Reviewing the Renewed HP Photosmart 7520 CZ045A e-All-in-One Printer 🖨️
The HP Photosmart 7520 e-All-in-One Printer (CZ045A), often encountered today as a renewed model, represents a versatile and feature-rich inkjet multifunction printer (MFP) that was a top-of-the-line option for home and small office use upon its release. As a renewed unit, it offers a cost-effective way to acquire a robust machine capable of handling a variety of tasks, from high-quality photo printing to essential office functions.
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| Reviewing the Renewed HP Photosmart 7520 CZ045A e-All-in-One Printer |
Key Features and Design
The Photosmart 7520 is a comprehensive 4-in-1 device, offering Print, Copy, Scan, and Fax capabilities. It features a sleek, matte black chassis that blends well into modern home environments. A standout element is the large, responsive 4.33-inch (10.9 cm) color touchscreen control panel, which makes navigating menus, accessing web-connected features (HP ePrint apps), and managing tasks remarkably easy and intuitive.
For paper handling, the printer includes a standard 125-sheet input tray, a separate 20-sheet dedicated photo tray (for media up to 5x7 inches), and a 25-sheet Automatic Document Feeder (ADF) on top, which is invaluable for batch scanning and copying. It also supports automatic duplex printing (two-sided printing), helping to conserve paper.
Performance and Output Quality
The Photosmart 7520 utilizes a five-ink system (Black, Photo Black, Cyan, Magenta, Yellow), which is crucial for its photo-centric design. The addition of a Photo Black cartridge, typically dye-based, significantly enhances the quality and depth of photo prints, resulting in lab-quality, fade-resistant photos with vibrant, accurate colors and excellent detail.
Photo Quality: The best resolution for color printing reaches up to $9600 \times 2400$ optimized dpi. Photo print quality is consistently cited as excellent, a core strength of this model.
Text Quality: For document printing, it delivers crisp black text, often compared favorably to laser quality at smaller fonts, though it uses a pigment-based black ink for standard text. ISO print speeds are around 14 pages per minute (ppm) for black and 10 ppm for color.
Scanning and Copying: The flatbed scanner and ADF offer good resolution (up to 1200 dpi optical) and acceptable speed for typical home and small office tasks. While generally competent, some historical reviews noted minor frustrations with the scanner's software interface and over-sharpening in some scans.
Fax Functionality: The built-in fax modem provides a complete office solution.
Connectivity and Mobile Printing
Modern connectivity is a major draw. The 7520 supports wireless capability via built-in Wi-Fi ($802.11\text{b/g/n}$), which enables several key features:
HP ePrint: Allows users to send documents and photos to the printer via email from anywhere.
HP Wireless Direct: Provides a direct connection between the printer and a mobile device without needing a local network or router.
Apple AirPrint: For easy printing from Apple iOS devices.
Memory Card/USB Port: Direct printing and scanning to/from memory cards and USB flash drives is possible using the slots on the front panel.
A notable omission, however, is the lack of a dedicated Ethernet port, meaning network connectivity for features like ePrint relies entirely on a stable Wi-Fi connection.
The Renewed Perspective
Purchasing a Renewed unit (designated by the CZ045A code, which is the product family) typically means the printer has been inspected, repaired, and restored to working condition, often by the manufacturer or a certified refurbisher. This offers significant savings compared to the original price, making this once premium MFP more accessible.
While renewed models are generally reliable and often come with a limited warranty, potential buyers should be aware of the following:
Age of Technology: This is an older model, meaning its software support for the latest operating systems might require using generic or legacy drivers. The speed and quality, however, remain competitive for non-commercial use.
Ink Costs: As a five-ink system, the running costs for ink should be assessed, as these can accumulate over time, though the individual cartridges allow for replacing only the exhausted color.
Physical Condition: While functionality is restored, the cosmetic condition of renewed units can vary slightly.
In summary, the renewed HP Photosmart 7520 is an excellent choice for a user or family prioritizing high-quality photo output and needing a fully-featured All-in-One printer with modern wireless connectivity and an ADF, all at an attractive price point.