting pressures at school, students who need urgent print-outs of their assignments may find it frustrating to look for an available print shop.

Often, queues at such printing shops may form — especially close to project deadlines!

Besides battling other students to get your job printed first, you may also have to contend with occasions where the shop closes, like weekends, public holidays, or non-retail hours.

What To Look For in an Affordable Student Printer

Getting an affordable printer will help you to solve your student printing woes. You won’t need to go to a library or an internet cafe to print out your work, or rip your hair out when your regular print shop closes.

Before you run out to get any affordable printers you can find, consider these factors when you choose a printer that is best suited for a student.

Print Quality of Printer

Low cost shouldn’t equate with low quality. While searching for the best economically-priced printer, you’ll need to ensure that your printer doesn’t skimp on print quality.

Check that your value-for-money printer can print out various documents with perfect clarity. It would be such a shame if your hard work came out with a bunch of blurs, lines and smudges!

Space Needed for Printer

Next, consider the space you have for your printer. You wouldn’t want a printer that takes up too much space, given the constraints of your room.

Try to find one that is compact yet packed with the features that you need for your school and personal printing needs.

Cost of Printer — Think Long-Term Costs

Lastly, you’ll need to consider the price of the printer itself, as well as its running costs.

Often, students and their parents opt for the cheapest printer available in the market without considering the ongoing cost of its consumables. Such costs may add up — especially when the volume of school work that needs to be printed goes up.

There are four running cost components that you should consider:

• Printer Ink or Toner Cost
• Printer Paper Cost
• Printer Electricity Consumption
• Printer Maintenance or Repair Cost

Printer Ink or Toner Price

The printer ink or toner is one of the biggest running costs when it comes to owning a printer. You wouldn’t want to get a cheap printer that has a huge cost for its ink or toner.

You may want to consider if the majority of your print jobs are to be in black and white or colored. This will help to determine your budget for the cartridges — yes, color cartridges are more expensive.

Do also be careful of using third party ink or toners — those may not be suitable for your machine and may damage it in the long-term.

It is wise to find a balance between your cost-per-page and the upfront printer cost.

Once you have these costs figured out, it would be easier to see if a printer will burn a hole in your pocket in the long term.

Pro Tip: If you’re looking to get an inkjet printer, you should use it at least weekly to maximize its cartridge use. Idle printers can dry up cartridges or result in clogged print heads.

If you are not printing constantly, and have longer idle time in between prints, it is better to get a laser printer. While the upfront costs of laser printers may be higher than inkjet printers, toner replacement wouldn’t be as often. Besides, laser printer toners are dry powders which wouldn’t dry up with time.

Printer Paper Price

The next cost to consider are your paper costs. There are different types of printing media and they all have different prices.

If you need to print art pieces on a certain print medium, its costs and compatibility may vary from printer to printer. Getting these special papers from the same printer brand ensures that your printouts will be of a premium quality — it also helps you to avoid printer jams and other mishaps.

If you are just printing regular documents, sticking to regular A4 plain paper shouldn’t be much of a problem. A cost saving tip is to buy your printing paper in bulk or during a sale — it is much cheaper than buying them individually.

Printer Electricity Consumption

This next cost might seem negligible to some, but with any electrical appliances, the electricity consumption costs of your printer do add up over time.

Where possible, look for printers that have a deep sleep mode or energy saving functions. This might not seem like an important cost to consider in the beginning — however, in the long run, it will save you a considerable amount.

Printer Maintenance and Lifespan

What’s the point of buying a printer which spoils the next year? Fixing it or buying a new one altogether can be both troublesome and costly.

To prevent this, ensure that you buy a reliable printer with a good warranty. Often, this is a good sign that its maintenance costs will be manageable.

Do also look out for printers from established trustworthy brands that provide reliable customer service. This can help you to reduce your printer maintenance costs and minimize the need for you to replace your student friendly printer every few years.

Where To Buy The Best Printers for Students

If you are looking to buy the best affordable printer for students, here are a few printers from Brother that can meet a student’s needs for affordability, high print quality, low consumables prices, and compact in size.

