Showing posts with label color printer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label color printer. Show all posts

11/21/2011

Xerox Phaser 6125/N Color Laser Printer Review

Xerox Phaser 6125/N Color Laser Printer
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I am awarding this printer 5 stars for its ease of installation, quality of output, quality of workmanship, unit price and the average cost of a printed page.
The Xerox Phaser 6125N appears to be a solid, quality unit. Given that you will print about 500 pages before you need to buy your next toner, you get a lot of value for the price. Thereafter, based on the prices currently listed at Amazon, paying $70 for 2000 black and white pages is not bad at all. In fact, on a per-page basis, you are paying significantly less vs. what you would spend on a generic ink-jet printer.
I installed the printer at home, in the basement, plugged into a wireless Linksys router via an Ethernet wire. My printer is now taking jobs from 5 different computers, connected through the same router over Wi-Fi and running Windows XP and Vista.
The unit comes in a nice, neat box where very little space is wasted. The unit is very much assembled and ready to go. There is a `Quick Installation', poster-sized guide (also a 'flash' animation on the CD) that explains in detail how to remove the various sticky tapes that held the printer together during transportation and lock in the toner cartridges. Once that's done, you plug in the power, connect the printer via either USB or Ethernet (USB and Ethernet cables NOT included), turn it on, set up your favorite language if it's not English and you are ready to go. On the computer side, you need to install the Xerox printer driver.
The driver installation(*) was relatively quick and nearly flawless. For it to proceed, the setup program must first find the printer. Since the printer was not physically connected to the laptop, it immediately started to look for IP-based printers. You must make sure that the printer is turned on and it has an IP address(**) while this is happening. The status page, which you can print from the front panel, will tell you if that is the case. My DHCP-enabled Linksys router assigned an address to the printer so no complicated setup was required. On the Vista side, I had to give Vista permission for a couple of tasks to complete. The setup gives you the opportunity to register your printer online. I agreed and it was quick and easy even though I was surprised that the setup knew my printer's serial number but not the model which I have to pick it myself from a long drop-down list.
From the moment I opened the box to the time I printed my first page off a document, it took less than one hour. I can see how some users may require help with the network installation part. I cannot say how Xerox supports end-users with more complex network setups because I did not have to call the tech support.The Phaser 6125N is a large, solid box (see Amazon's picture) and it is so because it holds large (fully loaded) toner cartridges and the fuser unit. Printing is quick and quiet and I experienced no paper jams yet. The colors are bright and both the text and the graphics are crisp - I printed some very complicated flowcharts and a colorful logo to test and I was satisfied with the result. Out of the box, over 200 PCL and PostScript fonts are supported. Other features include 128Mb of memory, support for various paper sizes and paper types including glossies and envelopes, it can be set to go into PowerSaver mode after a period of inactivity (and I reduced it from the 30 minute default to 5 minutes), can be set to produce an audible tone on various conditions, will produce Configuration pages with values for various settings and parameters including the environment's temperature and humidity.
This printer should be ideal for the small office and it could be great for the home if the relatively large size does not bother you. In my case, it doesn't because it's going to stay in the basement. Memory expansion or wireless connections were not issues for me but those who have such concerns should do some research before buying.
________________________________________________________________________
(*) Be aware that a nearly identical model, the Xerox Phaser 6130/N Color Laser Printer offers a few enhancements and extra capabilitis such as:
- Double standard memory (128 MB vs. 64MB) and the ability to upgrade it up to 1152MB
- Larger toner cartridges
- Mac OS support
- Built-in PCL emulation and PostScript 3
(**) Note that you will have to install the driver on ALL the computers that are going to use the printer. Every time you install the driver, you will be prompted to register again. After you complete your first registration, ignore any subsequent invitations.
(***) I can think of 3 basic way you can connect the printer without having to buy any extra hardware, other than a cable, if you don't have one already:
1 - Personal printer - use a USB cable to connect it directly to your desktop computer (or your laptop's docking station)
2 - Shared printer - after connecting the printer as above and you install the printer driver, share it (the specific steps depend on your operating system but it's usually easy). This way, anyone on the same network can use it for as long as the computer that's sharing it is up.
3 - Network printer - you plug it into a network port or directly into a router using an Ethernet cable. Unless you place some restrictions, everyone on the network should be able to use the printer for as long as it is on and the network is up.
(****) The 6125 Toner capacity are: 2000 pages for 'black' and 1000 pages for the Cyan, Magenta and Yellow. If found a 'third party' that offers the set of 4 cartridges for about 55: Xerox Phaser 6125 Set of 4 Compatible Laser Toner Cartridges: 1 each of Black 106R01334 , Cyan 106R01331, Magenta 106R01332, Yellow 106R01333 by LD Products.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Xerox Phaser 6125/N Color Laser Printer

