Lexmark C540 Toner Cartridges

Lexmark C540 Printer Review

The Lexmark C540 color laser printer is designed for the small or medium office environment. Its compact design, quiet noise level, and affordable price will appeal to those working in tight spaces.

The design of the Lexmark C540 color laser printer, also known as the C540n, puts the focus on compact size and efficiency without sacrificing quality or speed to achieve it. As a result, it is a little larger than some competing units, but its attributes make up for the extra size. The unit measures 11.5 inches by 16.7 inches by 15.7 inches, and weighs 46.3 pounds.

Paper capacity is a little smaller than expected, with only a single 250-sheet tray. While this is by no means a small paper capacity, many users might wish for a multipurpose tray for loading alternate media. The paper capacity can be expanded with upgrades, however, to a maximum of 900 sheets.

The 417 mhz processor and 128 MB of RAM give it the power to handle its own processing, and the memory can be expanded to a maximum of 640 MB if needed. The monthly duty cycle of 35,000 pages gives a hint to its ability to grow into higher-volume use in the future.

Lexmark C540 toner cartridges have a capacity of 1,000 pages for each color laser toner cartridge, and 1,000 pages for the single black printer toner cartridge. High-yield versions are also available, with a capacity of 2,000 pages for each color, and 2,500 for the black cartridge. Though the high-yield cartridges are more expensive upfront, they have a lower cost per page that will save money over the long run.

Print speed is around 21 pages per minute for both color and monochrome printing, which is quite impressive for the price.

Overall, the Lexmark C540 is an impressive printer with fast speeds and economically priced toner cartridges. Some users may find its paper capacity too small for their needs.