Samsung SF 5100 – A Great Machine

Appearance- The Samsung SF 5100 monochrome, laser, fax printer using Samsung SF 5100 Toner is super cute and compact for a three-in- one device, measuring a rather slim 9×12x13 inches and weighing in at a very light 6 kilograms. Quality is definitely not compromised by the machines’ very affordable price of US$400.00. A great long-term investment for both your office and home.

Document and media handling- The paper tray handles a maximum capacity of 150 sheets input and 100 sheets output. Documents are fed at a 20 sheet capacity. Paper sizes compatible with the device are A4, Letter and Legal. Unfortunately, the machine only accepts plain paper.

Print quality- The machine comes standard with Samsung’s edge enhancement technology, this is most probably why the image quality is so absolutely superior. Copies are produced at 300x 300 resolutions at an engine speed of 6 pages per minute and faxes sent with incredible speed of 6 seconds per page. The printer has document enlargement capacity of up to 130% and reduction of up to 50%.

Control Panel- The general control panel is very user friendly with 7 language LCD display. However fax controls self are a little more complicated due to the variety of dialling options. Fax number can be keyed in using the numbers keypad and by pressing start/enter button or if you are dialling a previously stored or dialled number you can just press the one touch dial key. Speed dialling options are also available by merely adding the number to speed dialling list.

Advantages- Fax transmission is incredibly fast not to mention copying with its mere 6 second document scanning system. The machine is totally reliable with great features such as auto redial, priority transmission and transmission reporting

Disadvantages- The input paper tray is way to short and narrow and output tray has a serious design flaw affecting the manner paper is produced. Both sent and received pages end-up in a paper tray located at the bottom of the device. Another tray is located at the top of the machine also causing problems but this is rare. Unusual paper sizes or textures will cause some flow problems.

Costs- Your initial purchase of the printer will already save you tons as the printer self is very well priced and when comparing printing costs between inkjet and laser machines. However you will really start to realise how much you are saving when the machine is actually up and running. When compared to copy inkjet and thermal transfer costs the machine is extremely comparative. The machine comes with great environmentally friendly features like power and toner save modes. Toner saving features are very popular these days due to the very heft cost of the consumable.

Toner-Samsung toner is included with your purchase with a yield of 2500 pages at 5% coverage. However with a lower coverage percentage, up to 3000 print pages can be produced. Toner retails for US$62.00 to US$110, but rest assured that regular replacement will not be required, as it’s estimated to last an approximate 8 months depending on your reproduction quality.