So, first thing: printers typically attached to a parallel (LPT) port, not a serial (COM) port. A 25-pin port could be either, depending on if it has pins or sockets.
Secondly: these printers are a waste of time. They'll either be non-working and/or out of ink, and you'll be lucky to find any replacement ink for such out-of-date models.

As jmarsh said, the 25 pin port is actually parallel or LPT port, not a serial "COM" port.

Not sure you'll be able to find ink cartridges for those printers, although the first one seems to be dot matrix, which could make it easier to find a suitable ink ribbon that hasn't dried out by now. In any case, you should start by searching for the cartridges as that's probably harder to find in working condition than old printers.

Donald Duck wrote on Today, 19:24:

And I have a 25 pin pink COM port and I would like to attach a printer to it

If it's coloured purple-ish pink (as per the PC-99 port colouring standard), then it's a highly likely to be parallel port, not serial. If it also has female pin receptacles, then it's even more likely a parallel port, because DB-25 serial ports have male pins.

jmarsh wrote on Today, 19:35:

So, first thing: printers typically attached to a parallel (LPT) port, not a serial (COM) port. A 25-pin port could be either, depending on if it has pins or sockets.
Secondly: these printers are a waste of time. They'll either be non-working and/or out of ink, and you'll be lucky to find any replacement ink for such out-of-date models.

Is plenty of cases where impact printing is still a thing today, for sure I served a company that still used them at least until 5/6 years ago, and we provided them with brand new Printers (Epson IIRC) and apparently they are still available as today, perhaps with USB/SERIAL/Parallel/NET connectivity, so no doubt about connectivity)

https://cdn.bfldr.com/MWSKON77/at/xf4vwf96m53 … CPD-55491R2.pdf

https://epson.com/For-Work/Printers/Impact-Do … llTgt_onRefresh

They aren't cheap for sure, but usually they are built to last "forever"

jmarsh wrote on Today, 19:35:

So, first thing: printers typically attached to a parallel (LPT) port, not a serial (COM) port. A 25-pin port could be either, depending on if it has pins or sockets.
Secondly: these printers are a waste of time. They'll either be non-working and/or out of ink, and you'll be lucky to find any replacement ink for such out-of-date models.

I though the port on the MB where pins and the port on the printer where sockets and a standard cable would fit both ends. Im sure there are countless places that sell ink cartages. If not are they powder, can you buy the powder and drill a hole in the old cartage to fill it

Old printers are a headache. You will probably have to disassemble the unit and lubricate the moving parts. Getting replacement ink cartridges is another problem. Plus they used scroll paper which I don't think is manufactured anymore. (Not a problem if you're just printing the odd page ofc)

If I were in your position I would get a parallel port laser printer like the LaserJet 1015. The ink for those is still widely available. They also still work with modern Windows via USB.

devius wrote on Today, 19:37:

As jmarsh said, the 25 pin port is actually parallel or LPT port, not a serial "COM" port.

This would fit

Donald Duck wrote on Today, 20:09:

Im sure there are countless places that sell ink cartages. If not are they powder, can you buy the powder and drill a hole in the old cartage to fill it

The first two printers you posted use ink ribbons. The Seiko is a daisy-wheel printer, and the Star a dot-matrix printer. They work by impacting a letter form onto the inked ribbon, which transfers the ink to the paper (kind of like a typewriter). The third one, the Canon, is an inkjet (technically, a bubble-jet, because it's Canon) and uses liquid ink cartridges; they squirt ink through microscopic nozzles onto the paper.

You're getting mixed up with laser printers, which use toner powder (which some people mistakenly refer to as "ink").

It's highly unlikely you'll find ribbon or ink cartridges for any of them. And if you do find some old stock of ribbons, they may be dried up and useless, even if brand-new in an unopened package.

Edit: BTW, that Canon has a USB connection, and isn't parallel.

Errius wrote on Today, 20:12:

Old printers are a headache. You will probably have to disassemble the unit and lubricate the moving parts. Getting replacement ink cartridges is another problem. Plus they used scroll paper which I don't think is manufactured anymore. (Not a problem if you're just printing the odd page ofc)

Yes its just for letters; 2 page max

Errius wrote on Today, 20:12:

If I were in your position I would get a parallel port laser printer like the LaserJet 1015. The ink for those is still widely available. They also still work with modern Windows via USB.

are lazer jets the ones where the ink dose not wash off with rain water and stuff?

Will this one do the job?
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/236807273735 ... JoQAvD_BwE

Thanks

Errius wrote on Today, 20:12:

Old printers are a headache. You will probably have to disassemble the unit and lubricate the moving parts. Getting replacement ink cartridges is another problem. Plus they used scroll paper which I don't think is manufactured anymore. (Not a problem if you're just printing the odd page ofc)

If I were in your position I would get a parallel port laser printer like the LaserJet 1015. The ink for those is still widely available. They also still work with modern Windows via USB.

Depending on the model you can buy everything still new on Amazon etc. I got a 37 year old matrix printer (Epson LQ-400) and just bought new inkt ribbons and a pack of continuous feed paper. Also almost all matrix paper will print on normal A4/letter paper without problem.

I use it with a HP JetDirect 170X parallel print server and can use it from DOS all the way to Windows 11 without problems. To be clear I use my laser printer most of the times but it is still very usable if you don't need better quality prints (or don't like the sound 😀). Inkt ribbons are much cheaper than laser printer refills.

HwAoRrDk wrote on Today, 20:23:

Edit: BTW, that Canon has a USB connection, and isn't parallel.