Brother Laser Printer For Students

Monochrome Laser printer:

DCP-L2550DW

• Print, Scan & Copy
• Monochrome Laser Printer
• Automatic 2-sided Printing
• Wireless Networking
• Print Quality: Up to 600 x 600 dpi, HQ1200 (Up to 2400 x 600 dpi), Up to 1200 x 1200 dpi
• Size: 410 mm x 398.5 mm x 318.5 mm

Color Laser Printer:

DCP-L3551CDW

• Print, Scan & Copy
• Color LED Printer
• Auto 2-sided printing
• Wireless & Network Connectivity
• Print Quality: Up to 600 x 600 dpi, 2,400 dpi (600 x 2400)
• Size: 410 mm x 475 mm x 414 mm

MFC-L3750CDW

• Print, Scan, Copy & Fax
• Color LED Printer
• Auto 2-sided printing & scanning
• Wireless & Network Connectivity
• Print Quality: Up to 600 x 600 dpi, 2,400 dpi (600 x 2400)
• Size: 410 mm x 475 mm x 414 mm

Brother Inkjet Printer For Students

Color Inkjet Printer:

DCP-T520W

• Print, Scan & Copy
• Inkjet Printer with refillable ink tank system
• Wireless and mobile printing
• Print Quality: Up to 1200×6000 dpi
• Size: 435 mm x 380 mm x 159 mm

Now go find your perfect printer and skip the nuances! Check out the nearest retail store or online shop in your region from this page: https://www.brother.ae/en/support/retailer-locations

Frustrated With The Never Ending Printer Problems? Here Are Some Solutions:

Are you struggling with your home or office printers? Wonder why your wifi printer does not work properly? Frustrated with printing errors from your duplex printer?

These problems can be a huge headache to those who simply want their printing work done.

Help is here! In this article, we have put together a list of the most common printer problems and their solutions.

• Slow Printing with Wifi Printers
• Home / Office Printer Not Printing
• Duplex Printer Printing Error
• Extra Printed Blank Sheet of Paper
• Paper Jams
• Unclear Printed Texts
• Poor Quality Inkjet Printed Photos
• Poor Black and White Print Quality
• Thick Ink on Inkjet Prints
• Unreliable Error Messages

Take a deep breath, calm yourself down, and try these solutions before you call your printer repairman!

1. Slow Printing with WiFi Printers

In today’s fast-paced world, a slow printer can be exasperating when you have a sizable number of pages to print.

The common reasons for slow printing are due to large photo sizes and large presentation files. You can either lower the quality of the output or simply send a part of the document at a time to speed things up.

If you are printing wirelessly, do check that the distance between your printer and your router isn’t too far—poor wireless connection could be a possible cause for slow printing. A simple solution would be to place your wireless printer as close to the router as possible, since WiFi speed slows down with distance.

Do also check your print settings. Higher quality prints do take more time to print. If an average print quality (i.e. for a text document) is good enough, consider switching your printouts to draft mode or the lowest quality setting your printer has to speed up your printing process.

2. Home / Office Printer not Printing

Are you staring at a printer that is just not printing? Well, you are not going crazy, there’s probably a reason for it. Before you start kicking your printer, consider checking if the paper tray is empty—yes, we’ve all made that silly mistake!

OK, there is paper in your tray. So what could have gone wrong?

Consider checking the connection of your printer. There may be multiple printers in the office and you may not have connected to the right printer.

There is a chance that you have accidentally sent the print job to another printer—be sure to double check just in case you are printing confidential documents!

If your printer is still not working, then your printer driver may be corrupted. You need to upload the latest version for your model and reinstall it on your computer. Should that still fail, it is best to call your local printer technician.

3. Duplex Printer Printing Error

Having a duplex printer should save you the hassle of flipping each printout manually. But what’s the point of having this functionality if your printer prints the back page upside down?

Fret not, there’s an easy solution to this. All you have to do is select Print on Both Sides, and opt to Flip on Long Edge. Your print jobs should be in the correct orientation now.

But what if you encounter disorderly pages, where the last page is at the top of the document?

There is a way around this incorrect manual sorting—simply print your pages in reverse. This can be found in the Advanced Settings box. You should only select this if your documents are to be put in order once the printing is complete.

4. Extra Printed Blank Sheet of Paper

“Why is there an extra sheet of blank paper after my prints?” 

No, your printer isn’t intentionally wasting paper. Rather, this extra sheet of paper probably came about due to your print settings. This is typically used in offices with multiple users and high print volumes, to separate print jobs from different users and avoid documents from being mixed-up.

