Computer questions....

[Hobbes]

Hi.

I'm beefing up my slow ol' 350MHz computer this holiday (it's still staying the same speed, mind you) and I thought it'd be nice to come out of the stone age and add something that might be nice, "cheap", GOOD, and will last me until I get out of college.

1) I'm looking for a good printer. Something to replace my old dot matrix Epsion ActionPrinter. After a visit to my local Staples, I found some that fit my pocketbook and supposedly print in photo quality. HP were the only demo-ready printers. The two that caught my eye were the HP PSC 500 and the DeskJet 930C/932C...Besides the 30$ color cartridges, what are your impressions of those printers? The 930C printed me a nice photo of an orange patch. lol.

Like all people, looking for a good deal, saw a Canon BJC-3000 and a Lexmark Z42 "promising" equal or better results. Any ideas? Canon has been around forever (my camera is a canon and it works very well), and I haven't heard much about Lexmark.

2) I need a scanner. 600x1200 optical resolution sounds like a joke. I probably need something, better, right? Can anyone suggest anything? Again...small enough, cheap enough (X<$200) and something that will last me at least until I get out of college (we're saying at LEAST 6 years).

3) Anyone had experience with an ATI XPERT 128, 16MB video card? How about an ATI TV Tuner?

My price range for the printers is $<250, and scanner $<200, and I would only like reviews on the video card & tv tuner, they are cheap enough lol.

So...reviews and suggestions please! TIA! :)

[Chicken]

It depends on what you are going to do with these things, but you might consider an all-in-one, scanner and copier/printer type deal.

I have an HP Deskjet 722C and it prints photo quality enough for me, and I believe the current crop of all-in-ones print better. I also have a 30 bit scanner which scans fine for what I use it for, at the 100 dpi (I have never scanned in anything any where near the full resolution, and doubt you would that often.

If you are scanning images for posters, then you'll need nice resolution, otherwise, to put things on the web for example, you don't need even a $200 scanner. I think mine was $40 (UMAX Astra 610P).

Note that I doubt you'll be able to find these in the stores, they are old models. Point is, they will all print better than what you have and you'd be surprised at how well those $100 Lexmark printers will do and how well those cheapie scanners will scan.

If you are going to be scanning or printing much, then I'd of course, go for some more durable equipment.

[Hobbes]

Thanks. My dot matrix has lasted a long time, especially on an almost-out of ink cartridge. Took me a while to find one -- got the last one at Staples.. only problem is it doesn't force the paper up when it's supposed to some times.

I'm going to use the printer for reports & fliers, and birthday cards. Assuming I print the same amount I do with the printer I will buy -- very light usage, according to their "suggested printing per month" of about 2000 pages.

Scanner will be for my occasional webpage business, plus photographs for CDs I will burn.

Thank you. I will consider these Lexmark printers and look into the all-in-one :)

[Coolin]

HP cartridges, despite being more expensive, are said to last longer (twice as long?) than other inkjets, so I may consider them. Also 600x1200 is a super good resolution. For web images, you only need the resolution to be 72dpi. The photos for CD-ROM may need a little more, but if it's to be viewed on the screen and not printed out, find the lowest resolution possible because 600x1200 is way too high quality for screen viewing. If you expect to print out photos, 600x1200 is good enough, since most printers only go up that far.

[Cagey]

The only problem I have ever had with a HP (seems to be any model too) is that if you shut them off, they don't want to work! Solution??? I leave mine on all the time; and everybody I know who uses an HP does the same and it doesn't act up then. Seems strange but it works :)

[Webdude]

A lot of brands are coming out with printers that beat HP. Xerox and Lexmark are two. Lexmark used to make all the IBM printers, but Xerox has one on special for $99 that beats the best Lexmark and HP.

About the HP and why I dont use them. Open the lid and move the cartridge to left, now look under where the cartridge generally sits and you will see a little plastic pan. That is for catching ink because the HP cartrideges leak, the other namebrands dont. Now each time you buy a new cartridge, you'll wonder how much of your old one that you actually used...LOL

The only thing keeping HP in the market now is their famous name, but they are no longer #1. Both Lexmark and Xerox beat them in price, quality, and speed.

[Hobbes]

Anyone have any likes dislikes about the canon BJC-3000? (It's what I'm eyeing right now...)

[Hobbes]

Well, thanks guys :D I went out and bought a Xerox for $100. It may not be the fastest thing in the world, but it prints photo quality pretty well (1200x1200), ink is cheap, and if I have a problem with it (YEAH RIGHT.) I can just drive 60 miles north and knock on their office doors and get someone to fix it for me.

Thanks!

