Lexmark MC3426adw Review, Pros and Cons

The market is flooded with color laser printers that boast excellent print quality and impressive performance. Unfortunately, only a few of them are dependable to handle your documents, especially for business purposes. Among those few products, the Lexmark MC3426adw is a multifunction color laser printer that helps redefine your printing experience.

The mid-range color laser is loaded with features that make its price reasonable. It is a new definition of professional printing, thanks to dependable output quality as well as fast performance. Designed as a light-duty printer, this machine is ideal for small to midsize offices and workgroups. Is the MC3426adw a good choice for business purposes? Check this out and make your own decision.

Lexmark MC3426adw Design

The MC3426adw is one of the best-looking office printers I’ve ever seen. The machine looks sleek with round edges and monochromatic cover that matches any interior concept. It delivers a professional and stylish look to boost your mood while working with piles of documents.

The device is equipped with an auto document feeder on the upper part. This section makes the printer a little bulkier but I don’t have much to complain about it, thanks to the versatile function it offers. As with other modern printers, the MC3426adw features a 2.8-inch LCD touch panel that allows you to configure the printer as well as control all aspects including scanning, printing usage, and consumables monitor.

Measuring 13.6 inches by 16.2 inches by 15.5 inches, this small printer won’t consume a lot of space. But when I tried to lift the machine up, it’s much heavier than it looked. The multipurpose printer weighs 42.7 pounds, which means it has 14 more pounds than the Lexmark MB3442adw that comes with similar dimensions.

Overall, the MC3426adw is a business-oriented printer with excellent appearance. Additionally, I should say Lexmark definitely knows how to make this mid-range printing machine look more expensive than its actual price.

Multipurpose Color Laser Printer

As with most all-in-one laser printers, the MC3426adw allows you to print, copy, scan, and fax. The small to medium workgroup printer is supported by capable specs and features to ensure the quality of output for all functionalities.

Beginning with print specs, this model supports up to 600 x 600 dpi both for mono and color printing. It features 4800 color quality image enhancement technology for improved print results. The printer supports automatic duplexing, which means you don’t need to interfere with the duplex printing process. For the first print out time, it takes 10.8 seconds for black and 11 seconds for color.

Moving to the copier, I couldn’t find many things to review about the printer. But the MC3426adw allows you to print monochrome and color originals. With first copy time at 13.1 seconds both for color and mono, the copier has acceptable performance to handle your documents. It also comes with common reduction and enlargement features ranging from 25 up to 400 percent.

Meanwhile, the scanner comes with a single-pass duplex which means it has two sensors that allow you to scan double-sided original pages without your intervention. CIS scan technology ensures the scanned documents are clean and clear. In addition to the specs, the scanner supports up to 600 x 600 ppi for black and color with a few scan file formats including PDF, JPEG, JPG<, and TIFF.

Fast But Not That Fast

Most laser printers boast extraordinary print speed up to 40 pages per minute or even more. But you shouldn’t expect too much from this model. The MC3426adw is rated at 26 pages per minute for simplex and 13 images per minute for duplex, both for color and mono. This rating does not impress me, though it is not the slowest printer I’ve ever known.

You can also experience exactly the same speed rating for the copier. It manages to copy up to 26 copies per minute both for mono and color. Meanwhile, the scanner is able to deliver amazing speed at 45 sides per minute for simplex mono and 20 sides per minute for simplex color. When it comes to duplex scanning, it scans up to 90 sides per minute for black and 40 sides per minute for color.

Promising Input Capacity with Expandable Tray

Reloading paper from time to time can significantly reduce your productivity and waste your time. Lexmark’s MC3426adw is a great printer that helps free your mind from reloading paper over and over again. It is equipped with a 250-sheet input tray capacity plus 1 sheet bypass feeder, which is sufficient for low to medium print volume.

