Johannesburg, 03 Oct 2012
The Epson Stylus Office BX635FWD is a compact inkjet multifunction printer (MFP) that was certainly designed with the small business and home office in mind.
This compact machine features a smart black plastic casing, which not only gives it an imposing business look, but also makes it quite easy to move from point A to B. The machine also sits and fits nicely on a desk.
All-in-one
Most impressive is that the Epson Stylus Office BX635FWD is an all-in-one machine that incorporates photo, copy, fax and scan functionalities. Its 2.400ppi flatbed scanner is topped by a sturdy lid, which is quite easy to open.
One of the sleek features on this MFP is its control panel, which is simple to figure out, considering the functionalities the machine boasts.
On this panel is a big on/off button on the left that stands out from all the other smaller buttons. There is a plethora of smaller buttons on the left side, and a screen that sits almost in the middle of the machine. The screen shows all the functionalities that a user asks the MFP to perform. The fax buttons are on the right side of the screen.
Underneath the control panel is the output slot where the machine churns out the printed material. I found the gap rather big, since only one sheet comes out at a time. The only logical assumption I could make about this design was that it's probably meant to be a shelter for unattended faxes or documents.
The loading tray is found at the bottom centre of the device. This tray can hold up to 250 sheets, which greatly minimises the need to reload the tray regularly.
On the bottom-left corner of the front panel are sockets for SD cards, a memory stick, xD and CompactFlash cards.
Getting started
Setting up the Epson Stylus Office BX635FWD is quite simple. Opening the scanner lid reveals another lid that opens into the interior of the printer. There are four ink cartridges - black, magenta, yellow and cyan - that plug into the permanent print head. Inserting the cartridges is also quite simple.
It is worthwhile to mention that, on the first day of the review process, the ink suddenly ran out, leaving us all shocked. However, I am sure this was just a technical glitch. Epson supplied us with brand new cartridges and we never had the slightest problem as far as ink was concerned after that.
Print speed
Regarding print speed, the Epson Stylus Office BX635FWD manages up to 15 pages per minute in mono mode and 7.1 pages per minute in colour mode. It can also go up to 38 pages per minute in draft mode.
For home use, I would say these speeds are not bad. However, for business use, I don't think this would be ideal, especially in a busy office.
The machine is also capable of double-sided printing - something that cuts paper usage in half. For double-sided printing, the machines clocks 7.9 pages per minute in mono mode, while colour mode takes a little longer, at 4.7 pages per minute.
Print quality
Aside from the impressive print speeds, the print quality is also superb. I tried to print a page from a glossy magazine during the review. Besides the fact that I used poor-quality paper, the MFP managed to print out all the details of the image to the extent that it looked just as glossy. Also impressive was the quality of the scanned images that showed up on the computer screen.
From then on, my colleagues started asking me to use the printer for their documents. We do have an office printer, but I concluded that the power of the Epson Stylus Office BX635FWD was too good to resist.
Connectivity
Epson has moved with the times regarding the connectivity of the BX635FWD. The MFP uses Ethernet or WiFi connectivity, bolstered by WPA2 wireless security. Users can print wirelessly from either smartphones or tablets, thanks to the Epson iPrint4 functionality.
All in all, I would say the Epson Stylus Office BX635FWD is a good machine based on its multifunctionality. It also does exactly what it is asked to do with the utmost precision, which makes it a good buy, be it for the home or office.
Share