1. Make sure you really need a network printer. For a small network in a home-office environment, using Windows to share a printer may be enough.

2. Make sure the printer you choose has the right interface for your network. This usually means an Ethernet connection, but other choices exist too. Also make sure the printer works with your operating system.

3. Unless you're thoroughly familiar with network printer setup, insist on a fully automated network setup routine. Setting up a network printer manually requires knowing how to assign an IP address, create a new port, and more.

4. Insist on built-in Web pages that let you check the status and change settings from your browser. This will let you check any printer from your desk. It's also easier than using LCD menus, even if the printer is right next to you.

5. If anyone in your office has to print documents that others shouldn't read, get a private-printing feature. This lets you send a print job that won't print until you walk to the printer and enter a PIN code.

6. Don't depend on manual duplexing—printing a job on one side of the paper, reinserting the pages so they'll print on the opposite side, going back to your desk, hitting Print, and finally schlepping back to the printer for your documents. If you need to duplex, get a duplexer.

7. Make sure your network printer offers input trays that hold a lot of paper—at least 1,000 sheets for a small business. Even if you don't think you need that much capacity now, you may want to add it later.

8. Get an output tray that's big enough for several typical print jobs. People sometimes leave output sitting in trays for hours or even days.

9. If you have enough printers to use remote-management software, consider which programs they work with. A capable program can save a lot of time and effort, letting you upgrade firmware and drivers without having to visit each printer.

10. Even if you don't need advanced paper handling now, consider printers with stacker or sorter options, so you can add them later if you need to.