I've used my Brother MFC9840CDW color laser multifunction machine for
a little over a year, and I like it very much. It costs more than you
like, but to me it's worth it. I think that Brother has similar
machines with fewer functions for less money.
One feature that I think is important in the construction of a color
laser printer is the number of passes that the paper makes through the
printer. Older printer designs pass the paper through the machine four
times, once for each of the cartridges. One way to find out if this is
so, is to compare the print speed for color with the print speed for
black only. If the speed for color is slower than for black, it's
because the paper is making more than one pass through the machine.
The print speed for the Brother is the same, color or black.
The Brother MFC9840CDW does printing (of course) but it also has a
legal size glass and functions as a copier, a scanner, and a fax
machine. It has a duplexer, so that it prints on both sides of the
paper. I don't think that any inkjet has a duplexer, as the paper
comes out too wet to be immediately printed on the reverse side. It as
has an automatic duplexing document feeder which functions for both
copying and scanning. Most functions can be done from either the
computer or the front panel. It connects to your computer wirelessly,
or via Ethernet or USB2.0. It has a manual feed capability which I use
for envelopes and labels. The paper tray holds about 250 sheets, and
it's adjustable for letter or legal. The larger capacity cartridges
are rated at 5,000 copies. It comes with standard cartridges which I
think are rated at 2,000 copies. It has a USB connection on the front
(not used for connecting to your computer), and you can plug in a
flash drive and print from it or scan to it. I've never tried that USB
stuff, so I can't vouch for it.
The print quality for text and for color graphics is great. For color
photos, especially of people, the quality is acceptable to me and to
others that I've given prints to. However, an inkjet does better for
photos.
It has a one year in-home service warranty, which I never had to make
use of. The telephone support is great. The people are Brother
employees in the USA.
One negative: For two of the original standard cartridges, when they
were nearly empty, they began dribbling toner on the copies. So I had
to replace the cartridges while they still had some toner in them.
On Mar 2, 2009, at 1:56 PM, Ranbo wrote:
I need a 4-in-1 printer and have had it with replacing ink jet
cartridges
every 50 pages (or whatever the low number is) so am thinking of
getting a
laser 4-in-1 if it's affordable. Was in Staples recently and
noticed they
have 4-in-1 inkjets which claim (and the salesperson did as well)
get far
more pages per cartridge, and are actually cheaper per page (50%
cheaper as
I recall the statement). Some of the models were on sale, at least
that
week. I don't think I need color, at least not for current needs.
So my
questions are: 1) any suggestions for a model of a reasonably priced
(under $200?) laser 4-in-1, and where to get one? Is this something
to buy
online?
2) Anyone with experience with these supposedly improved, higher
capacity
inkjet cartridges, and if so, whether this might be worth it over a
laser
printer, all costs considered?
3) Is is it a good idea, if one can afford it, to get a color laser
printer, in case one has need for this in the future (maybe brochures,
flyers?)
4) Is the print quality on a laser noticeably better to today's
inkjets?
Please don't suggest a Dell inkjet; I've had so much frustration
with the
one I have now!
As always, I appreciate people with knowledge and experience on this
list
taking the time to answer such questions!
Thanks
Randall
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