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Takes four toner cartridges costing a combined ~$162.96.

Better to take four than one you have to replace when only one color runs out.

Read the reviews on Newegg

just buy multiple printers for their toners. cheaper that way. not ecological, but cheaper.

Duty cycle of 20,000 pages per month? Who can afford to print that much a month?

#1, $163 for a full set of toner cartridges for a laser printer is extremely low-end/cheap, they only cost so little, not much, because of how little toner capacity they have.

I would never want an all-in-one color toner cartridge for the reason #2 points out, and with most print engines it isn't even possible.

#4, while your generalization is often true on highly discounted printers, it is also often untrue. They do price them where they practically give away the lower end printers but those often come with only starter cartridges with lower page count, it is usually about the same price and less hassle to just buy more cartridges if you pick the printer you want instead of settling for whatever has the best deal (though this strategy can work out fine if your needs aren't particular).

#5, duty cycle of 20K pages a month is really low for a laser printer, but it speaks more about the build quality/durability than what you actually print. For example, you don't want to have $500 tied up in replacement cartridges on a printer more likely to break sooner and be stuck with the loss of $ from the cartridges, having to hunt down a then old generation printer to use them, or trying to sell them at a loss.

Generally I recommend spending more on a color laser, that tends to result in significantly better photorealistic output. You still won't confuse it with the best output from inkjets or dye-sub printers, but a good midrange printer can approach the output quality of glossy magazine pages and pass for a photo at a few feet viewing distance. In this class of printer you will be paying roughly $500 for a full set of carts, unless the drum or transfer belt is sold separately then you have to still factor for that occasional replacement cost.

Ya de Ya. This is the lowest price I have seen for the networked version of this printer. There has been a premium of $100 or more to get it with the network card.

As for the cartridges etc., I have the CLP-315 (usb only) and it prints very nicely, esp. considering the price. However Samsung has keyed to expire cartridges after a predetermined number of copies. To get around this, and to use 3rd party cartridges (which are fine), you must purchase a bypass chip and patch (solder) it onto the motherboard. This, not the other issues, is the principal disadvantage.

As for the long rant, I have over 40 years of hands on experience with various models and brands of laser printers. It is true that they don't make tham like they used to, but very good ones are a heck of a lot cheaper now.

I didn't know there were laser printers in 1969.