I'd been anticipating receiving my x4550 eagerly, ever since reading the specs about it at Lexmark's website. So when it arrived, I tore into the box and immediately started setup.

And was quickly disappointed. Not that the printer isn't easy to set up — it is. The problem was that the control panel somehow came off in shipping, and the control buttons were all missing! I found some right away, fired off an email to the folks supplying the review product, and continued the setup.

And setup is a breeze. The x4550 is clearly geared toward home and home office users, because the instructions are easy to understand and follow. The software guides you through each step, including connecting with your home wireless network.

It was only after setup that I found more buttons had fallen inside the printer. They were keeping the carriage from moving, so the test page wasn't printing. As of right now, the only control buttons I'm still missing are the Copy Mode, Scan Mode, and Photo Card buttons, which are most likely all together somewhere. I have to keep an old pen cap next to the printer to press those buttons, which works OK — it's just an annoyance.

For home use, print quality is pretty good. The black and white was more vibrant than my HP P1100, but the color printing seems washed out — especially the reds. I was afraid at first that the still-missing buttons were causing the problem, but I've heard that others have had a similar problem, and I've had a similar complaint about Lexmark printers in the past. But the ink is cheaper than the HP cartridges I've been buying, so there's a plus.

The copy and scanning software is very intuitive, and photo printing is a breeze. The x4550 has slots for most memory card types, as well as a USB dock for digital cameras. The printer is versatile, and would be an excellent choice for home use. While the speed isn't spectacular, the x4550 does compare favorable with my HP.