- CNET Editors' Rating 5.8/10 Average Editorial policies >>
- Average user rating from 61 users 6.0/10 Good Read user opinions >>
The good: Inexpensive; easy to use; great black-text quality.
The bad: Prints text slowly; expensive toner; mediocre color-graphics quality; USB cable not included.
The bottom line: This HP is affordable if you want a simple color laser printer with wired networking, but it's sluggish.
Specs: Printer Type: Workgroup printer - Laser - Color; Max media size: Legal (8.5 in x 14 in), A4 (8.25 in x 11.7 in); Connectivity technology: Wired See full specs >>
Price range: $350.17 - $391.99
CNET editors' review
- Reviewed on: 06/30/2005
- Released on: 05/10/2005
The two-tone gray HP Color LaserJet 2600n measures a compact 16 by 18 by 15 inches (WDH). Two sturdy handgrips in its base make this 40-pound machine easy to move. In order to keep production costs down, HP cut corners in ways that are difficult to forgive. For example, the control panel on the top-right corner of the machine features a tiny two-line LCD that's hard to read because it's set at an awkward angle and lacks backlighting. The control panel provides buttons to move across the menus and drill down through them, but not to climb back up; so after setting a menu item, you have to jump back to the starting point. In other words, to save money on a plastic button, HP designed a control panel that accesses only one menu item at a time.
Still, HP got some of the 2600n's design elements right. The enclosed paper drawer at the bottom holds 250 sheets, and you can add a second 250-sheet drawer for $149--pricey but essential for a workgroup that prints a lot. Adjusting the paper drawer's width and length guides for A4 or legal paper was painless. The auxiliary tray for alternative media and envelopes includes a unique, easy-to-feed single-sheet bypass slot. The 2600n's front wall flops out on sturdy hinges to expose the four combination toner-cartridge and imaging-drum units, whose convenient handles make changing components easy.
HP deserves credit for not exaggerating the Color LaserJet 2600n's print speed. Its advertised 8 pages per minute (ppm) for black text was close to the poky 7ppm clocked by CNET Labs' tests. Color graphics printed at a more reasonable 6.3ppm. That's fast enough for most home offices, but not for any workgroup of more than a few people. (CNET tested the 2600n over a USB connection; Ethernet performance may vary.)
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In terms of print quality, our plain-text samples looked great, with a crisp black that few color lasers achieve, and sharp, clean letters, even at 2-point size. It also printed grayscale graphics well, with some blotchiness in areas but good detail, particularly on photos. The weakest area was probably color graphics: gradients made abrupt transitions, solid colors had odd mixtures of extra colors, and photos came out unpleasantly dark and brown, though they did preserve detail well.
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Click here to learn more about how CNET Labs tests printers.
Upkeep for the 2600n is expensive. A page of black text uses about 3 cents' worth of toner, and a lightly covered color page uses about 15.3 cents' worth, according to vendor specs. However, there are no other consumables to replace, and HP provides full cartridges in the box instead of the increasingly common half-full "starter" cartridges.
The HP Color LaserJet 2600n ships with a competent setup poster but no manual. The only other information is in a help file, but it's one of the better ones we've seen. HP covers the 2600n with a standard one-year warranty that generously includes paid next-day shipping exchange and toll-free tech support on weekdays from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET. A three-year warranty extension costs a hefty $169.
- See more CNET content tagged:
- workgroup,
- color laser printer,
- Konica,
- HP,
- laser printer
User opinions
WRITE YOUR OWN REVIEW How would you rate this product?
-
10/10 Perfect August 2, 2005
"This printer is one of the best printers for home and home-office needs with good quality print." Read more >>
-
3/10 Poor February 7, 2006
"HP is stealing you blind with this one..$1600 a year" Read more >>
-
9/10 Spectacular July 11, 2005
"Spectacular Overall Value" Read more >>
- WRITE YOUR OWN REVIEWSee all 61 user opinions >>
Where to buy
| Store | CNET Certified | In stock | Shipping | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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See Site | Free | $391.99 |
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Yes | See site | $248.26 |
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Yes | $35.00 | $370.00 |
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Yes | $42.00 | $364.00 |
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Memory4Less.com
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Not yet rated
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No | $39.95 | $350.17 |
See HP Color LaserJet 2600n prices from 5 stores.
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