Epson Stylus SX415 multifunction device

The SX415 multifunction device costs around £100 and combines a printer, copier and scanner with a digital memory card reader and viewing screen.

In addition there is a Pictbridge USB connection so a digital camera can be plugged in and used to print directly without having to use a computer.

The printer section has four separate ink tanks, which cost about £10 each. The device is well constructed and we liked the shiny-black plastic finish, but the control buttons felt cheap.

The front and rear paper trays can be folded away to keep its size down when not in use. We found the SX415 easy to use and despite the buttons, the menu system was simple to pick up.

In our tests the SX415 was quick at printing text, but slower with photos. A page of draft text was ready after just four seconds but we were disappointed by its quality, with lots of jagged edges and an anaemic grey colour.

Ten pages of text using the Normal setting took just under three minutes. These were of a decent quality. Best quality text was much better, with a deep black finish and smoother edges to characters, but the time taken for a page increased to 74 seconds.

A 6x4in picture took 87 seconds and for a basic printer its quality was very good. The end results were not quite up to those from dedicated photo printers, but were good nonetheless. An A4 print took a lengthy eight minutes 20 seconds, though again the print was detailed and colours were accurate.

Scans were impressive and the device produced a file ready to edit in 30 seconds. Colours and detail were good and the software was impressively easy to use, with more control for experienced users too. Copies were let down by inaccurate colours, but the detail was good.

Performance-wise the SX415 is a bit of a mixed bag: it doesn’t do anything particularly badly but neither did it manage to stand out in any of our tests.

Overall, we have seen better results from similarly priced all-in-one devices.