Xerox 3210 Toner
Phaser 3210 Toner Cartridges

The Xerox Phaser 3210 is a monochrome laser printer designed for the personal user. Its print quality and printing speed are quite good, but paper handling problems have cropped up for some users.

Many users reach a point where an inkjet printer is no longer enough for them. Either they need sharper text quality, or their printing needs grow to the point where inkjet ink prices are far too expensive. In this case, many users start to look for a laser printer. Xerox and other manufacturers have realized that there is a market for a small personal laser printer for those users who need laser quality and quantity without the high costs associated with a professional laser printer. The Phaser 3210 is a personal laser printer that falls into this category.

The printer offers USB and parallel port connections to a PC, but no ethernet. The printer can be shared across a network using a PC as the connecting host, but it is not really advisable, as the Phaser 3210 is truly designed as a personal printer. For example, its input paper capacity of only 150 sheets, while fine for a single user, is probably too small for a shared printer with multiple users. Also, its 4 MB of installed memory is probably too small to support many users in any sort of high-volume printing situation. Some users have reported problems with paper handling, as the printer will sometimes fail to recognize that paper is loaded in the tray.

Print quality is excellent, utilizing the Phaser 3210's 600dpi printing engine for sharp prints. Print speed is adequate. At 12 pages per minute, it should satisfy the average personal user, especially one upgrading from slower inkjet printing speeds.

Overall, the Xerox Phaser 3210 is a fine choice for a Xerox toner based personal laser printer and will handle light volume printing needs quite well. Paper handling issues and lack of an ethernet port are its major downsides.