HP Envy Inspire 7255e Cost to Run: Modest Printer, Steep Ink
The HP Envy Inspire 7255e is an inkjet printer that prints, copies and scans, with a touchscreen and Wi-Fi built in. It sells for $200 and costs $10.50 per 100 pages to run in black, $27.12 in color. That black rate traces back to HP's HP-64XL-BK cartridge, priced at $63 and rated for 600 pages.
Its closest rival from outside HP is the Canon PIXMA TS6520, priced at $141. The Canon runs $13.00 per 100 pages in black against the Envy's $10.50, and $28.00 in color against $27.12 — close in color, plainly higher in black. The Envy also carries a touchscreen; the Canon does not. Among the 31 inkjets InkTax tracks, the Envy ties for 23rd on black cost per page and 21st on color, each a rate one other model matches.
Within HP's own line, stepping down to the DeskJet 2855e brings the price to $90 but drops duplexing and the touchscreen, and raises running costs to $15.00 per 100 pages in black and $33.49 in color. Stepping up to the OfficeJet Pro 8135e costs $230, adds fax and Ethernet, and cuts running costs to $3.80 per 100 pages in black and $16.54 in color.
The running-cost floor among inkjets belongs to the Canon MAXIFY MB2720, at $4.17 per 100 pages in black and $13.16 in color, with fax included, for $216. It also prints faster, at 24 ppm against the Envy's 15 ppm. Across every type InkTax tracks, the Envy sits 89th of 97 printers on black cost per page.
A tank-based alternative, the Canon PIXMA G3270, costs $249 up front but refills from bottles for $0.38 per 100 pages in black and $0.97 in color — far below the Envy's own rates. It drops duplexing and the touchscreen the Envy offers, though both machines keep Wi-Fi.