The WorkCentre C2424 is a full-featured colour laser multifunction printer that can handle the traffic of a big office, but it produces mediocre output.

The HP Deskjet 5740 won't win any awards for speed or economy, but for all-around print quality, it's a good little performer.

If your quantity and quality needs are modest, the Brother HL-2040's sticker price will make it at home on your desk.

While the initial purchase price may be steep, the low running costs will probably save you money in the long run.

For offices that need a colour laser to do everything but make the morning coffee, the C762n is an extremely versatile choice.

For the money, the Oki B4350 provides fast printing and excellent text, with an LCD navigation display that makes it particularly easy to use.

Although this versatile unit requires a hefty initial outlay and its upkeep will cost you close to $20 for each of its six ink tanks, the quality of its photo prints, scanning and photocopying is excellent.

The Lexmark P450 offers home users the convenience of printing from a wide variety of media sources and doesn’t require a PC to use. It is let down by slow printing, slow burning and the cost of additional adapters.

A reasonably quick model which provides excellent print quality for text. As the name indicates however, stay away if you want a graphics printer.

We like the photo quality of this unit’s output as well as its speed, versatility and connectivity options. The only thing missing is the ability to print directly onto CDs and DVDs.

This economical laser prints text quickly, but its output quality could be better.

The iP6600D is particularly suited to printing photos directly from a digital camera or media card, and two paper trays and a duplexer add to its versatility. It's going to cost you, but the respectable running costs make it a good investment if you want quality photos.