Paper Shredders

According to an article in The Seattle Times, the Washington State Attorney General estimates that one in six people will fall victim to identity theft at some point in their lives. Javelin Strategy and Research, a California-based research group, reports that about four percent of Americans are victims of identity theft each year, with average losses of over $6,000. FBI statistics say identity theft is the nation's fastest growing crime and it's not expected to slow any time soon.

Digital identity theft (whereby thieves gain access to your computer, banking or credit card records) gets a lot of press, but the easiest way for criminals to get information like your name, birth date, credit card numbers or social security number is by poking around in your garbage. Paper shredding is a huge deterrent. Although it's technically possible to reassemble shredded documents, a criminal has to be pretty motivated. You can further safeguard documents by separating shredded papers into different bags of trash.

In order to help gauge paper shredder quality, the government has designed several security levels for paper shredders, based on how easy it is to reassemble a document after it's been shredded; the smaller the shred, the higher the security rating. Most home shredders are “level one” shredders, meaning paper pieces are no larger than 3/8" x 3.5". Most home cross-cut shredders chop up paper no larger than 3/8" x 1.5". Security levels go up to level six, which is designated for the National Security Administration and the Department of Defense. Paper shredder reviews say most homes and small businesses will be fine with level one or level two.

In 2006, the government issued a safety alert about home paper shredders after receiving 50 reports of accidents – including finger amputations – involving shredders. The warning from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says most accidents involved children younger than five years old and advises parents to place shredders out of children’s reach and unplug them when not in use. Some shredders, such as the Fellowes Powershred P-57Cs in ConsumerSearch Fast Answers, have sensors that automatically stop shredding when the paper entry slot is touched.

There are two main types of home and small-office paper shredders. Strip-cut shredders cut paper into long strips. This type of shredder is considered much less secure than cross-cut paper shredders, which also chop paper crosswise into confetti. Reviews recommend skipping strip-cut paper shredders entirely. Reviews say cross-cut shredders, which have come down in price, are vastly more secure.

Cross-cut paper shredders – also called confetti-cut shredders – cut documents in two directions, chomping them into confetti-like pieces, greatly reducing the chances of the document being pieced back together. By far, cross-cut models are the most recommended in paper shredder reviews. Staples and paper clips are no longer a problem for most shredders. Almost any paper shredder can hack through these.

Best paper shredders

In tests, experts at Which? select the Fellowes Powershred DS1 (*est. $110) as the best paper shredder for most home offices. Editors at Good Housekeeping call it their "Runaway Favorite." Owners posting comments to Amazon.com and Epinions give the DS1 unusually high reviews. Testers say the Fellowes DS1 shreds quickly (one page in less than three seconds) and the 4.75-gallon bin uses a step-can lever that makes emptying easier. The Powershred DS1 shredder is rated for eleven sheets (although five sheets is more realistic). It handles up to 220 sheets per day and has a child-resistant feature that automatically stops shredding when touched. Reviewers say this model handles paper clips, staples and credit cards with no trouble. One owner at Amazon.com points out that you can line the waste bin with plastic grocery bags for easy dumping – no special liners or bags are required.

Fellowes also sells a similar sounding model, the Fellowes Powershred DS2 (*est. $60) , but this shredder is actually quite different. The DS2 is only rated for eight sheets (perhaps two sheets realistically) at a time and can run continuously for about half the time of the DS1. In addition, the DS2 does not offer the nice step-can levered waste bin that reviewers love on the Powershred DS1. Both machines come with a five-year warranty on the cutting blades. Both the DS1 and DS2 have the same SafeSense feature that turns off the blades if the paper entry slot is touched.

If you need a heavier-duty paper shredder, the Fellowes Powershred SB-97Cs (*est. $190) can handle up to 17 pages at a time, or up to 1,700 pages in one day. Reviews praise the heavy-duty metal gears (many lighter duty models use plastic gears instead). The Fellowes SB-97Cs also has a safety feature that turns off shredding if the paper-entry slot is touched. It has a ten-gallon bin and chews easily through paper, credit cards and paper clips. It also has a designated slot for CDs and DVDs. The shredder shuts off automatically and an alarm sounds when a jam occurs, if the door is ajar or the basket is full. Testers like this shredder's narrow design that fits in tight spaces. This model also has casters for mobility. Owners also say this model is remarkably quiet. Fellowes offers a one-year warranty on the entire shredder and seven years on the cutter blades

