For those of you who aren’t aware of the poor tax, it goes something like this. If you’re poor and you need some product, you tend to buy a lower quality version of the product. I typically use shoes as an example. A poor person who needs shoes might buy a new pair that will only last 6 months. A rich person will buy a much higher quality shoe that could last 5 years. The poor person will spend more for shoes over the course of that 5 years than the rich person did with one purchase. Obviously, this concept applies to more than just shoes.

Just this week I realized that I’ve been paying the poor tax for computer printers. Now, I don’t really NEED a printer in the RV anymore, but it certainly comes in handy at times, and because of my IT work history I just feel kind of naked without a printer. I’ve always purchased inkjet printers since they’re so cheap to buy. The problem with them is the cost of replacement ink cartridges. And that’s compounded by the fact that mine see so little use. The cartridges typically either dry up or leak between uses. Just a few days ago, Mary wanted me to print a shipping label for her so she could return something.

I haul the printer out of the cabinet and open the box (that keeps it safe while traveling). I look at the zip lock bag holding the ink cartridges and sure enough, the color cartridge had leaked. I try printing with just the black cartridge and get nothing. So here I sit with a $50 printer/scanner/copier, probably looking at my 3rd set of cartridges, at about $45 a set, and finally said ‘Enough’.

I started researching ways to prolong the life of the ink cartridges and everything boiled down to ‘print at least weekly’ and didn’t mention anything about driving down bumpy roads at highway speeds LOL. Decision time. I found a low cost monochrome laser printer with good reviews for $110. Per their specs, the starter toner cartridge should print about 700 pages. I could be dead before I print that much. And if I need color, I’ll just go to the nearest office supply store or printing place. For the scanning/copying, which I’ll probably need more of, I found a portable single sheet scanner for under $100. Hopefully, I won’t have to revisit this subject anytime in the near future.