Office Copier Options

Office Copier

By Anne Ahira

If you are looking for an office copier there are a few things you should consider, as not all copiers will be good for all applications.

Large offices that create brochures, correspondence, advertising and more would need a heavier duty copier than an automotive shop for instance.

Even though both businesses are large, one will be running copies and prints all day long while the other only needs to copy things on occasion.

Laser or Ink

There are two main types of copiers and printers laser or ink. Each one has its pros and cons but to choose the right office copier for your business you will want to look at volume. Laser copier/printers are more expensive to start with, but when you figure the cost per print, they generally come out much cheaper than your typical ink jet printer does.

However if you will be copying or printing pictures or picture quality graphics many times the ink jet is the better  choice. Of course, now days there are laser printers that offer color toner and can render very nice graphics. In a case such as this, you might want to see a demonstration of the machines ability before choosing.

Work Environment

The next question to ask yourself when choosing an office copier is how many people are going to need to use the unit. Do you have several computers in your office all printing and copying?

If so, the office copier you choose should have networking capabilities. On the other hand, if you have one computer that is responsible for the workload and do not see this changing any time in the near future you will not need networking.

Work Load

Going back to the original discussion on the amount of printing/copying you expect to do is determining your workload. Many office copiers will list their maximum monthly workload capabilities.

Consider this very carefully as you may be investing a substantial amount of money in the unit and will want one that will stand up to your office workload.

Speed Test

Again, if you are running a small office with very little copying requirements you may not have to concern yourself with speed.

Nonetheless, for the busy office where productivity is very important the speed your office copier runs can be a significant factor. You can expect copiers to run anywhere from 15 -50 pages per minute.

Brother DCP 8080

A good mid range office copier is the Brother DCP 8080. This is a copier/ printer that can handle a decent amount of volume in a cost effective manner. Of course, this is a monochrome printer/copier so if you are in need of color prints this is not the unit for you.

Features

• Up to 32ppm monochrome
• Up to 1200 x 1200 dpi resolution
• Automatic duplex
• Legal-size document glass
• 300-sheet paper capacity
• $311 Amazon price

Bottom Line

There is a lot to consider when buying an office copier. You must find a unit that fits into the budget, not just on the front end but in a cost per page average as well.

Each of the factors for choosing a copier will have bearing on the final cost of the unit, so do your homework before making the final decision.

Here's Office Copier Selections:

Canon PG-210XL Cartridge, Black-Retail Packaging...	Customer Review: Click Here for More Info	$21.99
Canon imageCLASS D420 Laser Multifunction Copier (...	Customer Review: Click Here for More Info	$495.00
Copier & Office Supply Wholesaling in the US -...	Customer Review: Click Here for More Info	$910.00
DataVac Products - DataVac - Pro 3 Professional Cl...	Customer Review: Click Here for More Info
Lexmark Impact S305 Home Office Printer Scanner Co...	Customer Review: Click Here for More Info	$195.48