Buying printer stands begins with the printer. Since printers are available in a variety of sizes and styles, you’ll want to think about the size of your printer first.
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What to consider when selecting a printer stand?
Location and use of the printer
The first thing you will need to consider is where the printer stand will be placed in your home or office.
- Will it need to slide under a desk?
- Will it go beside the desk?
- Will it have its own little corner.
- Who will use the printer?
- Is it dedicated to your computer?
- Will the printer be shared with other people in your home or workplace?
Supply Storage
Answers to these questions will affect how much storage space you will need in your printer stand. It is usually nice to have a place to keep extra paper and ink supplies so that they are at hand when needed. If the printer is dedicated to you, you might use a section of it as a file area.
Printers are a utility item. They can include the ability to scan documents, or to receive digitized versions from a computer. More advanced models might have the capability of printing photo-quality copies, an interesting variety of labels, or (a few) can even print on cloth.
With each added capability comes the need for specialty papers to achieve the desired effect. That means that the more capable the printer, the greater the need for storage space for printer supplies.
Auxiliary Equipment
Shared computers might benefit from having a place for a paper shredder – just so no one has to leave confidential information lying around.
Power and Connectivity
The printer is likely to require an electrical outlet, and it might need a printer cable to hook it up to a computer – although many printers are now wireless. The printer stand will need to accommodate those wires.
Room Configuration
Your final practical consideration is to measure the space where you plan to place the printer stand. It is always disappointing to have something arrive, and to then discover that it won’t fit. Allow for at least a half-inch clearance on all sides as a margin of error.
Interior Design
With the practical considerations out of the way, you can move on to the esthetic. If you are selecting the printer stand for your office space, then chances are that you are going to see it every day. It doesn’t need to be elaborate, but it should be something that ranges from neutral up through enjoyable, and possibly even reaching delightful.
Style
The style of the printer stand should match or complement the furniture that is already in your office, or that you will be acquiring.
For example, if you have a beautiful Louis XIV escritoire, even if it is only a modern imitation, you will not want a country style, shabby chic printer table! By the same token, if your office is decorated as one person referred to as “early rummage sale”, you won’t want an ornate occasional table as your printer table or some sort of ultra-modern chrome affair.
So, think about what you already have as office furniture, then look around to see what is available that you can use as a printer stand.
Here are some ideas:
Your desk is a standard office desk in blond wood, with an upper hutch and corkboard back. It has two matching filing cabinets. A nice two-tier printer stand with a raised mid-shelf for opened paper, and a lower shelf for a paper box would be just about perfect.
Your desk is ultra-modern dark wood with chrome trim. A simple stand in dark wood could blend perfectly with it.
Your desk is a super second-hand store find that you painted and antiqued. Nearly any wood-tone, white or cream stand will work, especially if you drape it with a pretty runner before placing the printer.
Your desk is an old, metal office desk that you got at an auction. It is in good shape, very serviceable, but not what you would call fancy. A good metal printer stand with a doored storage compartment or file drawers would be perfect.
If you have an eclectic collection of office furniture and a large printer, a low-profile rolling cabinet that is scarcely noticeable might be the perfect item.
Summary of Considerations
To summarize, your choice of printer stand needs to rely on five things: the size of the printer, the supplies that will require storage, available location space, color and style of other furnishings, and whether it will be shared or used by one person. Added to these constraints is the extent of your furniture budget.
In general, a printer stand should blend with the furnishings in your workspace rather than stand out. It is an unassuming piece of furniture that holds a utility item that should normally go unnoticed until needed. As such, it does not require excessive embellishment.
But it should not be an ugly object that stands out against your general interior decorating, either. Therefore, style, material, and coloring are important.
Your printer stand might need to outlast several generations of printers since printers tend to have a finite lifespan. Therefore, it should be an item that can be used with a variety of styles and wiring requirements. When it comes to printer stands, spacious, sturdy and generic are excellent terms for their appearance.
