I could only find a date for purchase of one of them, Dec 2010. I'm pretty sure that was the second of them, and they were getting scarce by then. I'll see if there's a mfr date on the units themselves.
I have hung onto a few favourite printers including my first printer (HP Laserjet 4L, au$1190, more than a 3d printer in todays money!). The 4L has a flat paper path and dense black toner that, apart from being good for phototools, is looking good for printing directly onto copper clad polyimide for making flex pcbs.
And... here's the screen shot of the HP inkjet deciding its original factory cartridges are counterfeit.
This same printer has wifi and seems to "update itself" over the net occasionally (so there's no excuse). Not much in the "endearing" category for this printer, really...
I bought my HL-5250DN about 7 or 8 years ago. It looks like they don't make it any more, replaced by a wireless model I guess. It's definitely been a good printer.
How long does the toner cartridge last? Rough number of pages, that is.
I looked it up and Brother claims 3500 pages for my particular model. I checked the printer and in the error history (it saves the last 10 errors) there are only four errors listed. Not bad for 7+ years Error number 3 is "Toner Life End" and it was at page 3092. That's with the cartridge the printer came. The other 3 errors are just paper jams.
I'm currently on page 3691 and I think I replaced the cartridge about 2 years ago, so I guess I don't actually print that much and it'll be quite a while before I need a new toner cartridge. It's pretty cool all the info it saves inside. It claims to have 85% of drum life remaining and the laser and fuser have over 96% life remaining. Also, of the 3691 pages I've printed, 858 were duplex and 557 were envelopes.
What I didn't know was that laser printers have dropped so much in price. I Interwebbed Brother printers last night and found amazingly low cost.
How long does the toner cartridge last? Rough number of pages, that is.
The cartridge that comes with it is a 1/2 full cartridge (typically ) - I kept waiting for mine to empty - I didn't watch page counts. When it finally went, I ordered a non-Brother pair and I'm still on the first of those. If I remember, I'll try and check page count this weekend.
I just printed off the stats from my Brother HL-2270DW and it says:
I had a replace toner error at page 309 (that was the initial cartridge)
I've printed a total of 2786 pages
The Toner "Remaining Life" estimate is up over 60%
The Drum "Remaining Life" is around 75%
Toner cartridges range from $10-$20 online. I bought a 2 pack from Amazon (Prime) for $25 or so.
It looks like drum replacements are around $20 also.
I have three errors listed - 1 jam (my fault), 1 replace toner and 1 size error on the duplex print (my fault)
It's been a great printer for the $120 or so I spent on it!
It's been a great printer for the $120 or so I spent on it!
Thanks much Tube, Rick, and Rick!
It is just amazing to me how the cost has driven down, and the capability driven up on laser printers. I've been stuck in the "home = ink jet @$", "business = laser @$$$$$$$$" way of thinking for so long I never even thought to research my options.
And... here's the screen shot of the HP inkjet deciding its original factory cartridges are counterfeit.
This same printer has wifi and seems to "update itself" over the net occasionally (so there's no excuse). Not much in the "endearing" category for this printer, really...
I know this is kind of late, but have you checked the ribbon cable to the print head? I've seen those break before. I'd also think that cleaning and re-seating all the connectors between the print head and the main PCB would be helpful.
That said, I've got an old (>7 years) brother laser BW network multifunction printer at home. It cost me ~$250, but I'm only on the second cartrage, and it prints like the day I bought it. (my old $70 ink jet used a cartrage every 6-months and always had streaks) Looks like prices have gone down since I bought mine.
...have you checked the ribbon cable to the print head?
Hi Marty - you know, that's a good point.
However, I can't even open this thing up! All the disassembly screws are well-hidden and I no longer have the "umph!" to even attempt to open the printer.
I just may take it target shooting this weekend...
It just may be internet myth, but I've heard there were (are?) printers that would stop printing and claim the drum was worn out or bad even though it was fine, just because a certain number of pages had been printed.
Back in the 90's, Data General sold PostScript laser printers (rebranded Texas Instruments) that would do exactly that... If I recall correctly, it would limit the drum, developer unit, and toner waste bottle.
As these were all user-maintained parts (not covered by warranty) I fail to see what difference it makes whether you printed 100 or 100,000 pages on a drum.
Of course, we had to use genuine DG parts to keep the DG field engineer happy (printers were on a maintenance contract).
And... here's the screen shot of the HP inkjet deciding its original factory cartridges are counterfeit.
This same printer has wifi and seems to "update itself" over the net occasionally (so there's no excuse). Not much in the "endearing" category for this printer, really...
