Printer Purchasing Policies

ENS highly recommends coordinating the purchase of any printer or peripheral device with an ENS Staff member prior to making a purchase. The goal of coordinating purchases is to help make an informed decision about which printer or peripheral will best suit the project needs and budget. At the same time, this will ensure that the device will function properly on the Engineering network.

ENS staff have also researched and identified specific printer models that are known to be reliable, budget-friendly, and work well on our networks. These ENS-approved models are listed below.

In general, laser printers are always recommended over inkjet printers. Laser printers typically have better cost per page over the long run, and avoid issues that some inkjet printers have with ink drying up when not used frequently. In addition, inkjet printers are frequently made with lower grade materials and break easily. When they break, they do not have user-serviceable parts like laser printers do.

Multifunction or all-in-one printers are similarly discouraged, even if they are laser models, for many of the same reasons. Additionally for multifunction printers, if one component breaks (and they frequently do), all that's left is a very large single function device, defeating the purpose.

All of the models below, and their supplies, are available for purchase from Kuali punch-out. Although this list is frequently updated, the models offered by the manufacturers do change and there may be another model or the model below may be discontinued. Please contact ENS if you have any questions.

Be an informed consumer! Read user reviews of a product before making a purchase. A quick way to find reviews is to type into Google: ‘reviews <brand> <model>’.

This list updated on 6/14/2011.

HIGH VOLUME PRINTERS
These are printers for very high volume areas, such as college computer labs, or a large department. Appropriate for a monthly volume of 10,000-50,000 pages.

BLACK & WHITE: HP LaserJet 9050dn
COLOR: HP Color LaserJet 9500dn

SMALL OFFICE/WORKGROUP PRINTERS
These are printers for medium to high volume areas with shared use, such as research labs, graduate student offices, or a department office. Appropriate for a monthly volume of 1500-7500 pages.

BLACK & WHITE: HP LaserJet P3015x
COLOR: HP Color LaserJet CP4025

INDIVIDUAL PRINTERS
These are printers for an individual's desk. Appropriate for a monthly volume of less than 2000 pages.

BLACK & WHITE: HP LaserJet P1606dn
COLOR: HP LaserJet CP2025dn

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