GMW60B 6 Sheet Micro-Cut Paper Shredder, Limited Edition Shredder

Pros: Nice big shred receptacle, doesn't fill up too quickly. Micro-cuts are uniform and small Relatively quiet Comes with lubrication sheets Cons: The light does not indicate that its on unless you stick a paper in it. Overheats way too easily Heavy top Admittedly, I had a pretty significant pile of shred waiting for this unit, after my other (cheap) shredder finally died. I was aware that the description said that it has 5 minutes of continuous run time before needing a break. With that in mind, I was very cognizant of how much I was trying to shred at any one time. The second time I sat down to use it, it hadn't even been five minutes, but I reached a point where I decided to do something else. So, I decided to empty what I had shredded out of the bin. When I took the heavy shred-top off, I saw that it was smoking - SMOKING. Without an overheat indication. That could be a very dangerous situation, considering it is sitting on top of a bunch of shredded paper. Just buyer beware. I will try not to stress this thing out, but it seems too tempermental for my liking.

Review for: GoECOlife SOHO GMW60B Micro-Cut Paper Shredder (6-Sheet) OVERVIEW: ----------- A sweet spot in value for small home or home office paper shredders for light volumes, having one of the SMALLEST PAPER SHREDS of any micro-cut shredder of modest expense, and certainly one of the most attractive by far. PROS: ------ (1) Results in one of the smallest paper shreds of any micro-cut shredder of modest expense, specced for over 2,225 pieces per 8.5"x11" (0.12" x 0.35" paper shred). Many other micro-cut shredders spec out to 1,500-2,000 shreds per 8.5"x11". (2) Very sturdy, unlikely to tip over. (3) Support appeared customer service oriented in conversation, located out of California. CONS: ------ (1) No slide out paper bin. (2) This is not a power shredder, it is for fairly light usage. Likely great for AVERAGE HOME OR HOME OFFICE USE. Get something else for massive shredding jobs. (3) Footprint, though small, not as small/skinny as some small home or home office shredders. The trade off is that it is quite stable. It is like a pretty large office desk trash can. For example, the GoECOlife GMW83B is 4" skinnier. (4) If shredding a multi-part form sheet, or otherwise extremely thin, often crinkly, paper, such paper will often not have the heft to set-off the shredder without folding first to increase thickness. Not much of an issue with the light load of most home use, but just FYI. LESSER PROS: -------------- (1) Very well packaged and protected against both getting banged up and cosmetic scratches. (2) They claim every unit is inspected for workmanship and functioning. (3) For a small unit it is quite stable. The trade-off is that it isn't as skinny as some small units and thus may take up a bit more space. MEASUREMENTS: ---------------- - Cord length: 4'11" - Top: 10 5/8" x 11 3/8" (roughly 10.5" x 11.5") - Bottom: 8 1/4" x 9 1/8" (roughly 8" x 9") - Height: 14 1/4" - Weight: 12.8 lbs. LOUDNESS: ----------- At 2.5 to 3 feet it ranges between 59-65 dB. This is roughly your distance from it when putting paper in. There are some ads out there noting the noise at 60 dB, however the internal specs available to support do report it to be 65 dB max. There is nothing about the tonal quality of the sound that is to me jarring or particularly annoying for a shredder (high pitch whines, sounding like it will tear itself apart, etc.:). For those worried about such things, FYI 65 dB is way, way below levels known to cause hearing damage even with hours of exposure. It is silent when not in use, of course. NOTES: ------- - Don't leave paper shredders plugged in if little kids around. - Though the manufacturer says it works with staples, they said removing staples first is better for the life of the unit. - If shredding very thin paper, like a multipart form/carbon sheet, folding it up a bit first often helps the paper to set off the shredder. - The GoECOlife brand is manufactured by Intek America, which makes shredders and other equipment branded for big box retail stores since 2005. - Release date for the GoECOlife GMW60B is July 2013. - You'll want to put a very little bit of shredder oil zig-zag-applied lightly on paper and run it through paper shredders once a month or so, more or less often depending on usage. I have no evidence that once per month is the right balance, that is the manufacturer's recommendation on the phone. You can always purchase pre-oiled sheets either from them (or someone else) for convenience. The unit comes with 12 sheets pre-oiled. - It is rated for 6 sheets at a time and sure enough 6 sheets of 24# paper shred successfully. However, the fewer pages you put through household and home office level shredders at a time the better for the life of the unit. Also, if you shred unusually heavier paper, this lesser page count per shredding may help extend the life of the unit. - The electrical cord has a 2 prong plug. FYI in case you are in an older home without electrical ground and were wondering if this shredder required it. ECO/GREEN STUFF AND SURGE CHECK: ------------------- - As claimed, as long as there is no actual shredding going on, the Wattage is zero, even if the unit is switched on (no vampire/standby power drain). - When shredding a single page wattage ranges between 64-74 Watts (at 0.7 Amps), so no big hair dryer like surge to worry about. - When shredding 6 pages wattage ranges between 114-121 Watts (at 1.2 Amps), so no big hair dryer like surge to worry about. SOME OTHER EXAMPLE SMALL MICRO-CUT SHREDDERS: ----------------------------- _____________________Sheets__Est. #Shreds________Gallons _____________________Max_____Per 8.5"x11"__Lbs.___Basket___Size -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Amazon Basics_____________8_________1,500___15______3.0___12.5"(L) x 7.8"(W) x 16.8"(H) Ativa MDM8000____________6_________2,050___26______4.5___15.0"(L) x 9.9"(W) x 18.9"(H) GoECOlife GMW83B_________8_________1,500___10______3.0___13.1"(L) x 6.7"(W) x 14.6"(H) SimplyShred S4-06MP_______6_________2,350___22______3.2___15.4"(L) x 9.8(W) x 17.7"(H)

The shredder is not designed well for handling, too cumbersome to move around. It also overheat too quickly. It does a good job with shredding documents.