Lexmark Interact S605 review

Touchscreen technology comes to printing with 'smart solutions' on the side

Lexmark S605
Lexmark's S605 features touchscreen controls

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We weren't expecting too much from Lexmark's latest inkjet printer, having been disappointed with review samples of pretty much every preceding model the company has sent us over the years.

However, it seems that the Lexmark really has turned a corner with the S605. It's a quality printer that's fast and accurate, with running costs that are among the cheapest in its class.

We liked

The big 10.9cm colour touchscreen plays host to a supremely simple yet effective menu system, making the S605 excellent in standalone mode, without the need to switch on your PC or Mac.

Better still, it makes the most of its Wi-Fi connectivity, linking seamlessly to the web so you can print news feeds or scan documents and fire them off via email direct from the printer.

Considering the limited range of a four-ink system, the S605 makes a surprisingly good stab at photo printing and, while it's not quite on a par with the latest Canon and Epson models, it's massively better than previous Lexmark inkjets we've tested.

We disliked

As an all-in-one printer, the S605 can turn its hand to most things but there are a couple of omissions in its feature set. For example, there's only one paper input tray, which can mean frequent swapping between plain and photo paper stock, and there's no specialist tray for printing onto white-faced CDs or DVDs.

Verdict

The feature-packed S605 combines impressive print quality with a good turn of speed and low running costs, and it's even fun to use, which you can't say about most printers. On top of that, the average online purchase price has also now dropped to about half the launch price, making it a real bargain.