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Buying a Printer

Consider the Printer's Noise

SUMMARY: A printer may be too noisy to use in some environments.

One factor you may not have considered when buying a printer is the noise generated by the unit. Printers can be especially noisy when generating a large print job, limiting their potential use in some situations:

* In a small office, a busy network printer might distract nearby coworkers. It may prove useful to move the printer away from cubicles/offices. If network wiring prohibits this, consider a wireless printer or wireless printer adapter.

* If you live in a condo, apartment, or other multi-unit dwelling, printing at nighttime may be so loud it annoys the neighbors. Or, printing could annoy or wake up other members of the household.

While printers may advertise themselves as being quiet, unfortunately the only way to know for sure how much noise will be generated is to either test the printer or read reviews.