Ten... mono laser printers

Samsung ML3710ND

An unusual, corrugated finish isn't the only thing a bit different about this mid-range laser. Like many others here, it has good paper handling with a 250-sheet main tray and 50-sheet multi-purpose, with the option of a further, 520-sheet tray below. It also has an Eco button in front of its 16 x 2 LCD display, which saves three quarters of your paper costs, up to 50 percent of the energy and over 70 percent of the CO₂. The speed claim of 34ppm isn't realised, though you do get 25ppm, which is nippy enough. Print quality is excellent, with the 1,200dpi resolution producing crisp text and smooth greys. Running costs of 1.6p complete a very attractive picture.

Xerox Phaser 3435

The blue and white lines of this printer hide a simple, but effective printer, with straightforward controls and a 16 x 2 LCD. There's the standard 250-sheet main tray with 50-sheet multipurpose and optional, second 250-sheet tray. Networking is standard, as is duplex print and the machine is rated at up to 33ppm. I only saw 25ppm, but this is still respectable. Text print is sharp and precise but, even at the top 1,200dpi resolution, greyscales and photos showed some micro-banding. With toner cartridges of 4,000 and 10,000 page capacity, running costs come right down to 1.1p per page, which offsets a slightly higher asking price. ®