Ricoh SP C252DN review

Prioritize controlled color printing rather than extra document hardware

The Ricoh SP C252DN is an earlier dedicated color laser printer with standard USB, Ethernet and ordinary Wi-Fi. Its useful combination is color output, automatic two-sided Letter printing and a documented PIN-release routine for documents that should not sit unattended in the output tray.

The C252SF is the multifunction alternative in the same brochure. It adds the scanner, 35-sheet document feeder, copying and fax. Those functions do not belong to the DN. This review concerns the US SP C252DN configuration, part 407521, rather than assuming the whole family's features apply.

PIN collection is explicitly described

The brochure lists Locked Print and describes documents being held until the authorized user enters the correct PIN at the control panel. That is a specific job-collection feature, rather than a conclusion drawn from a generic security label or a user-account name.

Set up the actual compatible driver and printer controls before relying on it. PIN collection is separate from remote supply monitoring, restrictions on color use and network authentication. The documented release routine does not imply every other security or identity-management option is present.

Included paper capacity stays at 250 ordinary sheets

The basic input arrangement is a 250-sheet cassette and a single-sheet bypass. The latter is a useful instructed path for an envelope or other supported special piece, but it is not another ordinary stack. The questionnaire therefore counts 250 included bulk sheets.

An optional 500-sheet feed unit supports Letter and A4. It explains the expanded 751-sheet headline, which also counts the individually fed sheet. An offer should explicitly include that drawer before its capacity is assumed, and its support for Letter/A4 does not establish expanded Legal capacity.

Use the confirmed Letter duplex path

The manufacturer declares 21ppm Letter in monochrome or color and 12ppm Letter in automatic duplex. The one-sided rate should not be used as the expected two-sided rate. A document's complexity, driver and actual setup can further affect the finished job.

Automatic duplex is standard with appropriate 60–90gsm paper. The broader one-sided paper-weight range does not extend that permission to heavier media. General Letter, Legal and A4 input support is also different from a separately confirmed duplex-size list; this assessment positively matches the explicit Letter duplex combination.

Wireless inclusion has a practical network restriction

Ordinary wireless LAN is included, but wired and wireless network connections cannot be active simultaneously. Pick the actual network arrangement and configure the computer and printer for it. A USB computer route remains a separate connection choice.

The Ricoh Smart Device Print & Scan app requires PCL6 mode to be set to Universal for the specified routine. That application is not proof of native AirPrint, Mopria or Wi-Fi Direct. Bonjour in a network-protocol list should not be promoted into a different mobile-printing promise.

Check the cartridge family and the body you are buying

The original starter declaration is 1,000 pages for each color. Listed SP C252HA replacements are declared at 6,500 pages for black and 6,000 for each CMY color. They differ from the lower-yield C250A supplies in the neighboring C250 family; confirm the exact cartridge and offered unit rather than assuming all similar names are interchangeable.

The DN body is 15.7 × 17.7 × 12.6 inches and 52.5 pounds including consumables. The optional drawer adds five inches and 13.2 pounds. Match the documented US 120V/60Hz edition, allow working access around it and check current computer support. This model is most relevant when protected color printing matters more than an integrated scanner or an unconfirmed native mobile protocol.