* The GBC BindMate binding machine was released in 2009 by Acco brands and is designed for use in a small office or home office environment.

* Acco Brands who also makes the Swingline brand of hole punches and the entire line of GBC binding equipment developed the BindMate to be a combination three hole punch and plastic comb binding machine.

* With a low price point and an easy to use design, this machine offers a great combination for offices that need to bind documents with both plastic combs and 3-ring binders.

Strengths / Features:

* The BindMate is one of the only combination binding systems that is designed to punch both 19 holes for plastic comb binding and 3 holes for use in presentation binders. Plus, with a price point under seventy five dollars, this machine offers a great value for small and medium sized organizations. It can punch a 19 hole pattern on both letter sized sheets and oversized covers and a 3-hole pattern on eleven inch sheets.

* This machine is very easy to use. In fact, all you need to do in order to switch between 3-hole punching and 19-hole comb punching is flip a small switch that is located on the front of the machine.

* The BindMate has a carrying handle conveniently located on front right side of the machine. This makes it easy to carry and transport the machine when it is not in use. It also offers a medium duty plastic comb opener located on the top of the machine.

Weaknesses / Limitations:

* Although this machine offers the ability to punch documents with two different punching patterns, it does not have a very large punching capacity. The BindMate is rated to punch 6-8 sheets of 20lb paper at a time. For an inexpensive machine, that is in line with its competition. However, punching thick documents or thicker papers with this machine can be very time consuming.

* The plastic comb opener included on the BindMate is designed for light duty binding of small documents up to 5/8" thick (about 125 sheets of 20lb paper). Organizations needing to bind thicker documents will need to consider a larger comb binding machine with a heavier duty plastic comb opener.

* This machine is designed to handle documents with an eleven inch punching edge. Users who need to bind documents that are either shorter or longer than eleven inches will need to select a binding machine with disengageable punching pins.

Recommendation:

* The GBC Bindmate is a good selection for a small office or home office that needs to bind documents with plastic combs and also uses 3-ring binders to store their documents.

* This machine offers and excellent price point helping to make it a good value for low volume users.

* However, this machine is not a good choice for high volume users or for companies that need to bind large documents. The small punching capacity and the limitation on the plastic comb opener make this machine impractical for punching documents with more than 100 sheets.