Being security conscious at home doesn’t just mean security cameras, door locks, safes etc. it also means making sure that private and confidential paperwork is locked away properly and disposed of correctly. Disposing of confidential papers is very important because it prevents your personal data from being stolen (unscrupulous people will go through bins to see what they can find) and can help prevent identity theft. Don’t just throw those bits of paper that have personal details on them in the recycle bin – shred them with a paper shredder!
Paper shredders for home or home office use range vastly in price and needs. There are different kinds of shredders that offer different kinds of security; strip-cut (or ribbon-cut) shredders, cross-cut shredders, micro-cut shredders and even granulators. There are 7 levels of security for shredders.
- Strip-cut Shredders – these cut paper into long continuous strips and are good for general documents. They offer a security level of 1-2. They ensure that documents can’t be read easily but the strips can be reassembled by someone determined enough in a relatively short period of time. For confidential, personal or sensitive information this isn’t very secure.
- Cross-cut Shredders – these cut paper into tiny pieces, cutting across the paper. They are great for confidential, personal or sensitive/highly-sensitive documents as the pieces cannot be reassembled that easily. These have a security rating of between 3-5. These are perfect for using at home for personal use, in a home office or small office.
- Micro-cut Shredders – these cut paper into small pieces that the cross-cut shredders and are perfect for confidential, personal, sensitive/highly-sensitive documents, documents that are secret in nature. They offer a security level of 6-7.
For home office or personal use, a cross-cut shredder is perfect. These offer different security levels that cut the paper into different sizes and can even shred bank cards and CDs. I have been using the Bonsaii Cross-cut Paper Shredder for home use. This has a security level of 4 (medium to high security) and can shred up to 6 pieces of paper at once continuously for up to 3 minutes before requiring a cool down, shredding paper into tiny particles measuring 5x18mm without the need to remove staples. It can even shred bank/credit cards (one at a time).
The Bonsaii Cross-Cut Paper Shredder is supplied with a 13 litre bin to collect the shredded waste and measures 14.1” (36.2cm) high, 11.8” (30cm) wide and 7” (18cm) in depth. It also features:
- Auto start and manual reversal to clear paper jams make it easy to operate. The home shredder will shred continuously for up to 3 minutes before requiring a 40 minute cool down period. Continuous shredding of up to 130 sheets at a time (6 sheets at a time).
- 6 sheets shredding capacity (no need to remove staples), shreds paper into tiny particles measuring 5x18mm, high-security level P-4, destroys credit cards (one at a time), also can shred staples, paper clips to keep your information safe.
- Has overheat protection with a thermal protection system that will auto shut-off, it can prolong the lifetime of the motor and the shredders. The document shredder will stop working once you lift the head, keeping you safe.
- Is easy to clean and features a 13 litre transparent window bin with a convenient handle design. Perfect for use in the home and small or home office. Conveniently fits under a desk or workstation.
Overall, I think that this is a great little shredder for home use and light shredding. It is very easy to operate by sliding the button on top to forward or reverse and inserting paper to shred. It cuts the paper into quite small pieces that would be very hard to try and piece together again.
The shredder can be used for 3 minutes of continuous shredding, which would shred about 130 A4 pages, 6 at a time before the shredder needs to cool down. The only downside is the length of the cool down time, it requires 40 minutes before it can be used again (it won’t turn on until it has cooled down enough). You will have a cool down period on all shredders and for basic home use 3 minutes constant use is probably enough for most people as, if like me, only have a few pages to shred at any one time.
Clearing any paper jams is easy, just slide the switch into reverse to back up the paper and then forward again.
I think it does an excellent job of shredding paper, even with a staple in the corner, and the shredded pieces are not easily read and would take a long time and an extremely patient and determined person to try and put back together again. Perfect for all your home needs to shred personal and confidential documents.
With the shredded paper you would have to check whether you can put it in the recycle bin as not all councils take it, (apparently it the shredded paper falls between the gaps in sorting machines) so only shred documents that need it – don’t shred every flyer or every piece of paper that comes through your door, they are better off going straight into the recycling bin. If it shredded paper can’t go into the recycling bin, it goes in with the general waste. Or you could use it for bedding for small pets.
The Bonsaii Cross-Cut Paper Shredder is great for getting rid of all your confidential paperwork, letters and even expired bank and credit cards. It is fast to use and easy to operate. The long cool down time is a small negative but as most home users won’t have that much to shred it won’t be an issue for most people.
Every home / home office should have a paper shredder to get rid of any sensitive and confidential paperwork to stop any ID thieves in their tracks. I am happy with the Bonsaii Cross-Cut Paper Shredder and would recommend it.
Rating: 4.5/5
RRP: £39.99
Available to buy from Amazon here.