The top cross-cut paper shredder in the review at The Wall Street Journal is the Staples Executive Cross-Cut EPS-1501X, which has since been replaced by the Staples Executive Cross-Cut SPL-1506X (*est. $150) which has very similar features. The replacement model shreds paper, credit cards, staples, paper clips, CDs and DVDs. Unfortunately, we did not see the updated Staples shredder included in professional testing at this point. The Wall Street Journal testers loved the older model for its pullout wastebasket, quiet operation and ability to tear through 15 sheets at a time. Judging by the number of reviews at Staples.com – more than 300 – this is a very popular shredder. Most owners are happy with it, saying it's relatively quiet as well. Features-wise, the Staples paper shredder is very similar to the Fellowes Powershred DS1, but the Staples shredder doesn't have a safety feature to shut down the gears if hands get too close. The Fellowes shredder is also less expensive than the similar Staples shredder.

Since we last looked at shredders, opinions for the Royal 85X (est. $55) have plunged. This model performed well last year and was included in ConsumerSearch Fast Answers, but as time passes, owners are reporting durability problems. Some users on Amazon.com say it gets the job done, but others complain it can’t shred the advertised ten pages at a time or that it conked out completely after a year of use. Reviews at CircuitCity.com are more positive on the whole. However, both websites post higher ratings for the Fellowes Powershred P-57Cs (est. $55) , which costs the same. The Fellowes P-57Cs comes with a built-in safety sensor, and users say it can shred five or six pages at once. We found few complaints for this model, which shreds paper and credit cards, but not CDs and DVDs. It comes with a five-gallon wastebasket.

For more money, we saw good reviews for the compact HSM Shredstar Multishred (*est. $80). Expert reviewers love this space-saving light duty shredder. Good Housekeeping Institute engineers report they couldn't jam it even when they tried. The Multishred is about the size of a toaster and is rated to shred eight sheets through its 5.2-inch mouth (that means you have to fold paper in half lengthwise). This unit is small, but receives a level three security rating for its cross-cut shred. In addition to shredding paper, paper clips, staples, credit cards, CDs and DVDs, the Multishred can also shred floppy disks. It has an auto-stop feature when the one-gallon waste bin is full or if it jams. HSM offers a two-year warranty on the shredder with a 20-year warranty on the cutting roller. Unfortunately, at this time, the Multishred is only available for purchase by contacting HSM directly at 1-800-613-2110.

Money magazine gives the Staples Executive 6-sheet Cross-Cut EPS-611X a thumbs-up in its shredder review for light home use. Now discontinued, a successor to this model, the Staples MAILMATE Junk Mail Shredder (*est. $40) scores a strong average of four stars (out of five) from more than 600 customers who have purchased it on the store’s website. Users like its compact size and low price, but some warn that it broke just after the one-year warranty period ended. This light-duty shredder, with a 1.5-gallon basket, boasts some improvements over predecessors, including the ability to shred CDS and DVDs, as well as handling up to ten sheets of folded paper per pass (five pages or less realistically). Like most other paper shredders, it has auto-start and stop settings and a reverse mode to back out jams. Staples offers a one-year warranty on the unit and has extended the warranty on the cutter to ten years. It doesn't have a safety feature to prevent injuries, however.

In general, cheap shredders really just don't get good reviews, but might be okay for light duty as long as you're careful not to overload them.

Reviews really do not recommend strip-cut paper shredders (also called ribbon-cut shredders) at all, since they don't chop paper into the smallest pieces. The long strips can be more easily reassembled by an ambitious criminal. Strip-cut shredders aren't necessarily any cheaper than cross-cutters, so there's really no need to skimp, according to reviews.

Shredding CDs and DVDs

With more and more information being stored digitally, you might be interested in a shredder that can also munch CDs and DVDs. Some machines are specifically built for the task, while others are paper shredders that multi-task. Interestingly, not all of the single-purpose disc shredders actually cut up discs; rather, they destroy the data by marring the surface of the disc with rollers as it passes through the slot. The Norazza DD3001A CD and DVD Data Destroyer (est. $40) is one such machine. It is compact and claims to render up to 15 discs a minute unreadable. The few reviews available of the unit on Amazon.com are positive. Another compact CD shredder is the Alera Technologies DVD/CD Shredder, which also mars, but doesn’t cut up, discs. While reports on the efficacy of this method aren’t available, users seem satisfied that discs are rendered unreadable, although a few remain skeptical and prefer total destruction.

