Lexmark’s OfficeEdge Pro 4000, while quite large, is very sleek, with
lots of blue LEDs and a clear and readable screen. It certainly won’t
mess up your classroom.
The OfficeEdge Pro 4000 is very fast. It took just 17 seconds to
print our A4 photo at its highest quality settings, while a page of
mixed text and graphics arrived in nine seconds. Text documents take
just four seconds for the first page to emerge, with subsequent pages
coming through at speeds of 15.4ppm. If immediacy is a major
requirement, this is the printer for you.
What’s most impressive is that this performance comes with no
compromise on quality. Printed photos look superb, with more detail and
richer colours than other printers in this test achieved in over a
minute. Text is dark and well defined, and graphics look crisp and
punchy. Scans also look good, with sharp images and minimal grain, and
you can scan an A4 photograph at 600dpi in just six seconds.
The first thing you notice about the Lexmark is just how long it takes
to set it up. Obviously you have to do this only once, but when all you
want to do is print a document, and a countdown on the printer screen
says you have to wait 12 minutes till you can use it, it seems a bit
excessive. Still, the process is very simple, with the software handling
all the hard work, and you can opt for USB, Ethernet or 802.11n Wi-Fi
connections. In our tests these all worked well, and with no problems in communication
The Lexmark has a 350-sheet input tray, so if you have to share the
printer you won’t have to spend much time refilling it. It also features
duplex printing, which is surprisingly speedy and quiet. Print costs
could be a little more competitive: 4.02p for a colour page isn’t bad,
but 1.08p for a black-and-white page is a little high, and that’s with
high-capacity cartridges.
The OfficeEdge Pro 4000 is quick, good-looking and reliable, and the
only thing that counts against it is that HP’s OfficeJet Pro 8600 Plus
is slightly cheaper and more economical to run.
