- 100-sheet input tray
- 20-page automatic document feeder
- 1 USB 2.0; 802.11b/g wireless
- 1-line LCD (text)
- 20-sheet output tray
Of course you do give up some things for the lower (by about half) price: the 4500 has only a black and a tricolor ink cartridge with integrated print heads (the C7250 has six independent ink tanks), the 4500 lacks automatic two-side printing, lacks "photo printing" (though it does a decent job at printing images), and doesn''t have a built-in card reader. The 4500 is also considerably smaller, which can be an advantage in a small or home office.
Setting up the 4500 is easy. Even if you are going to use it wirelessly, you must connect it by USB to a PC (or Mac) for the initial installation. After it is set up, you can disconnect the USB and run wireless-only. A 3-foot USB cable is provided, which I consider too short, but at least it''s there, unlike with many other printers. The software installed smoothly for me, which was a novelty I''ve had a lot of trouble with the latest HP software for my C7250. In addition to the standard printer software, HP includes a basic I.R.I.S. OCR capability. I tried the OCR and it did a good job of capturing the text, but it lost all formatting. OmniPage it ain''t.
I was pleased to find that the network setup was handled through the PC (or Mac) software during the initial install I was not looking forward to having to enter network keys on the printer''s keypad. I use WPA2-AES wireless and the HP 4500 had no problem with it.
When you install the ink cartridges the printer spits out an alignment sheet which you then scan in so it can see how the print heads line up. Clear prompts appeared on the lighted LCD panel on the printer and this was easy.
I tried a variety of printing tasks and the 4500 handled them all well. Text was clear and colored backgrounds showed no banding. Although this is not a photo printer, it did a passable job printing a photograph on plain paper. The scanner worked well too, both using the glass and the document feeder. Printing is quiet and fast.
Faxing I thought a bit awkward you use the left-right arrow buttons to select color or b+w fax, enter the number (or use the address book), then press the green start button. It then asks you to press 1 if you''re scanning from the glass or 2 from the feeder, which I found annoying. However, the faxing worked well, and when the number was busy, it automatically retried after one minute and then five minutes. HP includes a special phone cord which you are supposed to use for the fax connection. I don''t know what is special about it, but if you use a regular cord you must use a small adapter that HP also provides.
HP claims that the 4500 meets EnergyStar requirements, so I tested power consumption. When the 4500 was turned off, my meter read zero (the meter does not register tenths.) When on and idle, 2 watts; when actively printing, 10-15 watts and when in standby mode, 1 watt. I thought this exemplary.
The only real gripe I have is a minor one the paper feed tray (which doubles as the output tray) sticks out from the front quite a bit. It does have a retractable output catcher, so it''s not as bad as it could be. However, I understand this is a trade-off for the box being so small.
The "901" ink cartridges are not insanely expensive, but I don''t know how long they last. HP claims that cost-per-page is lower with the HP Officejet 6500. If your usage is modest, the HP Officejet 4500 may be just what you need at a very reasonable price. If you print a lot, you may want a model with a higher-capacity paper tray, and of course if you print photos, there are better choices. All in all, a very competent and modestly priced all-in-one device. Recommended.
Buy HP Officejet 4500 Wireless All in-One (CN547A#B1H) Now
I traded in a perfectly good HP All-in-One (circa 2001) for the convenience of wireless printing from a laptop. I''ve had the printer one month; am I sorry I bought the 4500 Wireless. Other than the wireless feature, I can''t say anything positive about this device. It has frequent paper jams; the scanner turns white paper backgrounds into an ivory color background (making it difficult to paste scanned images like signatures into other documents with white backgrounds); it''s very slow; black text often comes out gray, or worse yet, light green (!). This is about the worst printer I''ve ever purchased. I was a longtime HP supporter until I purchased this device. HP, you lost my loyalty.Read Best Reviews of HP Officejet 4500 Wireless All in-One (CN547A#B1H) Here
I have had 4 HP printers and so did not expect this model would be so hard to deal with. I constantly need to convince the machine it has paper, adjusting and readjusting. It also will enter a sleep mode and the only way to wake it up so I can print is to unplug it and plug it back in. The faxing commands using the buttons are not intuitive or logical. All in all I will make a different decision next time.Want HP Officejet 4500 Wireless All in-One (CN547A#B1H) Discount?
This product is an upgrade from an older OfficeJet all-in-one machine (5610v). It definitely has both pros and cons.The folks at HP have thought of every detail, right down to the unpacking. The plastic the printer is wrapped in is actually a BAG with handles, so there is no wrestling to get it out of the box. Everything needed to get set up is included in the box, right down to the ink cartridges and telephone cable. Both ink cartridges are the same number (one is then labeled "color" and the other "black-and-white"), making it easier to remember which cartridge you need. The machine is fairly compact, the controls are very intuitive, and it was very easy to install (even with an uncooperative computer which, for reasons completely unrelated to the printer, shut down four times during the brief installation process). I was a bit thrown by the fact that there is only one paper tray, rather than separate trays for input and output. It will, apparently, also print "borderless," for brochures and such. I have not yet tried this feature.
Unfortunately, not everything about the OfficeJet 4500 is this peachy. The biggest selling point of this machine, for me, was that it can be used wirelessly, which would make it much easier for us to print to it from our two separate computers. I was never able to successfully set up this feature. When the "wizard" fails to set up the wireless network, there is no other option or information given no clue as to what went wrong, no alternate method for entering the information, etc. It just doesn''t work. This is a bigger problem than one might think, as the included USB cable is rather short. At the moment, I can''t print to this printer without putting the printer in my desk chair and hooking it up. (And then I have to unplug it between uses.)
Receiving a fax is unnecessarily difficult, as well, for users without a dedicated fax line. On my old OfficeJet, the fax and my telephone could easily share a line. When I answered the phone and heard fax signals, all I had to do was punch "1,2,3," and hang up after I heard the fax machine click on. It never interfered with my regular phone usage, but I didn''t have to fuss with controls on the machine to receive a fax, either. I''m not sure why HP couldn''t do the same thing with this machine. Installation of the ink cartridges was not intuitive, in my opinion. And the plastic the printer is made of looks chintzy. (It may not be; it just has this look. A more matte plastic would have appeared sturdier.)
All in all, it''s a good machine; it just has its quirks. The wireless difficulty is a real issue, but everything else is mostly a matter of familiarity.
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