Low Priced and Multifunctional, HP Hits a Home Run!
by elmoebeesn - Written: Jan 17 '07
Product Rating:
Ease of Use:
Paper Handling:
Pros: low priced, multifunctional, easy to use and setup
Cons: for a higher price better quality exists
The Bottom Line: Overall, this is a low priced multifunctional unit that has been easy to use and gives a solid level of performance for this price range.
elmoebeesn's Full Review: Hewlett Packard Officejet 5610 All-In-One InkJet P...
I am happy to be a new owner of the HP Officejet 5610 as I have needed an all-in one printer, copier, fax machine, and scanner for my “home-office” for quite some time. I realized a few months ago that my separate printer, fax machine and scanners simply took up too much room and power outlets and it was time to consolidate. As I don’t need an expensive and feature filled machine for my personal use as I run no real business out of my home I decided to wait until the prices on basic units such as this had dropped to under 150 dollars. My usage of this unit is limited to about twice a week on average when I need to fax something, print some directions or photos or just simply need something functional for everyday personal business. My point is that I am not faxing 2000 sheets a day nor printing a similar amount and thus I only needed a fundamental unit which takes up little space and performs many diverse functions. Thus far I have been impressed on both accounts as the HP Officejet 5610 has satisfied my needs.
As always, I am fairly price conscious and decided to shop around a bit before making my buy. I started out with a budget of 150 dollars and was very pleased to find this unit in my local electronics store for a mere 129 bucks. Similar units were generally priced a bit higher and having asked the attendant for advice I was assured that the HP Officejet 5610 would suit my uncomplicated needs just fine and should be reliable. After reading some online reviews and being assured a second time that this was the best unit for the money I decided to make my buy and have been happy I did.
After taking the unit out of the box, the first thing that impressed me was its diminutive size. It is only 9 inches high and 17 inches wide and weighs a mere 13 pounds. For being able to perform so many functions, it truly is amazing to me that the machine is as small as it is. As my office space at home is not large I was thrilled as I literally saved 90% of the previous room I had been using with my many single function, outdated, machines. The instruction manual provided for easy setup and was well-illustrated with pictures of all necessary parts. Further, the unit comes with a CD which provides an ImageZone utility which boasts user help for software features. Further, the HP Web site has downloadable documentation, driver updates, and many other items of interest for the owner. All in all, the unit was easy to set-up, operate and troubleshooting help is available as needed.
As for the actual workings of this multifunctional machine I have been impressed as well. I would say the feature I use the most is printing and thus far I have been happy considering the price I paid. The resolution of the unit is 4800 x 1200 optimized dpi which I find to be solid although not measuring up to some more expensive units. Again though, the prints are focused, clear and provide for decent overall color. In this price range I am satisfied. HP boats a maximum printing speed of 20 b/w pages per minute and 13 color pages per minute. I did not find these claims to be quite accurate although I was able to print 15 b/w pages and about 7 color in one minutes time. Of course, playing with some settings on the machine might warrant a few more or less pages per minute for me, so I cannot fully refute the manufacturers’ claims here and overall I feel the speed is adequate for this price range. As for copier functionality and speed, HP again boasts 20 pages per minute and I have found the maximum I am able to get to be at around 15 once again. Further, this HP boasts an auto document feeder which will feed up to 25 pages at a time. I have found that around 35 will fit in the feeder, but you probably don’t want to press your luck and create a jam. Again, in this price range I am satisfied. The copies come out looking just like the originals (which I would suspect is what everyone wants) and there seems to be very little dotting or shading which I have experienced with the copies from other machines. Supported document types include labels, envelopes, photo paper, plain paper, transparencies, and iron-on transfers which should satisfy most basic needs users. PC connectivity is provided through a USB port and I have not experienced difficulty printing from any Microsoft Office application. The machine doesn’t include any memory card readers so if that is a function you are looking for, something else might be more suitable.
As for the fax machine capabilities, this machine is fairly simple, but does exactly what it is supposed to. I have sent and received faxes without incident which is exactly what I had hoped for. It seems the timeframe for my faxes to actually reach their intended recipient and vice versa is about 7 minutes depending on the distance. Again, at this price range I am satisfied. The fax resolution is 200 x 200 dpi which is marginal, but adequate. The connection speed is 33.6 Kbps which is slow but is again fair for 129 bucks. The fax is equipped with a caller ID feature and clearly displays the number incoming or outgoing. Caller speed dial and redial are nice options which have become common in machines of this type. Faxing can be done through the computer or as a stand alone through the feeder. A call block feature can further be enabled if the user so desires. All told, the machine does what it sets out to do here and I am happy.
Finally, with regards to scanning, the machine boasts an Optical Resolution of 1200 x 2400 dpi which has proved adequate. This is probably the feature that I have used the least, but I have scanned a few photos and found that they have come out pretty clear. Much like the copier, I felt little was lost between the original and the reproduced image.
Overall, I have been impressed with this unit given the price. It is no-frills but it provides for the basics and it does what it claims and has not let me down. The warranty is 1 year service and support. I was offered an additional 3 year “all-inclusive” warranty for 55 more dollars but turned it down as in 3 years I might be able to buy a completely new unit of this type for that cost. I have found replacement ink to be slightly expensive, but it has yet to break the bank or differ much from that of similar machines. All told, if your home office needs are basic like mine I believe this model from HP will suit you just fine.
Product specifications are listed below:
GeneralDepth 16.5 in
Height 9.3 in
Weight 13 lbs
Width 17.1 in
Office Machine / Printing Technology Ink-jet
Display (OA) / Line Qty 2 lines
Expansion / ConnectivityPC Connectivity / PC Connection Availability Yes
PC Connectivity / PC Connection USB
PrinterPrinting / Max Printing Speed B/W 20 pages/min
Printing / Max Printing Speed Color 13 pages/min
Printing / Max Resolution Color 4800 x 1200 dpi
WarrantyService & support type 1 year warranty
CopyingCopying / Max Copying Speed B/W 20 pages/min
Copying / Max Copying Speed Color 13 pages/min
Fax MachineFax Machine / Compatibility Super G3
Fax Machine / Fax Resolutions 200 x 200 dpi
Fax Machine / Max Transmission Speed 33.6 Kbps
Fax Machine / PC Faxing Yes (send only)
Document & Media HandlingMedia Handling / Document Feeder Capacity 25 sheets
Media Handling / Max Copy Size Legal (8.5 in x 14 in)
Media Handling / Standard Media Capacity 100 sheets
Media Handling / Supported Media Type Cards, Labels, Envelopes, Photo paper, Plain paper, Transparencies, Iron-on transfers
Output Trays Capacity 50 sheets
Office MachineOffice Machine / Fax Type Plain paper
Office Machine / Printing Output Type Color
Office Machine Functions Fax, Copier, Printer, Scanner
PrintingPrinting / Max Resolution B/W 1200 x 1200 dpi
ScanningScanning / Optical Resolution 1200 x 2400 dpi
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