Oki OkiPage 14ex review

Verdict:

Review Date: 1 May 2001

Price when reviewed: (£312)

Reviewed By: Alistair Dabbs

Our Rating 3 stars out of 5

Review
Specs

You shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but the OkiPage 14ex looks like an age-yellowed spare part from a vacuum cleaner.

Inside, the technology is unique because this isn't a laser printer at all, but an LED printer. The only difference is that an array of LEDs forms the image on the drum, instead of a laser and mirrors.

Ease of use

Installation of the drivers is a bit confusing: an on-screen message tells you that you've plugged in an 'unknown device', prompts you to insert the driver CD, and then promptly fails to find the driver. We had to hunt for it ourselves. Once installed, the drivers are actually very good, offering plenty of options.

Print quality

Text and vector graphics look very neat and crisp. Unfortunately, all greys and gradients are marred by an ugly criss-cross texture. This affects drawings, clip art and photos alike, so there's no avoiding it.

Performance

There's no quibbling here: the OkiPage 14ex is the fastest of all the machines on test. Our five-page word document landed in the output tray just 26 seconds after clicking the Print button, equivalent to over ten pages per minute. The CorelDraw report page completed in just 13 seconds.

Overall

Oki's LED technology has a lot to offer. It's arguably more reliable, rugged and precise than a laser. That said, the only obvious advantage here is speed. Perhaps a decent choice for those less concerned about the print quality of pictures. However, the price is much higher than the competition.

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