Customer Reviews

Samsung ML-1450/XAA Laser Printer

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I wrote to Samsung tech support inquiring about why I couldn't set my printer to 1200 dpi. In the printer driver settings, you can only choose '300 dpi', '600 dpi', and '1200 dpi (class)'. When set to '1200 dpi (class)', the SRT Mode settings become enabled, and you can choose between 'Text Enhance' and 'Image
Enhance'. With the printer set to '1200 dpi (class)', the configuration sheet printout says 'QUALITY=600'.

Samsung tech support responded with:
"This is capable of 1200 dpi if you add the PostScript Module.
Please call our Accessories Department for supplies."

I wrote back, stating that every bit of my research into this printer prior to purchase indicated that this was a true 1200 dpi printer, plain and simple, without qualification. To which they responded:
"After Review our Legal Department has comfirmed that the statement 'Capable of 1200dpi' is the key phrase and further more it is stated that the options include, extra 2ndary paper trays, EDO memory and PS modules."

Confusing.

Otherwise, a very good 600 dpi printer.

Here is some crucial information for anyone contemplating paying for this machine:

1) owner's manual and Samsung site are horrible so research has to be done to figure out some crucial specs. You have to download the manual as PDF because there is NO hardcopy manual.

2) Memory module to get is 72 pin EDO which places upgrading the memory very [inexpensive];

3) For Mac users -- It does not naturally support Postscript without an additional PostScript SIMM whose part # is ML6060XAXAA and as of this time sets you back... If you are comfortable with PCL 6 emulation then maybe this expense is not necessary. IF you are going to get the PS SIMM be aware that you need to upgrade the memory to at least 16MB which is about another... The PS support is level 3.

4) Samsung is good about providing drivers so all Windows, DOS, Mac and Linux people are not left hanging.

5) Toner... The VERY necessary part # is ML-6060D6. This will get you another 6,000 pages of print. It is an integrated toner and drum set up so you are getting a nice switch out.

For the PC person this is a great printer but the MAC user needs to be very cognizant of what their trade-offs are. If you are only planning to do black and white, predominately text then this may suit but for the graphics person this is not the best at all.

I will update this the more I play with it.

The plus side:

1. Excellent value for money. The Samsung ML-1450 is the cheapest printer that you can get in its class... Cheap memory upgrade. 4MB is more than sufficient for an average person printing work. If you want to install Post-Script you need to buy at least 1x8 MB EDO RAM, 72 pin, 60 ns, SIMM (Single in Line Memory Module), non parity stick. ML-1450 has built in 4 Mb RAM and to run Post-Script you need 12 MB of RAM. I bought 1 stick of IBM Single sided 16 MB EDO RAM ...(I haven't try the double sided RAM). If you buy a pair it will be cheaper, but ML-1450 only has 1 slot for EDO stick.
3. Huge tray capacity that can fit 550 pages of A4 size paper. Plus another 100 pages of A4 size paper that you can put on the multipurpose tray. You can also put envelope, letter size paper in this tray.
4.Great software from Samsung. You can print water mark, outlays and multiple pages on 1 paper (up until 16 pages/slides on 1 paper).
5.Easy to setup and networkable. You need to buy USB Hub to use this printer as a network printer. It is cheaper than to buy the ThruPort (Optional 10/100MB base card) from Samsung.

The negative side:

1.It doesn't come with printed manual, Samsung only provide you with the PDF format of the Manual. With this price, I cannot blame them for trying to cut their cost.

2. Finding the right memory for the upgrade is a bit tricky because this type of memory is only used for the old Pentium computers. I suggest you try your local computer flee Market or eBay. You don't need 2 sticks for the upgrade, however the old Pentium motherboard only accept even number of stick in order to work. You will probably have to buy 2 sticks from the seller.
3. I have never used Samsung Laser printer before, I cannot say anything about its reliability in the long run. However, Samsung Australia offers free 3 years on-site warranty for this model and the ML-1650N, which is a great bonus for me.

