[net.micro] Which printer?

jgpo@iwu1c.UUCP (John, KA9MNK) (10/20/83)

I am thinking of buying a printer for my Apple //e.  I'll probably
get the Grappler+ interface, and am trying to decide between the
Prowriter and the Okidata 92.  Several people at work own and love the
Prowriter, but the Oki's print quality looks a bit better (at slow speed).
Consumer Reports said the Oki was one of the best printers they tested,
but they didn't test the Prowriter, unfortunately.

Does anyone have any experience with either of these printers?  Also,
would anyone care to comment on my choice of interface?  The Grappler+
looks pretty good to me, but I'm always open to suggestions.


	Thanks,
	John Opalko
	...!ihnp4!iwu1c!jgpo

eric@aplvax.UUCP (10/21/83)

	Some time ago I was also comparing printers for the Apple
//e. I found the Okidata 92 to be a much more useful printer. While
it was a little more than the Prowriter (I think), it seemed the 
better buy. Actually, I was buying the printer for my parents, so
I also wanted something I could trust. So far they have not had
any problem with it. It also has one of the best "multi-strike"
fonts I have seen on a dot-matrix printer. I strongly recommend the
Okidata.

-- 
					eric
					...!seismo!umcp-cs!aplvax!eric

jgpo@iwu1c.UUCP (John, KA9MNK) (10/22/83)

Thanks to everyone who took the time to advise me on which printer/interface
to buy for my //e.  I just went out and bought a Prowriter and a Grappler+
interface card.  General consensus was the Grappler is a darn good interface
and the differences between the Prowriter and the Okidata 92 (wrt print quality
and features) are minimal.  The Prowriter, however, was considered to be more
sturdily built.

Once again, thanks for all the help.

	John Opalko

bernar@crystal.ARPA (06/13/84)

[ non-blank line ]

	I would like to buy a cheap dot-matrix printer for my C64,
	mainly for program listings and personal word processing.
	
	I don't care much for speed but want a dependable
	machine with a reasonably readable print and easy to find 
	replacement parts ( such as ribbons ).

	I've considered Commodore's MPS-801, 1525 and 1526 but it
	seems one can get a better deal with a third party product.
	Maybe I'm wrong.

	Any suggestions, comments and advice from the more experienced
	people of the net would be greatly appreciated. Would anyone
	describe the mayor differences between the 1525 and 1526 ?.

	Please respond by mail, as usual, and if I consider the info.
	to be of general interest I'll post it to the net.

	Thanx in advance and happy computing.


				Bernardo Feijoo.

bernar@uwvax.UUCP (06/24/84)

[sacrifice line]

The following is a summary of responses to my query:

   ***	Which cheap-dot-matrix-printer should I consider for use
   ***	with my C64 ?


Most people recommended the Gemini 10X from Star Micronics.
It has many features for the price and the ones who recommended
it reported positive experiences with it. The price ranges from
$269 to $300 (discounted).

Some others recommended the EPSON line of printers (MX80, RX80,
FX80 and LQ-1500), mentioning their features, dependability
and good price.

Someone included the Oki 92 for $425 (discounted price).

The CBM line was either not mentioned or disregarded as not being
worth the price tag.

For the parallel to serial interface most people recommended either
the Cardco/G interface (for about $80) or the one put out by Star
Micronics (for ~ $60). There's also a so-called "economy" interface
by Cardco for around $50.  

I considered all the facts and decided to go for the Gemini 10X,
I got it for $275. I also got a Star Micronics interface for
$60. The EPSON line impressed me well but I could not find such
a good price.

The printer and interface are now two days old and I've done
a small amount of testing that has been satisfactory except
for a couple of problems that I'll post in a separate article.
The print quality is very good, the printer is reasonably quiet
and the speed suits me fine.

I would like to thank all of you who responded. You've been
very helpful.

			Bernardo Feijoo.