Product Reviews

There are laser printers and there are laser printers. The market is split into two camps: low-end, low-usage, low-cost, and the group Kyocera's FS1700+ finds itself in - professional, high-end, high-usage.

Part of Kyocera's eco-friendly Ecosys range, at almost 13in high, the FS1700+ is a biggie. Its front panel is similarly imposing, with an LCD screen and seven LEDs keeping you up to date on what's happening, together with eight buttons to control its many functions. Either it's going for a retro look, or the FS1700+ means business in a big way.

Build quality, in common with the rest of the Ecosys range, is excellent. There's only one real niggle, and that's the multi-purpose input tray - it folds down from the front of the machine, and is a devil of a job to get into position. No doubt with use it'll slacken off a little, however.

Setup is a breeze.

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Kyocera has developed its own system of printing that doesn't require drum and toner units to be replaced - they're designed for life. To get the printer up and running, all you need do is slip the toner cartridge into place, slot the waste toner collection bottle into place, and install the printer driver. We had the printer up and running in under 20 minutes!

Our two CorelDRAW test documents printed with commendable speed - but then, this is a 12 page-per-minute device. The driver doesn't handle photographic images as well as you'd hope, though. The dithering the FS1700+ uses exhibits a little repetitive patterning, leading to faint dark lines appearing horizontally across the page. Text, on the other hand, prints beautifully, with dense blacks, while the printer's edge-enhancing firmware banishes jaggies very nicely. Overall, output is acceptable in graphics mode, and very good in text mode.

Multiple copies exit at quite a rate of knots - the rated speed of 12ppm is right on the money. It's not a device for the single user who requires single copies of complex pages, but is ideal for the busy office that needs to turn out multiple copies of straightforward business docs. At a cost of a third of a penny per sheet, it's very cost-effective.

In practice, we found the 1700+ quiet, responsive and quick, its LCD panel and LED indicators very useful. This capable and sturdy printer should give business users years of trusty service.