[kempbellt]

> I print A4 full color page every day

This is really a key point. Inkjet printers are great for printing photos and will work great if you do so frequently. But if you don't, they have issues.

Unless you print something in "full color" (and even if you do), you rarely use the inks evenly. One cartridge will always run out or dry out faster than another. Also, ink can dry out in the jets - causing clogs and resulting in streaks. Also, if a cartridge dries out, the printer thinks it is empty and almost always requires you to replace it before printing even if you don't need it.

They're great for photos (especially Canons), but a simple BW laser is a better investment if all you print is documents. If you need color (for documents), a color laser is also more ideal. It is much more expensive up front, but also a good long-term investment. Toner you use less frequently (like cyan) won't dry out. It'll just sit there until the odd day that you need it. Prints-per-cartridge are usually higher since the cartridges are typically larger, physically. Streaking in the conventional sense isn't even possible with how the tech works. Price-per-print is typically much lower. Especially if you consider less trips to the store, and less replacing of wasted cartridges.

A $600 color laser (more like $400 now) can be an expensive upfront investment, but for printing color docs, it's almost always cheaper in the long run.

Source: I worked retail in college and sold printers and had this conversation literally thousands of times.

[Taikonerd]

I have an inkjet, but I rarely print anything. Would it make sense to print out a test page (say) every week, just to prevent the ink from drying out?

[kempbellt]

That's what we recommended. Print something that uses all the colors at least once a week to keep the ink moving. I believe some printers have a "test" print that does exactly this.