[djmpower]

I will be attending law school and I'm currently getting my computer setup together.

My question is regarding a printer. I hear that law students are often printing a lot of documents.

I currently have an HP Deskjet 6122, which is very fast for an ink jet, but I do not know if this is the best choice for a law student. Any recommendations?

Should I opt for a laser printer like an HP 1200se, or 2200dse? Would this be beneficial in the long run?

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks,
DJ

[CheesePuff]

I just bought the Brother HL-1850. It has 16 MB RAM, 100 MHz processor, 19 PPM (at 600x600 dpi) and has a built-in duplexor. The highest resolution is 2400x600 dpi, has a 350 sheet holder, 150 sheet multi-use sheet feeder, and has a 3-color LCD display.

I'll let you know how it works with Mac OS X in a couple of days when it arrives.

[mbryda]

If you think you are going to be pringing color, I'd say stick with your inkjet for the times when you want color. Depending on the speed it may be time for an upgrade. I've had good luck with Epson inkjets - fast, reliable, and cheap ink if you use 3rd party. (Not a huge fan of HP stuff at all.)

If you think you are going to be printing a lot of black text, nothing beats the speed and economy (~ $0.02 per page) of a laser printer. I have heard good things about the Brother printers and the Samsung ones as well. The double sided Brother looks like a steal.

[Back up 15 and punt]

Originally posted by djmpower:
I will be attending law school and I'm currently getting my computer setup together.

My question is regarding a printer. I hear that law students are often printing a lot of documents.

I currently have an HP Deskjet 6122, which is very fast for an ink jet, but I do not know if this is the best choice for a law student. Any recommendations?

Should I opt for a laser printer like an HP 1200se, or 2200dse? Would this be beneficial in the long run?

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks,
DJ

Both the HP 1200 and 2200 are very good machines and should provide you excellent service. Keep in mind that the 2200 comes with a built in duplexer and can be obtained with a network card, if that is important to you. If you need a laser printer with color, there is the 2500 series printers that range from about $1000 to $1800 dollars. This would effectively eliminate the need for the 6122. That is, of course, if you don't need to print photo's.

[escher]

Originally posted by djmpower:
I will be attending law school and I'm currently getting my computer setup together.

My question is regarding a printer. I hear that law students are often printing a lot of documents.

djmpower: As a law student I'd like to point out two things. First, the vast majority of printing you will do will be from online research services like Lexis and Westlaw. Both companies set up high speed printers in law libraries, where you can print Lexis and Westlaw documents for free. Sure, the prints don't land in your living room, but you save lots of money on toner and paper.

Second, if you do want to get a new printer for use at home, a monochrome laser printer is the smartest choice. You won't need color printing in law school. Any good laser printer with a duplexing function will save you 50% paper. IMO, a duplexing unit is a sound investment.

Like the majority of law students, I print long documents, especially Lexis and Westlaw stuff, at the library. I have a cheap non-duplex laser printer at home, which I use for printing drafts of papers or occasional web research. When I finally have enough money to replace it, I will most definitely get a laser duplex network printer. The HP LaserJet 2200DN (I think) is currently a great choice.

Finally, if you do get an HP, make sure to get the (slightly) reduced student price, which Apple offers. Also note Apple and HP's promotion offering $50-100 off any order that combines a new Mac with an HP printer.

Good luck in law school!

Escher

[sensorfreaky]

My sister recently graduated from law school and she got by with a quick inkjet, I believe an HP 900-series. She never used color, but went through a boatload of black ink cartridges. Most of her printouts were at high speed draft mode since presentation quality text was rarely a priority. Most of her output was from notes, drafts, and resource from the web, with the occasional submitted papers. If I were you, a fast economical laser would be best, but if you're on a budget, you can always get by with a standard (non-photo) fast inkjet without feeling too limited.

[SimeyTheLimey]

Basically I concur with the other law student's comments. I have an HP 1200se and it has worked fine for me. As has been stated, you don't need color, but you do need speed. I find the HP adequate using USB connection. I don't go through that many cartridges and the HP is reliable. But I also tend to print bigger jobs elsewhere.

In some cases, you can save paper by printing only the part of the document you actually need. If you do research at home on Westlaw or Lexis, you will be downloading documents a word documents, or as PDF. Either allow you to print just the part you need rather than the whole thing. That's particularly a good idea with annotated statutes (the annotations can be huge).

Also, don't panic too much about the amount of downloading you will do. Except for papers (of which there are few), most law school reading is done out of your casebook. You will need to do research for your writing course, and perhaps in your second year for the odd note or for an advanced writing class. Otherwise, there is a lot less needed than perhaps you are thinking.

Finally, get a cable modem or DSL. During the times when you do want to get cases, you will need the bandwidth.