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| HP Color LaserJet 2550L Printer | 
 enlarge | Brand: Hewlett-Packard
Category: CE
This item is no longer available
Avg. Customer Rating:  21 reviews
Media: Electronics
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Modem: None
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2
Dimensions (in): 23.6 x 21.7 x 19.7
Warranty: 1 year warranty
MPN: Q3702A#ABA
Model: Q3702A#ABA
UPC: 829160194172
EAN: 0829160194172
ASIN: B0001X6TI8
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| Features:
| • | 600 x 600 dpi color and black resolution | | • | Up to 4 ppm color, 20 ppm black; manual duplexing | | • | 264 MHz processor, 64 MB memory, expandable to 192 MB | | • | Parallel and USB 2.0 ports, optional networking | | • | PC and Mac compatible; 1-year limited warranty |
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| Accessories:
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
HP's most affordable color laser printer is designed to create high-impact color documents. It enables fast print speeds of up to 19 ppm in black and 4 ppm in color, with an easy-to-use, space-saving design. HP Color LaserJet 2550 series printer is a great printer for professionals within small businesses, branch offices and small work teams or individuals within any size office who need to create impressive, business-quality color documents to promote their services.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 16 more reviews...
 Perfect printer for my at-home needs. September 4, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
(I bought this printer in 2005 - and this is the review I wrote at the time on another site. I am trying to include more reviews at Amazon so decided to transfer it here.)
I am mostly a personal user, with some small-business use thrown in. I will get NOWHERE near the 30,000 monthly cycle pages this printer is rated for (I won't even get near that in a year)...so why did I get this one? Especially when I already have a monochrome laser and photo inkjet printer?? Because I was looking at spending upwards of $700 on a "business" inkjet printer to do what I wanted...so figured why not start with a $400 color laser printer instead to see if that worked?
So, what did I want to do that my other two printers couldn't? Print double-sided color cardstock prints (i.e. Avery notecard stock). I was tired of messing around with my inkjet trying to get presentable prints. And by this I mean prints without wheel marks or ink drops that also weren't ripped or torn from jams, etc., that I would feel comfortable selling to my client. The inkjet, in its favor, gave me beautiful prints...but it just would not handle the notecard stock nicely! The paper path has a very small turnaround, and anything thick or perforated just has too hard a time. On my worst job, I ended up wasting 20% of the entire job (100 sheets for a 500 sheet job). But still, I couldn't rationalize spending $500 on a color laser (plus the replacement ink costs). After that job was completed, I started thinking...How much is all my time and energy and frustration worth (in addition to the wasted product)? It was then I seriously started considering a color laserjet. I picked the HP 2550L because it was in stock at our local Staples (plus I happen to work there). Because I like HP overall and have been satisfied with every HP printer I've ever owned, I chose it over the cheaper $400 Minolta color laser.
So, what's the verdict?
I won't be returning it, so I guess that says something! But as I said in my pros and cons, the prints are BEAUTIFUL...but plan on babysitting any double-sided printing you want to do. But let's start at the beginning.
UNPACKING: I'm fairly computer/hardware/software literate, but I'm still a big believer in following instructions, so I had the book out for each step. It would have been fairly self-explanatory anyway...take off all the orange stuff! It's neat how all the toners fit in the machine--it really is a small machine when you think about it, considering there are FOUR toners plus a drum in it. It was extremely easy and fool-proof to load the toners.
INSTALLATION: Even though I love HP...as with every other printer of theirs I've ever installed, it didn't work on the first try and I had to uninstall, reboot, then install again. It's a good thing the process goes smoothly and doesn't take too long. It added quite a few things to my startup and registry (I have programs that let me know when this happens) which I didn't particularly like...but I figure I can play with those things later.
APPLICATIONS: One thing I'm not particularly fond of is the Toolbox. Why? It has to access the internet to work (which I know because ZoneAlarm or something else asked for permission). Now, it's just a local connection, but it opens a webpage to get to it... so, it's something else I need to give access to. What happened to a normal toolbox that just pops up on the screen? Now I have to wait for my browser to open to get printer info! That said, the Toolbox gives you tons of information, including how much life (in pages and percents) is left on each toner cartridge and the drum.
PRINTING: For the test print via the Toolbox, it took about 30 seconds to rev up, but it only took about 4 seconds to print. On some larger jobs, it took up to a minute to cycle through whatever it's cycling through to start printing. But, again, it only took a few seconds to print...when there wasn't a jam. Yes, I experienced jams. Here's the scoop: as I mentioned earlier, I was printing note cards. I set the printer properties for the correct paper (cardstock), I put in a stack of 50, and it printed FLAWLESSLY. I was kicking myself for not buying this printer last year. I thought "Wow, this job will be done in 10 minutes instead of all day on the inkjet!" And then I went to print the second side [insert music of doom here]. I put the entire stack of 50 in and did one test print (as I do, to make sure it's correct). It worked. Yea! So I set it for 49 more and...jam. Jam. Jam. Jam. Jam. Hmmm, maybe too many sheets? So I tried one sheet at a time. I tried five sheets at a time. I tried 25 sheets at a time. I tried one sheet on top of standard paper. I tried hand-feeding one sheet at at time. I tried hand-feeding one sheet at a time off of a stack (meaning I pushed the top sheet taut against the paper tray so the mechanism would be sure to pull it in, similar to what I used to have to do on the inkjet--sorry if it's not clear but it's hard to describe). And....voila! It worked! And printed 10 sheets like this (with me holding each one because I was afraid to let go)...and then jam. JAM! JAM! JAM! JAM! Doing exactly the same thing I'd just done for 10 pages! Of course, each jam means I have to open the cover, clear the popup jam notice from the screen, and wait for it to cycle for about a minute before it attempted another page. Then suddenly, it would print another few pages...and then jam. Jam. Jam. Then more pages, then more jams, then more pages, then more jams. There was absolutely NO rhyme or reason to it at all...which was the most frustrating part. So, needless to say, I was stuck in front of the machine the whole time. All this said, I haven't tried double-sided printing on standard paper, so take my review with a grain of salt. When I attempt double-sided again, I will come back to add to my review.
