Protecting my Identity with the Fellowes Powershred 73Ci - Review

Are you protected from identity theft? 

I have to admit I am not someone who puts a lot of thought into identity theft and the things I should do to protect myself. A few years ago a family member had their card cloned so really I should give it more thought as I know first hand it does happen.

When I lived at home with my parents I used to use our shredder to shred all of my documents as my dad would tell me how important it is to protect myself from identity theft. Our shredder wasn't the best, it would often jam so you would have to spend ages pulling out bits of paper. Since I moved out I haven't had a shredder so have had to use scissors which is time consuming and doesn't cut through staples etc.

All that has changed now as I recently received a Powershred 73Ci to review, I couldn't have been happier. I know most people wouldn't get excited about a shredder but I was really looking forward to using it and getting it up and running. 

Setting up the shredder is really easy, firstly I removed all of the packaging then I put the shredder on top of the shredder bin, plugged it in and turned it on! Voilà. 

Operating the shredder is easy, it has a touch screen panel on the front where you can see the shredder icons which are blue in colour and easy to see. The main icons are the on button, the reverse button and the forward button. If the shredder is loaded with too much paper or the bin is open you will see relevant icons for this too - they will be red icons. Don't worry the shredder comes with an instruction manual which explains all of the buttons but most are self explanatory.

The shredder is incredibly powerful and can cut through CD's, DVD's credit cards, staples and small paper clips. This helps save a lot of time as I didn't have to spend half an hour removing staples from paperwork.

The shredder has a huge 23 litre pull-out bin which is a big plus as it means more shredding and less emptying, again this will save time. The bin is easy to take out and put back in so there is no hassle when you do have to empty it.

The shredder is a cross-cut paper shredder and creates approximately 410 particles per A4 sheet. The Powershred 72Ci creates tiny strips of paper and I feel completely confident that my shredded documents are safe to be thrown away.

Fellows have created the first 100% Jam Proof System for the Powershred line. I love this feature as our old shredder would jam and it would be a struggle to remove the paper again. The Jam Proof technology electronically measures paper thickness to eliminate jams. If you put in too much paper the shredder you will see a red light indicating you have to remove some paper. Very clever and very efficient.

Key features:

Suitable for Heavy use
Cross-Cut Paper shredder
Eliminates paper jams
Shreds for 10 minutes before cool down
Automatically stops when hands touch the opening
Energy efficient 
12 sheet shredding capacity

The shredder comes with casters which are easy to install, I have found this useful for moving the shredder around as it does have some weight to it. There are also handles on the sides to lift it if needed.

The shredder is a quiet shredder, of course it makes a small amount of noise but it is certainly one of the quietest shredders I have heard. A lot quieter than our old shredder. You can hear how quiet it is in the video below.

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I would highly recommend the Powershred 73Ci for office and home use. You can shred your documents with ease saving time and energy and be confident in the knowledge that your shredded documents are safe to be disposed of.

You can find more information on the fantastic Powershred 73Ci shredder on the Fellowes website.

*I was sent a Powershred 73CI for the purpose of this review. All thoughts and opinions about the product are my own, I have not been instructed on what to write.