The WorkCentre 6400 offers a mix of print, copy, network scan and optional fax capabilities
There’s long been a gap between cheap multifunction printers (MFPs) designed for personal use, and expensive copier-based products capable of being shared on large networks. It’s a gap Xerox is hoping to bridge with its new WorkCentre 6400, which delivers the kind of scalability and features associated with high end MFPs, but in a much more affordable package.
Targeted at departmental networks and small to medium sized companies, the WorkCentre 6400 offers the typical mix of printer sharing plus walk-up copying and network scanning, with an optional fax modem if required. At its core is a 35ppm, A4 colour laser which is well made and, as a result, pretty hefty. Indeed it took two of us to lift the basic 6400S off the delivery pallet.
It also consumed an awful lot of desk space, although you can add a cabinet plus two extra 500-sheet paper trays under the single drawer supplied to make it freestanding if needed. Alternatively order the 6400XF (£5,349 + VAT) and you get all of these extras as standard, plus a 600-sheet finisher unit complete with a built-in stapler, making for a very capable device.
Xerox has learnt a lot about making printers over the years and the WorkCentre 6400 proved to be very capable and remarkably easy to live with. Paper is easy to load, with a pull-out feeder for envelopes and other awkward materials, while the 600dpi colour scanner on the top has a lift-up lid for flatbed use plus an automatic document feeder. Able to take up to 50 pages at a time, the feeder also lets you scan both sides of originals, although it does need to pass each page through twice in order to do so.
To get to the consumables you simply pull down the large front cover to reveal the four toner cartridges and associated drum units. These simply slide in and out, although locking them in place proved a little fiddly and we did get a bit messy when we were setting them up. Fortunately toner changes aren’t required that often, especially if you opt for high capacity cartridges, rated at up to 14,000 pages.
