Photograph: Rick Rizner
The $500 Konica Minolta MagiColor 2430DL performed at roughly average speeds, and has a low estimated cost per color page. It produced text pages at 13.0 ppm and color graphics at 2.7 ppm, which was substantially slower than the speeds of the less expensive Dell 3000cn.
Text looked crisp, if a little heavy. Line art also appeared heavy, causing close parallel lines to merge. Color graphics printed with good detail, though an orange cast made people look like they had been to a tanning salon.
The sole paper tray holds up to 200 sheets of plain paper, which isn't much for office use, but you can supplement that with a 500-sheet drawer for $299 and a duplexer for $399.
The 2430DL comes with cartridges rated for just 1500 pages each. Using higher-capacity, 4500-page toner cartridges gives the unit a very low estimated cost per color page of 11.0 cents.
In addition, the 2430DL includes an unusual feature for a color laser printer: a port on its front panel for printing photos from PictBridge-compatible digital cameras. However, the standard configuration, which we tested, prints only in draft mode; you have to install an additional 256MB of RAM ($149) to enable printing at 2400-by-600-dpi resolution. Photos looked yellowish and somewhat grainy.
Upshot: The 2430DL offers low cost per color page and performs well, but the less-expensive Dell 3000cn is faster.
Paul Jasper
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