Reviewer: An electronics fan from New York
I have been a happy owner of Brother HL-630 since Windows 3.1 days. For years it served my need quite well, W3.1, W95, W98, until recently it decided not to take in any more paper. So I needed a new printer. I don't need to print out fancy photos or colorful booklets. I needed a good black-white laser printer at reasonal price. I couldn't quite decide between Samsung ML-1450 and Brother HL-1440. The feature and price were quite close. And both got some very good reviews and very bad ones. The Sumsung was $... more with 2MB extra memory, and I have been quite happy with my old Brother printer.
Here are the few reasons why I chose Samsung at last:
1. Built-in memory: 4MB for Samsung, 2MB for Brother HL-1440. I don't want to open the new printer and install more memory right away.
2. Resolution: 1200x1200 for Samsung, 1200x600 for Brother. It doesn't matter much for everyday printing, but one never knows.
3. Multi-page printing: 16 for Samsung, 10 or something for Brother. Don't remember the exact number, read in someone's review, but not 16. Does it matter? again, one never knows.
4. Paper input capacity: 550 for Samsung, 250 for Brother. I am lazy and rather like to print without worrying if I have enough paper in the stack.
5. Reviews on Amazon: bad ones for Samsung are mostly from Mac user while there are both PC and Mac for Brother. I am a PC user.
7. Toner: Toner/Drum unit for Samsung, one replacement for both while Brother needs separate units which in turn would cost more.
8. This is small but quite personal opinion: Brother looks cheaper. HL-1850 is great but I didn't want to spend that much.

Just received my Samsung a few days ago. The machine looked great, simple neat design. Very easy to set up. It came with a color manual for installation. One could use it right away without reading its manual. The output look sharp and great. I would love to give it a 5-star, except a few things below:
1. The data transfer beween computer and printer is noticable slow, even compare to my ancient Brother HL-630. I am running Windows 2000 with 256RAM. Currently I use parallel port. I am not sure if USB would be better but then I already a couple USB devices at the same time so I doubt the bandwidth would be better.
2. No hardcopy manual provided. You can easily download it from Samsung website and print it out. Good test on double-side printing, but of course also good test on one's patient with slow data transfer before it starts printing.
3. When you have only one piece of paper on the multi-purpose tray, the paper could easily got jammed...

It took me a while to make a decision regarding replacing my old laser printer. I knew I wanted to stay away from low-end HP laser printers....I have had this printer for a week. The low price was attractive. With some of the money I saved, I purchased an extended warranty with full replacement. The print quality is comparable to other more expensive laser printers. It has more features than HP printers that are twice the price. Toner cartridges are still difficult to find. The big unknown about this printer is long-term reliability....I decided that an extended warranty is a sound option.

It was time to replace my HP Laserjet III, and after some looking around it became apparent that Samsung and Brother are more competitive than HP in the low end personal laser market. I chose the Samsung and am very pleased with the choice. The Samsung provides great output (1200 x 1200 DPI), is fast, is networkable, and you can expand the memory to do complex printing. I miss the heavy construction of the HP, but the Samsung is a good product for the money...

Got one two weeks ago for [money]. I was expecting 4MB of memory, but what a joy it was to realize that the unit came with 12MB of memory! What a cinch to install! I have not yet had any reason to reinstall any of the drivers that came with the CD. I've got two computers within close proximity, so have both of them hooked to the printer: one by USB cable, and one by parallel cable. I can print fine from both computers under this setup. I tried the n-up printing provided by the Samsung driver and that was pretty impressive. I print a lot of codes, so to be able to print 2 (or up to 16) pages per side really comes in handy! Printing speed from scratch is very fast and I find the "reprint" button very useful as well. With that button, you don't need to reissue the same print request from your application; just press the button, and the machines spits out the same pages it last printed! It's been a while since a product has wow'ed me, but this one definitely is a wow'er.

This printer, Samsung ML-1450, is amazing. It is fast, reliable, and economical. ...I like the huge paper tray that holds about 550 pages. It is quiet during the printing process. The package includes the printer, 1 CD (Manual + Drivers), a power cord (no printer cable or USB cable is included). I also like its "Toner Save" button which gives almost the same printing quality as normal mode. So far, I do not have any problems with this printer.

I've read a lot of reviews talking about how hard the cartridge is to find. You can find the cartridge at microcenter.com.

The reason I choose the Samsung ... is that the Samsung has 4Mb of RAM standard, and PCL6 printer language support vs. 2MB RAM...I recommend downloading the user's manual in PDF format ...before you purchase... I think it is worth the extra money for a flat tray for two reasons: higher capacity and much less susceptibility to jamming.