Xerox makes color the easy choice with the refreshingly office-friendly, value-packed Phaser 6125 color laser printer. This's compact printing solution powerful enough to handle all of your office printing demands with ease.

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Xerox Phaser 6125/N Color Laser Printer

11/17/2011

HP CM2320fxi Color LaserJet Multifunction Printer Review

HP CM2320fxi Color LaserJet Multifunction Printer
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I've long been a holdout on multi-function devices as they never were good at more than one thing.... a good printer, but lousy fax or lousy scanner or even lousier copier. So my office has always had a copier, fax, scanner and printer. In fact, I've had two printers -- a fast b/w laser printer and a color inkjet printer.
Well, that's all changed with this MFP device. Copies are good (both color and black/white. Scans are much easier than my existing computer attached scanner (just hit a button and the scanned images are emailed to anyone), prints are fast, single or double sided, and in color or black/white. Faxing is just as easy.
I'm very happy with it. My wife is very happy with it. My kids are very happy with it.
I've seen on other sites where people had trouble installing the software, but I didn't have any such trouble. Now, for most of the computers in the house, I just installed the printer drivers, while for my Windows 2003 server and my Windows XP laptop, I installed the entire software package so I could play with all the bells & whistles. In either case I had no problems.
Definitely recommend the product. Makes it easy to get rid of any other office equipment (other than the shredder, of course).

Click Here to see more reviews about: HP CM2320fxi Color LaserJet Multifunction Printer

HP LaserJet CM2320FXI Multifunction Printer CC435A#ABA 74

Buy NowGet 41% OFF

Click here for more information about HP CM2320fxi Color LaserJet Multifunction Printer

9/04/2011

Brother MFC-3100C Inkjet Multifunction Review

Brother MFC-3100C Inkjet Multifunction
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I have recently purchased this machine for fax and mostly black and white print jobs for my home office. Since then I have purchased a digital camera, and have found this machine produces great framable pictures!!! I would highly recomend this machine for anyone who shops around and wants the most features and quality for the price. I have used up a few ink cartridges printing larger 8x10 photos, but the individual ink cartridges make it easy and cost effective to use. The only thing I am missing is a flatbed, but so far I haven't needed it and have been able to scan pictures through the document feeder. Also a great color copier.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Brother MFC-3100C Inkjet Multifunction

Brother contributes another smart machine (at a smart price) to the multifunction market with this 5-in-1 combination of color fax, color printer, color copier, color scanner, and computer-based fax.
As a printer, the MFC-3100C can produce 10 pages per minute of black and white and eight pages per minute of color, at up to 2,400 x 1,200 resolution (naturally, the higher resolutions are a little slower printing). The 100-sheet paper cassette keeps you always in stock.
As a full-color fax machine, the MFC-3100C features 2 MB of memory, storing up to 100 pages, and 14.4 bps speed, delivering a page roughly every six seconds. With 40 station auto-dialing, the machine also can broadcast faxes to 90 locations. In addition, the MFC-3100C is equipped with a Brother PC Fax Driver, enabling you to send black-and-white faxes from your PC.
The MFC-3100C's scanner function can scan at up to 2,400 dpi, and one-touch keys allow for scanning directly to e-mail or OCR. When it comes to making copies, the MFC5100c can print up to 99 copies at a time at 1,200 x 1,200 dpi resolution. Copies can be reduced and enlarged from 25 percent to 400 percent.
With parallel and USB interfaces, the MFC-3100C is cross-platform compatible, working with Works with Windows and iMac/iBook/G3/G4, with parallel and USB interfacing (cables not included). The unit is backed by a one-year limited warranty.

