HP LaserJet 1200

When we set the price limit to £300 for this Labs we never thought we'd see 14ppm-rated engines. The LaserJet 1200 further surprised us with its maximum resolution of 1,200 x 1,200dpi and 8Mb of integrated memory. No surprise, then, that it's the most expensive printer on test, and it also has the highest running cost: each page costs 1.6p from the combined toner/drum unit, which lasts for around 2,500 pages.

But if speed and quality are more important to you, then the HP won't disappoint. Taking 17 seconds to deliver the first page was a respectable effort - despite HP's claim of under ten seconds - but to go on and print 30 pages in just 139 seconds was an excellent performance. This translates to 13ppm, placing it just ahead of Oki's 14ex with 12.4ppm.

The HP wasn't victorious over the Oki in the PDF and Excel tests, though. In fact, the 1200 had to settle for joint fourth place with Brother's HL-1030 for the PDF manual and third place for the Excel workbook. Despite this, it was still second fastest overall.

The HP claimed second place again for image quality. The 1200 equalled the EPL-5800L for text quality, but fell shy in the spreadsheet and graph tests. Graphics image quality was slightly ahead thanks to sharp detailing and smooth gradient reproduction.

Unfortunately for HP, the 1200's high price meant it narrowly missed out on the awards; both the Samsung and the Epson offer superior value for money, as well as delivering great quality and speed.