Inkjet printers use liquid ink, and will smear if they get wet, and dry out if not used often enough. The printout is glossy, because the dried ink is sitting on top of the page. A laser printer is done with powdered toner, so is "flat," not glossy printing. And the process melts the toner onto the paper, so it won't smear.
If you're printing color photos, you may be money ahead to upload your images to places like Costco, and go pick up your color prints. Let them do the hard work. If you print mostly black and white, then definitely go with a B&W laser - your per-page costs will be substantially lower than with a comparable inkjet.
If you like the idea of printing in color, and you don't need photo-realistic quality, then a color laser is a fantastic bargain. If you need high-speed printing, then you're looking at a higher price point. But if you print only a few pages every so often, then it may be an excellent purchase to make.
I have owned a number of different printers over the years, each of which have been less than satisfying, until now. I now own a Brother HL-L8350CDW Color Laser printer. It prints colors images very well, does duplex printing (prints on both sides without having to flip the paper), and it's wireless on my home network. My router is upstairs, and the printer is downstairs, in a corner of the living room. Very convenient.
I got it from Amazon, and paid around $350 for it. So your $300 budget isn't far off the mark. Checking just now, I see a comparable model, slightly newer, but with additional features, for only $339. Killer deal.
https://www.amazon.com/Brother-HL-L...&qid=1567368917&s=gateway&tag=pcmagcontent-20
If I was shopping for a color laser printer, I'd buy this one.
(Stay away from HP lasers. The ones made for home users have tons of issues, and my spouse (the Refund Cashier at Costco) gets them back ALL the time.)
Hope this helps.
Dave