Expert Verdict
Buying a printer depends a lot on how you wish to use it. For example, a law firm would require many printouts every day, then one has to buy a printer capable of scaling up operations and bear a heavy printing load, and works smoothly. Other than the purpose of using a laser printer, details such as the overall price with and without cartridges, frequency of replacing/refilling cartridges, cost of replacing cartridges, usability, pages per minute, connectivity etc. And of course, performance factors such as printing speed, and clarity matter the most.
If you have a home office or small scale academic necessity, you would, for sure, need a printer to make your work operations smooth. Samsung ML-1640 laser printer is an entry-level black and white laser printer that offers 1200 x 600 dpi color resolution with Samsung ML-1640 Toner Cartridges. This printer supports manual duplex printing. It prints upto ppm of 16 pages per minute, which we observed as true if the length of a print job is extended to 100 pages. The more the print job is extended, the less PPM it takes.
Quality under this budget on this monochrome laser printer is quite competitive. The input tray of 150 pages comes uncovered leaving a scope of dust entering the tray. It comes with a 700-page limit Samsung ML-1640 Toner Cartridges indicating that this printer is meant for home and small offices. Connectivity is available through USB 2.0 only and 8 MB RAM that helps in fast copying.
The Samsung ML-1640 Laser Printer is an entry-level printer with controls and indicators on the surface. All it has on the surface are lights for power, data, and low toner. Also, a button to cancel a print. A power connection and USB port are all that you will see on the back panel which means it is simple to operate. It has a glossy black box, and it takes up a limited space when closed, meaning that it can be shifted easily from one place to another. With its drum and Samsung ML-1640 toner cartridges, grayscale graphics are well produced. Text prints are precise with this monochrome printer. Printing speed is fast due to 8MB RAM, and when the length of the print job is extended, it reaches its claimed 16 ppm mark.
This printer does have its share of shortcomings. The Samsung ML-1640 laser monochrome printer doesn’t come with either built-in or detachable paper cover, which leaves the pages sometimes exposed to dust. Therefore, one should not leave the tray open at all times. The Samsung ML-1640 toner cartridges have to be fit in the right way. If the cartridges are not fitted the right way, the machine will report an empty cartridge. Toner capacity is much smaller in the cartridge, and there was a scope to provide more than just 700 pages. The refillable cartridge is quite expensive, and the cost of printing a page exceeds its competitors such as cannon.
The Samsung ML-1640 laser printer isn’t the best in its category when it comes to cost-saving. But it does provide a quality print with its Samsung ML-1640 toner cartridges that are better than the printers offered by competitors in this price range and printer category. The absence of dust protection makes it apt only for small spaces like home offices and study rooms. The lack of multiple connectivity options eliminates its use for medium and large offices. The precise greyscale and graphics printed with the help of Samsung ML-1640 toner cartridges are a plus point for this printer. Speedy printing and lesser time in getting started is another great feature of this printer. Overall, it’s a good investment for individuals who want to improve their printing quality and are not bothered by the cost of printing per page. But for a budget buy, do check out its competitors like Canon i-SENSYS LBP-3100.
Review
A truly entry level device with limited printing capability, producing good quality and fast prints.
Samsung ML-1640 is an entry level laser printer, with a maximum resolution of 1200 x 600 dpi, and prints speed of up to 16 ppm. The first copy comes in less than 10 seconds and the quality of printouts is average. The Samsung ML-1640 Toner Cartridges come with a life of about 1500 prints and the drum having a 10000 page life. The printer is not very compact and is more high than most printers in similar range. The 150 page capacity input tray is not covered and is thus prone to dust, etc. The 8 mb RAM is standard and not expandable, but it does help in fast first copy timing. Connectivity is only through USB 2.0. The monthly duty cycle of 500 pages and a smaller introductory Samsung ML-1640 Toner Cartridges with a 700 page life, indicates its intentions to target home and small offices.
The printer supports duplex printing and is easy to use. The cartridges have to installed carefully and properly, else it will end up showing - no cartridge found - regularly. The bundled drivers and diagnostics software are very useful and help in functions like watermark printing, overlays and more.
Advantages:- Fast prints
- 8 MB RAM
- USB connectivity
- Good quality of prints in graphics and grayscale
- Dust protection is absent
- Less features compared to other competitors at similar price
This is an entry level laser printer and it makes its intentions very clear in its build and print quality and feature list. It is good for small offices and home use, but with a small duty cycle and lack of connectivity options, it won't be good for medium sized offices.
Compatible cartridge:The compatible Samsung ML-1640 Toner Cartridge is:
- Samsung MLT1082S toner cartridge
It is a quite common issue with a Samsung ML-1640 printer which you should not be worry about. This can happen either because of an empty Samsung ML-1640 toner cartridge or due to low quality of the print media. You can rest assure that your machine is completely fine (it would be a rare case when such issue is caused due to any hardware problem). To resolve the faded print issue follow these troubleshoots:
- It may be possible that the toner cartridge is empty. You can temporarily extend the toner life by Redistributing the toner (check the instructions below to Redistribute the toner). If that does not work replace the Samsung ML-1640 toner cartridge with a new one.
- Check the paper sheets in the input tray. Make sure the papers you are using to print match the print media specification of your printer. (check the user manual Print Media Specification section.)
- If the entire page is light, then the print resolution setting is too low. Adjust the print resolution. Refer the help screen of the printer driver to adjust the settings.
- If you have recently replaced the toner cartridge and using quality print media, then you should try cleaning the print path, cartridge area, and the toner cartridge.
- The surface of the LSU part inside the machine may be dirty. Clean the LSU by opening and closing the front cover several times and if the problem still occurs call the contact a service representative.
- Open the front cover of the printer.
- Pull the toner cartridge out and remove it from the machine.
- Gently shake the toner cartridge from side to side five or six times to redistribute the toner.
- Reinsert the toner cartridge into the machine. Ensure that the toner cartridge snaps into place.
- Close the front cover. Make sure that the cover is securely closed. If it is not firmly closed, printing errors may occur when you print.