The kind of printer you need depends on which features are most important to you. It's easy to get overwhelmed with all of the choices, but we've broken printer users down into four categories to help you decide what type of printer you'll need and what you can expect to pay.

The Home User

Need to print everything from photos of your kids to driving directions from the internet, but don't want to spend a lot of money? Here are your best choices. Be aware that models of both types of printer often come with built-in features such as scanners and copiers for all-in-one convenience.

Inkjet printers

Inkjet printers produce excellent quality graphics and photos but are not quite as good as laser printers for printing text documents. They work by precisely spraying very small droplets of ink onto a piece of paper. Bubble jets are the most popular form of inkjet printer. Heat is created in the bubble jet, which vaporizes ink to create a bubble ejected from the print head.

Pros: Good quality for an affordable price

Cons: Not very fast, and ink cartridge replacements can be costly

Price: Starting at under $100

If you're shopping for an inkjet, keep in mind the cost of printing a page. Inkjets average anywhere from about 300 to 800 pages per ink cartridge, so depending on whether you're printing black and white or color, a page can cost from 1 to 20 cents to print. If you plan on doing a lot of printing, an inkjet may be a more costly option in the long run.

Color Laser printers

Color laser printers produce excellent quality text documents but are not quite as good as inket printers for printing graphics and photos. They use high-speed laser light and electrically charged toner to print images on paper. Color laser printers have recently become much more affordable and there are now many models available for the home user. Monochromatic laser printers (black and white) are best suited for businesses or home users who want to print crisp text but don't need to print in color.

Pros: Color laser printers are faster than ink jets and don't require as many costly ink cartridge replacements so they have a low per-page printing cost

Cons: Cost ñ color laser printers are initially much more expensive to purchase than ink jets

Price: Starting around $300

The Photographer

Serious about digital photography? There's no shortage of printing options and as technology continues to advance, so does print quality. Many of today's photo printers come with large display screens, scanners, and the ability to edit and print directly from a digital camera without needing a computer.

Dye Sublimation printers

Dye sublimation (or "dye sub") printers allow photographers to make photo-lab quality prints at home. With dye sub technology, a heated print head passes over a long roll of transparent colored film. The dyes on the film vaporize and permeate the glossy surface of the paper before returning to a solid form. This process eliminates the conspicuous borders of dot images. Dye sub prints are also less vulnerable to fading and distortion over time.

Pros: Truly amazing prints that won't fade. Dye sublimation printers are light-weight and portable

Cons: Most dye sublimation printers have a maximum print size of only 4"x6"

Price: $150 to $500

Inkjet printers

Inkjet printers are a good choice for photographers too. Output quality among standard inkjets and photo inkjets is virtually the same. Spending more will typically get you faster speed and larger print sizes.

Pros: More affordable and versatile than dye sublimation printers

Cons: Prints aren't as high quality as dye sublimation. Prints can take time to dry and can smudge while still wet.

Price: Starting at less than $100

Tip: It's a good idea to note the unit's resolution or DPI (dots per inch) but it varies between technologies. A 300 x 300 dpi dye sublimation printer has an output similar to a 1,200 x 4,800 inkjet.

The Small Business Owner

Looking for a printer that can quickly produce receipts, labels, barcodes, and business cards — and fax a document or make copies too? Both inkjet and laser printers have models with features that should cover all of your needs.

Multi-Function printers

You can find models that include any combination of fax, scanner and copier. Decide whether you'd prefer an inkjet or a laser in order to narrow your field of choices. If you don't have a need for color prints, a monochrome (black and white) laser is a good way to go.

Pros: Convenient, multi-function printers save both space and money

Cons: Usually if one component is out of service, the others won't function either. So if this is your office hub, you may have difficulty working until you can get your printer repaired.

Price: Starting at $200

The Mobile User

Are you always on the go and looking for a printer that can keep up with your hectic and mobile way of life? Maybe you need a portable printer. Fortunately, there are many options available.

Portable printers

Today there are printers that weigh anywhere from two to five pounds and can run on battery power. Car charger accessories are also available and some brands have even added support for printing wirelessly from a cell-phone or PDA.

Pros: Light-weight and compact without sacrificing quality output

Cons: You'll pay nearly as much for accessories like a battery or Bluetooth adapter as you did for the printer itself and their maximum print size is often only 4"x6"

Price: Starting at $180

Other Types of Printers Available

Dot Matrix printers strike pins against an ink ribbon, imprinting appropriate characters on paper. They are capable of printing multi-page forms such as carbon copies.

Pros: Reliable, and can print multi-page copies unlike inkjet and laser printers

Cons: Very loud while running, relatively expensive and don't offer the same quality as inkjets or lasers

Price: Starting at $150

Thermal printers use heated pins to transfer an impression onto paper. This technology is used frequently in calculators and fax machines. Thermal wax transfer printers use wax-based ink which adheres to the paper through a transfer ribbon.

Pros: Faster than dye sublimations, good quality images

Cons: Images are imprinted as dots which sacrifices some quality compared to dye sub technology

Price: Starting at less than $100

LCD/LED printers are nearly identical to laser printers—in fact some stores market them as lasers - but instead of a laser, they use Light Emitting or Liquid Crystal Diodes to charge the drum. Because they have no moving parts, they are typically more compact than lasers.

Pros: Fast, high-quality output, compact size, mechanically simple and reliable

Cons: Early burnout can occur due to repeated on/off switching of light source as a print is made. LCD/LED printers have a fixed horizontal resolution, which can't take advantage of software-based resolution enhancements.

Cost: Starting at just under $200

Line printers do exactly what their name suggests: they rapidly print one entire line at a time. Line printers typically use sprocket feed and wide fanfold paper. They are typically purchased by businesses with heavy printing needs and are rarely utilized by home users.

Pros: Lightning fast, with speed up to 3,000 lines per minute (45 pages)

Cons: Below average quality and noisy. Line printers cannot reproduce graphics

Cost: Starting around $450

Important Terms

DPI

DPI, or dots per inch, measures the number of individual dots of ink a printer or toner can produce within one linear inch. Generally, the higher the DPI the better the print quality will be.

Interface Type

Most printers today connect via a USB (Universal Serial Bus) cable, often not included with the printer. If you plan to allow multiple computers to use your printer you should consider a printer with network connectivity. You can use a standard Ethernet cable with an RJ-45 connector, or for even better mobility, many models support infrared, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi wireless connections and have built-in print servers.

Memory

Memory is used to store fonts and pending print jobs. It's more of a concern for businesses which have multiple users sending jobs to the printer simultaneously. You really only need to be concerned about memory if you often print high-resolution photos or other large files. If this is the case, look for a printer with a faster processor and more onboard memory.

Memory upgrades

It's wise to check into speed and memory capabilities for printers that will be receiving documents simultaneously from multiple computers or those with complex print jobs. Higher memory enables faster processing speeds and the ability to store multiple fonts for cleaner text printouts. Many laser printers allow you to upgrade memory but inkjets don't - so if you want a printer you can add memory to, shop for a laser printer.

Pages Per Minute

This calculates how many pages or photos per minute (ppm) a printer produces. The speed within each unit will vary depending on what type of quality you set your printer for.

Resolution

Resolution is measured by DPI, or the number of dots that can be printed within one linear inch. The measure is calculated both horizontally and vertically. So a 600 x 600 dpi laser printer imprints 600 dots horizontally and 600 dots vertically on each page. Generally, the higher the resolution numbers, the more detailed the text and images will be.