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Brother MFC-3100C Inkjet Multifunction

9/03/2011

Brother DCP-385c Color Inkjet All-in-One Photo Printing for the Home / Home Office Review

Brother DCP-385c Color Inkjet All-in-One Photo Printing for the Home / Home Office
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
awful!! drivers not on disk and couldn't be downloaded. black ink didn't print.sent back the next day and went back to hp.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Brother DCP-385c Color Inkjet All-in-One Photo Printing for the Home / Home Office

The DCP-385c is a compact all-in-one printer, copier and scanner with enhanced features for photo printing.Print photos on demand using built-in media card slots, a PictBridge/USB interface and a photo paper bypass tray.Additionally, use its convenient and intuitive widescreen 3.3" color LCD display to edit/enhance photos and view help menus.Print borderless images and photos up to 6000 x 1200 dpi‡ and scan to PC, E-mail, media cards, OCR and more. Its flatbed document glass makes it easy to scan bound, thick, or odd sized documents.Additionally, a 4-cartridge ink system allows you to only replace the color that needs to be replaced.

Buy NowGet 28% OFF

Click here for more information about Brother DCP-385c Color Inkjet All-in-One Photo Printing for the Home / Home Office

8/10/2011

Compatible LC-51BK Black Ink Cartridge Review

Compatible LC-51BK Black Ink Cartridge
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
This cartridge is supposed to be the same as LC51BK but it will not work in my Brother printer/fax. It does not recognize the cartridge. When I compare the "real" cartridge to this one I notice a difference: there is a little plastic pin that sticks out of the top of the "real" cartridge and is making contact with something inside the printer. The "comparable" cartridge looks exactly the same and fits in the slot perfectly, but does not have this little plastic piece so my printer is acting like the cartridge is not installed at all. BE CAREFUL and check your old cartridge before purchasing this one. It is a great deal but may not work for you!

Click Here to see more reviews about: Compatible LC-51BK Black Ink Cartridge

Brother Compatible COM-LC51BK, COMPATIBLE Brother LC51BK (Brother LC 51 Black Ink Cartridge) for Intellifax 1360/1860C/1960C/2480C/2580C, DCP130C/DCP330C and MFC 240C/440CN/665CW/845CW/3360C/5460C/5860CN -Fits printer models: MFC 240C/440CN/665CW/845CW/3360C/5460C/5860CN, Intellifax 1360/1860C/1960C/2480C/2580C, DCP130C/DCP330C

Buy NowGet 91% OFF

Click here for more information about Compatible LC-51BK Black Ink Cartridge

7/30/2011

Brother MFC 255CW - Multifunction ( fax / copier / printer / scanner ) - color - ink-jet - copying (up to): 20 ppm (mono) / 18 ppm (color) - printing (up to): 30 ppm (mono) / 25 ppm (color) - 100 sheets - 14.4 Kbps - USB, 802.11b, 802.11g Review

Brother MFC 255CW - Multifunction ( fax / copier / printer / scanner ) - color - ink-jet - copying (up to): 20 ppm (mono) / 18 ppm (color) - printing (up to): 30 ppm (mono) / 25 ppm (color) - 100 sheets - 14.4 Kbps - USB, 802.11b, 802.11g
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
It's fantastic that there are so many things in this one machine, a fax machine, a scanner, a copier and a printer. But that's it. For the first month this machine ran beautifully but then it just repeatedly made me want to pull my hair out! There are constant paper jams, constant error messages stating that there is no paper when there actually more than it needs inside, it has trouble connecting to the computer when scanning and most of all if just one ink cartridge is neat empty or actually is, the machine refuses to do anything. I would understand obviously if it didn't want to print, but refusing to scan just makes no sense simply because ink has nothing to do with scanning. It's a ridiculous machine and can be compared to a disgruntled toddler as it just refuses to work most of the time. Stay clear of this machine and proceed with caution with other Brother products!

Click Here to see more reviews about: Brother MFC 255CW - Multifunction ( fax / copier / printer / scanner ) - color - ink-jet - copying (up to): 20 ppm (mono) / 18 ppm (color) - printing (up to): 30 ppm (mono) / 25 ppm (color) - 100 sheets - 14.4 Kbps - USB, 802.11b, 802.11g

Best Buy Exclusive! This wireless all-in-one printer features memory card slots so you can easily print photos without needing a computer. Scan, copy and fax documents swiftly and efficiently thanks to wireless connectivity. Learn more about the Brother MFC-255CW. (Flash demo)

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Brother MFC 255CW - Multifunction ( fax / copier / printer / scanner ) - color - ink-jet - copying (up to): 20 ppm (mono) / 18 ppm (color) - printing (up to): 30 ppm (mono) / 25 ppm (color) - 100 sheets - 14.4 Kbps - USB, 802.11b, 802.11g

7/24/2011

LC21BK Review

LC21BK
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I find this product does the job. I probably could go the cheaper route but I like that it works and lasts quite awhile. I have found Amazon has the best price.


