Dell’s 1720dn mono laser printer sits in the middle of a steadily growing band of laser printers offered by the computer giant.

This model offers a couple of features usually found in more expensive printers, namely a duplexer, networking and a 28ppm (pages per minute) print speed.

A fairly compact unit measuring 396x345x254mm (wxdxh), the 1720dn is suited to home and small business use. However, its sibling, the cheaper 1720 without duplex or network support, is probably better suited to home use.

The 1720dn comes with a full range of options to connect to a PC; USB2, 10/100 Ethernet and Parallel ports are all provided. Wireless support is also available via an optional 802.11b/g adaptor. It comes with 32MB of memory which can be expanded up to 160MB via the single memory slot.

The 1720dn features something Dell calls Instant Warm up technology, which allows the first page to be printed in around eight seconds from sleep mode.

As standard, the 1720dn ships with a toner cartridge which is good for around 3,000 pages (at 5 per cent coverage), a replacement will set you back £69.33 or £49.35 if you use Dell’s Use and Return policy. A high-capacity cartridge is also available, costing £81.08 or £57.58 (through Use and Return) and yields around 6,000 pages at 5 per cent coverage. The imaging drum lasts for 30,000 pages, with a replacement drum costing £30.55. All prices include VAT.

Dell quotes a engine speed of 28ppm for the 1720dn, something borne out under test conditions, while a A4 page test produced 10ppm; so it's no slouch when it comes to print speeds. While text results are reasonably good, graphic output suffers from banding, especially when it’s a full page.

Paper handling consists of a bottom mounted 250-sheet input drawer with a single sheet manual feeder housed in the front panel for special paper types. To up the input capacity there is the option of buying a 550 sheet drawer. Output is limited to a maximum capacity of 150 sheets.

Simple to operate, the 1720dn has just two buttons on the top mounted control panel to start and stop print jobs. These are joined by five LEDs indicating the printer’s status, paper jams and the like.

With its duplex and network features, 1720dn is ideally suited to home office use.