Any office or home computer seems to be imperfect without a printer. Especially when your work includes a lot of paperwork, a printer is a vital need. Now when you are to buy a printer, you must wonder which one to buy. There are a lot of products and kinds of printers that may perplex you even more. Before you purchase one, also think about the extra expenses such as ink refill costs along with the printer you are to purchase. Good inkjet cartridges, both for colored and black and white printers, give the true quality of the print. Despite the extra costs, you have to keep a few more things in your mind before you purchase a printer;

First ask yourself for what purpose you need a printer. If your job doesn't include a lot of graphics and photos, you shouldn't select the color printers at all. In the same way, there are other two sub categories of color printers; ones that are designed for color photos and others that are regular. Even though the regular one will print the photos but its resolution will be greatly compromised.

The next thing you have to look for is the print quality. The print quality is measured in DPI i.e. dots per inch. The higher is the DPI, the lesser grains will be seen. The photo inkjet will feature a higher DPI than the regular one. Choose the one with lesser DPI if you do not intend to print many photos.

You also have to examine the paper handling characteristics. An efficient printer can handle numerous types of papers such as in letters, cards and envelopes.

Next you have to look at the speed. Midrange inkjet printers can print up to 14-17 pages per minute. However if you are searching for photo inkjet printers, you do not have to stress upon time. Photo printers usually take more time per print. Printers that have more DPI normally take long and work slower than the rest.

When you have to choose the ink cartridges you must never select those combined cartridges as they require replacement as soon as any one of the colors is finished. Select those separate cartridges for each color.

Next, check the connection types. These days it is usually USB cable, which you'll have to buy exclusive of the printer. A built in wireless connection will be better if you are going to share the printer among all the computers of your home or office.

If you are selecting 'free-after-rebate' printers, ensure that you inspect the type of replacement cartridges it uses. To get a good concept of the cost per page, divide the page capacity with the price of the cartridge. This way you can assure yourself that your cartridge is not more expensive than the printer itself.

Before you purchase the printer, take out a sample of the print. Test the printer from the store you are purchasing it from. Look for the picture and print quality and then buy it.