Click Here to see more reviews about: LC21BK

LC21BK Black Ink Cartridge For Brother Printer (compatible)

Buy Now

Click here for more information about LC21BK

4/02/2011

Brother MFC-495CW Inkjet Color Multifunction Center with Wireless Networking for the Small Office/Home Office Review

Brother MFC-495CW Inkjet Color Multifunction Center with Wireless Networking for the Small Office/Home Office
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I've had this for two months (now several months, see note at bottom), the first part being additional thoughts, with newer at the bottom. If you're considering this printer there are things that I think you might want to know. Note: All of my comments are based on both setting up and using this on a wired ethernet connection.
(Update: This review was written based on installation on an XP system, but I downloaded the Windows 7 64-bit software and it installed fine. I haven't yet seen any issues with it on Win 7. Two weeks into this, it's working fine on Win 7 and XP.)
Pros:
1) Physical impressions: This is an attractive unit, mostly shiny black and matte charcoal. The color LCD screen is pleasant, and the buttons (for general use, more on setup later) are straightforward.
2) Interface: Pretty, and fairly easy to follow. There are some needlessly obtuse icons which, given the space available, don't need to be that way, but all in all it's not hard to use. Fun thing: My unit wanted a firmware update, and while doing the update you get a bit of an audio and visual extravaganza, for what reason I don't know.
3) Print Quality: The printing is good quality. Text is very good for an ink-jet, even to Courier at 8 pts, which is small as the driver lets you go. Photos are about par for the course on regular ink-jet paper. Also, if allowed to dry completely, it was more resistant to smearing (with a wet finger) than most ink-jet inks.
4) Setup (Wired Ethernet): I found this very quick to do, but then I'm used to setting up network printers so knew exactly what I wanted to do. Suggestion: If you want to assign a static IP address to the printer, use the network menu on the printer itself to assign the numbers before starting the installation and to tell it that you want it to use a static IP address, as the install is a bit more straightforward.
5) Faxing: works fine (haven't tried color faxing, don't have a unit that will handle that on the other end) from both PC and printer itself and is pretty quick. (Important as the 'little brother' to this machine has a much slower fax modem.)
Cons:
1) Physical Impressions: This unit feels a bit delicate to me. When removing all of the green tabs and such I felt as though I could very easily break things, and I've never felt that before. When using it I continued to feel as though I could break things, for instance: When opening the lid to place something on the platen, the right hinge seems to want to come off; the paper tray is a bit 'complex' as it has to handle different types/sizes of paper, and it is very flimsy. (Note that I have owned 3 other Brother printers and have never felt this way.)
2) Interface: The menus to setup things are about the same level of complexity as most of these units or as a digital camera. That's fine except that sometimes going back a level just can't be done and you have to exit the menu system and come back in. Annoying, but once you've got things set up who really cares. Another amusing thing: You can select between about 4 'wallpapers' for the LCD, and while they are pleasant enough, they are very multi-colored and make it harder to actually see the information. Oh, and there are a couple of things that just don't work: For instance, the option for how many seconds the backlight should stay on has 4 options: 10, 20, 30 seconds and 'off'. One expects that the 'off' setting would mean just to leave the backlight on, but that doesn't seem to work.
3) Scanning: While easy enough to do from the PC (even over the network, which is sometimes difficult with products in this class) the scanning software is pretty basic, and lacks things I always had on even inexpensive dedicated scanners like de-screening mode. Not a big deal, but you'll need to do more of the work in a graphics program than you would otherwise.
4) Setup (Wired Network): At first, though all seemed fine, the software on the PC kept thinking that the printer was off-line, though the printer didn't think so. Eventually just cycling through the printer booting a couple of times fixed things.
