The HP Deskjet 6840 offers almost everything you could want from an affordable inkjet printer. The only real downside is the relatively high per-page printing costs, but that's true of many inkjets.

Setup is easy, although it takes a few minutes longer than usual because it involves multiple steps. Surprisingly for an inkjet printer in this price range, the 6840 is network-ready right out of the box, a plus if you want to put it on a home, home office, or small business network. Even better, it supports both wireless and wired networks.

The 6840 supports black printing resolutions of up to 1,200X1,200 dpi and color printing resolutions of up to 4,800X1,200 dpi. It uses a black ink cartridge and a tricolor ink cartridge. You can swap the black cartridge for a photo or photo gray cartridge for the best-quality photo prints, although this can be a hassle if you don't print photos often. An ink-level indicator lets you know when you're running low.

A PictBridge port allows you to print directly from PictBridge-compatible digital cameras and camcorders. There are no slots for printing directly from media cards.

The printer ships with a 150-sheet input tray. The output tray holds up to 50 sheets of letter-size paper. If you hate frequently adding paper and don't mind spending a little more, you can add a 250-sheet paper tray for about $80. The 6840 can handle the usual paper sizes and stocks, including letter, legal, envelopes, transparencies, and labels, as well as banners up to 8-1/2X24 inches.

The 6840 package includes a power cord, power supply, Ethernet cable, reference guide, network guide, black ink cartridge, tricolor ink cartridge, and a CD with HP Image Zone Photo and Imaging software, drivers, and an electronic user guide.

This isn't the best or fastest inkjet printer on the block, but its print speeds and output quality are respectable. HP Deskjet 6840 is a good choice for an all-around printer for home and home office use, particularly if you want network connectivity.

Pro: Broad range of features make this printer a good value. Decent print quality. Built-in support for both wired and wireless networks.
Con: No memory card slots.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Hewlett-Packard
3000 Hanover Street
Palo Alto, CA 94304-1185
650-857-1501
http://www.hp.com

Warranty
1 year limited