J

[stu]

Originally posted by Hobbes

3) Anyone had experience with an ATI XPERT 128, 16MB video card? How about an ATI TV Tuner?

My price range for the printers is $<250, and scanner $<200, and I would only like reviews on the video card & tv tuner, they are cheap enough lol.

So...reviews and suggestions please! TIA! :)

The video card is fine if you don't play games that require 3D acceleration, particularly 3D games that have been released the past two years. I have an ATI Rage Fury which is better then the Xpert 128, and it is already beginning to show it's age. So if you aren't a hardcore gamer, it'll be fine. But if you are, then I would suggest something faster but fairly cheap like the ATI Radeon 32MB SDR, or a graphics card using the Nvidia Geforce2 MX chipset.

I also have the ATI TV Tuner ISA, it is pretty good. They have a PCI version as well, and I guess it's probably the same if not better.

[Hobbes]

Probably don't need to look into the tv tuner....I'll buy a real tv someday lol....thanks for the info...Nice to know ATI is still out there as a "good for everything except hardcore gaming" :D video card producer.

J

[rockergrrl]

Check out Walmart... They have good deals on printers and scanners... I had to replace my laser printer (dang thing broke on me...and I wasn't about to fork over $100 to fix it - might as well get a new one)... and I got a BJC-2010 at Walmart for only $50 and they have scanners there for $60 or so.

They're ok, if you're not doing any work related printing/scanning. If you're just printing out stuff from the web or resumes, a cheapy is always good.... Same goes for scanners...

Just thought I'd add my bit.. :)

[Robert]

I'm going just to add my comments and suggestions about a printer. I currently own an HP Deskject 952C (the one with the blue laser) and it's fantastic! It was $299 dollars and I never had any problems with it. I also have a HP Deskject 722C and again, I never had any problems with it. I recommend HP for printers all the way. Now.. for computers.. I recommend DELL. Btw, wasn't HP the one who created thethe first ink jet printer?

[Hobbes]

I didn't really want an HP printer where I had to replace the WHOLE ink cartridge when it ran out/got low. Xerox will just have me replace the individual tank. Anyway...it's not perfect photo quality, and they may be "new" on the market (although they've been around forever it seems like to me)...it prints 10 B&W per minute, and supposedly 7 color per minute. Anyway, my walmart is 30 minutes away and staples only 10, and suprisingly enough, this printer cost as much as a canon bubblejet...and it let me get a test page (which was better than the lexmark test page!) and it looked good, and well--it met my needs! I'm happy :D

[Epgs]

hp printers are the best. i still use a 720 series (it is a 722c) and i can't print over my network run downstairs and get it before it at least prints the first page. Second a scanner i have one of those 9 dollar things at bestbuy and works great. And use a ati all in wonder those are nice. I am getting one (i borrowed my friends once).

[Coolin]

In reply to Webdude's post:
I checked my HP printer and there was no pan inside for catching the leaks. The reason: My HP doesn't leak... And even if it did, HP ink cartridges still last longer than other ones.

[stu]

Originally posted by Hobbes
Probably don't need to look into the tv tuner....I'll buy a real tv someday lol....thanks for the info...Nice to know ATI is still out there as a "good for everything except hardcore gaming" :D video card producer.

J

ATI's main focus has always been into graphics/video editing and dvd playback. However this year they have been doing a good job for the gaming market as well. Good for us hardcore gamers..

[Hobbes]

Now where would I be without you guys? Thanks for all your help :D I appreciate it. Going up to Best Buy this Friday, and maybe I'll find a "$9" scanner and my Iomega ZipCD...anyway.

[jw]

i am going ot say this once and hope I will never have to say it again. NEVER BUY COMPUTER PARTS FROM BEST BUY. Have you ever compared prices between them and compusa? there are serious differences, on most things i have found compusa to be from 25-50% cheaper. Best buy's service is terrible, don't you love people trying to sell you parts when you know more about the products than they do and have to correct them? CompUSA also will replace everything you buy there if it becomes damaged during the 1st year you have it without having to pay shipping or anything. They charge like $5 a year for it.

[Hobbes]

really, I'll keep that in mind while I'm up there today....actually, right now they seem TO have the lowest prices around (on certain items...not everything)...didn't someone say once: "Let the buyer beware"? I'll be fine :D

[Mandrake]

The best place for computer parts that I've found is Fry's Electronics... I'm not sure how many states they have stores in though... I only know for sure of Arizona and California....

[Hobbes]

Oregon has one up in wilsonville (I think)... it used to be Incredible Universe, but it's two hours drive away from where I live :(

[rockergrrl]

There's always the CompUSA website - http://www.compusa.com