Customer Reviews

HP LaserJet 1320 Laser Printer

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I bought this printer to make double-sided printouts of order forms, and I am very pleased with its performance. The print quality is clear and even, the machine is very reliable even though I printed over 25,000 sheets on it the first week.

Cons: the paper sometimes gets jammed as it feeds from the tray, and even when you fix the problem and hit the green "okay" button to continue printing, it continues to register a problem until you cancel the job and shut down the printer. Also, the initial toner cartridge does not last very long, it's only good for about 1,000 sheets. The extended life toner cartridges are much better but are pricey at $130 each.

Overall a good machine and worth the money, the double-sided printing feature is a very nice bonus.

The print quality is excellent, and time to first page print from cold-start is very short. I love the duplexing on this unit and the ability to print 2 & 4 up. My main complaint about this printers is the manual feed function. Basically, I think the 1320 has some fundamental design flaws with regard to manual feeds. I can now do envelopes reliably with the method described below, but feeding standard letter-size paper is still an iffy proposition.

The manual envelope feed work-around that I've kludged together is the following:
1) take the regular paper tray out slightly (2-3 inches) so it does not feed from there
2) have the paper path go straight-thru
3) adjust the manual feed guide to fit the envelope
4) send the print job to the printer, and wait for the yellow indicator light to blink before putting in the envelope (feeding the envelope earlier seems to not work)

This is a fantastic printer for the price (currently $250 to $300). It is very fast, very quick to print the first page and the duplexer works well. I think it is quiet and easy to set up. It comes with 2 versions PCL and PS emulation, so it should work well and quickly on any print job. Unlike laser printers of old, adding 128mb of RAM should only cost around $45. I don't have a problem with the 1 sheet manual feed. If you have a lot of pages to print you can change the paper in tray. The next printer (2420) up the line includes a 150 + sheet utility tray, so that is another option as well.

Those of you complaining about printer cables are complaining to the wrong people. All of the manufactures would be happy to include a printer cable. Because the perceived value of a USB cable is around $20 and they cost about $1.50 it is a good deal for HP, Canon, Epson, Samsung, etc. to include them. However, when Epson included USB cables a couple of years ago in their first all-in-one printers, that benefit only lasted one product cycle. The retail people (Circuit City, BBY, etc.) told them to stop including cables or they wouldn't buy AIO's from Epson. On most printers priced below $129, the stores make more money on the printer cable than on the printer.

When you consider that the first hp LaserJet (no number) cost $2495 (when that was real money) printed 4 pages per minute when the wind was right and the stars aligned. It had 2 resolution settings 150 and 300 dpi and had a very tough time printing graphics. Then this printer is truly amazing by comparison. When you buy the 49x cartridge your cost per page will be 2.2cents or less.

Pros -
* FAST beautiful prints
* Cartridges are toner+drum, eliinating the impending drum replacement that usually costs more than the printer.
* Cost per page is good when using the extended life toner
* Duplexer is always cool
* Compact and it looks great

Cons -
* Drivers can be tricky to install and can bog down your computer if you don't customize them.
* Manual could be better
* My first unit was defective

A great monochrome printer. Its fast, sharp, and economic (in terms of cost per page). The only things that went wrong for me was the first unit I received only printed on half the page no matter what I did, HP had me send it back to Amazon (super easy returns with Amazon!!). What I did learn from the first unit was that the HP toolbox software that comes on the provided disc lags and freezes my computer plus the drivers from the website don't install. Second time around I customized the installation of the drivers so the HP Toolbox util didn't install and all is GREAT.

When I spoke with HP tech support they informed me that alot of people were having problems with the manual feed. It works great for me. Envelopes are easy. Single sheets of paper and sheets of labels can be trickier but aren't diffcult. I just point the paper into the manual feed, it grabs and thats it. I can see room for improvement here though.

In all, I would have to say this is a good purchase. Also, I don't want to poke at other reviewers but the 1320 was not designed to be a replacement for a Laserjet 2xxx series. The replacement for the Laserjet 2100 is the LaserJet 2420.

