Samsung CLP 315 > Reviews (2)

This is my first review for quite some time so bear with me if I am a little rusty!

Background to my purchase

I invested in a Samsung CLP 315 around a year ago. At the time, I deliberated on whether to purchase a so-called “laser” printer like this or stick to the “inkjet” printers I have always had previously. I did a little research into the two and decided to take the plunge on a laser printer. I will come to why I decided this later.

I some online searches and came across Samsung laser printers. Now I must admit, Samsung is not the first brand that I would associate with printers. I had previously always had Lexmark printers and had never seen a Samsung printer before. However, any Samsung product I have purchased previously has always been of excellent quality and value.

After reading some online reviews, I went along to PC World to have a look and managed to get it for a reduced price deal that they had running at the time.

Physical appearance

The printer is cuboid shaped and is taller than your average inkjet printer. That being said, it’s certainly no wider. It comes in an elegant black finish.

When you look down on the top of it, it has an A4 tray with an additional part that can be flipped to extend where the paper comes out. It has a basic display consisting of a round button that will manually feed paper through the machine and four colour indicators that will flash when it is low on toner.

From the front, there is a Samsung logo displayed and it can be seen that the printer is “bottom feeding” i.e. you put the paper in the tray at the bottom and it feeds up through the machine and comes out at the top.

The power button is situated on the back of the machine. The various connections to the mains and the computer also feed into the printer here.

Set up

The printer is extremely easy to set up. Full instructions are provided with the machine. However, the setup can be easily summarised. You simply ensure that the power cable and USB connection are secured in the back of the machine and then attached to the wall/computer. You then switch on your computer and insert the set up disc that is included. Simply follow the on screen instructions to install the relevant drivers and then the printer will be ready to work.

The one that I bought came with some toner in already so there was no need to install new cartridges. However, it should be noted that the installation of the new cartridges is extremely straightforward. You must open the front of the printer at the point indicated by an arrow and then simply pull up the toner cartridge that you need to change. The new cartridge is then simply inserted and then the printer will automatically know that there is new toner the next time you try to print.
Print Quality/Speed

I have to say that I have been impressed by the quality of the printing so far for what is an inexpensive laser printer. Usually when used for the first time, it will take 20 or 30 seconds to warm up properly and then print. However, once it is warmed up, it takes only a few seconds for a page to shoot through and the quality is very impressive.

I would say that for printing black text, it is as good as any printer I have used including the large multi function machines I have at work. The colour print is also of very good quality though I must admit to not ever having printed out a full colour photograph on it. However, I have printed documents with colour in them and the colour is always sharp and correct.

It would therefore be ideal for use at home for children with school work, students with university work or other general household use.

Toner

One of the main difference between an inkjet printer and a laser printer is that a laser printer uses toner whereas an inkjet printer will use an inkjet cartridge. The downside of toner should be made clear straight away; it’s expensive. It can cost around £90 or so to refill the toner in this printer.

The printer uses four different colour toners; black, cyan, magenta and yellow. When you purchase the printer, it does come with toner in, however, the cartridges aren’t full and so you can expect to have to buy new toner cartridges within a few months of buying it depending on how heavy your use of it is. Clearly, you should factor this in when you decide to buy the product and how much it costs overall.

That being said, when you buy new, full cartridges, it must be said that they last a long time. The black cartridge, for example, will print (according to manufacturer) over 5000 pages of normal text. Therefore, whilst you are spending more, it goes a lot further and I’ve noticed that it doesn’t seem to fade in the same way as an inkjet meaning you get more out of the end of the cartridge.

Overall

I am happy with the decision I made to go for a laser printer instead of an inkjet printer. Whilst the setup cost is more, it is undoubtedly better long term value for money because the cartridges will print out a lot more pages at better quality.

As for the Samsung model here, I’m extremely happy with it. It has been reliable and the quality and speed of the print is excellent. It isn’t too heavy or bulky, either, meaning it is easily portable between rooms in the house.

All in all, I would definitely recommend this product to those in doubt.