In case your workgroup has a higher print volume, this printer is still a great choice. Thanks to an expandable input tray that enables you to upgrade the input capacity up to 750+1 sheets. The optional paper handling is stuck under the original input tray so you can use it anytime.

Specifically designed for small to medium offices and workgroups, the MC3426adw is rated at 5,000 pages per month. The monthly duty cycle is up to 75,000 pages per month, more than enough for your small to medium business.

Output Quality You Can Depend On

You can always count on laser printers to deliver outstanding output and the MC3426adw is no exception. The mid-range business printer churns out above average output quality, especially for office documents. Thanks to near-typesetter-quality that promises highly legible and sharp black text. I also noticed well-shaped characters even to the small size, which is needed for reliable business documents.

The color laser printer is also dependable for graphics and photos. Not only can it handle business letters, but it also allows you to print creative projects. PowerPoint handouts or Excel charts with solid fills and gradients can be easily delivered to your hands without noticeable flaws. I also love the vibrant and accurate colors brought by this printer.

Cartridges and Running Cost

Each package of Lexmark’s MC3426adw includes Return Program Toner Cartridges. The multifunction color printer uses a Black cartridge that prints up to 1,500 pages and CMY cartridges that yields the exact same pages. When it comes to cartridge replacement, you can upgrade to Black and Color extra high yield cartridges that print up to 4,500 pages.

While most laser printers offer relatively low running costs, this Lexmark printer is an exception. This printer model is a bit more expensive to use, especially for growing businesses. If you are using extra high yield cartridges, you will spend around 2.3 cents per page for mono. The cost significantly increases to 13.4 cents per page for color.

Do you think a cent difference does not mean that much? Let’s count if you print thousand pages, then calculate how many dollars you have to spend only for this machine. In other words, as 0.1 cent difference means a lot for your company’s spending, you need to think twice before purchasing a printer with a pricey running cost.

Lexmark MC3426adw Connectivity

The MC3426adw brings standard connectivity that includes Ethernet, Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Direct, and NFC. Both Wi-Fi Direct and NFC enable you to connect the printer with mobile devices easily. It also supports mobile connectivity options such as Google Cloud Print, Mopria, Apple AirPort, AirScan, and AirPrint.

This printer also supports a variety of network printing modes such as Microsoft web Services, Enhanced IP, FTP, TFTP, and Internet Printing Protocol. To ensure the security of your document, it features a number of network security including IPSec, 802.1x Authentication, and TLS.

Lexmark MC3426adw Review Pros and Cons

Is the MC3426adw a good printer? Yes, I should say this business-oriented printer is good to be part of your workgroup. However, I can’t help to say that, despite all the good sides, the machine has a few things to dislike. Purchasing a printer is a big decision so you don’t want to make a mistake. Check the following plus and minus about the MC3426adw and decide later.

Lexmark MC3426adw Review Pros

• Terrific output quality

This printer boasts terrific output quality that makes your business document more reliable. Both monochrome and color printing, the MC3426adw delivers outstanding output.

• Expandable input capacity

In case the default input tray is insufficient, you can expand the capacity up to 750 sheets. Thanks to optional paper handling that can be purchased separately.

• High recommended print volume

Specifically designed for small to medium offices, this printer comes with a high print volume rating. This is a good thing you’ll love about the MC3426adw.

Lexmark MC3426adw Review Cons

• Pricey running cost

If your office does not have loose budgets for documents, this printer is not a good idea. Expensive running cost makes it less attractive for growing businesses.

Conclusion

In a nutshell, the Lexmark MC3426adw is a multifunction color laser printer with business orientation. This model boasts a number of features that will make your printing experience more engaging. Excellent output quality and generous print capacity are neatly wrapped in a sleek machine. With this printer, you know the documents are well-handled.

If you are looking for a printer for small to medium print volume, the MC3426adw is a good name to mention. But if you print thousand pages per month and cannot bear its pricey running cost, finding another printer with cheaper print cost is recommended.