I had a used HP4000 series that was bough used at a school auction, probably 5+ years old at that time... thing ran for another 3 years on the toner that was in there when I got it and another 3-4 after that before it died and wouldn't come on... replaced it with an hp color laserjet 3-4 years ago, and that one still runs like a tank...

When you rarely print, having a laser is better as they can sit a long time and not dry out or gum up like the ink printers.