This is the question I posed on Ask Metafilter last week. What printers work best for writers? Not what's the fanciest, or the cheapest, or the best for travelling--basically, all of these wrapped up all in one, tried and true by those who know. Here are a few suggestions:

laser for text. laser for text. laser for text. laser for text. LASER FOR TEXT. Seriously, it's a world of difference. And it can be cheap and reliable too, if you get a refurbished HP Laserjet 5 or 6 (the ones with flat paper trays, not the ones that hold the paper up and down).

I love my HP Laser Printer. It's the 1320 model, black and white. Why do I love it? It does double sided (flips the paper itself) and can print up to 4 pages per side. this means I can fit an 96 page document on 12 pieces of paper. Excellent for proofing. So, it's both economical and durable. Not portable, however. I would recommend you avoid inkjet printers as the cartridges are ridiculously expensive, print too few sheets, and can streak. And color? Why bother? If your printer is for printing text, you're wasting your cash. Many color printers won't even print black and white unless the color cartridges are also full.

I bought a LaserJet 2100 on eBay from a company in California that refurbishes equipment from bankrupt corporations. It had hardly been used and it was a great deal. If you're picking someone with good feedback who specializes in printers, there's no reason to be afraid of eBay.

Several have said it, but I'll reiterate: older-model b/w LaserJet. IMO, cheap is better than durable, because the idea of a "durable" printer seems to me to be a myth. Too many moving parts, especially with hideous "all-in-one" scanner / fax / printers.

Oh and by the way is that not the most exciting image you've ever seen posted on a blog? You're welcome.