Today’s computer user is busier than ever, and printing is no longer a luxury, it’s a need.
Many consumers need a printing powerhouse, an All-in-One (AiO) printer that can manage copying, faxing, scanning, and printing photos and documents with ease.
What is an All-in-One printer?
An All-in-One printer, also known as a Multi-Functional Printer, is a device which combines the capabilities of many devices into one machine. Because it combines so many functions into one machine, it takes up far less space overall than each device separately.
While it’s been over a decade since anyone had separate machines for faxing, scanning, and printing, the All-in-One printers have come a long way in just the past few years.
Because they are designed to fit within a typical home office, use standard printer paper, and handle their own maintenance tasks, they offer both incredible convenience and exceptional value.
If a printer can fax, scan, copy, and print, it’s considered to be an AiO printer. Also, note that due to changing use and technology, not every AiO printer will have fax capabilities.
What are the benefits of an All-in-One printer?
In a nutshell, these printers are convenient because you don’t have to buy a separate device for each task. They are also considerably more compact than you’d imagine and often take up the same or less space than a standard printer.
Today’s best All-in-Ones are also typically wireless, which means you don’t have to deal with cords or difficult network configurations. Most will run on a combination of wireless and Bluetooth technologies and can be easily protected from intruders as part of your secured home network.
Inkjet or Laser Printer: Which Is Right for Me?
When choosing between inkjet and laser printers, there are some important factors to consider.
For regular home printing jobs, inkjet printers are a go-to option. While you can find inexpensive options for both inkjet and laser All-in-One printers, budget laser printers tend only to offer black ink printing.
When you want to make copies of full-colour documents, print photos, and scan legal documents - and do it at a bargain price - HP InkJet printers will be your best bet.
While inkjet is one of the most popular options for home printing, a strong case can be made for the professionalism and quality of laser printers. They are generally better at creating intricate font patterns and handling tiny details, which they usually deliver at incredible speeds.
For those who need thousands of copies fast, there’s no replacement for the sheer production power of a laser printer. And if you print diagrams or schematics, a laser printer’s precision might be a huge benefit.
Before you dismiss laser printing as expensive or difficult, consider these options for laser printers that provide a variety of tasks for your personal use or home office with the same convenient size as popular inkjet printers.
Best All-in-One Printers
Once you discover the freedom and productivity that an AiO printer provides, you won’t ever want to return to a standard printer. That’s because there are many ways to get value from these multifunction printers.
The HP LaserJet Pro MFP M130fn could very well be the best All-in-One laser printer for home use. The printer can scan, copy, and fax in amazing quality, and uses only black toner for a budget-friendly way to achieve the efficiency of an enterprise printing machine.
Thanks to its slim dimensions (16.34 x 11.34 x 11 inches), this printer earns the mark for HP’s smallest LaserJet multifunction printer, but you’ll still get up to 23 laser-crisp pages per minute at a price that’s competitive with today’s inkjet models.
Looking for the same great performance in a model that provides colour printing? Upgrade to the HP Colour LaserJet Pro MFP M281fdw printer.
If speed is a top priority, consider the HP Colour LaserJet Pro MFP M479fdw printer. It has one of the fastest first-page-out-from-sleep-mode times in the industry, and its amazing duplex ability gets you two-sided copies of any document without jams or slips.
The HP M479fdw also has a user-friendly touch screen control panel, which lets you scan any document directly to email, a network folder, your choice of cloud provider, or a USB port.
With amazing inkjet resolution and fast print speeds of up to 37 pages per minute (ppm) for black-and-white copies, the HP OfficeJet Pro 8720 All-in-One Printer may very well be the best HP All-in-One printer for home use on the market.
This inkjet model does it all, including producing up to 99 copies of a document from one print command and churning out double-sided prints.
For those who need enterprise-level faxing capabilities, the HP 8720’s 100-page storage function makes it easy to broadcast to up to 20 locations at four ppm.
An intuitive colour touch screen panel and access to the HP Instant Ink program make it a hands-off solution for those who want printing power without the hassle of complicated maintenance schedules.
Additional features:
Dimensions: 19.7 x 15.9 x 13.4 inches
Duty cycle: Up to 25,000 pages per month
Paper handling: 250-sheet input tray; 150-sheet output tray
4. HP OfficeJet Pro 7740 wide format All-In-One printer
Need to really impress clients and coworkers with your next business presentation? A wide-format printer may be the key.
The HP OfficeJet Pro 7740 wide format All-in-One printer delivers crisp, colourful printouts in sizes up to 11 x 17 inches (A3), and is significantly more affordable per page than laser printers in the same category.
It faxes, scans, and copies, too, making it a wise choice for the innovative home office that wants to say it loud with bold print projects.
