Lexmark Z23 any good??

[Spydc]

I just picked up a lexmark z23 printer from target for only $24.98. When i saw the price, was like wow...there must be something wrong with this printer. Now i haven't opened the box yet. I'm wondering if i should keep it or return it. I checked out some user reviews of the printer and they are mostly negative. What do you guys think? I hear the ink is very expensive too. I'm leaning towards returning it.

 

[GreyParrot]

I have an older Z12. While the print qualitey is very poor, it has been a great printer for the price (I think I paid $40). I had to buy it out of desperation when my $200 POS HP printer took a dump before it had even gotten through half a reem of paper. Not sure what your ink cartirges are gonna' run, but mine are about $30 (or less) for b&w/color combo

I doubt I'll ever buy an HP printer again, but I'd get another Lexmark (and may again soon).

 

[Zepper]

I have no idea what the print quality or speed of that model is. But I do know that Lexmark is one of the highest cost per page brands unless you refill the carts yourself.
.bh.
:sun:

 

[ProviaFan]

Originally posted by: Zepper
I have no idea what the print quality or speed of that model is. But I do know that Lexmark is one of the highest cost per page brands unless you refill the carts yourself...

...which makes the quality suck even more than it does when you get the printer out of the box. :disgust:

<-- Epson 4 life

 

[jackschmittusa]

A number of low end Lexmarks also only shipped with a color cartridge. Buying a black cartridge jacks up the price in a hurry.
GreyParrot
My wife and I have used HP printers of various models for years and found them to be very reliable. Because of our recommendations, our kids and grandkids use them too.

 

[Nerdology]

I've used the Z11 and the Z22, and have found that the quality of output depends heavily on the type of paper and ink used. Look at any Lexmark printer, and immediately pad the price by $30 to account for the black ink that isn't included. Then, buy the most expensive ream of paper you can find.

That said, I've been quite happy with the results when printing black text on the right kind of paper: in my case, it was paper packaged by HP, with a "brightness factor" of 106 (very bright white paper) that cost $10/500 sheets. So 2¢/sheet might be a bit steep, but the text quality was hardly distinguishable from laser.
I ran out of that paper recently and am printing on cheaper stuff that was convenient, and the output is not as crisp.

 

[Peter]

What's wrong is that (a) ink cartridges cost more than the printers, (b) the one cartridge you get with the printer is practically empty, and (c) you need to buy the "other" cartridge anyway since only one (color or black) is included.

You'll quickly fork out more money than a decently economical printer (like Canon's single-ink series) would have cost you.

 

[madthumbs]

Lexmarks rate very poorly for print longevity. Their inks will fade fast. I believe printers are like game consoles; where companies make money on the games/ ink rather than the console/ printers. In any event I tell people; If you're going to pay that much for ink, don't you want the best print quality you can get?

 

[Dan]

The Lexmark Z23 is a low-end model. It's frequently used as a loss leader so you can generally buy it for less than the cost of one of it's cartridges. Like Zepper said, Lexmark has the highest cost/page amongst the popular inkjets. That factor (along with overall print quality and noise level while printing) persuaded me to dump a Z53 and go running back to HP. (Got a PhotoSmart 7350.)

 

[Kato]

Some user reviews. Some thinks it's great, some thinks otherwise.

Epinions Review

Amazon Review

Cnet Review