Samsung ML-1740 Laser Printer Drivers and Software

The Samsung ML-1740 is compact and boxy with a white, glossy finish reminiscent of an old-style refrigerator. There are two lights at the top – one for power and one for toner save (draft mode) – as well as a cancel button. A 250-sheet input tray and a single-sheet feeder at the front as well as a parallel port and a USB port at the back complete the minimalist design.

Our shipping unit printed both text and graphics quickly and surprisingly quietly, outputting 13 pages per minute for text. This is about a page faster than the 12 pages per minute average that the other small office monochrome printers tested by PC World put out.

The text was printed at 600 dots per inch on plain paper and looked dark, sharp and readable except for the 2-point type.

The printer managed fast graphics output (about 7.5 pages per minute), but the quality was lower. Our grayscale test photo lost its fine details and appeared grainy and over-contrasted on both plain and glossy paper. A basic logo-style graphic from a Word document showed noticeable hatching.

A simple software interface lets you set options such as layout, size, paper type and print quality. You can also add a watermark or overlay.

Samsung includes a manual that explains setup and general use, but it does not include any software or troubleshooting instructions.

Related Printer: Samsung ML-1750 Driver

For anyone who prints text but few graphics, the ML-1740 is a solid – if not exceptional – printer at a reasonable price.