<p>I'm trying to figure out some things that only students might know.</p>
<p>One concern is towards the printer Im going to need. I can save a lot in the long run with a laser, but that wont be the case if i need to print out a lot of color pictures. I was wondering if anyone knows what kind of printing and how much of it is going to be done for an engineering student.
I was thinking of two vague options for this.
$100-150 laser monochrome printer, seperate scanner $50-120
or
All-in-One color</p>
<p>What are the printing options, if any, through tech?</p>
<p>Im also wondering what big stores are near by. I know walmart is close, but what else? Im coming from san diego, so this is really helpful to know. </p>
<p>Last thing, what are the bathrooms like. Im going to be in cadet housing (hopefully half cadet, half civilian) so anything in the upper quad, i think, are my options. </p>
<p>Keep questions coming, Im sure me and everyone else might want to know where your head is. Im new to this, so are many people on here...</p>
<p>You can print stuff off at the library but it's a bit expensive for color (around .50 a page I believe). Then again all you'll need color for really is projects and maybe some homework... still, it's pretty convenient not to have to run down there/bum a printer off someone else. I have an all in one color and I really couldn't imagine not having a color printer.</p>
<p>In Christiansburg which is about 15 minutes away theres Walmart, Best Buy, Target, etc. etc. In Bburg theres not as much (yet), not very much "big box" at all really. There are two Kroger though and a few other smaller grocery stores. But Cburg is close and there is a bus that runs out there every half hour or so until about 5, directly to Walmart. The busses are free for VT students.</p>
<p>No clue on cadet housing but it'll probably be a basic public restroom with a sort of separate shower room, with individual shower stalls. Thats how it is everywhere else, excluding the newer dorms.</p>
<p>I ran the numbers based off of the websites for some lasers and inkjets, and around 400 pages of printing is where the laser starts to be cheaper. Im not sure if this a lot of printing so im clueless as to which to buy. Whats your major by the way chuy, and do you go through this amount each year/semester/.....?</p>
<p>Materials Science Engineering. I don't go through any 400 pages but you MIGHT get close to that number if your professors put all the notes online and you print them off before class. Even that may be a stretch...</p>
<p>I just use a regular HP (I think) all in one printer. I go through around 3-4 ink cartridges a year, but some people use a bit more. Theres one of those ink refiller places in the alumni mall which might be cheaper than buying new cartridges every time. You don't have to wait for them to fill them, you just give them your old ones and they give you some refilled cartridges that someone else brought in. My girlfriend does that and doesn't seem to have any problems.</p>
<p>400 sounded kind of high to me, but i really have no idea.
I used to fill up cartriges for a couple of my printers before, but some can't be refilled. That way is much cheaper.</p>
<p>I love AIOs, i have a pretty cheap one, but its nice to have the options they offer. </p>
<p>Well if im going to go through ROUGHLY 400 pages/year, a laser will last atleast 3 years with no refills. I cant imagine that the refill place charges more than, i dont know, $10 per cartridge right? I guess ill do some number crunching... that seems like it will be easier and cheaper for and AIO.</p>