LaserWriter 4/600 PS, What Should I Do with it?

[ajaybert]

When I was in college in the early 2000's I used a beige G3 minitower as my primary computer, and I could print on a LaserWriter 4/600 PS I was given by my dad. I plan on keeping the G3 minitower because I love that computer, but I don't have any need for the printer anymore in my crowded basement. The printer still works last I tried. Would I be wasting my time trying to give this away to a collector if it doesn't have any real value, or is this something that a collector would actually want? I am not worried about prices or anything like that, I am more concerned about how long it might take to find someone who is interested in it.

Many thanks in advance.

 

[velocityg4]

There's a little interest. On eBay you'll get $20 to $40 depending on condition. Probably more locally as shipping is a killer.

I'd just put it on Letgo or similar app for $100. Then sell it to the best offer. Rather than it rotting in a landfill.

If you use Craigslist or similar. Don't post your real number or e-mail. Create a burner e-mail and forward to your real e-mail and use a free burner app for a phone number. That way you aren't bombarded by spam afterward. You just delete them and all is over with.

 

[ajaybert]

Hi velocityg4, thank you for the quick reply. There was a lot of good advice there. I agree, shipping is probably the biggest challenge. I will try out some of the more local selling options using a burner email and a really low price.

Thanks again.

 

[bobesch]

Out of curiosity: can you still get toner-cartridges for those Apple LaserWriters?

I have a bunch of HP LaserJets 2200 and I do heavily rely on them. You can still get toner-cartridges for this specific model, because HP sold al real lot of them. But when I think about their age now, which is BTW the same like your Apple LaserWriter's, I'm really stunned. What a pity to loose support for these previous.
If you have a source for new toner for that model I'd rather keep it ...

 

[ajaybert]

Out of curiosity: can you still get toner-cartridges for those Apple LaserWriters?

I have a bunch of HP LaserJets 2200 and I do heavily rely on them. You can still get toner-cartridges for this specific model, because HP sold al real lot of them. But when I think about their age now, which is BTW the same like your Apple LaserWriter's, I'm really stunned. What a pity to loose support for these previous.
If you have a source for new toner for that model I'd rather keep it ...

Thanks bobesch. I think there might be some cartridges available on ebay, and they tend to last a long time in my experience. So I do have enough toner to last me a bit longer. My two biggest issues is I don't print much anymore, and my wife already has a wireless Canon printer that is easier to use with the modern computers I use most often. There could be a way to make an old Appletalk printer work with newer OS's in 2020, but I am hoping to find a home for it that will have better use for it than I will. I haven't tried to print on it in the last five years.

Thanks for your thoughts. I hope you have a good weekend.

 

[sailingdarter]

You can set-up a Raspberry Pi to be an AppleTalk server and host that printer. It is a bit of work but it works really well

Setting up an AppleTalk file- and printserver for Classic Mac OS and OS X


Regardless if you do this in a VM or on an actual pi the linux configuration part is pretty much the same

 

[HowEver]

This thread reminded me that I still have my Apple Personal LaserWriter NTR.

 

[SegFisch]

Out of curiosity: can you still get toner-cartridges for those Apple LaserWriters?

I have a bunch of HP LaserJets 2200 and I do heavily rely on them. You can still get toner-cartridges for this specific model, because HP sold al real lot of them. But when I think about their age now, which is BTW the same like your Apple LaserWriter's, I'm really stunned. What a pity to loose support for these previous.
If you have a source for new toner for that model I'd rather keep it ...

Yes. It was a common size for some HP printers. Still easy to find in 2022. Just replaced mine.

 

[SegFisch]

Thanks bobesch. I think there might be some cartridges available on ebay, and they tend to last a long time in my experience. So I do have enough toner to last me a bit longer. My two biggest issues is I don't print much anymore, and my wife already has a wireless Canon printer that is easier to use with the modern computers I use most often. There could be a way to make an old Appletalk printer work with newer OS's in 2020, but I am hoping to find a home for it that will have better use for it than I will. I haven't tried to print on it in the last five years.

Thanks for your thoughts. I hope you have a good weekend.

You CAN use them with any newer Mac that has an OS that still includes Bonjour. My newest Mac (LOL) is a mid-2012 MBP running Sierra. I print to my Laserwriter 4/600 directly by turning on wifi, then hit print. It goes to my antique 1.67GHz PowerBook G4 running Tiger (they are cheap and awesome!), which is my acting print server. (Tiger not necessary, just the most reliable OS that Apple ever made.) This is connected to an AsanteTalk, which then uses AppleTalk to talk to the antique printer. Actually works fantastically well and there are no translation glitches to original Postscript from newer versions of postscript used by Adobe. Maybe this sounds elaborate to you, but it evolved over time and I'm actually extremely happy with the setup. The only downside is that it has become difficult to find repairmen anymore that are familiar with this model. I now have to do the repairs myself! So far so good. old printers, like old cars, are easier to work on than the new stuff. overall, the unit has been extremely reliable over the past 25 years and I am happy with the print quality.

 

[pizzigri]

Hello Segfisch,
I found one of these printers in my basement. It looks good, however I'd like to do some sort of maintenance before actually connecting it to mains. Do you happen to have some info/service manual or such? And, as I'm quite sure there is no memory upgrade, do you know what memory does the printer take? It's supposed to be a 2mb upgradable to 6mb.
Last but not least, you mention HP toner, which compatible model toner cartridge should I look for?
Thank you!
Franco

 

[SegFisch]

Hello Segfisch,
I found one of these printers in my basement. It looks good, however I'd like to do some sort of maintenance before actually connecting it to mains. Do you happen to have some info/service manual or such? And, as I'm quite sure there is no memory upgrade, do you know what memory does the printer take? It's supposed to be a 2mb upgradable to 6mb.
Last but not least, you mention HP toner, which compatible model toner cartridge should I look for?
Thank you!
Franco

It appears that the service manual is still easy to find online with a quick search but hopefully the one attached will be downloadable and viewable for you. Yes I have the 6mb upgrade and I wouldn't waste time using it without that, especially if you have any ambition of printing even the smallest image. Probably you can still find them on ebay. The toner cartridges are the same as used for several HP printer models and still very easy to find, both new and 'refurbished'. Again just search for the laser cartridge that is compatible with this model of printer. Expect complex pages to take a long time to print. As long as that little green light on the printer is flashing normally, don't worry, it is still thinking and it WILL print. On a complex job (lots of images), I hit 'go' and walk away. This Apple Laserwriter is a little trouper and will get the job done, it just might take awhile. The 600dpi print quality makes the output indistinguishable from nearly all newer laser printers.