HP Photosmart C309a Premium Fax All-in-One Printer

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With a vast array of All-In-Ones (AIOs) on the market, all with similar features to one another, any new entry needs something special to make it stand out. The C309a does it by being good at everything--for most of the part.

Editors' note:

This review is based on tests done by our sister site CNET.com.au. As such, please note that there may be slight differences in the testing procedure and ratings system. For more information on the actual tests conducted on the product, please inquire directly at the site where the article was originally published. References made to some other products in this review may not be available or applicable in Asia.

Design And Features

The striking curved exterior of the C309a puts a tick on our design box before anything else. It's covered in glossy white plastic, with smooth all-white buttons on the control panel.

The C309a is clad is a stylish white casing.
(Click for larger image)

Considering the streamlined exterior, it comes as a surprise that the inkbox dimension measures 283 x 468 x 473mm and weighs 10.4kg. A 2.4-inch LCD screen sits alongside the control panel and it can pivot out from the chassis to make viewing easier.

Connectivity comes in several different guises, via USB, Ethernet or wireless. Bluetooth is also included to get those snaps off a mobile phone or other compatible devices. At the front, there is the standard PictBridge connection plus memory card reader slots (CompactFlash, SD/SDHC, xD-Picture Card, Memory Stick/Duo and USB) so you can use the C309a as a standalone unit.

The rest of the features, as the name suggests, are fax functionality, an automatic document feeder that loads pages from the top of the unit, and an auto-duplexing function. There's a flatbed scanner as well, and the rest of the paper/media trays are located underneath the printer, jutting out from the base. You'll find a plethora ranging from photo paper trays to the CD/DVD loading slot at the very bottom. By now, you've probably guessed that the C309a can print on the aforementioned CDs and DVDs, too.

The C309a uses five ink tanks, with each retailing for between S$15.41 (US$11.10) and S$18.11 (US$13.04) at the time of writing (price quoted from HP's Web site). XL cartridges (or high yield) are also available, though only black, photo black and cyan are listed. A standard cartridge claimed to yield 300 pages, and this works out to about S$0.06 (US$0.04) per page.

Tags: C309a, Cartridge, All-in-One, xD-Picture Card, Hewlett-Packard Co.

Performance And Print Quality »