Step 1. Determine your needs. There are all-in-one or “multifunction” printers that are capable of faxing, scanning, copying and a variety of other tasks.
Step 2. Choose a printer with as many of these features as you can find (that you’ll use) to minimize the space taken up by other, superfluous machines.
Step 3. Talk to friends and co-workers about their machines, especially if they use them for work at their home offices. Find out what works, what doesn’t, and what a good value is.
Step 4. Research online consumer ratings and reports of machines you’re interested in to see if the machine you want is more than just a new gadget.
Step 5. Try out a machine that a friend or business associate has. If you’re not able to use it, at least attempt to view examples of its work to better inform yourself of its quality.
Tips on buying an All In One Printer
- Don’t pay for features you’ll never use, but don’t buy a separate machine for something you could get in an all-in-one printer.
- Unless space-saving is at a premium, use your existing phone, scanner, etc. in lieu of buying a more complicated all-in-one printer.
- Don’t be seduced by fancy features that you won’t ever use. Make your list of features you’ll use ahead of time and stick to it.
