Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF Review: Excellent Speeds; Good Paper Capacity

The Fuji Xerox DocuPrint series consists of more than 20 different types of multifunction printers. Earlier, this year we reviewed one of those printers – the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM305DF. Why that is relevant is that we’ll be reviewing another printer from the DocuPrint series here. In fact, while we’ll focus on one, we’ll probably end up reviewing two since they’re comparable barring a few features. We’re talking about the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF and the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM415AP.

The Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF is actually a fairly good choice for businesses that are looking for speed and volume in the same package. The initial pricing may not suit many buyers but this printer does have the requisite features and benefits that any aspiring business needs. If you’ve shortlisted the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF, perhaps reading this review will help you make up your mind?

Strengths of Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF

The fact that the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF combines speed, paper capacity and printing capabilities so well means that this is a device designed to deliver high volumes to its users. Notably, speed is the standout quality of the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF and this is something that it shares with the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM415AP. These printers are rated to print at 35 pages per minute (ppm) irrespective of whether you print monochrome or colour prints.

If you consider paper capacity, this multifunction printer has an impressive total paper capacity in its standard configuration. While many of its competitors offer around 600-sheet paper capacity in their standard configurations, the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF actually has a capacity of 700 sheets. This 700-sheet capacity can be split into a 550-sheet main paper tray and a 150-sheet multipurpose tray.

Along with this, like most other devices in its segment, the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF can be upgraded with a 550-sheet optional paper tray to a total paper capacity of 1,250 sheets. When it comes to a multifunction printer designed to deliver high volumes, it would be pointless to have high printing speeds and high paper capacities, if the monthly duty cycle of the device is low. After all, print speeds and paper capacities combine to mean more sheets being printed in any given period of time. Luckily, the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF has higher monthly duty cycle than most other printers in its segment at 153,000 sheets.

Apart from print volumes, the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF and the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM415AP do offer other good features. For example, automatic duplex printing is available as a standard feature with both these printers. Moreover, these printers don’t just offer automatic duplexing for printing but also for copying and scanning. This feature is rare enough to draw many prospective buyers independent of the devices’ other features and qualities. However, you should keep in mind that using the duplexing feature will reduce the print speed to 23 ppm.

From the perspective of security, the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF is no chump either. It offers security features such as data shredding, encryption, and even password-protected confidential printing options. The CM415AP possesses similar security features.

Weaknesses of Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF

The biggest issue with the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF is that this device doesn’t offer wireless capability as a standard feature. In a world where most multifunction printers have started offering Wi-Fi direct features, its absence in the CM405DF stands out like a bad sore. In fact, the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) offers wireless capability with the CM415AP which makes us question why it isn’t available with this device.

The only other flaw significant enough to mention here are the running costs. Both these printers’ running costs are slightly on the higher side when compared to their competitors. Between the two, the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF offers more economy at 16.17 cents per page, while the CM415AP only manages 16.41 cents per page.

These costs per page, however, are when you use genuine cartridges from the OEM. You can save a considerable amount of money over time by using generic cartridges because they bring down the per page costs. With generic cartridges, the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF manages a per page cost of 12.14 cents while the CM415AP achieves 12.43 cents.

Key Features of Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF

By now, you’re most probably wondering why we haven’t spoken about the print quality of these printers. The reason is obvious. The print quality of these printers neither fits in the strengths section nor the weakness section. Instead, we’re mentioning it here because it is on par with most other multifunction printers in the market falling in the same price range.

Textually, the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF does really well, churning out presentation level documents. Even with respect to graphics and images, the CM405DF isn’t all that bad. In fact, this printer’s print quality falls in the upper range of the expected spectrum in the market segment. This is partly made possible because of the ICC colour profiling feature.

Since the print engine is virtually the same, the CM415AP performs similarly, albeit slightly above the CM405DF. The reason why the CM415AP generates better images is its higher maximum resolution. The CM415AP can print up to a maximum resolution of 2400 x 1200 dots per inch (dpi), while the CM405DF has a maximum resolution of 9600 x 600 dpi.

The Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM415AP is more expensive than the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF too. This is largely down to the extra features provided in the latter. For example, the CM405DF comes with a RAM of 512MB that is upgradable to 1GB with another 512MB chip but the CM415AP comes standard with a 4GB RAM. Upgrading the CM415AP RAM has not been provided as an option, mainly because it has an internal hard drive worth 160GB. Both printers offer a USB port under the control panel to the front.

The control panels of the two devices also vary in size. The Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF has a 109.22mm colour touchscreen that can be tilted for maximum convenience, while the CM415AP has a 177.8mm touchscreen. Because of the extra features in the CM415AP, it is bigger and heavier. The Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF weighs 32 Kg, is 439mm wide, 530mm deep, and 558mm high. The Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM415AP, on the other hand, weighs 37 Kg, spans 539mm wide, 553mm deep, and 625mm high.

The list of optional upgrades is much longer for the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM415AP than the Fuji Xerox DocuPrint CM405DF. Apart from the items already mentioned, the CM405DF can be improved through an optional hard disk unit and a cabinet. The CM415AP can be upgraded with a number of items and components above and beyond what the CM405DF has such as a stand skateboard, an embedded IC card readers, an Omnikey external card reader, an annotation copy kit, a network accounting kit, an external access kit, a USB memory kit, gigabit Ethernet functionality, and many others.