If your printer is only for your personal home use, you can change the settings using your printer preferences. You should be able to deselect the option for separator pages from there.

5. Paper Jams

Paper jams are one of the most common issues people have with their home or office printers. This can happen due to static electricity (which causes pieces of paper to stick to each other) or when your printer tray is overloaded with too much paper.

A quick tip is to square off the stack of paper before placing it into the tray, ensuring that the pages line up and are flushed with the tray guides. Remember not to overfill the tray!

Jams may also occur when the print media used is not compatible with the printer. There are certain types of print media that are way thicker or bigger than the normal A4 Paper which is commonly used in most printers. Be sure to check that your printer is able to handle such media types and change your PC settings to match the print media.

6. Unclear Printed Texts

This problem may be caused by multiple reasons. Thus, you should go down this list to consider which option is the most likely possibility.

First, consider if you are using the draft mode or low print quality setting. Such settings may cause your printed texts to become unclear. By switching to a higher quality print, you will get clearer texts. However, be prepared to forgo your print speed—some printers are not able to simultaneously handle fast and high-quality prints.

If you are using a laser printer, there is a high chance that the toner has settled, resulting in blurry texts. All you have to do is to remove the cartridge(s) and shake it gently from side to side to release any residual toner clinging onto the side of the cartridge. This works 90% of the time, but remember that the toner will eventually run out and needs to be replaced.

Finally, if you are using an inkjet printer, check if your unclear prints are due to a dirty nozzle or misaligned print head. Thankfully, you don’t have to deal with this manually (though you can if you wish).

Simply launch your printer’s maintenance menu and select “Clean Ink Cartridges”, “Clean Heads”, “Deep Cleaning” or a similar function. Cleaning the printhead will help improve the quality of the printout. As it uses a fair amount of ink you should only do it if you notice that the print quality is particularly bad.

7. Poor Quality Inkjet Printed Photos

Poor quality inkjet prints would commonly be due to a misaligned print head, dirty nozzles or empty ink cartridges. You can troubleshoot this by following the steps described in the previous point above.

The type of print media used may also affect the quality of your prints—especially if you intend to print photographs or posters in high definition color. Make sure that you use the right photo paper. Often, third party photo papers are unable to reproduce your prints with the same resolution as the original photo papers from your brand.

Don’t forget to check that you have chosen the right paper type in your print settings and that it is set for photo printing.

It is also possible that your printer is low on one color, causing discolorations. To achieve vibrant print reproductions of photos in the right hues, you need to ensure that inks in all the different colors are available – having one color less can make a huge difference to your print quality.

8. Poor Black and White Print Quality

Do you turn off the color when printing black and white documents? This is probably the cause of poor prints, especially for black and white images.

The colors give your documents smoother gradations and richer tones compared to solely using black. Thus, if you are printing a high quality black and white document, consider turning on the color option for the best results.

9. Thick Ink on Inkjet Prints

Do your prints have a thick band of ink clustered around certain sections? This happens when your printer is unable to print at a certain resolution, usually on an uncoated paper. When it encounters this issue, it will try to adjust for the higher resolution by using more ink, causing the thick patch of ink (also known as banding) to appear.

To solve this problem, simply opt for a lower print resolution on your printer.

10. Unreliable Error Messages

Wonder why error messages like “low toner” or “ink error” appear when you’ve just replaced your toner or printer cartridge? Unless your new cartridges are faulty or broken, resetting your computer and printer usually fixes this problem. Do follow the instructions of your printer model to reset it properly.

Conclusion

Printer problems like slow printing, poor quality printouts, and paper jams can pose a huge inconvenience, especially when you need to get your work done. Hopefully, these solutions to the most common printer problems can help you to quickly get back on track. Should all of them fail—and we certainly hope that they wouldn’t—you should probably contact your local printer operator for immediate help! Still need help with your printer? Discover the official Brother service center locations near you.

When it comes to printing solutions, is bigger truly better? In the recent years, we have seen a shift from large copiers to compact laser printers and all in one devices as businesses embrace smaller decentralized departments and home offices. But aren’t copiers supposed to be more durable, cost-efficient, and offer greater functionality over desktop printers? Let’s explore these myths and discover how you can find the best printer for your evolving business needs.

