A printer that costs R945 at checkout is not a R945 investment — it's an ongoing commitment to whatever the replacement cartridges for that specific model cost. Entry-level printers are deliberately priced low because the margin is made on consumables. Standard cartridges for many budget inkjet models yield 150–200 pages and cost several hundred rand to replace, translating to a cost per page that can exceed R1 for colour.

Before buying any printer, look up the replacement cartridge model number and price. Divide the cartridge cost by its rated page yield to get your cost per page. Then multiply by your expected monthly volume and multiply again by 24 months. That number is the actual cost of ownership, not the shelf price. For regular users, an ink tank printer at a higher upfront price almost always wins this calculation.

Inkjet printers are marketed heavily and are visually familiar, which leads many buyers to assume they're the default right choice. For households or small offices that mostly print documents, reports, invoices, and forms — with colour needed only occasionally — a mono laser printer produces sharper, faster, cheaper-per-page text output than an inkjet, and doesn't suffer from printhead clogging during periods when the printer sits unused.

Ask yourself what percentage of your printing is text-only. If the honest answer is 80% or more, look at the mono laser range — the Pantum BM2305AW at R2,750 or the HP Laser MFP 137fnw at R4,255 are both strong starting points that will almost certainly cost you less over two years than an equivalent inkjet at a similar or lower price.

A printer connected only by USB cable is a printer that can only be used by the one device it's physically plugged into. In a household where multiple people print from different laptops, tablets, or phones, or in a small office with more than one workstation, a USB-only printer creates a constant logistical friction that's easy to overlook at the point of purchase and deeply annoying in daily use.

For any home or small office environment with more than one device, prioritise WiFi connectivity as a non-negotiable. Nearly every model in the Toner and Ink printer range above R2,000 includes wireless connectivity — this isn't a premium feature, it's a baseline requirement for practical multi-device use.

There's a category of premium inkjet printer specifically designed for high-quality photo reproduction. They're excellent at that job and priced accordingly. Buying one for a household that prints family photos three or four times a year is over-speccing a decision that doesn't need it — and the printer will spend most of its life idle, which is exactly the condition that causes inkjet printheads to clog.

If photo printing is occasional rather than regular, a mid-range all-in-one inkjet produces more than adequate photo results for typical home use. If printing quality photos regularly is genuinely part of your workflow, factor in an ink tank model to manage the ongoing ink cost — and factor in the cost of photo paper, which is a separate and often underestimated expense.

Some printer models, particularly those positioned as "budget" entries to a brand's range, use cartridges or toner that aren't widely stocked locally. When you run out, you're ordering from overseas with unpredictable lead times and currency fluctuation exposure — or paying a significant premium from a specialist importer. This completely undermines any saving made on the original printer purchase.

Before finalising any printer purchase, search the consumable model number on tonerandink.co.za. If the cartridges or toner are readily available locally in both original and compatible versions, you're making a sustainable choice. Brands like HP, Canon, Brother, Pantum, and Epson all have well-supported consumable ranges stocked locally — which is precisely why Toner and Ink stocks printers from these brands.