I almost did not buy this printer based on the negative comments on the "weak" manual feed by previous reviewers. I did not have the same experience at all. I would urge future buyers to read all of the documentation including the HP printer "Help" files once the printer software is installed -- it includes additional special paper handling tips for the manual feed and envelopes. It should also be noted that even the most expensive printers jam from time to time - even the manual feed. So for this price point and size for a laserjet, the performance is very good.

Here are some tips that should help ease the "manual" feed blues...

First off, make sure the software you are using, for example, MS Word 2003, has the appropriate paper or envelope size set up for the paper you are using before printing (you may want to check Word's "Help" for more detailed instructions).

Type your document or envelope contents but * hold off * pressing your software's "Print" button til you have your manual feed paper set up and ready for printing.

Next, just take a couple of seconds to examine the manual feed - open the small slot door just above the main paper tray -- it will reveal a narrow opening with blue paper guides. You will also notice that there is a slight gap above and below the blue guides - you will want to ensure that the paper or envelope (including the flap) do not extend into the gaps above or below the guides.

- Manual paper feeds :

(1) Open the printer's manual feed slot door
(2) Insert your paper into the slot and adjust the blue paper guides to size but not too tight
(3) Insert the paper a little further til the printer "grabs" the sheet - this signals the printer to print from the manual feeder only **
The printer holds the sheet securely waiting for you to print - you will not be able to pull it back out if properly grabbed.
The 1320 laserjet is set up to ignore the primary feed tray when something is properly inserted in the manual feed slot. No special set-up tricks required.
(4) Print!

** Reminder: the manual feeder s is a * single * page feeder only. If your document is more than one page, it will pull 2nd and following sheets from the primary paper tray.

- Envelope feeds : Standard envelopes (flap runs along the longest edge)

(1) Open the printer's manual feed slot door
(2) ensure that the envelope closed flap is positioned to the * left * side of the blue guides with the flap sideof the envelope facing down
(3) adjust guides to fit the envelope to size but not too tight
while inserting the envelope, also ensure that the envelope flap fits between the two guides
(4) insert the envelope further into the slot until the printer "grabs" it..
(5) Open the back of the printer so that the envelopes come out flat rather than curled.
(6) Print!

- Larger envelopes (lap runs along short edge): closed flap edge should be inserted first with flap side down. Let printer "grab" it, back of printer opened, print.

Once you have completed manual printing the first time, you will realize that it is no biggie. Just takes a few seconds to set up and print.

Hope this helps.

For the capabilities, this printer is reasonably priced.

Quick startup, fast printing, quiet, economical. Text printing is superb. Graphics is decent. Works great with Linux.

Never a problem here with paper feed. Reliable for big jobs.

I purchased the HP LaserJet 1320 printer to replace an old HP LaserJet 4P printer. Although the 1320 can be connected to a computer by USB 2.0, I simply used the printer parallel port cable that my old 4P used. Despite my antiquated hook-up, the 1320 is a very fast printer. I suspect it would be faster still if I used a USB-2 cable. One of the biggest drawbacks to my old 4P was the long delay waiting for a page to start printing, and printing more than one page could take quite a while. The 1320 greatly improves upon that, though, and pages print very fast using default settings and the standard 16 MB RAM installed in the printer. As one would expect from a laser printer, the print quality is excellent even in the default mode of 600 dpi. There is also an ink-conserving mode, or you can print up to 1200 dpi if high resolution is needed.

Additional printer memory can be installed up to a total of 144 MB (the default 16 MB RAM is non-removable, and you can add only one DIMM). The printer accepts a 100-pin SDRAM DIMM up to 128 MB. I added a Kingston 128 MB 100-pin SDRAM DIMM (product number KTH-LJ4100/128) for about $40, and it works flawlessly. Installation is very simple and straightforward, although you will need to download and refer to the HP LaserJet 1320 owner's manual to learn how to do this.