If you need only occasional CD or DVD shredding, quite a few of the heavier duty paper shredders can do this. The Fellowes Powershred DS1 can shred CDs and DVDs. The Staples MAILMATE Junk Mail Shredder (*est. $40) is a cheaper light-duty shredder (discussed above) than can also handle the occasional disc in addition to paper.

In between the Fellowes Powershred DS1 and the Staples shredder is the Royal 85MX (est. $50). Its dedicated media destroyer slot chews CDs, DVDs, credit cards and even floppy discs. It has a 4.2 gallon basket and earned an average of 4.2 out of 5 stars in 30 ratings on CircuitCity.com. Several note that it is noisy. This model might be worth a look if you need to regularly destroy discs. It also does fine shredding paper (rated at seven sheets, but three is more realistic).

If you need to destroy a larger volume of discs, the Alera Technologies DVD/CD Shredder 240114 (*est. $45) works by inserting hundreds of tiny holes in the disk (CD, DVD or floppy). This desktop model doesn't shred paper at all. Owners say it work well. The Alera is rated to destroy up to 30 discs per minute.

The Fellowes Power Shred PS-70-2CD Personal Strip Cut (*est. $205) looks like other shredders, but it has a large seven gallon basket, a higher duty cycle of up to 1,500 sheets per day and is rated for up to 15 sheets at a time. It’s billed as a home office shredder, designed for heavy duty use. In addition to paper, it also slices through staples, credit cards and CDs. It has a user-friendly safety lock, an auto-stop/start feature, a reverse feature and a full bin indicator. The Fellowes paper shredder automatically shuts off when the unit jams, overheats or the bin isn't securely in place. The cross-cut Fellowes Powershred DS1 in ConsumerSearch Fast Answers has a lower duty cycle of about 220 pages per day, but it doubles as a credit card and CD shredder and is both more secure and less expensive. For just a little bit more money than the PS-70, you can get the Fellowes Powershred SB-95C (*est. $250), which cross-cuts up to 1,700 pages a day and is far more secure than a strip-cut shredder like the PS-70.

Important Features: Paper shredders

Reviewers say to look for the following when shopping for a paper shredder:

• Get a cross-cut paper shredder. This type of paper shredder chops paper into smaller bits, and is vastly more secure than a strip-cut paper shredder.

• Try to get more shredder than you think you need. Paper shredders always have a capacity rating, but you should take these figures with a grain of salt. An eight-sheet shredder can most likely handle two or three sheets of office paper at a time. Paper shredders that can chop up CDs, DVDs and credit cards are a good option if you store data on hard media.

• Look for an easy-to-empty bin. With cheap shredders, you generally have to take off the motor head to empty the basket. If you don't need to shred a lot of paper, this can save you some money. More expensive shredders have bin drawers or tip-out bins that make emptying a lot more convenient.

• Almost all shredders have auto-stop/start and reverse modes. Auto-start means the paper shredder kicks on when you insert a piece of paper, so you don't have to turn it on and off. A reverse mode helps clear paper jams.

• Consider safety features. If you have kids in the house, consider a shredder with safety fingers that stop the blades when touched.

Our Consensus Report shows how many times products are top-ranked by reviewers included in our
All The Reviews Reviewed chart.

# of picks	Model with retailer link	Details from Amazon.com
4	Fellowes Powershred DS1 (*est. $110)	details
2	Staples EPS-1501x (Discontinued)	-
2	Fellowes Shredmate P50CM (Discontinued)	-
1 each	Fellowes Powershred SB-95C , Fellowes Powershred P-57Cs , Fellowes Powershred P-97Cs, Fellowes W11C , HSM S10, HSM Shredstar Multishred, Aurora AS870CR, Tech Solutions TS-8000, Staples EPS-611X, Rexel V50, Office One VS502C, Ryman MS 1001, HSM X5, Rexel V125, Fellowes PS-60C , GBC Shredmaster 955x, Staples MAILMATE Junk Mail Shredder

We found the best reviews for the Fellowes Powershred DS1. Although the Staples EPS-1501X and Fellowes Shredmate P50CM are recommended in more than one review, both are discontinued. To identify other good shredders, we looked to owner-written reviews at Amazon.com, CircuitCity.com, Target.com and Epinions. The Powershred P-57Cs and heavier duty Powershred SB-97Cs, for example, both outscore others in their class in owner reviews. The Staples MAILMATE Junk Mail Shredder is a replacement model for the Staples EPS-1501X. With more than 600 owner-written reviews at Staples, it scores well in its budget price range.

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