5) Copier: (NOTE CHANGE OF FEELING ABOU THIS AT END OF PARAGRAPH) WARNING: I would never buy this if you intend to use it as a stand-alone copier, even if only lightly. Why? I put a page of B&W double-spaced text and it took it between 1.5 and 2 minutes to copy. I honestly thought that that device had gotten 'stuck' and was going to power it off. But eventually the copy came out. What's strange is that if you do the copy from the PC it works much better. In that case, it seems clear that the Brother software is scanning the image to the PC, then sending it out as a print, and it happens in about half the time. And this is with the copy set to Normal and B&W. (UPDATE: I'm leaving this here in case it happens to someone else, but I need to say that after the first couple of copies, things changed and this problem disappeared. It's still not a really fast copier, but 30 seconds for a typical B&W page is workable.)
6)Flash drive support: This printer supports capture of photos from flash cards such as CF, SD, etc. This works, but in a very cumbersome manner: Other printers I've had that allowed one to read from flash cards (CF, SD, etc) mounted the card with a drive letter, so that one could access it using a standard Windows Explorer interface. Instead, you must start the Brother Control Center, which treats is in an 'ftp-like' manner. Does it work? Yes it does, but it feels a little crude and awkward compared to the competition.WOULD I BUY THIS? Depends on the price: The price on amazon typically varies between $99 and $129. At $99 it's very competitive, but at $129 I'm not sure. The longer I have it the more I like it, with the caveat that one has to be very careful with the paper tray.
TWO MONTHS: My plan was to use my little B&W Brother laser for all B&W printing (or when I didn't care about the color) and use this for photos, faxing, etc. However, while the warm-up time on the laser isn't bad, I find myself using this when I don't feel like waiting for that, and it's OK.
UPDATE ABOUT CLEANING. First, I've had this thing a couple of months and have printed about 24 pages. At various times (I leave it on all of the time, but it's on a network and so isn't affected by turning a computer on and off) it has done what I think is a quick clean. Maybe it was, maybe not - the event only took about 5 seconds.) So today, out of the clear blue sky, it started a real cleaning: It was incredibly loud, and took (I swear) at least a minute to complete. I have had ink jet printers off and on since the late 80's, and I've never seen such an involved process.
Please note that I wasn't starting a print job or doing anything else. I assume that it has some sort of scheduling algorithm that does a cleaning at certain intervals if it's turned on. This seems to me a waste (as cleaning uses ink, and I could probably cause this not to happen by leaving the unit off, but that kinds of defeats the purpose of the fax machine capability.SCANNER NOTE: The light for the scanner is very bright: If there is an image on the other side of what you're scanning, it will 'bleed through' to the scan. I've had two other dedicated scanners and this doesn't happen. This won't be an issue for very thick paper or paper with nothing on the other side of it, but it blew my hopes of dumping my stand-alone scanner.
LATEST NOTE: I recently had to do a lot of faxing out for tax stuff, and I have to say that I'm impressed with how well it handled the faxing. There were two things I specifically noticed: 1) The document feeder works well *BUT* you have to make sure you push the paper firmly in or the document feeder doesn't work. The trick is to first push the papers against it until "ADF" appears on the LCD, and then start the faxing. It reads all of the pages into memory and faxes them. 2) The speed is fine, esp given that I was using the "fine" setting. This is one advantage over the 'smaller brother' of the 495 which has a modem that is half as fast as this. My point to this note is that I was impressed that this thing worked just as well as our much more expensive dedicated business fax machine does for sending.
I've upgraded this from 3 stars to 4 as it's rather grown on me.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Brother MFC-495CW Inkjet Color Multifunction Center with Wireless Networking for the Small Office/Home Office