The cannon one (the last one) looks like its a parallel to a USB cable. apparently only 4 of the 25 pins are used on the parallel port. + & - 5V and two signal wires, as you can see from the photo there is no transformer in that cable. A replacement cable should work

Yoghoo wrote on Today, 20:28:

Depending on the model you can buy everything still new on Amazon etc. I got a 37 year old matrix printer (Epson LQ-400) and just bought new inkt ribbons and a pack of continuous feed paper. Also almost all matrix paper will print on normal A4/letter paper without problem.

Google states the following
The Epson LQ-400 is a classic 24-pin dot matrix impact printer introduced by Epson as a more compact replacement for the older LQ-800 model

My port is 25 pin not 24!

Yoghoo wrote on Today, 20:28:

I use it with a HP JetDirect 170X parallel print server and can use it from DOS all the way to Windows 11 without problems. To be clear I use my laser printer most of the times but it is still very usable if you don't need better quality prints (or don't like the sound 😀). Inkt ribbons are much cheaper than laser printer refills.

You mean like these 2?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/116843124302 ... PkQAvD_BwE

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/236813316513?_ul=U … nid=23120818549

As others have said, it's a parallel (LPT) port, not a serial (COM) port. Printers with serial ports do exist, so it's important to know the difference. You want parallel.

And get a dot matrix printer. Epson LQ series or something similar to it. You might have to clean the pins with a little alcohol and get a new ribbon but other than that they should work fine as opposed to old inkjet or laser printers, which are much more complex.

Also your confusion about the 24 vs 25 pin is because you don't realize that "pins" on a dot matrix printer is referring to the number of striking "pins" in the print head, not the number of electrical "pins" in the parallel port. No printer is ever going to say how many pins are in its parallel port, because it is always 25.

Donald Duck wrote on Today, 20:40:

Google states the following
The Epson LQ-400 is a classic 24-pin dot matrix impact printer introduced by Epson as a more compact replacement for the older LQ-800 model

My port is 25 pin not 24!

The 24 pin here is referring to the print head, not the parallel port.

keenmaster486 wrote on Today, 20:44:

As others have said, it's a parallel (LPT) port, not a serial (COM) port. Printers with serial ports do exist, so it's important to know the difference. You want parallel.

Just to confirm its a 25 pin port on the MB

keenmaster486 wrote on Today, 20:44:

And get a dot matrix printer. Epson LQ series or something similar to it. You might have to clean the pins with a little alcohol and get a new ribbon but other than that they should work fine as opposed to old inkjet or laser printers, which are much more complex.

dot matrix printer ribbon powder right? And laser is ink?

keenmaster486 wrote on Today, 20:44:

Also your confusion about the 24 vs 25 pin is because you don't realize that "pins" on a dot matrix printer is referring to the number of striking "pins" in the print head, not the number of electrical "pins" in the parallel port. No printer is ever going to say how many pins are in its parallel port, because it is always 25.

This 24 pin thing you mention makes no sense!

devius wrote on Today, 20:47:

Donald Duck wrote on Today, 20:40:

Google states the following
The Epson LQ-400 is a classic 24-pin dot matrix impact printer introduced by Epson as a more compact replacement for the older LQ-800 model

My port is 25 pin not 24!

The 24 pin here is referring to the print head, not the parallel port.

Thanks! I get it now. But that printer is a 25 pin parallel port right?

Donald Duck wrote on Today, 20:27:

Will this one do the job?
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/236807273735 ... JoQAvD_BwE

Thanks

That's the right model however (1) it's untested and no returns, so buyer beware, (2) it's collection only, so unless you live nearby it's no good, and (3) the seller doesn't show a picture of the USB/parallel ports, so you need to ask him to show you one, so you can verify both ports are present and undamaged (it's always suspicious when sellers fail to fully photograph the item. They may be hiding something.)

The ink/toner you need is Q2612A so factor the price of that into the purchase

Let's clear some things up here.

A parallel port always has 25 pins (DB25). It is always female on the computer side. It is either black or magenta in color. It will either be labeled "parallel", "LPT", or with a printer icon.

A serial port sometimes has 9 pins (DB9) and sometimes has 25 pins (DB25). It is always male on the computer side. It is either black or teal in color. It will either be labeled "serial", "COM", or with a serial port icon (two circles with a line in between).

So if you have a "25 pin" port, that tells you nothing as to the type of port. You also have to look at how it is labeled, what color it is, and whether it is male or female in order to determine what kind of port you're looking at.

In the case of retro printers, you're almost always looking for the parallel port.

Now, on the printer side, you will usually find the "Centronics" version of the parallel port, which looks like this: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Centronics.jpg

Donald Duck wrote on Today, 20:59:

dot matrix printer ribbon powder right? And laser is ink?

What? No. Dot matrix printers have something similar to a typewriter ribbon. Laser printers use toner, which might be the "powder" you're thinking of. And inkjet printers use ink.

Donald Duck wrote on Today, 20:59:

keenmaster486 wrote:

Also your confusion about the 24 vs 25 pin is because you don't realize that "pins" on a dot matrix printer is referring to the number of striking "pins" in the print head, not the number of electrical "pins" in the parallel port. No printer is ever going to say how many pins are in its parallel port, because it is always 25.

This 24 pin thing you mention makes no sense!

Donald Duck wrote on Today, 21:00:

devius wrote:

The 24 pin here is referring to the print head, not the parallel port.

Thanks! I get it now. But that printer is a 25 pin parallel port right?

Sigh

For reference

'D' indicates to the shape of the connector "D-subminiature"
'B' indicates the size of the connector
'25' indicates the number of pins

("DB-9" doesn't exist BTW. It's DE-9. I also make this mistake and have to correct myself.)