Skip to navigation
Login|Register
Log In

Remember me

Samsung ML-1630W review

Verdict:

Review Date: 19 Dec 2008

Price when reviewed: £125

Buy it now for: £90

Supplier: http://www.oyyy.co.uk

Our Rating 4 stars out of 5

User Rating 5 stars out of 5

Powered by Reevoo

We reviewed the USB-only version of this mono laser printer, the ML-1630, in What's New, Shopper 240.

This new version, the ML-1630W, costs less than its predecessor did when it was launched and it has extra features, the most significant of which are a built-in 802.11b/g wireless adaptor and an Ethernet port. Both add a lot of flexibility to a printer that was previously sold largely on its looks and compact design.

To configure wireless networking, we found it easiest to connect the printer to our router during installation and use the tools built in to its web interface to change its wireless settings. A simple wizard configured our settings in three steps, but didn't prompt us to carry out the necessary final step of restarting the printer. The web interface isn't particularly elegantly designed, but provides adequate access to the network settings and status information. Given the limited nature of the device, it's unlikely that most users will revisit the web interface once the printer has been fully configured.

Unlike traditional boxy grey or beige laser printers, this glossy black design wouldn't look out of place in the smartest living rooms, or the fussiest offices. Blue LEDs form animated patterns and numbers on the printer's surface to indicate its status and progress through a print job, and it announces its activation with a sequence of subtle electronic chirps.

Although equipped with an Ethernet port and wireless networking capabilities, the ML-1630W is a personal, rather than workgroup, printer. It has a maximum duty cycle of just 5,000 pages in a single month, and is limited by a tiny, non-upgradable, 100-sheet paper tray. It would suit a small office that does little printing, but the small tray and low duty cycle mean it's not suitable for shared use in most workplaces.

With a standard quality print speed of 14.2ppm and a time to first page of just 13 seconds, the ML-1630W isn't particularly fast. However, mono text was sharp and clear, while our greyscale document and photo prints were densely shaded, but with a touch of graininess. Pages emerged flat and uncurled, but this printer cannot handle envelopes. Print costs of 2.2p per page are a little high.

Despite its flaws, we like the ML-1630W. It produces good- quality mono prints at a decent speed without making a lot of noise or taking up much space. It's comparably priced to other small mono network lasers such as HP's LaserJet P1505n (Labs, Shopper 245), although it lacks PCL or PostScript. While it's not up to the workload of a medium-sized office, the ML-1630W is a good choice for a home or small office printer.

Author: Kat Orphanides

Prev Next

Social Bookmark this article: What is this?

User Reviews

Independent customer reviews from

Samsung ML-1630W/XEU scored:
9.1 out of 10 100% real reviews

The 2 most helpful reviews based on 6 reviews:

08 Jun 2009 Daniel, Leeds

9

Good Points

I have found that once up and running the Wireless printing was amazing, been extremely fast and I could have it at home with no wires apart from the power outlet. I have also found that the printing quality was excellent and extremely precise. Overall if you would like a convenient wireless laser jet printer then this will do the job. Highly Recommended.

Bad Points

I did find initial problems when trying to set up my printer wireless, with the instructions been extremely complicated and not in plain english. I had numerous attempts and still couldnt set-up. I then manually connected my printer via the access point which it didnt tell me to do in the manual and was up and running within minutes.

03 Feb 2009 Anonymous confirmed purchaser

9

Good Points

Very pleasing printer, quick quiet good looking

Bad Points

slightly confusing getting on network, now the IP address is static, no problems

Best Prices

Best Prices

£90
£105
£120
Be the first to comment on this article

You need to Login or Register to comment.

(optional)

advertisement

Award-winning Printers
Best Business Buy
HP Officejet 7000
Ultimate
HP Photosmart Pro B8550

Canon Pixma MX340 review

Canon Pixma MX340

Category: Printers
Rating: 3 out of 5
Price: £81
Brother DCP-365CN review

Brother DCP-365CN

Category: Printers
Rating: 3 out of 5
Price: £62
Samsung SCX-4600 review

Samsung SCX-4600

Category: Printers
Rating: 5 out of 5
Price: £106
Canon Imageformula P-150 review

Canon Imageformula P-150

Rating: 5 out of 5
Price: £106
Dell 3330dn Laser Printer review

Dell 3330dn Laser Printer

Category: Printers
Rating: 4 out of 5
Price: £504
Laser printer buying guide

Laser printer buying guide

Find out all you need to know about choosing the right laser printer.

Read more

Multifunction printer buying guide

Multifunction printer buying guide

Find out all you need to know about choosing the right multifunction printer.

Read more

advertisement

Sponsored Links
Also in this category...
Broadband

150+ broadband packages

Compare 30+ mobile broadband deals

Powered by Top 10 Broadband

 

advertisement


 
 

Expert Reviews Printed from www.expertreviews.co.uk

Register to receive our regular email newsletter at http://www.expertreviews.co.uk/registration.

The newsletter contains links to our latest PC news, product reviews, features and how-to guides, plus special offers and competitions.