Review: Dell C1660w color printer

February 22, 2013

The superlow $200 price (as of February 21, 2013) for the Dell C1660w makes color-laser-class printing (using laserlike LED technology) tantalizingly accessible. Its text output looks great, and the color graphics are very nice indeed. Because the toner is expensive, however, the C1660w would be a good deal only if you didn’t print much (as we discovered when we compared inkjet pricing last year). The printer’s modest speed and features reflect the intended, light-volume audience. Setting up the C1660w couldn't be easier. The small footprint means it can be used virtually anywhere. USB and Wi-Fi connectivity are standard. We used the manual Wi-Fi setup, but there's support for WPS as well. A blue Wi-Fi indicator notifies you that the unit is connected wirelessly. The tiny two-line LCD display and control buttons are minimal, but effective. The software is spare, but you can surf from anywhere on your network to the printer's configuration pages to check status and see if you need more toner. There's also the full gamut of remote printing features, including printing from mobile devices and via email. Paper handling features on the C1660w are minimal. A front panel flips out onto your work surface to make the bottom of the 150-sheet input tray; a cover piece is included. The classic, indented output bin on the top holds 100 sheets. There's no automatic two-side printing (duplexing), but there is manual support for the process in the form of dialogs telling you how to reinsert the paper. Having an open-faced paper tray makes this process significantly easier. You can easily reach most of the paper path by folding down the panel on the back of the unit. Toner cartridges are accessed via a panel on the right side of the unit. Probably the least appealing aspect of the C1660w is its pricey toner. The unit ships with 500-page starter cartridges. The 4 cents you'll pay per black page is a little higher than the average for entry-level inkjets, and the additional 16.8 cents that adding color to the average page costs is pricey indeed. Black toner is sold in $50, 1250-page units; the 1000-page cyan, magenta, and yellow cartridges cost $56 each. There are, unfortunately, no high-capacity supplies. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Link: http://www.pcworld.com/article/2028959/review-dell-c1660w-color-printer.html