Epson Stylus Office BX625FWD review

Rather than a sleek touchscreen like the Lexmark Genesis S815 or HP Photosmart Plus, the Epson Stylus Office BX625FWD is controlled via a slightly intimidating array of buttons. It also has a colour LCD screen on the front, but none of the step-by-step guides provided by HP Photosmart Plus B210a or Kodak ESP 7250.

As the name implies, this is an all-in-one that focuses on the job at hand. There's no button for printing Sudoku puzzles here.

This aversion to bells and whistles is admirable only if the resulting device is of a high quality. Thankfully, when it comes to prints, the results are just that. The colour and detail outperform many more expensive printers.

Full A4 photo printouts not only look very good, but are printed quietly and quickly. Increasing the print quality reduces the output speed dramatically, but the increase in detail can make it worthwhile.

However, though the results are good, it's worth bearing in mind that the BX625FWD is designed for documents, not photos. You won't get an exact match of colour and quality, although the results can be close, especially on photo paper.

Photocopying is also accomplished with speed and aplomb. You place the item to be scanned in the document feeder on top of the device. Moments later, it's scanned and printed.

High-resolution photo scanning is also supported, and the results are great, but be prepared to wait if you choose a very high dpi setting.

The Epson Stylus comes with connections for use as a fax machine. This might not be a deal-breaker for most, but at this price you don't feel like you're paying for something you'll never use.

Although the Epson Stylus Office BX625FWD can seem unfriendly and complicated at first, it doesn't take long to get the hang of using it, and the wealth of features makes it a compelling purchase.

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