The MFC-495cw is a feature rich all-in-one printer, copier, scanner and fax. The flexible wireless (802.11b/g) or wired (Ethernet) network interface can connect the all-in-one to multiple computers. The widescreen 3.3" color LCD display enables you to edit or enhance your photos and has easy read help menus. Print borderless images and photos at high print resolutions up to 6000x 1200dpi. You can fax / copy / scan unattended; using the auto document feeder. Increase your productivity with fast print speeds up to 35ppm black and 28ppm color*. Additionally, with the 4-catridge ink system, only change the cartridge that needs to be replaced.

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Brother MFC-495CW Inkjet Color Multifunction Center with Wireless Networking for the Small Office/Home Office

3/28/2011

Brother MFC-490CW Color Inkjet Wireless All-in-One Printer Review

Brother MFC-490CW Color Inkjet Wireless All-in-One Printer
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I was skeptical of Brother printers, but after having a miserable experience with HP trying to get a 6380 to work (two broken units delivered; two units returned; 4 hours on phone with tech support), I broadened my search and found consistently good reviews of this printer. I live in a mixed household (Windows and Mac), which also eliminated many competitors. Finding it on sale tipped the scales.
Out of the box, the printer is compact, has a low profile, and is a bit sleeker looking than the competitors. Overall workmanship is solid.
Only exception is the paper tray which feels a bit flimsy, but nothing that would deter me. There is also no easy way to feed envelopes or letterhead without pulling out the papertray -- and to run envelopes, you need to remove regular paper since the bypass tray is only for photo paper.
Fax machine is a nice feature to have and, thankfully, it does not come with a phone handset attachment which would just take up space for no reason.
Per the manual, the printer can NOT handle both wireless and wired USB/network connection at the same time. Not a problem for me at all as the unit will only be used via wireless.
It is energy star rated and defaults to putting itself to sleep after a period of non-use. Startup out of sleep is very fast when you send a wireless document. I tend to unplug my power strip when I won't be using the computer for a while and was afraid that the settings would wipe, but when I plugged it back in the printer sprang back to life with all wireless configurations intact.
Set up was pretty simple. Following the quick start instructions went fine. Found my wireless router, connected, printed test page, no problem. Installed drivers/software on Windows XP, and it looks to be a lot less heavy than HP's full software. Only wrinkle in installation is that it asked me several times to connect/verify the wireless connection (each piece of software plus the hardware basically asked me the same thing a few times... I probably didn't need to enter it so many times, but it wasn't difficult so I decided to be safe). No problems with Mac install either. Very simple.
Overall, the set up was easy and quick. Brother could learn a bit from HP in terms of integrating the documentation and the printer set up a little bit better, but that's a minor issue. It was easy and the thing worked right away.
Automatic document feeder on top of the machine is a great feature to have in a printer at this level, and it works well.
The wireless integration is well done. I was able to print wirelessly immediately, and, quite a pleasant surprise to find that the "scan" feature actually worked as advertised.
Scanning was as simple as dropping a document into the feeder, hitting scan, selecting which of my two wireless PCs I wanted to receive the doc, and then hitting start. Seamlessly scanned and dropped the PDF onto my hard drive.
Ditto for requesting an OCR of the paper document. OCR quality is pretty amazing. I haven't had experience with desktop/consumer OCR in a few years, so maybe they are all of similar quality now, but I was pleasantly surprised. No formatting came over, but I was able to take a memo sitting on my desk and scan/OCR it in a few seconds. The text dropped into a plain text file and had no errors in text recognition or punctuation.
Print speed appears to be slower than the box claims. I haven't tested it, but it feels slower than a lower quality HP deskjet it replaced. Could be a function of the wireless throughput. I'm not terribly concerned since this is for a low-volume home setup. Print quality is good, not fantastic (I will play with settings and see if I can't improve that). Photo prints onto plain paper are not as clear as HP.
I am also very happy with the low noise level. The printer is quiet (much more so than my prior HP inkjet) and it doesn't rattle and shake and rumble like my prior HP inkjet.
If you're having trouble getting the photo paper bypass to work, I had to resort to the manual. You need to physically move the bypass tray forward and lock it into place -- there is no software setting or configuration switch in the print properties. (You can select paper type and all the normal options there, but not the bypass.) Then when done, you pull the paper tray out and physically move the bypass tray back into standby position. At first I was annoyed, but given the frequency of printing via the bypass, I don't care. And I figure not having two paper paths probably means less chance of paper jams.
The model higher than this one is essentially the exact same unit but with a phone handset and a built in digital answering machine. I didn't think that was worth an extra $50, but if you need an answering machine it might be worth it to save footprint.
So far so good. I highly recommend this printer. For the price, features, ease of set up, size, and quiet, it is a very good deal.
I had tried the HP 6380 which had (to me) slightly better print quality, but lacked the automatic document feeder fax and the very well integrated wireless software. I also was unable to get multiple of them to work -- fatal errors on hardware, plus bad customer support, so I gave up and went to this unit... glad I did. I saved money and got a printer better suited for me.
I will update this review in a few weeks if I have any issues with reliability.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Brother MFC-490CW Color Inkjet Wireless All-in-One Printer

