| The 5570 is the latest colour laser to join the | | | | form of the Toner Value Pack. As yet there are |
| established magicolor family. With a quoted top | | | | no compatible cartridges available, but when they |
| speed of 35ppm for mono and 30ppm for colour, | | | | are introduced further running cost savings will be |
| it looks capable of satisfying high-volume | | | | able to be made. |
| workgroup printing and uses Konica Minolta's | | | | And so to print quality, and it's here the 5570 and |
| Simitri HD polymerised toner technology, which | | | | its Simitri HD toner scores, as output is far |
| claims to deliver superior print quality. | | | | superior to many competing printers. The printer |
| Simitri HD uses toner particles that are uniform in | | | | produced some of the best text quality we've |
| shape, and Konica Minolta claims this allows the | | | | seen, with razor-sharp standard font sizes and |
| printer to deliver finer detail and use less toner | | | | even the smallest point sizes boldly produced with |
| than the competition. It also claims the toner | | | | no discernable smudging. Mono photos don't suffer |
| melts at much lower temperatures, allowing the | | | | from any colour cast, and the levels of detail are |
| printer to save up to 15% on power consumption | | | | very good. Colour photos revealed a lot of detail |
| and reducing paper curling. Plus, it emits 40% less | | | | but suffered from slight banding in large areas of |
| CO2 than conventional toner. | | | | a single colour - something the HP Laserjet |
| We have no arguments with build quality, and | | | | CP4005n didn't have a problem with. However, if |
| despite being only slightly larger than Lexmark's | | | | it hadn't been for the banding, we'd have had a |
| C532dn the 5570 weighs a hefty 44kg fully | | | | tough time telling them apart, as both delivered a |
| loaded. Standard paper handling is spread across a | | | | vibrancy in our test photos that's often lacking in |
| 500-sheet base tray and 100-sheet motorised MP | | | | colour lasers. The quoted mono print speeds are |
| tray, and you can add two more 500-sheet base | | | | slightly optimistic, as we clocked a 35-page basic |
| trays. Along with a decent processor, the printer | | | | Word document at 1min 8secs for an average of |
| sports 256MB of memory, and an extra 512MB | | | | 31ppm. However, colour printing was on the |
| costs £190 which is very reasonable. | | | | money, with our 24-page DTP document |
| As is the norm nowadays, the printer comes | | | | completed in 48 seconds for a tidy 30ppm. |
| supplied with low volume starter cartridges, in this | | | | The magicolor 5570 may not be able to offer the |
| case 6,000 page yield cartridges which give a cost | | | | same output quality as HP's Laserjets, but it |
| per page of 7.1p for colour and 1.3p for mono | | | | certainly matches them in terms of value and |
| output. | | | | speed. The printer is well built, and its low printing |
| As soon as these are depleted they should be | | | | costs should put it on any enterprise's printing |
| replaced with high yield 12,000 page cartridges and | | | | short list. |
| this will reduce the cost per page to a more | | | | All in all a solid colour workhorse that delivers |
| respectable 5.8p for colour and 1.1p for mono. | | | | good speed and quality colour printing with |
| Another 0.1 p per page can be shaved from | | | | moderate running costs should let this one onto |
| these costs by ordering all colours together in the | | | | your shortlist. |