Considering that Dell's printers (and Lexmark's) are famous for great print speed and not-so-great print quality, the Dell Photo All-in-One Printer 922 is full of surprises.
First of all, the Dell 922 prints monochrome text and graphics really slowly and is one of the slowest-printing multifunction inkjet printers we've ever tested. In CNET Labs tests, the Dell 922 averaged 1.7 pages per minute (ppm) for text and 0.2ppm for photos. This compares unfavourably with the Dell A960, whose scores are 6.5ppm and 0.6ppm for text and photos, respectively.
On the other hand, the print quality impressed our jury. Both text and graphics samples showed great detail, among the sharpest we've seen from an inkjet printer. The photo printout was also finely detailed, although the colour tone was slightly yellowish compared to the original. Nevertheless, it was one of the best photos ever produced by a Dell or Lexmark inkjet printer tested at CNET.
Unlike its print speeds, in CNET Labs tests the Dell 922 scanned quickly. At 7.1ppm for grayscale and 5.2ppm for colour, the Dell 922 was actually the fastest-scanning multifunction printer CNET Labs has tested. In spite of this, the printer's copy-speed scores were just the opposite: a sluggish 0.4ppm.
We were, however, pleasantly surprised at the Dell 922's high-quality scans. The grayscale image was perfect, replicating the original target precisely, from gradient to shading. The colour scan image was also quite good, even though it had some visible banding and a little off-the-balance gradient.
We tested the Dell 922 at its factory default settings, which can be adjusted to better the printer's speed and output.
Performance analysis written by CNET Labs project leader Dong Van Ngo.
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Text speed | |
Photo speed | |
Grayscale scan speed | |
Color scan speed | |
Copy speed |
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Text on inkjet paper | |
Graphics on inkjet paper | |
Photo | |
Grayscale scan | |
Color scan |
Dell supports its Photo All-in-One Printer 922 well. The company provides free 24/7 customer support by phone during the one-year limited warranty period, which also includes its Advanced Exchange Service (see warranty for specific details). Additional warranties can be purchased separately.
Extensive support is also available online, including a searchable knowledge base database, user forums, and chat with a Dell representative (although chat was offline at the time of this review). The easy-to-navigate All-in-One Center and Printer Solution Center software provides thorough built-in help file for quick remedies. Included with the Dell 922 is a printed owner's manual that's straightforward, covering usage basics and troubleshooting.
Dell Photo All-in-One Printer 922
Company: Dell Australia
Price: AU$199
Distributor: Dell
Phone: 1800 812 392
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Will Lexmark cartridge fit this printer? Dell are out of stock!