Staples® 16-Sheet Micro-Cut Shredder

Comments about Staples® 16-Sheet Micro-Cut Shredder:

This is a very good, well-built shredder. Since it is a new product, time and use will only tell the true quality of the actual shredder engine unit, but at face value it seems to be well built and up to the job. However, there are five issues that kept me from giving it a perfect rating. First, it would be nice if the paper feeder opening was a bit larger so as to handle inserting business envelopes length-wise. Second, while it has one of the best continuous run time to overheat cool time ratios for its class, seeking to increase this ratio even more would make it outstanding. Third, the bottom-empty bin feature, while an absolutely great idea, is not always easy to release. It could have been constructed with a bit more metal, and less plastic, to ensure easier use. Forth, I have observed this issue on two other units besides the one I have so I am fairly confident that this is not just a one-time defective fluke on the unit I own. The bottom portion of the empty bin doesn't align perfectly with the rest of the unit. This tolerance has not, in any way, affected the unit from running, but greater care should have been given to ensuring a clean, aesthetically pleasing seal of the bin to the base unit. This observation could be considered petty, but I was measuring it against criteria to earn a perfect rating. Finally, the fifth and final issue pertains to its dollar to value ratio. I think this product could have been priced just a bit less. Don't get me wrong, I think the price is very good and reasonable, but to make it perfect (1) the price could have been sightly lower, or (2) obtaining a resolution/fix of the previous four aforementioned items and then keeping the price at its present level. Either solution, would then earn it a perfect rating in my mind.

Comments about Staples® 16-Sheet Micro-Cut Shredder:

There is a sensor that is located too low in the bin, so it shuts off after shredding only a handful of documents. The bin is large, but the machine does not allow one to fill it up before shutting off. Very inconvenient and time-consuming.

Comments about Staples® 16-Sheet Micro-Cut Shredder:

I purchased this product to shred several years of stock piled personal and business documents. So far I have emptied three 4-drawer file cabinets in a very short amount of time. What I like best about this product is that if a jam does occur it is VERY easy to clear. I have found that jams only occur when too thick of a stack is put through. It does take 16 pages at a time provided the paper thickness is normal and there are no additional non-paper items like paper clips or staples in the pile. Therefore jams are the result of the user and not the product.

Comments about Staples® 16-Sheet Micro-Cut Shredder:

I shred mostly business but some personal items. Sometimes needing to empty the bin multiple times in a single day. So a fair amount of shredding. Biggest drawback is that the bin full sensor is poor and indicates a full bin when it is not and since it will not allow shredding when its full, you need to empty more. My previous shredder had a 5 gal bin but due to this shredder's 7 gal. bin sensor, it actually holds less shredded material. The other drawback is that feeding pages, sheets, envelopes, receipts, notepad paper, etc. is not as easy due to the slot design and usually requires two hands (which means I need to put down the large pile I'm holding to shred). Also, the slot feed issue seems to slow me down enough in feeding that the shredder often turns off which then takes a few seconds to recognize new pages to shred. It lacks a continuous on button and is only on when there is paper present. With the bin design, you can not put a trash bag in the bin to have the shreddings go directly into a bag.

On the plus side, the microcut is nice though not much more secure than the 0.25" inch square confetti of previous shredder.

Though, there are a lot of minor issues. It does get the job done and it doesn't seem to struggle.

Comments about Staples® 16-Sheet Micro-Cut Shredder:

I purchased this shredder to use primarily for home use and confidential documents generated from work. I could only find one thing that I wish this shredder had.... an automatic feed. But for the price, I should not expect that. This shredder has gone through all documents with no jams, munched several credit cards and emptied very nicely with a trap door on the bottom of the collection bin. It is also much quieter than the one I had at work! I got it on sale which made it even more attractive.

Comments about Staples® 16-Sheet Micro-Cut Shredder:

My light weight shredders did not hold up. The cutters bent. I guess I'm a heavier user. This unit is top-heavy with its powerful motor. Motor's a little loud, but it's not bad.

The blue light which lights up the bin as the confetti falls in pretty cool.

The trap door on the bin is hard to get snapped back. I don't deal with it; I just dump the confetti and be done with it.

It's a little more than I wanted to spend, but with the $75 rebate, it's not too far out of range.