ASourdough4's Full Review: Hewlett Packard LASERJET P1006 PRINTER 266MHz PROC...
INTRODUCTION 9/24/08 - Good news on "CONSUMABLES". The "draft" printing option helped extend the life of the toner cartridge; which finally gave up the ghost in September 2008. It had produced about 800 pages before it faded. More important to a home user; the "draft" cartridge had lasted for SIX MONTHS. Replacing it was childishly simple. The packaging included a UPS Label that could be used to return the empty for recycling; and I did that. OPERATING COSTS per COPY to date: Machine $0.14, Toner $0.075, Paper $0.01 = $0.225 and falling.
After a decade of Color Printing, I have gone back to Black & White. Pondering the dilemma posed by the exasperating costs and short lives of "Consumables"; I realized that 99% of my printing was "Greyscale" (black and white). Color was nifty but it was never thrifty. Nowadays, my immortal snapshots go to the nearest grocery store. For the one or two prints I want per year, I can rent the store's automated "lab" for nickels. Many times I have longed for my trusty Epson Laser Printer; which I replaced in 1996 when the toner cartridges were no longer available. Color was irresistible and later; I surrendered to the "All-In-One" disease and had used one of those for more than a year; still 99% Greyscale. Sure, I could copy and scan but rarely did so. So, the time had finally come. --- Goodbye Color! Motivated by "INK IS GETTING LOW" messages and a "$10 off" offer, I went to Office Depot to see what was what. The Store's Champion Salesperson, Carol Hart, showed me around and my wallet was soon $109.95 lighter. (Remember "Cash"? With me it's still in fashion. In these days of rampant inflation, it is refreshing to see that introductory prices have declined from the usual $400 to a quarter of that.)
HP LaserJet P1006: A new model for the home office with a very small footprint and deceptively simple appearance.
SETUP
My printer was manufactured in September 2007 The shipping carton measures 15.5" L x 9.5" W x 11.5" H; which is a remarkable feat of Packaging Engineering. Yes, all of the printer was in there, along with the cushioning materials. All 10.3 lb of it came out of the carton with ease but it was difficult to determine which side was up. So, the closer to the floor one does this the better. Loosely packed were the Power Cord, the CD with software for both P1006 and P1500 series printers, Operator manuals and Documentation. Intimately fixed in place within the printer was a Quick Start Cartoon Guide and the typical 1/2 full toner cartridge. This FIVE - STEP instruction sheet and a bit of intuition from 32 years of computing got me through most of the important stuff. I really had no trouble opening up the printer; which design is ingenious. Tug here and press there and I was nearly done - until I thought to put the CD into the PC drawer. Immediately, the illustrations showed me where some more packaging materials had been hidden. It was necessary to remove the Toner Cartridge; which was amazingly easy to do. Re-installation was gratifyingly smooth - my, how those engineers must have practiced. --- Still, I have some tips. Please follow me through the step-by-step preparation for use: Before doing anything else, find and copy the Serial Number and Product Number. There is a bunch of them in many languages. a. Unpack per above. Open the paper receiver and the feed tray. b. Remove the loose stuff c. Find a place to put the printer. You need an extra 5" up front for the paper tray and 3" for the power cord. The latter could have been fitted with a right angle plug but ventilation is crucial and is assured by that standard cord design. d. The setup guide was threaded down into the bowels and could not be removed until the cartridge was. e. DON'T force anything. --- Everything feels flimsy and fragile but isn't.
f. Power port is in the lower left corner. ---Don't even think about plugging it in yet. g. -----USB Cable not included. Phooey. Adjourn for 2 days while finding time to drive down to Wal-Mart. That chain has pared its PC offerings to the bone but I found a $10 Belkin 6' cable. It was USB 2.0 so I brought it home. Radio Shack will do: Even Home Depot sells those USB Cables but the price is twice. Good hunting. ---DO NOT CONNECT USB Cable yet. h. I should have done it sooner but this is when I finally put the CD in the PC tray. That is when I discovered the orange tape and plastic devices that keep the toner from coating the room. Everything colored bright ORANGE has to come out. i.. Power Up and install the software?. NO! Power off, THEN install the USB Cable. Then install the software.
j. Install the printer driver on your PC. This took a while (MS Vista accepted it, Surprise!) k. REGISTER the printer. l. Print the test page. The P1006 coughed politely and there was the page. On the floor.
Setup took me a while to do but when I ran the very first production job, a 5 page draft of my "Exodus" review, the P1006 created a snowstorm of paper in seconds. I had forgotten to extend the receiver tray flap. Happiness is discovering that the new P1006 fit onto my work table; only a small rearrangement was needed - I am keeping the MP500 all-in-one until the ink runs out.
MEDIA
The P1006 will print on most weights of paper as well as transparency sheets and labels. The tray is rated at 160 sheets but 50 makes more sense. Sheet length is either 11" (Letter) or 14" (Legal). The P1006 will print Number 10 envelopes. The same feed slot, called "Priority", can hold 10 pages for rush jobs. I am trying to visualize why this lightning fast printer would ever need to print a rush job. Avoid tissue paper.
SOFTWARE Paranoia not necessary. Version 2.0 went quickly with not one hitch. HOORAY!
