Though buyers often spend as much on a computer printer as they do on a personal computer, few take much time thinking about the purchase. Printers are boring and do a simple task, but they probably account for more office headaches than any other piece of equipment.


Having a printer that works without you having to think about it is well worth a bit of effort at the buying stage.


Computer printers come in three broad kinds: dot-matrix, ink-jet, and laser. Dot-matrix printers are not expensive to buy or use, but they are the least flexible technology. They are not sold much in the West anymore, but here they are still very common. In Russia they start at about $200.


The dot-matrix printer may be noisy and less than sharp, but it is a relatively simple technology -- and it can be abused, mistreated, worn out and then, in true Russian style, fixed, using a combination of cunning and household materials.


In my experience there is often much less you can do with a dot-matrix printer when using the impressive graphics available to you using Microsoft Windows applications. The principle reason for their popularity here is the conservatism of Russian buyers, who seem loath to move to new and untested technologies.


Russia probably buys more dot matrix printers than any other country in the world. Seiko-Epson kept a production line for wide-body nine-pin dot-matrix printers working solely to serve the Russian market.


Ink jets may eventually replace dot matrix as the standard mass PC printer technology, but they started to become popular in Russia only last year.


Ink-jet printers start at a little over $300 and can provide sharpness good enough for most PC users. Unlike many dot-matrix printers, they are quiet and can enable a user to get the most out of his or her Windows software. Their disadvantage is that they are relatively slow and, in a Russian environment, more temperamental.


Most ink- jet printers require careful feeding of paper and can be troublesome if the paper is poorly positioned or of a nonstandard size. With paper produced in Russia, this can be a problem.


Until recently another problem was consumables (all the parts you regularly need to replace). Ink-jet cartridges were hard to come by in Russia, which made using one of these printers troublesome. In Moscow, with the well-known brands, this is no longer a problem.


Laser printers are the most expensive but the most versatile technology. Prices start at about $800. Laser printers are also more expensive to use, since consumables are expensive. Toner cartridges last for about 3,000 to 4,000 pages, but cost around $100 each (ink-jet cartridges are about $30).


Don't take this fact too lightly. During the lifetime of a laser printer, its owner will usually spend three times the initial purchase price on consumables. Anyone using PCs in a network will probably need a laser printer, since ink-jet printers are too slow.


For the highest-class presentations they are also a must. Several manufacturers now sell them with software, which makes them very easy to configure and use with Microsoft Windows.


In Russia, the laser printer has become synonymous with the name Hewlett-Packard. For service and consumables, Hewlett-Packard is likely to offer the fewest worries.


Whereas once you had to pay 50 percent more in Moscow for a printer (and then have to wait at least three weeks for it to arrive), prices in Moscow are now competitive with those in Europe.


It is not a good idea to seek out the very cheapest prices; there are no real bargains. The Hewlett-Packard Laserjet 4L laser printer is available from some dealers for as low as $700, but these are usually gray imports, which, since they are sold without a genuine guarantee, will not be serviced by the Hewlett-Packard service center.


Epson and Star warn buyers against dot-matrix products sold by unauthorized dealers, since these often have U.S. 110-volt power adapters, which were never designed for use in this country. In rare cases even stock that has failed factory quality-control checks finds its way here.





Robert Farish is the editor of Computer Business Russia. Tel. (7 095) 198-6207, Internet e-mail: farish@glas.apc.org