Myth #1: Copiers are more cost-effective than desktop laser printers

While it used to be common knowledge that traditional copiers were more cost-effective due to their high-volume and low cost-per-page nature, the latest laser printers from Brother is set to change all that. This new breed of desktop laser printers is not only much more affordable than copiers to purchase or lease, but with higher yield toner replacements options available, they can also deliver significantly lower running costs in the long run.

Myth #2: Copiers offer more functionality for greater productivity

Many businesses are still using copiers for their functionality. This includes copying, printing, faxing and network connectivity. However, a broad range of Brother laser and all in one printers come with advanced features such as wireless printing and scanning, NFC tap-to-print, mobile printing and scanning apps, Cloud printing capabilities, and many more to easily match or exceed the functions of a traditional copier.  All packed in a sleek, compact device that fits easily on your desktop.

Myth #3: Copiers are more durable & can print higher volumes

When compared to many desktop printers, copiers are considered to be more reliable and capable of handling higher print volumes. But this is a myth that’s readily busted by Brother’s laser printers. Backed by industry-leading reliability and award-winning support, these productivity workhorses can be equipped with a variety of accessories such as additional paper trays, a sorter, a tower tray, or even a finisher. This allows businesses to enjoy high-volume printing that rivals those of copiers with support up to 600,000 prints over 5 years!

Fact: Brother Laser Printing Solutions deliver

Businesses are constantly evolving, and Brother has been at the forefront of print innovation for over a hundred years. Backed by its dedication to world-class reliability and customer service, our range of multifunction and laser printers are trusted by large enterprises, SMBs, and home office owners globally to take their business to the next level.

Perhaps it’s time to ditch that old copier and find your next productivity workhorse? Find yours here.

After shedding light on printerphobia – the fear of ink fuelled office equipment – we want to help workers in UAE and the Gulf region defeat their print paralysis.

Here are our tips to help turn printerphobes into calm and accomplished print whisperers.

Top 10 tips to overcome your printerphobia

1. Cast aside your fears and give it a go – a positive attitude wins in almost every situation, so if you’re tired of calling on a print whisperer, or phoning for help every time you need to complete a task, why not join us on our mission to overcome print fears? Brother’s Request Help service provides an interactive, online safety net, bringing expert advice to your fingertips whether you’re in the office or at home, giving you support and peace of mind at any time.

2. Connect and go – linking your computer and printer doesn’t have to be a laborious task. Our printers are designed to link up with your computer or mobile device in just a few easy steps. Simply visit our support page, enter your model number and follow the steps to get up and running in no time.

3. Have a go at replacing the ink or toner – a vital step in beating #Printerphobia and becoming a #PrintWhisperer is getting to grips with ink or toner replacement, especially if you are working from home, and practice makes perfect. Practice will give you confidence and keep you calm in an emergency. Most of Brother’s latest multifunction devices and printers have easy to use green levers for changing the toner and drum, making the task incredibly easy, even for the most fearful among you.

4. Find out where spare cartridges are kept – workers dubious about using the printer may be put-off by totally unrelated frustrations such as not knowing where to find spare paper, toner or ink when they are in the office. Pre-empt this by taking the time to find out where these vital items are kept, or ensure you always have some stock readily available at home.

5. Ask for demonstrations and shortcuts to device instructions – ask your office IT manager (or print whisperer) to give you a short tutorial on using your printer, either face to face or virtually. This will give you a detailed feel for the functions of the device as well as what to check if there’s a problem. If you’re working from home, simply download the device user manual and keep it by your side.

6. Explore the device interface – some modern print devices have intuitive interfaces and touchscreens that are both a window to their functionality and a way to resolve issues. Exploring the machine via its control panel and learning to navigate its functions will help you pre-empt a lot of future questions and reduce last minute panics.

7. Familiarise yourself with the paper trays – paper trays are little understood by printerphobes – “Why are there so many?” – “What are the moving plastic sliders for?” – “Argh, I just filled the wrong one”. Getting to know which trays are used for which size and type of paper can save time refilling paper in an emergency.

8. Shortcut to the basic print options – output variables such as margins, orientation, black and white, color, one-sided or duplex (double-sided) are all controlled from the computer when you send an item to print. Familiarise yourself with the basic print options to save time. They can be accessed with the shortcuts Ctrl+P for PC and Command-P for Mac users.

9. Practice scanning – in principle there’s nothing too tricky about scanning. The complexity comes in deciding where and how you want the digital file to be sent to you. The variety of options can make this step a little daunting, so the first thing to do is pick your preference. Whether you prefer to receive the digital file by email or put it straight onto a USB, have a play with the functionality and do what’s right for you.