Unlike other reviewers, I have had no problems printing pages or envelopes. The printer options include 2-sided printing and even booklet printing. Envelopes are very easy to print, and a rear hatch opens easily to accept a printed envelope flatly so it does not curl during printing.

The toner cartridge installs easily from the front of the printer. Replacement cartridges come in two ink sizes: 2500 page and 6000 page. Previous reviewers have claimed there is only a few dollars difference in cost between the two, but that is not my experience. The smaller ink size prices about $60 online while the larger ink size prices around $115 online. So there is some savings buying the larger cartridge but not what others would have you think. Of course prices may be lower if you pay to have your cartridges refilled rather than replaced.

The software included with the printer allows automatic driver updates from HP. This seems to be a useful feature, and it updated itself with a newer driver right after installation. The installation CD installs a program called HP Toolbox that monitors the printer's status, tracks how much toner is left (and how many pages have been printed), and helps troubleshoot any problems that may occur.

My only complaint with this printer is the very poor documentation that comes with it. A brief, printed quick-start guide is provided that will show you how to unpack and connect the printer (with diagrams, no words) but not how to use, maintain, or troubleshoot problems with the printer. There is no printed manual to provide this information. An online help file manual is provided on the installation CD, or you can download a complete 184-page owner's manual from HP's web site in .pdf format, which is obviously a cost-cutting manuever. HP also saves cost by not providing any connecting cable with the printer. The only cable provided is a power cord. Are printed manuals and USB cables that expensive? I realize the company is trying to keep the price low, but leaving important stuff out is pretty shabby at any price. If you purchase this printer, make sure you own or purchase a printer cable to go with it, and you will surely want to download the full owner's manual from HP's web site so you can use your new printer properly.

Overall, I am very pleased with this purchase, especially at Amazon's discounted price (I paid $299). It way out-performs my old HP LaserJet 4P for which I paid $1000 several years ago. If you are tired of spending a fortune on cartridges for an inkjet printer, buying your first laser printer, or wanting to replace an old laser printer, I would certainly recommend checking out the HP LaserJet 1320 printer. It is an excellent printer for home or small office usage, offering great speed in printing and low cost for a laser printer.

Our five year old HP 2100 was relocated out from under us and replaced with this model. I miss the old one. I wanted to like this machine; it is quicker by a good amount. It seems less likely to jam when doing two-sided copies. There, I said something nice about it. Here comes the rest. The main paper tray does not accept envelopes. You're supposed to feed them one at a time into tray #1, a cantankerous option at best, as my success rate with that feed is about 50%. I'll second the earlier report about the occasional need to shut down and restart. The print on ours has begun coming out crooked despite properly set guides on the main tray. The back side of the pages smudge with toner resulting in unacceptable back-to-back printing. I'm looking for an alternative and suggest the same to anyone considering this model.

The HP LaserJet 1320 printer is outstanding. I think HP made a mistake on this printer because it does too much for just $299.00. If you need a standalone monochrome laser printer, this printer is under priced and over featured. It does everything it says it will do. It prints 600 by 600, it prints 1200 by 1200, it is super fast, and it has automatic duplexing. My first print job was to print the instruction manual from the CD. The manual is about 185 pages, and I told it to duplex to save paper, and I printed at 600 by 600 DPI and it was beautiful. It only took about eleven minutes. Naturally, duplex printing is slower than single print pages.

I think I will buy another one just to have because there is no printer on the market at this price point that will do what this printer does. It is the smallest fully featured duplex laser printer I have ever seen. It is better than a 5 star rateing.

I researched quite a few personal laser printers and opted for the HP 1320 after looking really hard at the Samsungs and Brother models that were highly rated. My last HP 5L was a piece of crap, with paper jams the minute I cranked it out of the box. This one at least does what I need. Relatively fast 22ppm, print quality is outstanding and relatively compact. No networking if you need that. Shop around as the prices can vary substantially from retailer to retailer.