"Laser printer" is a term that usually is considered to be synonymous with high-quality output, but that isn't always the case. Most laser printers are good at printing text, but some fall short when it comes to producing line art, photographs and other grayscale images.

Price isn't always an indicator of performance, either, as some inexpensive laser printers outperform more expensive models. Choosing the best model for you is largely a matter of weighing a candidate's good and bad points against your particular needs. Be sure to also factor in the cost of consumables, as some laser printers have considerably higher per-page costs than others. Consumer Guide presents five current laser printers to consider.

Hewlett-Packard LaserJet 1018 laser printer

Hewlett-Packard LaserJet 1018 laser printer

HP's LaserJet 1018 laser printer is compact enough to squeeze into tight quarters, a not-insignificant consideration for home use, but it won't win any awards for speed. This printer is rated at up to 12 pages per minute, but we didn't get close to that in our tests. Output quality is generally good, and text is particularly crisp and legible, even at small font sizes. The quality of photos and other grayscale images is acceptable for general-purpose documents.

The paper input tray can only hold up to 150 sheets of plain paper, but this may be adequate for low-volume use. The LaserJet 1018's major flaw is its per-page printing costs, an average of 3.5 cents per page, which is on the high side for a monochrome laser printer. Still, at a suggested price of $129, the HP LaserJet 1018 performs well for a model in this price range.


Dell 3110cn laser printer

The Dell 3110cn laser printer dominates its surroundings. This color laser printer's mammoth size is in large part due to the need to house four individual toner cartridges. Surprisingly, the 3110cn's default paper capacity is fairly limited. The printer ships with a 250-sheet standard paper tray and a 150-sheet multipurpose tray, which is on the skimpy side for business use.

The 3110cn is network-ready out of the box, which is a plus for both home and business use. It includes USB and parallel ports, so it's compatible with older and newer systems.

Output quality is suitable for business and general-purpose use, but the quality of both monochrome and color images doesn't quite measure up for graphics-heavy documents, such as newsletters and brochures. For many individuals, however, the reasonable suggested price of $549, fast output, and low per-page printing costs more than make up for the Dell 3110cn's shortcomings.


Konica Minolta PagePro 1400W laser printer

The Konica Minolta PagePro 1400W monochrome laser printer is a little noisy, so if you have young children or a light-sleeping spouse, we wouldn't recommend doing much printing after everyone has gone to bed.

Considering its dearth of features and merely average output quality, we find it difficult to recommend this the PagePro 1400W. While there's nothing terribly wrong with it, you can get much more value by spending just a bit more for another printer. The $120 suggested price tag is reasonable, but because the PagePro 1400W's toner drum must be replaced more frequently than is typical, its per-page printing costs are on the high side. This is yet another reason to give the Konica Minolta PagePro 1400W a pass.

Konica Minolta magicolor 2500W laser printer

Konica Minolta magicolor 2500W laser printer

Konica Minolta's magicolor 2500W is fairly compact and lightweight for a color laser printer. At a suggested price of $299, its low upfront cost makes it an affordable choice for home and home office use, although it lacks built-in networking support.

The 2500W's paper tray can hold up to 200 sheets of plain paper, but there is no manual feed slot. If you want to print postcards, transparencies, envelopes or other non-standard paper stocks, be prepared to spend time loading and unloading the paper tray.

Output quality is surprisingly good for a color laser printer in this price range. Text is clear, even at small font sizes. The quality of color and grayscale photos and other images isn't good enough for desktop publishing, but the Konica Minolta magicolor 2500W is fine for general-purpose home use.


Lexmark E250dn laser printer

The Lexmark E250dn laser printer's upfront suggested price of $249 is appealing, but you'll pay for it down the road. Its feature set includes a built-in duplexer, but that may not make up for the E250dn's higher-than-average per-page printing costs, particularly if you generally print a moderate document volume.

The speedy E250dn delivers good-quality output for both text and graphics. Text and line art are crisp and sharp, with few or no breaks in thin lines. The output quality of photos is good, although not good enough for heavy-duty desktop publishing use. In addition to built-in network support, this monochrome laser printer has a USB 2.0 port and a parallel port, so it can work with both older and newer systems.

The E250dn's control panel lacks an LCD display, and the various status light sequences are a bit complex, but the well-written manual makes it easy to crack the code. Overall, the Lexmark E250dn is a good buy, but be aware of the costs going forward.