10. Paper jams are not a nightmare – if your printer does jam, don’t panic. Usually, your display will give you an indication of where the jam might be. Simply follow the steps on the screen or check your printer carefully to remove any jammed paper. When the jam is fixed, hit continue and get on with your day.

Having experimented, improved your skills and quelled your fears, why not encourage others to take inspiration from your successes?

Reformed printerphobes make the most vocal and passionate print whisperers, so help us in our mission to improve everyone’s print skills.

Share your successes by telling us how you overcame your #Printerphobia to become a #PrintWhisperer.

If you still feel uneasy and need help, head over to our Support page where you can find a range of helpful guides on your specific printer: https://www.brother.ae/en/support.

Are you looking for ways to save money on your home office printing needs? Need help to choose the best home and office inkjet or laser multifunction printer to reduce your operating costs?

If you need some pocket-friendly solutions for years to come, consider these cost-efficient tips for your home office printing.

1. Use smaller margins and line spacing
2. Use smaller document size
3. Preview before printing
4. Print in black and white
5. Print with toner and ink-saving fonts
6. Duplex printing
7. Continue printing with low ink or toner
8. Unplug printer or use deep sleep mode
9. Buy printer consumables in bulk
10. Re-evaluate your printer

Owning a printer gives you the freedom of convenience and customized printing. However, the cost of maintaining one can quickly add up if you are not mindful. Being attentive to such details can help you reduce costs in the long run.

Let us look at each of these money-saving printing tips in detail.

1. Use smaller margins and line spacing

Most people use the default settings when printing a piece of document. However, this wastes a large amount of space, especially along the margins as well as the line spacing in between paragraphs.

By adjusting the margins closer to the edge of the page and reducing the line spacing, you can significantly increase the number of words per page – which means less paper used, saving you money in the long run.

2. Print more documents on a page

Another economical option is to print two pages of a document onto one page. This is especially useful for high-resolution documents that have clear typefaces, or documents that are predominantly images.

You can adjust your print settings per page according to how you deem fit.

3. Preview before printing

When printing online web pages such as articles, do consider the sections of the page that you don’t actually need to print out and read. Printing out these sections wastes both your paper and ink.

By previewing what will be printed, you can remove advertisements, comments and unnecessary footnotes. You can also click on the “printer mode” on websites, which automatically sets the page to the ideal sizes for printing.

In Microsoft Office, there are print outs preview before final printing. Sometimes there might be alignment issues which causes an additional page consisting of a few short lines to be printed out. This can be easily avoided by adjusting the document.

Re-printing due to mistakes can also be avoided by first checking your documents in draft mode before printing. With this step, you can reduce up to 50% of waste, ensuring more cost-efficient printing in the long run.

4. Print in black and white

This next tip can potentially save you quite a bit of money in terms of ink or toner usage. Printing in color uses more ink compared to printing in black and white. This can be easily overlooked especially with documents that have colored logos or graph charts.

If color is not necessary, take the extra step to switch your print setting to monochrome printing. You will be surprised by how much ink or toner you can save and how long your cartridge will last by applying this tip.

Do note that printing in grayscale might not have the same effect. When printing in grayscale, the grey is not printed with black, but is composed instead of all other colors – which is exactly what you want to avoid.

5. Print with toner and ink-saving fonts

The following option is for the penny pinchers out there! Certain fonts with wide letters, thick lines, many curls and serifs use more printer ink and toner than other fonts.

By choosing fonts that do not have these features, you can potentially reduce your printing costs by up to 30%! These toner and ink-saving fonts are “Century Gothic” and “Garamond“, which can be found in most word processing programs.

Fonts that use more toner and ink include “Arial”, “Trebuchet” and “Tahoma” – these are fonts which you should avoid if you have the flexibility to do so.

6. Duplex print

This tip is a no-brainer—print on both sides of the paper. As simple as it may seem, it has the potential to save you big bucks, especially when combined with the previous few tips.

However, this becomes an issue if you are printing in high volumes and don’t have a printer capable of duplex printing. Manually flipping each page will soon get on your nerves and you’ll end up choosing single-sided printing for its convenience, causing you to be less cost efficient.