Additional features:
ENERGY STAR® qualified; EPEAT® Silver
Dimensions: 23 x 28.06 x 15.10 inches
First page out: As fast as 9 seconds for black and white, and 10 seconds for colour
If space is at a premium, consider the world’s smallest AiO printer, the HP DeskJet 3755. This small-but-mighty model can print, copy, and scan, and takes up very little space on your desk at less than 16 inches wide.
Wireless printing capabilities allow you to share and print photos through popular print programs, including HP ePrint, Apple AirPrint™, and Wireless Direct Printing.
Affordable inkjet printing can be yours for all your photo, marketing brochure, school paper, and daily document needs. We rate this compact device the best home All-in-One wireless printer.
Additional features:
Dimensions: 15.86 x 6.97 x 5.55 inches
2 print cartridges; 1 black and 1 tri-colour
Up to 4800 x 1200 dots per inch resolution in colour prints
All-in-One photo printers for home use
If you’re looking to print and share life events at home, it makes sense to pick the best All-in-One photo printer for your lifestyle. Photo printers have made incredible advances, giving you no excuse to leave your memories stored on a camera card, smartphone, or computer.
You may notice that the best AiO photo printer for home use is almost always an inkjet printer. That’s because they have the amazing ability to blend gradual colour changes on the page, whereas laser printers may have more trouble creating these life-like images.
If you do a lot of colour printing - and you probably will because most photos are in colour - you can’t do better than an affordable and intuitive All-in-One printer designed specifically for photos.
A strong choice for photo printing is the HP ENVY Photo 7155 All-in-One printer. While the modest price of this model may be one of its most attractive features, it also sports an impressively high-quality, lab-rivalling photo-printing mode that puts your local print shop to shame.
This best HP wireless printer for home use can take those photos off your mobile device and onto paper. You can also insert your camera’s SD card directly into the printer so you can to view, edit, and print without having to transfer to a PC first.
Copy and scan features come standard on the HP ENVY Photo 7155, too. Also, because it has a dedicated photo paper tray, you won’t need to switch out your regular paper for photo paper each time you want to create stunning colour prints.
Additional features:
Print speed up to 14 ppm in black adn 9 ppm in colour
For an even more affordable option, check out the HP ENVY Photo 6255 All-in-One printer. You can print up to 1,000 pages a month in 4800 x 1200 optimized DPI colour on selected photo paper in Print in Max mode.
You can also print, copy, and scan rich and vibrant photos for around $.05 a print when you use HP Instant Ink service with this printer.
Additional features:
Flatbed scanner to RAW, JPG, or PDF file types
Automatic duplex printing
Print speed up to 12 ppm in black and 8 ppm in colour
Other printers to consider
All-in-One printers are ideal for most homes, home offices, and even small offices, but there are times when you may want to complement your printing with something special. The printers that fit those situations have unique perks that shouldn’t be overlooked.
For a fun way to print on the go, the HP Sprocket photo printer can’t be beat. This truly portable printer is no larger than your cell phone and can be taken anywhere you go for instant photo printing.
Just connect it to your smartphone or tablet using Bluetooth, and produce beautiful 2 x 3-inch photos or stickers in seconds.
There is an HP Sprocket printer to match your personality, too. Choose from red, black, white, and gold. All models use patented ZINK™ (Zero Ink) technology, so there are no expensive ink cartridges or ribbons to replace.
The HP Sprocket is a popular choice for college students in addition to photogs who want to bring it to social events such as weddings and class reunions.
If you’re looking for efficient laser printing in black and white and don’t need the extras of an All-in-One, check out the HP LaserJet Pro M203dw printer. It may be the most economical option for laser printing in the home office.
It has speeds of up to 30 ppm and direct connection to your local WiFi network, and it holds 250 sheets of paper to handle all of your quality document tasks.
Additional features:
Black and white printing only
First page out as fast as 6.6 seconds
Dimensions: 14.6 x 16 x 8.8 inches
ENERGY STAR qualified; EPEAT Silver certified
Summary
Your best home All-in-One printer is going to be different from what others will need. But although there’s no perfect printer for everyone, some pointed questions can help you find your match.
Are you a creative who needs the best All-in-One colour printer to showcase your work?
Do you only print black and white documents, but lots of them?
Do you want to print spectacular photos to share with your friends and family?
Do you do lots of printing, scanning, and copying but don’t need to print photos at home?
By knowing exactly how you’ll use the printer, it’s much easier to know where to start.
Once you’ve established your printer personality, there are many options in each category to get you started. Find out which one suits you in this guide to the top HP printers for each of life’s needs.
About the Author: Linsey Knerl is a contributing writer for HP Tech Takes. Linsey is a Midwest-based author and public speaker. She has a passion for helping consumers and small business owners do more with their resources via the latest tech solutions.
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