Aha - that's the problem! It went out to the net and the latest update says its too old so report a random fault
However, I can't even open this thing up! All the disassembly screws are well-hidden and I no longer have the "umph!" to even attempt to open the printer.
Ah, it's a "find the hidden screw" puzzle I've often found hidden screws under stickers or rubber feet. Another common spot is under some unrelated cover. So just remove everything you can. When I'm really stumped I'll gently pry at the cases and look at how everything flexes to tell me where the last screw or snap is. Lots of recyclable parts in old printers. Worth taking a look at anyway.
Comments
I could only find a date for purchase of one of them, Dec 2010. I'm pretty sure that was the second of them, and they were getting scarce by then. I'll see if there's a mfr date on the units themselves.
I have hung onto a few favourite printers including my first printer (HP Laserjet 4L, au$1190, more than a 3d printer in todays money!). The 4L has a flat paper path and dense black toner that, apart from being good for phototools, is looking good for printing directly onto copper clad polyimide for making flex pcbs.
This same printer has wifi and seems to "update itself" over the net occasionally (so there's no excuse). Not much in the "endearing" category for this printer, really...
....yeah, yeah, yeah - I know.
What I didn't know was that laser printers have dropped so much in price. I Interwebbed Brother printers last night and found amazingly low cost.
How long does the toner cartridge last? Rough number of pages, that is.
Tube - no problem. Appreciate the input.
I looked it up and Brother claims 3500 pages for my particular model. I checked the printer and in the error history (it saves the last 10 errors) there are only four errors listed. Not bad for 7+ years
I'm currently on page 3691 and I think I replaced the cartridge about 2 years ago, so I guess I don't actually print that much and it'll be quite a while before I need a new toner cartridge. It's pretty cool all the info it saves inside. It claims to have 85% of drum life remaining and the laser and fuser have over 96% life remaining. Also, of the 3691 pages I've printed, 858 were duplex and 557 were envelopes.
The cartridge that comes with it is a 1/2 full cartridge (typically ) - I kept waiting for mine to empty - I didn't watch page counts. When it finally went, I ordered a non-Brother pair and I'm still on the first of those. If I remember, I'll try and check page count this weekend.
I had a replace toner error at page 309 (that was the initial cartridge)
I've printed a total of 2786 pages
The Toner "Remaining Life" estimate is up over 60%
The Drum "Remaining Life" is around 75%
Toner cartridges range from $10-$20 online. I bought a 2 pack from Amazon (Prime) for $25 or so.
It looks like drum replacements are around $20 also.
I have three errors listed - 1 jam (my fault), 1 replace toner and 1 size error on the duplex print (my fault)
It's been a great printer for the $120 or so I spent on it!
Thanks much Tube, Rick, and Rick!
It is just amazing to me how the cost has driven down, and the capability driven up on laser printers. I've been stuck in the "home = ink jet @$", "business = laser @$$$$$$$$" way of thinking for so long I never even thought to research my options.
I'll be ordering pretty soon.
I know this is kind of late, but have you checked the ribbon cable to the print head? I've seen those break before. I'd also think that cleaning and re-seating all the connectors between the print head and the main PCB would be helpful.
That said, I've got an old (>7 years) brother laser BW network multifunction printer at home. It cost me ~$250, but I'm only on the second cartrage, and it prints like the day I bought it. (my old $70 ink jet used a cartrage every 6-months and always had streaks) Looks like prices have gone down since I bought mine.
Marty
Hi Marty - you know, that's a good point.
However, I can't even open this thing up! All the disassembly screws are well-hidden and I no longer have the "umph!" to even attempt to open the printer.
I just may take it target shooting this weekend...
+1
c.w.
Back in the 90's, Data General sold PostScript laser printers (rebranded Texas Instruments) that would do exactly that... If I recall correctly, it would limit the drum, developer unit, and toner waste bottle.
As these were all user-maintained parts (not covered by warranty) I fail to see what difference it makes whether you printed 100 or 100,000 pages on a drum.
Of course, we had to use genuine DG parts to keep the DG field engineer happy (printers were on a maintenance contract).
Walter
...mmm - a bit of Tannerite and a few .308s at 100 yards? A fitting end I say!
I am just waiting for XP to do this
That would be deserving of some video!
I spent last Memorial day with an old junk car, 20 pounds of Tannerite, a group of mostly ex-military guys and copious amounts of guns and ammo...
C.W.
Ah, it's a "find the hidden screw" puzzle
Marty
-Phil
Hi Phil - thanks for the tip/link.