Office printers are a significant equipment purchase for businesses. Printers with increased functionality can optimize daily tasks such as scans, emails, and faxes. You can opt for newer technology like cloud print management, which enables you to print remotely from a tablet, smartphone, or computer.
Choosing the right printer for your business requires careful consideration. If you cut corners during the selection process, you risk buying the wrong printer, which will cost you time and money in the long run. Businesses must research their options carefully to avoid purchasing a printer with limited functionality, extensive maintenance fees, or low-quality features.
Avoid the following risks by assessing your office equipment business needs closely and purchasing accordingly.
1. Limited Functionality
Businesses in the process of purchasing new office equipment must consider a new printer as an investment. Low-cost printers seem enticing on paper, but they lack the functionality of more sophisticated printers. As a result, low-priced printers often skimp on fax, copy, and scan features. They’re often also missing additional features that full-capacity printers have, like Bluetooth, automatic duplex printing, and added printing trays.
Printers advertised as “all-in-one” solutions offer extensive features, but buyers should beware: These features are usually low quality. On the other hand, multifunction printers offer robust functionality without compromising product integrity.
2. Routine Maintenance Required
Cheaply-made printers are designed to break. Of course, the low cost does not include the associated maintenance expense. Aside from the repair work, cheap printers are costly in other ways.
Many wholesalers employ what is referred to as the “razor blade” business model. In this model, product accessories—like a razor blade or ink cartridges—are disproportionately expensive compared to the cost of the primary product. Cheap printers often require prohibitively expensive ink cartridges. To get around this issue, companies may opt for remanufactured or recycled ink cartridges, but this does not negate the other pricey maintenance fees.
3. Surplus Functionality
Companies may be inclined to purchase a printer based on its quantity of features, even though they don’t seem applicable to daily business operations. Besides risking low-quality features, opting for an all-in-one printer poses other problems.
Surplus functionality can reduce departmental efficiency. With any new printer a business purchases, managing staff must account for an inevitable learning curve. Employees must spend time away from their regular responsibilities to learn printer features they will rarely use.
Before purchase, any business must contend with their printer usage to determine which new solution will be the right fit. Businesses should consider factors such as average volume, servicing budget, and business grade versus non-business printers. Business grade refers to printers that are more expensive upfront but require cheaper maintenance and supplies cost. Non-business grade printers are cheap upfront, but require higher supplies and maintenance costs.
4. Poor Performance
Low-quality printers inhibit the ability of your employees to perform routine tasks in a timely manner. Cheap printers print more slowly, which means longer wait times for employees. Over time, the slow performance of your printer can have a domino effect on the overall efficiency of your workforce.
Laser and light-emitting diode (LED) printers are generally the fastest printers, boasting pages per minute (PPM) speeds in the hundreds. Inkjet printers, on the other hand, are designed for lower volume output and are much slower. A more affordable printer with a low PPM capability can end up costing you in the long run as it fails to keep up with your printing needs.
Choose the Right Office Equipment from the Right Partner
The good news is that you can choose a high-quality printer at a reasonable price, without the added risk. CPI offers an expansive inventory, including office printers, multifunction printers, wide format printers, and production printers so that you can find the right printer to outfit your office equipment, without hidden fees or poor performance.
To learn more about the pricing associated with CPI’s full range of office equipment, request a quote or consult.
