Lexmark Z32 – Get Your Office Working Great
June 8, 2009 by adam · Leave a Comment
Whilst the Lexmark z32 color inkjet printer is nothing to get excited about, it is a very practical option, particularly as a second printer for example. With a squat and curved design, it is very much typical of the era of Lexmark printers released around the same time. Just two buttons and respective LED lights make up the control panel, indicating power and for paper feed, whilst the front loading paper tray allows for ease of access and change of the Lexmark Z32 ink.
In keeping with the Lexmark tradition, the Lexmark z32 is extremely quick and easy to install. It is simply a question of connecting one lead to the power, one to the computer, installing to your computer and you’re ready to go. Drivers for later operating systems (OS) may need to be downloaded, but the whole process should take no longer than 15 minutes, possibly 20 minutes depending on positioning etc.
The front loading paper tray has a small capacity of just 100 sheets, which cannot be upgraded. However, it does benefit from automatic envelope feeding and auto paper handling. With Lexmark’s Drop & Go technology too, paper loading really couldn’t be a great deal easier. With various quality settings, the maximum of 1200 x 1200dpi produces excellent quality images. The speed of print at the highest setting is slow, but the quality produced negates much of this annoyance.
Dependant on the setting selected, up to 7 pages per minute (ppm) can be printed in black and white and 3.5ppm in color. Whilst these speeds are not going to break any records, the colors are vibrant, and the blacks deep – helpfully boosted by the integrated sRGB ColorFine printer driver software. Reproduction of black text is also crisp and clean, which is a real plus.
As mentioned earlier, whilst drivers for later OS need to be found online, the Lexmark z32 is compatible with both Windows and Mac – quite unusual for a budget Lexmark printer at the time. Also unusual in comparison to many other such printers, the z32 enjoys both parallel port and USB connection, which makes things a whole lot simpler.
Other features with the Lexmark z32 to be admired exist too. Amongst the first printers to benefit from Lexmark’s Accu-Feed paper handling system, paper jams and blockages are a rare occurrence. Something quite rare: Even in many of today’s smaller printers.
Being an entry level printer too, such features as the automatic optimization of Internet images, is also a real plus for this compact, easy to use and, just as important, easy to maintain machine.
Maintenance is so easy in fact, that as with many of the Lexmark printers, replacing the Lexmark ink is nothing more arduous than lifting the front, allowing the printer heads to settle back to center and swapping old for new. Taking less than a minute, (including unpacking the new toner), it will barely interrupt your print runs. Whilst unsuitable for heavy use, the Lexmark z32 is perfectly fine as a bedroom printer for the kids.