Laser, Black on White Print, Case Silver with Black innards Speed: 17ppm First page out: 8.5 seconds Print Quality: Black, Up to 600 x 600 dots per inch (1200 dps effective) Toner Cartridges: One (1)
Paper Tray: 1 each, 160 sheet capacity ("Priority" Slot holds 10 sheets) Duplex Printing: Yes, requires intervention to flip - Driver Guides Operator Media, Standard sizes: Letter, Legal, Executive, Postcard, Envelopes (#10, Monarch) ------- Custom: Main Tray adjustable from 5.8" to 8.27" wide, 8.5"w to 14" long ------- Input Slot: 3"x5" to 8.5"x14"
Output: Face Down (HOORAY!) Memory: Max 8MB installed Processor: 266 MHz Hard Disk: No Connectivity: USB 2.0 (Slower if USB 1.1 cable is installed)
POWER CONSUMPTION
HP is shy about this for some reason, specifications assure us that the P1006 is ENERGY STAR qualified. Whaaaaaaat? ----I pulled the cords and examined the rear panel. ----110 to 127 Volts AC, 50-60 Hz (Cycles), 4.9 A (Amperes) The last time I checked something like this the algebra was P=I x E or, for this printer: ---4.9 (I) x 127(E) = 622 Watts The range would be 539 Watts to 622 W, depending upon where you live and who generates your electricity. Operating Temperature Range: 50 to 90 degrees F See Comment below.
PHYSICAL:
13.7"wide by 8.8"deep by 9" high (with output tray extended to legal) Weight: 10.3 pounds with light duty cartridge.
COMPUTER SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:
Windows: Me, XP Home & Pro, Vista Hard Drive - 120MB Min Free, CD-ROM drive, USB
Macintosh: Mac OS X v10.28, v 10.4, or more. PC with PowerPC G3, G4, G5 or Intel Core, 128 MB RAM,(256 MB Recommended) Hard Drive: 120MB Min Free, CD-ROM, USB
OPERATIONS REPORT
As far as I can tell in only a week of use, the HP LaserJet P1006 delivers what was promised. And, some that were not. For instance, I was delighted to find a setting for "Draft" or "Fast" printing in the Driver Options. These are euphemisms for low intensity print; which setting uses less toner on a given page. It really does that. I have not seen this feature before. Also, it can produce a tolerable black and white print of a color photo! Good old Vista began to accept Notepad Drafts, printing them like a letter, but changed its mind and began the 2 line&one space output thing again. Vista does strange things with MS Word 2007 as well. Imagine, Microsoft being incompatible with Microsoft! When I turned the printer on after a couple of days, the P1006 did some heart-stopping coughing and chugging as it cleared its throat; otherwise it behaves.
The HP P1006 is not a Multi-Media printer - in the sense of using it to print photos from a Memory Card, you cannot do it. No slots! My PC has a slot for every card, a mixed blessing because I do not like handling those cards. I always transfer images from camera to printer via USB Cable. If one wants photo proofs, laser printing is a cheap and fast option. Just call up "Picasa" and print away. (Avoid this if the snapshot has large areas of black!)
The "Light" Toner Cartridge is rated for about a ream and a half of printing vs 3 reams (1,500 sheets) for the regular one. The price ($70) of the 'regular' one will melt your teeth. If you do that much printing, why not adjourn to Kinko's and use their equipment and expertise?
The HP 1006 does print envelopes, as advertised by HP. I purchased some #10 USPS Envelopes and was gratified to see that they printed just fine. Reason for my timidity? Well, you know about "Vista"; which will not recognize MS Word efforts unless you get lucky and choose the right one of 9 STYLESHEETS for mailing. Open Office WRITER produces envelopes that are perfect for practical uses; the HP 1006 spools them but PRINTS them and they flatten out.
KUDOS For that "Draft" setting. Also for outstanding miniaturization and "Off the Blocks" readiness.
Recommended? YES!
Amount Paid: (US$): MSRP = 179 less huge discount infernal warranty = $110.00 ----- (I noticed that FRY'S advertised the same price last week.)
COMMENTS
The HP P1006 Power Consumption compares to our Hamilton Beach Toaster Oven (1440 Watts) and OSTER Bread Toaster (1500 W).
My Canon MP500 All-in-One consumes about 150 Watts but takes much longer to print a page. None of these are constant running state readings. The high rating for the P1006 seems reasonable when one considers that the toner has to be fused onto the paper at very high speeds so the image won't smear. So, that high reading is intermittent. Overall, the Toaster Oven is the power eater, "Cook for 1 Hr 20 Minutes" means serious steady running for a long time. PG&E must love those folks over at Hamilton Beach.
The operating temperature is a bit marginal so I recommend installing and running the HP P1006 out in the open.
When moving my P1006 to examine that ENERGY STAR stuff I noticed that the printer is top-heavy and could slip out of your grip. If you have to move it, unplug the cables, remove the paper and then hold on for dear life. And, DO NOT turn it over with the Toner Cartridge installed!
Enjoy! ----- TRIVIA
My partner (RN, MS, EdD) reports research indicating that a page of print with only one word in color will attract more attention and foster recall better than all black. Still, that is no excuse for printing pages of Google ads in throbbing color. (Get a RED RUBBER STAMP.) ----- Other Printer Reviews by Asourdough4:
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