The Oki MB492dn is a member of the MB400 series. We’ve already reviewed another multifunction printer from this series – Oki MB472dnw. That device was a monochrome laser multifunction printer that was intended for businesses with heavy-duty printing requirements. The Oki MB492dn is different. While it is a monochrome laser multifunction printer also, it isn’t meant for businesses that need to print a large volume of documents on a regular basis. At best, the Oki MB492dn can be described as a device designed for medium-duty printing requirements.
Even though they’re classified as laser printers, the entire MB400 series from this Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) is based on Digital LED Electrophotographic Printing Technology. This means that the image transfer inside the device is done with the help of light-emitting diodes as opposed to lasers. The Oki MB492dn is an excellent multifunction printer if it suits a business’s needs. It is, in fact, a top performer in all its core functions. If you want to know whether the Oki MB492dn is a good fit for your business, consider using the following review as a guide.
Strengths of Oki MB492dn
What does a small to medium scale business need, if it is looking for a monochrome laser printer? It’s likely that the decision maker is looking for speed, economy, and decent monochrome print quality. The Oki MB492dn ticks all those boxes for the decision maker and if you have similar requirements, then it’ll make you very happy.
The MB492dn is one of the faster multifunction laser printers in the segment that it is positioned in. It is formally rated to print at a speed of up to 40 pages per minute (ppm) and does justice to that billing in practical terms as well.
However, the most impressive aspect of the Oki MB492dn, by far, is its economy. This is easily one of the most economical devices in its bracket.
The running cost of the Oki MB492dn is nothing short of stellar, especially if you use the right type of cartridges. First of all, let us establish the fact that the MB492dn supports three different types of toner cartridge sizes. Depending on what your requirements are like, you can choose between cartridges rated for 12,000 pages, 7,000 pages, and 3,000 pages. The best per-page cost you can hope for in this device is to the tune of 1.97 cents.
You can bring the per-page cost below this by choosing aftermarket or generic cartridges. Generic, also known as compatible cartridges tend to be cheaper because their market prices don’t factor in marketing costs. If you use generic cartridges, you can bring down your running cost to 1.87 cents per page.
This economy hasn’t come at the cost of print output quality either. The output quality of the Oki MB492dn is very good, especially if you consider the requirements of its target audience. Remember, this is a monochrome laser printer. This means that its output strengths will always be text and grayscale graphics. With a rated maximum resolution of 1200 x 1200 dots per inch (dpi), this device performs as well as any other monochrome laser multifunction printer in the market.
While the Oki MB492dn doesn’t boast of high paper capacity, its paper handling is decent. As it is i.e. standard, your machine will have a total paper handling capacity of 350 sheets, split between a 250-sheet main tray and a 100-sheet multipurpose tray. This capacity can be increased significantly with the addition of the optional tray. The optional tray can hold 530 sheets and its inclusion will take this device’s total capacity to 880 sheets.
The device also comes with a 50-sheet Reverse Automatic Document Feeder (RADF), which means that it has single-pass automatic duplexing. Automatic duplexing will allow you to print on both sides of the sheet at the same time, reducing your paper costs by half.
Weaknesses of Oki MB492dn
It could be said that the fact that this printer doesn’t print in colour is a weakness, but that would be wrong simply because it isn’t supposed to. If you have colour printing needs and you’re considering this device, then you’re the one in the wrong.
A more real weakness of the Oki MB492dn could be its cost. While not the most expensive in its product segment, the MB492dn isn’t the cheapest either. The listed price of this device is just below $800. This could put it beyond the reach of many of the small to medium scale business that it is targeting. However, like all such devices, its real-world price is much more palatable at under $600.
While the real-world price of this device makes it accessible to many potential buyers, it remains at best in the middle of the acceptable spectrum.
The single most problematic weakness of the Oki MB492dn is the absence of wireless connectivity. Wireless connectivity is widely considered to be a standard feature these days and the Oki MB492dn is one of the last few business printers that don’t offer this facility. Since wireless connectivity is absent in this device, you can also rule out Wi-Fi Direct and NFC as a connectivity option.
In fact, the MB492dn only offers two connectivity options – USB 2.0 and Ethernet. Further, if you’ve used devices like this before, you would know that mobile platform compatibility is not viable with USB 2.0 connections. Although, if you wanted to print from a flash drive the front-facing USB port will make things very convenient for you.
Key Features of Oki MB492dn
The Oki MB492dn, like most of its competitors, is bulky. It measures 427mm wide and 425mm deep which makes it an imperfect square. It is slightly higher than its width and depth at 455mm. Its weight is considerable enough for you to require help while moving it since it weighs 20 Kg.
Inside the housing of this device, you’ll find a 667MHz ARM Processor supported by a 512MB RAM. This combination, along with the LED-based technology, makes this multifunction laser printer very responsive. It is so responsive that it will deliver your printed page to you within five seconds from the print command being given. It is worth pointing out, however, that the OEM has not provided an option to upgrade the RAM.
The warranty on this device is the usual 12-month Return to Base one.
Leave a Reply