While the Samsung ML-1630W Laser Printer won an Innovations Award at CES 2009 for its design, its actual performance has been a little more of a mystery, at least until recently. According to Samsung, the ML-1630W operates very quietly and offers Ethernet and Wi-Fi connectivity with a reported print speed of 16 pages per minute. A couple expert reviews are in on the Internet, and they offer some interesting opinions on the printer’s overall abilities.

 

Peter Piazza of About.com gives the ML-1630W a solid 3.5 stars out of 5 for its sleek design, fast print speed, high quality output, wired and wireless network connections, and quiet operation. On the other hand, black and white printing with no copy, scan, fax, or color print options limits the printer’s utility. In addition, there’s no automatic double-sided printing (a.k.a. auto-duplexing), and the included software makes network setup more difficult than it has to be. Overall, Piazza concludes that the ML-1630W “does what it does very well, with extremely sharp prints,” but that it’s more of a “triumph of form over substance.”

 

ComputerShopper.com gives the ML-1630W a 6.9 out of 10. Highlights include the stylish and compact frame, quiet operation, sharp output quality, and an efficient design that makes it easy to clear paper jams and pop in or take out a toner cartridge. However, the review corroborates Piazza on the difficult Wi-Fi network setup, which is probably the biggest drawback for an otherwise interesting printer. In addition, toner can get a tad expensive, paper input and output capacity is limited due to printer size, and there’s no auto-duplexing to help you save time as you save paper. The last two sentences of the review sum up the author’s opinion pretty simply: “If you want a pretty printer for occasional use on a fancy desk, you’ll love this unit. But if you have heavy printing requirements or need it to work on a wireless network, you can do better.”