Samsung ML-1865W review

Samsung’s ML-1865W is a disarmingly small printer. By cutting down on frivolities, all that’s left is a stylish product that’s heavy on design and light on dimensions. In fact, it’s one of the smallest mono lasers we’ve seen.

Its economical desk footprint of 341 x 224 x 184mm (WDH) is all the more impressive given it doesn’t skimp on tray capacity. There’s a 150-sheet input tray and a 150-sheet output, and it isn’t just the size that’s inconspicuous. The minimal black design is attractive yet understated.

Elsewhere, there’s plenty to like. The printer comes with a 700-page starter cartridge in the box, and 1,500-page replacement cartridges come in at a reasonable £49 inc VAT, meaning the average cost per page is just 2.6p. It’s the only consumable too, so coupled with an initial printer cost of £94 inc VAT, long-term ownership costs won’t break the bank.

The printer offers not only USB, but also Wi-Fi connection, and setting this up is remarkably straightforward. It supports WPS, so adding it to your network is as simple as pressing a button on your router and one on the printer.

We weren’t disappointed when we tasked the ML-1865W with our printer speed tests either. Impressively, it managed to match its advertised speed, recording speeds of 18ppm in our A4 letter test. It was just as good when it came to more demanding PDF documents, too, again recording 18ppm.

Print quality was hit-and-miss, however, despite a high 1,200 x 1,200dpi resolution. Although text was deep and crisp, the ML-1865 didn’t fare as well on graphs and images. Even when we set it to best quality, there were minor issues with banding and visible dots. Overall, though, printing performance is solid.

The ML-1865 is just what we’re looking for in a home mono laser. It’s small and stylish, prints documents rapidly and offers wireless for less than £100. But it can’t quite supplant our current favourite – the Brother HL-2270DW – which is faster still, and offers better quality and lower running costs.