For better cost-savings and convenience, consider switching to a printer that has duplex printing capabilities such as Brother DCP-T820DW Ink Tank Printer. Its automatic 2-sided printing will ensure fuss-free and cost efficient printing.

7. Continue printing with low ink or toner

You have probably seen the message that pops up when the ink level is low, advising you to replace the cartridge. Instead of rushing to change your cartridge, you can actually continue printing for a couple more print runs. This allows you to squeeze more prints out of the cartridge before it truly runs dry.

For toner cartridges that indicate “low toner” levels, consider taking them out of your printer and giving them a quick shake to distribute the toner powder inside the cartridge. This will enable you to continue printing for more pages without any errors before your toner finally runs out.

8. Unplug printer or use deep sleep mode

You won’t be saving thousands of dollars with this tip, but if you are really looking into ways to reduce costs, this will still add up. Printers – or any electronics for that matter – left plugged into outlets when not in use, will draw passive energy away from the circuit. This will cost you money over time, so unplug your printer when not in use.

You should also pay attention to a printer’s energy efficiency. Brother printers come with deep sleep mode where it reduces its energy consumption while idling.

9. Buy printer consumables in bulk

Another huge money saver tip is to buy your printer consumables in bulk—paper, ink cartridges and toners. More often than not, you can tap on bulk discounts, save on delivery costs or even lower costs with bundle deals. By pre-planning and keeping an eye out for great deals, you could save a whole lot of money compared to buying these supplies individually as they run out.

You can also choose to get ink or toner cartridges that come in standard or high yield containers that hold more ink or toner for a lower cost per page. The Brother DCP-L3551CDW Laser Printer is one of the printers that have a low cost and high print quality resolution with affordable toner options such as the high capacity toner (BK: Approx. 3,000 pages; CMY: Approx. 2,300 pages) or the drum unit (Approx. 18,000 pages).

It is also important to store your bulk purchases properly. Do note that ink cartridges can dry out if stored incorrectly. To prevent the ink from drying out prematurely, store them in their original packaging in the shade at room temperature or slightly cooler temperatures.

Laser printer toners are usually more durable as they are filled with a dry powder. However, you should still store them in a cool and dry place to ensure that they are kept in prime condition.

10. Re-evaluate your printer

If you have had your printer for a long time, and are still struggling to keep it cost-efficient, chances are that you may need to re-evaluate your printer. Yes, you may have bought it a couple of years ago at a good price – however the printer supplies (ie consumables) are often the ones that tunnel through your pockets.

A toner or ink-efficient printer is a cost-efficient printer! Switching to a modern printer that has cost-efficient cartridges is a smarter move to enjoy huge cost savings. To look for an efficient printer, you will first have to find out what cartridge the printer uses. Look for information such as the price of the cartridge and the cartridge page yield. With these factors, you can then figure out the cost per page for each printer and compare them.

Cost per page ($) = Cartridge price ($) / Cartridge page yield (No. of pages)

If you need more information as to which is the best home printer for you, do consider the different types of printers that are available.

Conclusion

Choosing a printer based on its consumables might not be something that most people think about from the get-go. To keep your home office running costs really low, combine these cost savings with the penny pinching habits mentioned above to reap the rewards of a printer with high cost savings!

Fears come in all shapes and sizes. Some, such as the fear of spiders are widely known and relatable. However, there is a little-known aversion Brother believes may be limiting workers – printerphobia.

Uneasiness around ink-fuelled office equipment – or printerphobia as it is better known – is, believe-it-or-not, real. And with many of today’s workers either dusting off their home printer or returning to the office, many will once again be shying away from printing and calling for help at the first sign of a problem. That’s why we have decided to help printerphobia sufferers overcome their fears.

Printerphobia – identifying the problem and spotting it in others

Printerphobia is considered to be a form of syskeviphobia – the fear of appliances. When placed in the proximity of a print device, the calm demeanour of printerphobes dissolves. Small, easily resolved print or scan problems trigger disproportionate levels of agitated pacing, muttering and in some cases – arm flailing.

If this is you, it’s probably reassuring to know that you’re not alone. In fact, we suspect you’re part of a large collective of sufferers. But with a little support, we firmly believe we can help to eradicate this irrational fear once and for all.

Perceptions vs current intuitive usability

While printers have become more user-friendly over the years, many of us will not be experiencing the seamless, intuitive experience that the latest Brother devices deliver and dread the thought of using a printer that is complicated and likely to backfire.