PHOTO PRINTING: Just as a test, I printed the same picture on my HP Photosmart 7760 (highest quality, glossy paper, minus the photo cartridge) and the HP 2550L (glossy paper)...and I have to say I was more impressed with the laser than I thought I would be. Of course the inkjet is a bit more detailed, but I would easily use the laser for prints that don't need to be perfect quality. If you're buying this to use as a PHOTO printer, you will be disappointed. But if you are buying it as a color printer that does some photos, you will be happy.
SUPPORT: I did contact HP's online support (apparently a new thing called HP Instant Support Professional Edition Active Chat--not sure if it's for Business printers only?) regarding the double-sided printing issue...and was pleasantly surprised. I was informed it would be no longer than 10 minutes before I was helped--and it was less than two! The rep was knowledgeable and quick to respond. He thought my problem was due to using notecards meant for inkjet printers instead of laser printers (oops! my bad! I should have known that!)...something about the coating on the cards and the heat changing things. I've never had any problems using inkjet stock in laser printers or vice versa, but it could well be the reason. On my next set of notecards, I will use the correct stock and see what happens (and will update my review).
RECOMMENDATION: So, you might be wondering...if I had such a horrible experience with printing so far, why four stars? Well, even if the double-sided jamming issue ISN'T resolved with laser stock notecards, it's still 100% better than messing with the inkjet for this project (and ruining more product and losing time, etc.). And it does give you really nice prints. I would buy this printer again.
COST: The cost seems substantial until you break it down. The printer was $500. Inkjets can cost way more than that, so the base price wasn't too much of a concern for me--especially considering you get LASER quality! As far as toner cartridges go, this is where people get freaked. Yes, there are four. Yes, they each run about $100. But when you break it down to the cost per page, it's NOTHING. For the color, there are regular and high-yield cartridges. Of course, high-yield are more expensive, but they are also a better deal. The average price per high-yield cartridge is $100 and you get (approx.) 4000 pages. This figures out to ONLY 2.5c/page. (If you go with the regular cartridge, it's only $75, but the cost per page rises to 3.7c.) The black toner (one size only) is a better deal...it's $83 and gives you 5000 pages, breaking down to 1.7c/page. And if you're like me, who won't print 4000 pages a year, this means the toner will last a long time.
APRIL 10, 2005 UPDATE: On a recent cardstock/Avery notecard print job similar to the one I described above, the HP 2550L worked PERFECTLY. What was the difference? I used Avery's LASER notecards (as the HP rep suggested) and it made ALL the difference in the world. Instead of babysitting the second sides, it honestly was a "set it and forget it" job and it seemed like it was done in record time! So, the plus side is that using the correct paper stock makes the job much easier...and you can even get the job done using incorrect paper stock--it just takes longer! I am also updating my star rating because of my new and better printing experience. The product shouldn't suffer the loss of a star because the user was an idiot and didn't use the right paper!
Works great for Me August 21, 2007
I've read a lot of bad reviews, but I have to say mine works perfectly. I have a mac, and it's hooked up remotely/ wirelessly, and it's only jammed once in 3 years. No problems. I'm shocked so many others have had such trouble!
 It works March 16, 2007
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I've had it for about 2 years. Low volume. It works. Computers are complex machines. This printer is complex. It always takes some intelligence and thought to get these things to do what you want. If you are not up to it, go to a copy store. If it breaks, I can get the new one for a cheaper price then I paid for it.
 Biggest Waste of Money February 6, 2007
This machine is so loud you could hear it from space. And it's slow. Can't say anything good about it. Please don't waste your money.
I won't buy a HP printer again. Everyone I've had has been completely useless.
 Overall, nice machine July 28, 2006
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
I have had my HP 2550L for well over a year now and have had absolutely no problems with it. I frequently print on high quality, glossy paper. The ink doesn't smudge or smear. It prints clearly and is quick. With the moderate amount of printing that I do, I am only now replacing some of the color toner cartridges which is expensive. That is the downside. As another reader mentioned, it does occasionally "cycle" and when it does, makes enough noise to wake me up in the middle of the night as my office space is adjacent to the bedroom. Easily remedied by turning it off in the evenings. Overall, I feel this was a good buy for the money.
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