Lexmark Z42, A.K.A Piece of CRAP
Written: Dec 03 '01 (Updated May 08 '02)
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Pros: Good Quality, while it works. Top Load (No paper jams)
Cons: JUNK, Pricey Cartridges, Exit Tray too short (paper tends to land on floor).
The Bottom Line: PIECE OF CRAP, DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY.
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| cyburn7's Full Review: Lexmark Z42 InkJet Printer |
I bought this printer about 3 months ago, I got an excellent deal from a store that was going out of business, $75 CAD w/tax, converts to about $47.50 USD. When I first saw this printer advertised I hopped on the net and researched it. For the price advertised it was far superior then anyother in the same bracket. To buy it at the MSRP (Manufacture's Suggested Retail Price) would be abserd, there are way better printers then this for that price.
After completing the research on the product I slept on it and bought it the next day. It is USB and Parallel compatible, I quickly plugged it into the Parallel port with my existing cable and loaded in the CD. I followed the simple installation instructions and began the setup process, which was all very easy. I used Lexmark's alignment page to ensure clarity, I found it to be a little hard on the eyes to choose the right number, but other then that it was a very simple process.
I then decided to test it out. I left it on normal mode and printed out an average picture (200DPI), I was shocked at the lack of quality when the picture came out, full of lines, which usually only happen when a cartridge is running low, the onscreen ink monitor assured me that it wasn't. Disappointed with my first attempt, I printed it again with the printer set to Maximum Resolution (2400 x 1200 DPI). This made a HUGE difference, the picture was crisp and very clean, although it lacked in brightness. I might be a bit picky on it as I'm used to high quality prints from an expensive printer at my school.
The two buttons on the printer are straight-forward, Green is Power, and Grey is Paper Feed. I especially like the top loader, as it can close down if it is not in use for an extended period of time and keeps majority of the dust out. Thanks to this feature I have not had to dust anything more then the outside in the 3 months I've had it.
Three months later, The black cartridge is at 50% capacity, and the colour is still at 100%, hmmm... I believe it to be broken, as the ink level has not moved since day one. I have never had one paper jam, Since I'm not too worried on how long it takes to print, the slow printing has not bothered me. I am rather annoyed at the ink that came with the printer, as it smudges at the drop of a hat. This makes multiple page documents rather messy since one page falling on the other smudges it. The printer does have the option "Allow Page to Dry" and this stops the pages from smudging eachother, BUT it adds about 40 seconds to each page printed.
If your into high quality, photo-like images this printer is not for you, it is more suited for Text, then Photos. Only being average in image quality, even on the maximum resolution setting.
After all is said and done, I STRONGLY DON'T RECOMMEND THIS ITEM. Personally I would have brought it back if the sale wasn't final, only due to the lack of quality in images. And that is isn't worth the money spent on wages for the person in the sweatshop to build it.
I might of repeated myself in this review, if so It's to emphasize those facts.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 47.50
Operating System: Windows and Macintosh
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Epinions.com ID:
cyburn7
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Location: Ontario, Canada
Reviews written: 5
Trusted by: 1 member
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