Whether you're looking to add a new printer to your home office or have decided to upgrade your current model, you'll discover the Black Friday sales event is a good time to find money-saving deals on printers. You may want to start the selection process by figuring out how you're going to use your new printer.

Although a color printer may be more cumbersome and slightly more expensive than a black and white model, the benefit is undeniable: you get color prints. As such, some consumers find it prudent to buy a cheap monochrome printer for text printing and an all-in-one color printer for everything else. Notably, all of the monochrome models we looked at were laser printers, designed for rapid output of large amounts of text and/or black and white images. Even the very best inkjets struggle to produce text that's as sharp (particularly at sizes below 12 point), and when they do, they run much slower because they're on a “high resolution” setting.

Should you buy a single or multifunctional printer? In general, this is an easy question to answer. If you can find a quality color printer with fax, scanning, and copying capabilities for the same price as a printer without those functions, the decision is a no-brainer. However, some situations exist in which you might prefer a single-function printer. Consider the following: • If you want photo-realistic output of high quality, you almost certainly want a specialist machine that focuses solely on the task at hand.

• A printer with a built-in scanner would probably serve the needs of most consumers, but if you require high-resolution scans for trade printing or graphic displays, a machine dedicated entirely to high-resolution prints could be your best bet. • Business owners might prefer a more robust single-function unit that can consistently handle their heavy output demands.

This is always going to be a difficult question to answer, and even the BestReviews lab testers had differing opinions. However, all agreed that your final choice should depend largely on what you intend to use the printer for. In the early days of home printers, the choice between inkjet and laser was rather straightforward. Back then, laser printers created images with superior detail, but the machines were prohibitively expensive. Inkjets were far more affordable, but the final product wasn’t nearly as sharp.

Most inkjet and laser printers offer similar features. Almost all can communicate wirelessly with your smartphone or tablet. Many offer WiFi so you can share the printer with other users.

And, as we've seen, scanning, copying, and faxing are common. Here are some notable “other” features you might be interested in: • Paper tray capacity: If you do a lot of printing, a large-capacity paper tray comes in handy. Quickbooks pro for mac. • Automatic feeding: If you print lots of envelopes or cards, automatic feeding of multiple sizes is useful. • Automatic duplexing: This feature is great for those who want to execute rapid double-sided printing. • Borderless printing: This is great if you want to print lots of photos, but you should check the print sizes available before making a purchase. • Ink refill subscription program: A program such as this could save you money, but we urge consumers to think about their usage patterns before choosing a printer with this feature.