Best multi-functional out there
Written: Sep 11 '02 (Updated Mar 25 '03)
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Pros: Replaced 3 machines. Good print quality. Great Scanner. ADF included
Cons: Pricey ink. Slow duplex unit. Usual HP print driver problems. Small glitches.
The Bottom Line: If you want to have a good quality scanner, fax and color printer in one, this is really the only choice.
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| marklyth's Full Review: Hewlett Packard OfficeJet d145 InkJet Printer |
UPDATE 3/25/2003
No significant problems with HP drivers in months so I am upping it to 5 stars. The only real problems I have are; the duplex unit is slow to start the second page and the paper handling can cause problems occasionally.
UPDATE 1/7/2003
As usual HP cannot make a good set of drivers/software for their printers. On average I have 2 problems/month, sometimes it requires a reinstall of the drivers/software, other times I can shutdown/reboot/power cycle the printer. This shouldn't be the case with this price/class printer. The problem isn't big enough for me to not recommend this multifunction unit, but is is a pain and HP support is practically non-existant. The problems usually popup when printing, but have also shown up while scanning.
I have done some photo prints and they come out very well, I am not an expert so I can't give a detailed analysis. Compared to the other inkjets I have had this is by far the fastest and the best quality. About the only problem I have had is ink drying time, but that is an inkjet problem, not really a printer problem.
ORIGINAL REVIEW CONTENT
I had a high-quality scanner, cheap Epson Inkjet, an old Lexmark 12ppm 1200dpi laser printer, and a USB/Parallel print server. I decided I needed to reclaim some space in the office and after much reviewing I decided on the D145. Mainly due to:
1. ADF included (up to 50 sheets at a time, great for scanning and faxing)
2. Good Quality scanner, most other multi-function units came with something like a 600x600 scanner
3. Ability to do stand-alone faxing or computer faxing
4. The addition of the duplex unit is nice.
I am overall very pleased, generally the printing speed is good for an inkjet, even in color. The color quality is great, even on plain paper (haven't printed any photos yet though). It does everything it advertises to do. So why did I go with the d145 over the d135? Because Staples was offering $100 in Staples credit for the d145, which made the cost the same as the d135.
As with any multi-function unit out there under $5,000 it has its drawbacks:
1. It is noisy, and vibrates a lot. I will have to move it from sitting on my half-size metal filing cabinet because it rocks the whole thing when printing.
2. The duplex unit is very slow, for some reason the printer pauses for about 10 seconds before reloading the paper into the duplex unit for second-side printing. I could understand 1-2 seconds, but 10 seconds is ridiculous.
3. HP drivers have always been problematic. Out of about 10 HP printers I have used, 9 have required changed the spooling settings to 'print directly' to printer. This shouldn't be, I have not had to do this with any other printer brand for over 5 years.
4. Printer doesn't work with anything other than HP print servers. This is somewhat understandable because it includes scanning and faxing. It would have been great if I could have attached it to my Milan USB/Parallel print server though.
Overall I recommend the printer because it does what it advertises and does it well. Can't wait until 5 years from now, for the same price we will probably be able to get 2400x2400 scanning/printing/faxing at laser speeds and quality.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 600
Operating System: Windows
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Epinions.com ID:
marklyth
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Reviews written: 32
Trusted by: 1 member
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