HP COLOR LASERJET 1600 COLOR TONER CARTRIDGES SET

HP Color LaserJet 1600 Review

Overview:

The HP Color LaserJet 1600 is a color laser printer that has fallen between the cracks of time. On one hand, it is a fully functional laser printer that is capable of doing something that most laser devices cannot: print in full color, but on the other hand the device is painfully limited in the areas of print speed and functionality due to its age. It is a unit that truly would only appeal to a small, niche market.

Pros:

There would be only one reason and one reason alone for a buyer to be interested in the HP Color LaserJet 1600 and that involves finding a color laser printing solution at a cut throat bargain rate. This printer could potentially be just that. Originally priced hundreds of dollars higher, new and refurbished units are now available on clearance shelves for around a hundred dollars, making color laser printing more affordable than ever. If one were comfortable sacrificing speed and functionality for a great price on high volume color laser printing, this unit could be a smart option, especially considering its 20,000 page maximum monthly duty cycle.

Cons:

The maximum print resolution for both color and monochrome is 600 x 600 dots per inch for the HP Color LaserJet 1600, which severely limits its usefulness as a photographic printer. Even though the device is entirely capable of printing in full color, imagery will be inaccurate and jagged due to the limited print quality, and therefore the unit should really only be considered for sprucing up the look of charts, graphs, and other simple graphics.

Though the unit’s maximum monthly duty cycle of 20,000 sheets is quite respectable, HP recommends a much lower number for continuous use. Only 250 to 1,000 pages are suggested per month for maximum lifespan of the product, which means that anything other than extremely light duty is out of the question.

Paper handling abilities rely entirely on a single 250 sheet paper tray, though an additional paper tray can be added on. Standard memory is not only limited, but not expandable whatsoever, which means that buyers are stuck with the disappointing 16 MBs of RAM built in. The processor speed of 264 MHz would be excellent if this were a monochrome device, but when dealing with color, this speed is the bare minimum.

With print speeds of only 8 pages per minute for both black and white and color, the HP Color LaserJet 1600 is one of the slowest units out there. A printer this sluggish would require a lot of patience, which most businesses cannot afford.