Jack Of All Trades Fuji Xerox Docuprint CM215 FW

Laser and LED printers generally offer more bang for your buck when you print in black and white, though the initial cost of buying one can typically be more than, say, an inkjet printer. In response to that, Fuji Xerox has released a line of affordable color LED printers, one of which is the DocuPrint CM215 FW.

The CM215 FW comes with a built-in automatic document feeder (ADF), so scanning and copying multi-page documents can be done without having to manually replace each page. However, the CM215 FW does not have a duplexer, so you will still have to manually flip the pages over when printing double-sided documents.

Fuji Xerox Docuprint CM215 FW

Paper capacity totals 160 sheets, with the main tray handling 150 sheets while the ADF is capable of handling 10 sheets. The CM215 FW also comes with built-in Wi-Fi, with the free Fuji Xerox Print & Scan utility allowing users to print and or scan directly from their iOS or Android devices.

In fact, if your router supports WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup), you can establish a Wi-Fi connection between your router and the CM215 FW by simply pressing the WPS button on the printer. Of course, if wired connectivity is a requirement, you can always default back to regular USB2.0, or 10/100 Ethernet on the CM215 FW. Small business owners should note that the CM215 FW also comes with built-in fax.

Fuji Xerox Docuprint CM215 FW control buttons

There’s also 128MB of memory on the CM215 FW, though with no option to upgrade that to a bigger buffer. This shouldn’t really impact regular office print tasks though.

Print quality for monochrome documents between laser/LEDprinters have evolved to a point where the results are quite homogeneous under the naked eye, though copy quality still varies. As such, the CM215 FW’s print speed is quite average, but it performs best in terms of copy quality.

The CM215 FW scores well here, with the monochrome copies displaying text which is both sharp and saturated. Copies of colored documents displayed good color saturation gradation (which of course also depends on the quality of the original document). Surprisingly, this is despite the middling copy resolution of up to 600 x 600 dpi. Fuji Xerox also throws in copy-centric features such as ID card copy, and 2-in-1 copy. On the other hand, the scanning engine is capable of resolutions of up to 1200 x 1200 dpi, and up to 4800 x 4800 dpi in enhanced mode.

In terms of print performance, the CM215 FW has above average sharpness for graphics and images. Print quality for photographs is reasonably good, without any distinct color cast. Print speed performance also won’t break any records, with our tests showing an average of approximately 12 pages-per-minute in both color and monochrome, whether graphics or text.

The CM215 FW supports WPS, which makes it easier to connect to your Wi-Fi network

The overall price tag is pretty reasonable given the overall performance and feature set of the CM215 FW. It doesn’t particularly do well in any specific category, but this is undoubtedly a printer that’s suitable for any small office setup.

Specifications

·         Print Speed: 12 pages per minute (Color), 15 pages per minute (Mono)

·         Paper Capacity: 150 sheet tray + 10 sheet bypass (ADF)

·         Print Resolution: 1200 x 2400 dpi

·         Scan Resolution: 1200 x 1200 dpi (Optical)

·         Interfaces: 10/100BaseT, Hi-speed USB 2.0, Wireless (IEEE802.11b/g)

·         Dimensions: 410 x 389 x 338 mm

·         Weight: 15kg