The HP 4300 monochromatic laser printer is a desktop workgroup printer featuring fast print speeds and great support from Hewlett Packard; the unit is inexpensively priced around $300.00.

With processor speeds at 350 MHz and a maximum memory of 416 MB, base memory is at 64 MB, large and complex documents are no problem. RAM is upgradable as well as the option to add auto duplexing; the auto duplexing unit is a bit bulky and some additional room will be needed. The HP 4300 edges out the competition by supporting a wide variety of operating systems and platforms such as UNIX, Linux, IBM OS/2 Warp, Novell, Windows and Mac. Standard on the base models is a 600 sheet input capacity which can be expanded to a staggering 2600 sheets via additional paper trays. Media sizes supported are fairly standard and can handle up to 120g/m2 weight paper; the competition has similar specifications. No hard drive is available on this model but an array of paper feeders and different sized paper trays are.

Print at up to 45 pages per minute with this work horse of the printing industry. The printer has a monthly duty cycle of 200,000 pages which is higher than similarly priced models on the market and delivers 1200 by 1200 dpi resolutions. Unfortunately, parallel connections are standard and additional ports are standard on the higher end models like the HP 4300n and tn. These printers utilize HP’s UltraPrecise toner coupled with their ProRes 1200 and FastRes 1200 image enhancement software to improve image printing. Images are presented quite well and show only small signs of fading when closely examined. Text is produced exceptionally but the warm up time is longer than most printers in class. Printed pages will cost you around $.02 per page but will solely be dependent upon your coverage and complexity of printed documents.

All in all the HP 4300 is a fast and reliable printer for monochrome documents; however, you will need to pay extra for needed paper input and Ethernet capabilities.