Samsung SCX-4521F All-in-One Laser Printer

It's a decent all-in-one machine

Strengths: Relatively small and lightweight; easy to move around and easy to set up; 30-page automatic document feeder.

Weakness: no network connection; print quality is not so great but it's OK for me, I do not need high-quality prints.

I'm using it for home business, it meets all my reqirements: printing, scanning copying and faxing.The SCX-4521F's output quality is good enough for most purposes. So far I'm happy with it.

By yajunr - Nov 15, 2006

SCX-4521F Laser Multifunction Printer

Strengths: Ink saver function, fast, good laser quality output

Weakness: Pretty noisy when in use, rather large

Overall, this is a nice multi-function machine, especially for the price. I am very happy with the quality of the laser printout and even happier that it has a ink saver print mode. Even on the saver mode, the quality of the print is superb. The copy function is very easy to use. My only qualms about the machine is that it is pretty noisy when in use. I can't wait until it goes into standby. Not...
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Overall, this is a nice multi-function machine, especially for the price. I am very happy with the quality of the laser printout and even happier that it has a ink saver print mode. Even on the saver mode, the quality of the print is superb. The copy function is very easy to use. My only qualms about the machine is that it is pretty noisy when in use. I can't wait until it goes into standby. Not sure why they had to make the fan so loud. Despite this though, I am quite pleased with my purchase.

By dogiber - Jun 7, 2006

SCX-4521F Laser Multifunction Printer

Strengths: Compact, Easy to set up and use, light weight

Weakness: Trouble using upper tray for envelopes

Documentatation could be better. Printing envelopes is a hassle. Overall though, a great product for the price. Quick warm-up, fast copies, and toner cartridge price is reasonable. "Toner Save" is a nice feature.

By jimmika - Apr 5, 2006

very happy with this purchase

Strengths: inexpencive, small footprint, fax, document feeder, nice quality laser output

Weakness: multipurpous paper feeder - as like most cheep printers laser or ink the multipurpous trays are not the most responcive and can be a pain in the A$$, printer menu is not the most user friendly

over all i am very happy with this purchase, the price was very nice, quality is great for the price, i dont recall the toner replacements to be terribly expencive and there is no need to replace the Drum so this is a bit of bonus Vs. many of the printers i have had in the past. currently i have it connected to 2 computers, the pc is utilizing the parell port and the mac is utilizing the USB...
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over all i am very happy with this purchase, the price was very nice, quality is great for the price, i dont recall the toner replacements to be terribly expencive and there is no need to replace the Drum so this is a bit of bonus Vs. many of the printers i have had in the past.

currently i have it connected to 2 computers, the pc is utilizing the parell port and the mac is utilizing the USB portover all i am very happy with this purchase, the price was very nice, quality is great for the price, i don't recall the toner replacements to be terribly expensive and there is no need to replace the Drum so this is a bit of bonus Vs. many of the printers i have had in the past.

currently i have it connected to 2 computers, the pc is utilizing the parelel port and the mac is utilizing the USB port with no conflicts. Another note with regards to the USB port it states "USB 1.1 (Compatible with USB 2.0)" if im correct this basically means it's USB1.1m but within the printer menu there is a prompt for USB fast or slow, i haven't had time to test to see if there is a difference, regardless this printer is for all the everyday stuff, so fast USB 2 would probably not make a difference that i would notice.

the fan can be a bit on the noisy side when it first turns on and during printing - but for the price and amenities that this MFP has it is a small price to pay, i have set mine up to sleep after 5 minutes of non use, and i sleep mode it is totally silent, and it snaps out of sleep with an incoming print job and it takes 15-20 seconds if that to start back up and start printing.

for me and the home office on a budget this is a great purchase, and filled the void i had for Laser and a Fax and Copy machine.

By schwager - Dec 31, 2005

Take Your Money and Run

Strengths: Solid feel

Weakness: Slow. Ill-fitting parts. Loud squealing. Poor quality scans. Obstreperous software. No scanning of small sheets.

I open the box and take out my cool new Samsung SCX-4521F multifunction machine. I pull off the packing tape, begin to assemble the few pieces that require assembly ... and the problems start. I am looking at a paper tray with a plastic cover that does not fit. All of the proportions are right. It just happens to be about 1/8” too narrow. So it does not sit properly on the tray. Next, I cut...
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I open the box and take out my cool new Samsung SCX-4521F multifunction machine. I pull off the packing tape, begin to assemble the few pieces that require assembly ... and the problems start.
I am looking at a paper tray with a plastic cover that does not fit. All of the proportions are right. It just happens to be about 1/8” too narrow. So it does not sit properly on the tray.
Next, I cut open the bag that contains the starter toner cartridge and – what’s this? Toner! Toner everywhere! The cartridge is leaking -- onto itself, and now onto my desk. Very nice.
I got rid of a smooth-functioning Brother MFC-3420C multifunction to buy this. I figured that, in the intervening years, the problems from that generation of machine had doubtless been resolved. Evidently I figured wrong.
I installed the software. My installation did not go right. No icons were installed on the Start menu; I could not find the manual. They did not give me a choice on where the software would be installed. I had to use Windows Explorer to hunt around on the CD for the various programs that were now evidently supposed to have been installed on my machine.
When I began scanning, I noticed that there was no option for 400 dpi scanning. Also, the native software (as distinct from the WIA option) could not be minimized; it insisted on remaining front and center until the scan was completed. This was irritating because the scanner was very slow. Oh, it would do the scan quickly enough; but then it would sit there and think about it for quite a while – much longer than the Brother – before completing the task.
The native software lacked an option for changing the gamma on all color bands in the scan; you have to change red, green, and blue individually, each time you want to make an adjustment, for each scan. This was maddening. On the flatbed, I found myself wishing they built a ruler into the edges of the bed, so that I could tell at a glance what size of paper I should set the scanner to.
The actual quality of the scans was pretty mediocre. It was worse than on the previous machine. I tinkered quite a bit with the quality adjustment options but never did find a combination that produced pleasing results on color scans.
I did like the software’s options for making scanning adjustments. I also liked the machine’s paper handling. For example, I could run an empty envelope through the automatic paper handler; I was even able to scan a stack of pages pulled out of a wire-bound spiral notebook without a jam.
I was disappointed, though, that handling of smaller sheets did not seem to have been improved much since the Brother came out; it was still not possible to feed checks and other smaller dosc through the scanner. It was also difficult to retrieve small (and even midsized) pieces after scanning them: my hand is big and I could not easily squeeze it under the input tray to retrieve whatever I had just run through the automatic paper handler.
I liked the printing and faxing capabilities. I liked the relatively solid feel of the machine, not counting its paper tray cover. This feeling diminished after a week or two, when the automatic sheet feeder began buzzing whenever I used it. The buzzing got louder. I traced the problem to one of the rollers that feeds sheets. I managed to squeeze a drop of vegetable oil in there, just to see what would happen. That fixed it. Next day, though, the buzzing was back, although quieter.
I called Samsung for a swap. They said they could only give me a refurbished machine in exchange for this new one.

It really surprised me that, two or three years after buying the Brother multifunction, I should find myself saddled with a machine that was actually more expensive and of poorer quality. It seemed we were going backwards.

To sum it up, I just did not find that this was a quality product. In fact, some of the problems were so glaring as to make me think that Samsung must not have a very good quality control system. I will hesitate before buying something else from Samsung.

By Anonymous567 - Jul 8, 2006