Unattended fax, copy or scan with up to 15-page auto document feeder. Flexibility to share with multiple users with wireless (802.11b/g) or wired (Ethernet) network connection. Wide 3.3" color LCD provides easy help menus and photo enhancement.Direct photo printing from media card slots or USB direct/PictBridge Interface. Print rich, vibrant photos on demand at up to 6000 x 1200 dpi. Fast print speeds at up to 33ppm black/27ppm color and high speed Super G3 33.6Kbps fax modem. 4-ink cartridge system ¿ replace only the cartridge that needs to be replaced. Other features include standard paper tray for up to 100 sheets and convenient photo bypass tray for up to 20 sheets 4"x6" glossy paper.

Buy NowGet 11% OFF

Click here for more information about Brother MFC-490CW Color Inkjet Wireless All-in-One Printer

3/16/2011

Brother Black Compact Inkjet All-in-One with Fax and Wireless Networking (MFCJ265W) Review

Brother Black Compact Inkjet All-in-One with Fax and Wireless Networking (MFCJ265W)
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
In case you got down to the reviews and didn't realize what you're looking at: the Brother MCFJ265W is color ink-jet, multifunction machine. It prints, scans, and faxes. It's wireless. It's an inkjet. It's pretty cheap.
I assumed at first, that this was one of those scam printers which lure you in with price, but don't work very well and charge a wad for replacement ink. Not so! Within the realm of cheap inkjet printers, the output is plenty adequate. You can print photos in a pinch, but it's perfect for printing out maps, web pages, and other notes where color adds to the information. And the OEM replacement ink is reasonably priced, and available on Amazon.
I use a Mac, and as far as I was concerned, set up was easy. There are several modes of wireless, as well as a USB cable connection. (Cable is not included.) There's an included CD with software, but I went to Brother's website and downloaded the latest version. Installing just the printer driver got me printer function, without any additional cruft. I had to install the TWAIN package to get scanner function, which put a little icon in the menu bar. (A *color* icon, actually, ruining the default-black OS X menubar look. Ahem.) And it locked up my menu bar at one point, freezing the clock and nearly making me late for an appointment. But other than that, I've had no problems. I no longer have it auto-load on login, and quit when I'm done with it, and that's been fine.
Scanning was near miraculously easy. I pressed the scan button. The scanner operated. A file appeared in my "Pictures" directory. That's it. The scan was gorgeous, too.
The printer prints reasonably fast. It's quiet. It doesn't vibrate or have any weird smells or do anything objectionable. Since it's inkjet, it doesn't take gobs of power to start up as a laser printer -- no flickering lights. The print quality is fine, but it's not as precise and high-contrast as a laser printer. If your business presence involves looking good on paper, you probably want to spend a bit more on your printer than this. For everyday household printing, though, this is easy, fast, cheap, and totally readable. There is no real output paper "tray" -- printed sheets just poke out the front, waiting to be taken. If you're printing more than a couple pages, there's a little tongue that can be extended to catch them, but I wouldn't let a whole lot of pages build up there. (Which you probably can't since the input paper tray isn't all that large either.)
There's a very nice color LCD screen on the front, which makes setup easy. It even shows you a little animation of how to install the ink cartridges. The cartridges are easily loaded on the front side, behind a hinged door. Each of the three colors and the black are all separately replaceable. The starter ink claims to be "approximately 65%" of a full-sized cartridge, so the printer comes with about 290 pages worth of ink.
Overall, as a household printer for everyday personal printing, I think this is a great choice.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Brother Black Compact Inkjet All-in-One with Fax and Wireless Networking (MFCJ265W)

This sleek and stylish All-in-One is ideal for the small or home office user. You can share with multiple computers using a wireless (802.11b/g) network connection. Built-in fax allows you to send and receive documents without using your computer. The 1.9 Inch color LCD display located on the control panel is perfect for viewing images and easy menu navigation. You can print photos directly from your digital camera\'s media cards. This model also includes powerful scanning software that captures and organizes your documents and images in various formats. Help save money with the 4-cartridge ink system by only changing the cartridge that needs to be replaced.

Buy NowGet 54% OFF

Click here for more information about Brother Black Compact Inkjet All-in-One with Fax and Wireless Networking (MFCJ265W)