printer and another guide

Canon Copier ImageClass MF3240

The Canon Copier ImageClass MF3240 is a well priced, well positioned piece of office hardware, ideal for the SOHO who wants multifunction capabilities without compromising on quality.

The Canon name is a reassuring one. A name synonymous with quality, enough so you can be confident in the quality of anything you buy from them. The MF3240 is a monochrome printer, scanner, copier and fax all in one. It can be connected to a computer via USB or it can act as a standalone copier. It needs a computer to get the most out of it and indeed that will be the use the majority of owners will put it to.

The MF3240 is designed to be quick, and at 21 pages per minute print speed, it doesn’t disappoint. It devoured our test document and it demonstrated its mettle quite adequately. Text was the highlight, with clear, sharp lines and an almost black fill that would serve well in any business document. Images and graphics were surprisingly good too. Well defined, shaded and almost as precise as the text. The test document we use has a mixture of text at different points, graphs, images and photographs to simulate a difficult business document the device might be asked to cope with.

The scanning and faxing functions are equally good, offering all the usual options such as resizing, multiple scans and faxes, phone book options, various quality levels, and quick operation.

There is no automatic document feeder which is a minor issue, but nothing that would spoil the enjoyment of this product. As the MF3240 is directed towards SOHO or home users it won’t impact anybody significantly.

The graphics quality and sharp text reproduction coupled with more than reasonable purchase price more than makes up for any shortcomings it may have. Running costs are impressively low too with the Canon single cartridge system. This is a system where the toner, drum and developer are all included in the single cartridge and is changed when the toner expires. This lowers maintenance costs and means less waste. A toner will cost $35 for 2500 pages worth of color.

The MF3240 is a worthwhile contender in the home multifunction market. It’s cheap enough to appeal and good enough to appeal to any small or home business who need to count every penny.