The Student Room Group

Printing...

When visiting universities last summer I was told that it might be a good idea for students to purchase printers, because it might get very crowded before the deadlines of the assignments. And, in the undergraduate handbook it says that this is possible. Also, on Warwick website it said that you have to pay for every single page that you print. So... my questions are:

To current students at Warwick: Have you felt a need for a personal printer/scanner/copier? And what do you think about the idea of getting one?

To prospective students: Are any of you considering this? Any thoughts or ideas?
Reply 1
aluakz
When visiting universities last summer I was told that it might be a good idea for students to purchase printers, because it might get very crowded before the deadlines of the assignments. And, in the undergraduate handbook it says that this is possible. Also, on Warwick website it said that you have to pay for every single page that you print. So... my questions are:

To current students at Warwick: Have you felt a need for a personal printer/scanner/copier? And what do you think about the idea of getting one?

To prospective students: Are any of you considering this? Any thoughts or ideas?


I never really thought of buying a printer for myself at university. But thinking about it, it might actually be a good idea especially since there would be loads of people using it for deadlines, etc.
I'm planning on bringing one; it was recommended by a few people....and i tend to wind up printing at weird hours....dont want to have to go out at 2 am in november or something:p:
I think part of me would just like the security of knowing i have my own as well- ok i'll have to buy paper but i think the pros outweigh the cons....
Reply 3
Yeh I definitely wanted my own printer in the first place as it will save time queuing during deadlines so I've bought an all-in-one Printer/Scanner/Copier
i think buying one is a very good idea since the during deadlines many ppl tend to block printer enterance, but since im going in from US bringing a printer might be a problem hehe so I think i will share who ever brings a printer near my dorm and pay his or her a little compensation for letting me use their printer
Reply 5
Hopefully so many people will feel the need to bring a printer that there won't be a queue!.... it might happen....
Depending on how much the nice people at Warwick charge us for printing (do you reckon they're stingy enough to measure the amount of ink you've used?) it might be cheaper than bringing your own.
Reply 6
if its anything like im used to, you'll have to buy printer credits. different types and sizes of paper will cost different amounts of credits, eg. plain A4 b/w = 1 credit, colour = 3 credits.

credits are then usually sold in bulk, but can work out at around 4p a credit usually.
Reply 7
I'm taking one, it came free with a computer when we already had one, so I'm carting it a long with me! Should come in useful.
Reply 8
im taking one as well
Reply 9
i already had one..it was cheap, small(ish) and easy to move aorund. You can pack it away easily so im definetely bringing it :d
Reply 10
OK... so everyone seems to be bringing one! I'll be off shopping for printer today, then...

For those who might need it, i charge 10 pounds per term :wink:... kidding
Reply 11
do we have the option of printing at the university? At my high school we had some printing credits and we werent allowed to go over 50pcs per day. (as if anyones going to be printing that amount...)
Reply 12
I have been living here for two years without a printer and I've been fine. The ITS computer room does get full, but there are so many other computer rooms on campus that are /never/ full. If I have to print something though I usually go to DCS and get some computer scientist to print it out for me for free (that is after I used up my own DCS printer credits).
Reply 13
I bought a really cheap colour printer in first year which I used when I wanted to print photographs, diagrams, etc. (which is really not very often!). Apart from that, as a CSE student I get an allowance in Computer Science (something stupid like 500 sheets per year which accumulate throughout your degree...) and £50 per year in Engineering too :biggrin: Don't think I could print that much if I tried! Even my 100-odd page 3rd year project last year didn't make a significant dent on them!
Definitely wait until you get here - you can order printers very cheaply online if you decide you need them (no problems getting them delivered to halls - that's how I got mine) and it'll save money and space if it turns out you don't need one.
Jenn xx
Reply 14
yeah i understand... but printing there is expensive! http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/services/its/facilities/printing/costs/ plus, you cannot access printers 24/7, right? and... what if you found a mistake or doing drafts before submiting the final one? or the queues? or if you just want to print some random stuff?

doesn't all of that in the end justify the cost of a printer (i am talking about a 100 euro printer)?
Reply 15
I'm pretty sure you can get access to printers 24/7 in ITS, though I've never bothered to try because the Computer Science ones (where I get free printer credits anyway) are definitely 24 hours :smile: I agree the ITS printing is expensive, don't really know about queues, but I'd really just wait until you get there - you won't be in desperate need of a printer the instant you get there, and you might find that your department give you printer credits anyway (off the top of my head, I think it's just Engineering and Computer Science but there could well be others) which will make your printing free and the queues will be *much* shorter. 100 euros is quite a lot of money - think of all the nights out you could have on that! Plus, if there are others in the same position to you, you might be able to share a printer (and hence the cost...) between several of you - or even nick some credits off someone who's got free ones if you're lucky :P
Jenn xx
Reply 16
yeah... it think i will do that... thanks for your help!
are the deadlines just in the months leading up to the end of the year or are they at the end of every term, just wondering to see if i will need a printer for the first term or just for the first year.
Reply 18
Chris12345
are the deadlines just in the months leading up to the end of the year or are they at the end of every term, just wondering to see if i will need a printer for the first term or just for the first year.

Depends what you are studying. I usually have weekly essays for philosophy and one coursework per module per term for computer science.