Things to consider…

What you need to know before getting started

1 Cartridge costs Inkjet printer cartridges are cheaper than laser toner catridges, but they last for proportionately fewer pages. The overall per–page costs are actually quite similar, so consider the cost of having spare cartridges handy.

2 What kind of content? Do you want to print a lot of photos, are you more of a page layout person, or are office documents your main thing? If it’s the former an inkjet is a must, although budget for photo paper as plain stock will disappoint.

3 You want fax support? Faxing may be a dead technology for most, but it’s still needed by some. If this is you, make sure your printer will fit near a landline phone socket.

4 What paper sizes? All these print A4 pages of course, and they support printing smaller sizes, down to 10x10cm photos in Canon’s case. The Epson includes a tray for printing on CDs and DVDs, but, unusually, the Brother is an A3 printer.

5 What paper capacity? Larger capacity paper trays are useful, especially if you use your printer for small business purposes or share your printer on a network. The Canon and Epson paper trays hold a maximum of 100 sheets, while the Brother and Kyocera both hold up to 250 sheets.