But printing doesn’t have to be a scary experience. Brother’s print and scan technology is meticulously designed and engineered for flawless functionality in the office or at home. Our devices offer excellent operational uptime with minimal input, so there’s simply no need to be fearful.

Bringing usage more in-line with new ways of working, items can even be sent to print using apps such as Brother’s iPrint&Scan. This makes printing safe and much, much easier, even for the biggest of printerphobes.

Over-reliance on the resident printer whisperer

Adding to the technical apprehension of printerphobes could be an over-reliance on the resident office print whisperer – the person (and there’s one in every office) – who calmly resolves the print and scan predicaments of flustered colleagues.

Now that many of us are working from home this fear is likely to have extended even further, and calls to IT teams and print whisperers are likely to have rocketed. But we are here to reassure you that there is a simple solution to all your printing worries.

Don’t worry, help is at hand…

Like all fears, printerphobia can be cured. To help printerphobes overcome their wariness and give print whisperers everywhere a much-needed break, Brother has assembled its experts.

In part two of this blog series, we share tips, advice and practical guidance that will render even the most technically unaccomplished printerphobes among you proficient enough to become a print whisperer and become a whizz at printing wherever you are.

We’d love you to share your thoughts and take part in the conversation. Simply use the hashtags #Printerphobia and #PrintWhisperer.  

If you still feel uneasy and need help, head over to our Support page, where you can find a range of helpful guides on your specific printer.

If you are reading this, chances are, you are either the owner of a home-based business or someone who is considering starting one of your own – and you’re not alone! With the added flexibility, agility and freedom that running a business from your home affords, it is easy to see why a large portion of start-ups across the world are doing so. This, however, comes with certain challenges, one of which being that most business-grade printing solutions were made for traditional office environments, with very few options designed to be truly suitable for the home office.

With that in mind, what are some of the options you should consider when choosing a printing solution for your very own home-based business?

Laser or Inkjet? It depends.

One of the main benefits of inkjet printers is that they are an affordable option for any home business owner while being capable of delivering vibrant color images and photo prints. However, with the high prices of printer ink, they could end up being significantly costlier once you start printing larger volumes. But that’s all about to change with Brother’s range of Refill Ink Tank Printers, a new breed of business-oriented inkjet printers designed for greater cost-savings while delivering outstanding print quality and print speeds.

Or, if you are looking for more document-focused printing capabilities, then look no further than Brother’s range of LED laser printers. With either black and white or color printing options, these capable solutions provide speedy, stable performance that’s ideal for high-volume printing of documents with crisp and easily readable text – even on smaller font sizes.

Print productivity that doesn’t cost you dearly

Printing costs can make up a significant part of your expenses, which is why Brother’s Refill Ink Tank and Laser print solutions are designed with small businesses and home offices in mind. Our ultra-high yield refill ink bottles and toner cartridges offer affordable, high-quality prints for all your marketing, invoicing, presentation or reviewing needs that not only translates to a low cost-per-page, but also allows you to print thousands of pages before requiring a refill or cartridge change.

Form and functionality bundled in one compact package

Forget about those large, costly copiers that are commonly found in big office departments. Aside from being affordable, Brother’s print solutions take up a significantly smaller footprint than traditional copiers and are perfectly suited for your home office. Packed with wireless printing capabilities that allow staff to easily connect to a single printer, high print speeds, flexible paper handling, high-volume duplex printing, and innovative Cloud Apps that offer seamless mobile printing and scanning on the go, they deliver amazing value and functionality for the modern home office.

Made for the home, built to last

Another major concern about compact printers is that they aren’t designed to withstand the vigours of high-volume business printing. The thought of costly supplies and frequent breakdowns are the main reasons why many are put off by the idea of utilising them.

But Brother has got you covered.

All of Brother’s genuine supplies are optimised to work perfectly with our printers for unmatched consistency and reliability, which results in less wastage, repair and maintenance costs in the long run.  And with over 100 years of award-winning reliability and customer service to its name, you can be assured that any Brother printer is built to last.

With that being said, there’s certainly no one-size-fits-all solution for your unique business model. Do you require a solution with single function (print only) functionality? Or maybe you’re looking for an All-in-One printer that’s capable of scanning, copying and faxing as well? Whatever your needs, we’re sure that you’ll find the ideal solution right here.