Wireless Printer in a dorm room question

[graylocks]

i've been waiting for a good deal on a laser printer for my son living at college. i assumed wireless since that's what we have at home and in his small college room he could stick it anywhere. then i began to wonder if wireless in a dorm is a good idea. at home no once else is on our network but in order for my son to use the printer wirelessly he'd have to be on the wifi in the dorm. would that mean that anyone else on that same wifi network would have access to his printer or is there something in the printer set up that would let you password protect it or something.

as mentioned in a thread a few days ago, Staples has the Brother 2240 on sale today only for $59 which is the price point i've been looking for. it's not wireless and i'm trying to decide if i should get it or hold out for a wireless like i originally thought i wanted.

[space-time]

does he really need a printer in his room?

I don't know how things are these days, but when I was a grad student about 15 years ago, all students (grads and undergrads) had a printing quota of several thousands pages and there were hundreds of printers throughout the campus, I never had to worry about finding a printer to print my homework.

[cbelt3]

I would recommend he not use the wireless feature. His printer (If it connects) will be open to everyone on the subnetwork , which will encompass the dorm at a minimum.

[PeterB]

Agree with the others here -- do NOT go wireless. Instead, go with a good, basic wired black and white laser, preferably one for which the toners are cheap and easy to find.

And yes, it IS helpful for students these days to have their own printer-- at my institution, the students get charged per print they make, and obviously it adds up, AND it's handy to be able to print from your dorm room, rather than going to a computer lab in order to be able to print.

[graylocks]

space-time wrote:
does he really need a printer in his room?

I don't know how things are these days, but when I was a grad student about 15 years ago, all students (grads and undergrads) had a printing quota of several thousands pages and there were hundreds of printers throughout the campus, I never had to worry about finding a printer to print my homework.

at first he thought as you did which is why i didn't get the printer before he left. since then, as PeterB has pointed out, he's found himself running around trying to find either a school's printer or a friend's printer to use. i asked him when this sale came up and his response was god, yes, please get me a printer!

[testcase]

I have inadvertently printed wirelessly to someone else's printer. I can only imagine the possibility for abuse in a dorm setting. Can the model you're considering be locked down by printing to only approved MAC addresses?

[graylocks]

testcase wrote:
I have inadvertently printed wirelessly to someone else's printer. I can only imagine the possibility for abuse in a dorm setting. Can the model you're considering be locked down by printing to only approved MAC addresses?

on advice of the forumistas, i'm pulling the trigger on the Brother Wireless model.

[PeterB]

graylocks, if you have the money and he's got the space, here's another one to consider: http://www.staples.com/Brother-DCP-7065D...LAs:918107&KPID=918107

I got two of these from the $100 newegg deal when it was mentioned here awhile back, and you really can't argue with $100-110 shipped. Having the ability to either print, scan, OR photocopy from his room will make him a campus stud... LOL

[space-time]

use the USB connection in dorm, and network (wired/wireless) when he comes home for the summer.

[graylocks]

thanks PeterB but it's way too large.