Brother MFC-L3720CDW review: a solid but limited color laser
Brother MFC-L3720CDW
MSRP $399.99
“The Brother MFC-L3720CDW is sturdy and reasonably priced coloration laser printer, but it surely lacks some vital options.”
Execs
- Low value for a coloration laser printer
- Fast, high-resolution scanner
- Contains over 1,000 pages price of toner
- Straightforward setup
Cons
- Lacks duplex scanning
- Picture-quality is simply OK
- It is a heavy printer that requires a number of area
If you happen to’re searching for an reasonably priced all-in-one printer, the Brother MFC-L3720CDW may catch your eye. Brother is a well-known title and makes among the greatest coloration laser printers that supply the reliability and refinement that small companies rely upon.
With its built-in automated doc feeder (ADF) and fax functionality, the MFC-L3720CDW may clear up many dwelling workplace wants, saving a visit to the native workplace retailer. I went hands-on to examine the velocity and print high quality, examined the copy and scan options, and researched the long-term value of toner that can assist you determine if that is the precise printer for you.
Design
The MFC-L3720CDW is an enormous, sturdy all-in-one coloration laser printer with print, scan, copy, and fax capabilities. It has a footprint of 17.5 inches by 16.1 inches and a peak of 15.8 inches. The 44-pound weight means you need to plan the place to place this printer earlier than lifting it onto your desk or stand.
Brother’s off-white and medium grey coloration scheme will mix in with any decor. The three.5-inch coloration touchscreen is mounted at 7 levels from horizontal so I needed to stand to learn the show.
The primary paper tray holds 250 sheets and a handbook feed tray lets me print single sheets, which is a pleasant choice for labels and envelopes. The ADF accepts as much as 50 pages at a time.
Whereas most Brother laser printers embody three forms of connectivity, the MFC-L3720CDW helps dual-band Wi-Fi and USB-B, however lacks an Ethernet port. Nevertheless, it does have ports for fax in and telephone out, so you possibly can join an answering machine and not using a separate line.
Printing efficiency
The Brother MFC-L3720CDW outputs crisp black-and-white textual content, even for positive print. Shade paperwork additionally look good, with no banding or gaps in coloration blocks.
Picture print high quality is sweet, however a bit undersaturated and uninteresting. If I oversaturated the image on my telephone, the MFC-L3720CDW may create a richer photograph. That means it is a software program difficulty that Brother may repair in a future replace.
A coloration laser printer is sort of all the time sooner than an inkjet for lengthy paperwork. Brother’s MFC-L3720CDW manages 19 pages per minute (ppm) for monochrome and coloration paperwork, which is double or triple the output of some inkjet printers.
Nevertheless, HP’s speedy OfficeJet Professional 9125e rolls by 22 ppm in black and 18 ppm in coloration, making the MFC-L3720CDW the slowest coloration laser printer I’ve ever reviewed.
One other vital velocity take a look at is how lengthy it takes to print the primary web page. Brother reduce corners a bit right here as effectively. The MFC-L3720CDW takes 15 seconds for the primary web page out (FPO). By comparability, Canon’s well-rated imageClass MF654cdw cuts that by a 3rd with a 10-second FPO.
Particular options
For an workplace, copy and fax may be important. The Brother MFC-L3720CDW contains quick ADF and flatbed scanners to deal with these wants. The scanner is quicker than the printer, so there’s no delay when making a duplicate. It matches the 19 ppm print velocity.
Whereas the printer helps duplex, the ADF can’t scan each side of a web page. If I need to copy a double-sided doc, I’m pressured to make use of the flatbed scanner and manually flip every web page, which is a laborious activity.
The ADF scans at a most of 600 dots per inch (dpi), which is ok for many conditions. For a extra detailed scan of {a photograph} or positive print, I selected the 1200 dpi flatbed scanner. Thus far, most printer producers restrict cellular scanning to 300 dpi.
Printers like Epson’s EcoTank 2800 enable as much as 600 dpi scanning. Nonetheless, that’s half the decision accessible when connecting to a pc. I don’t like arbitrary limitations of in any other case good {hardware}.
Software program and compatibility
As a number one printer producer, Brother makes setup easy. The toner cartridges are saved contained in the printer, however are capped for delivery. It solely takes a couple of seconds to uncap and substitute the 4 cartridges. Like most fashionable printers, the MFC-L3720CDW checks for brand spanking new firmware and may set up updates with out connecting to a pc.
I related the MFC-L3720CDW to Wi-Fi utilizing the Brother Join cellular app and was able to print in just some minutes. Home windows and Mac computer systems acknowledge Brother printers simply and robotically set up drivers as wanted. For the very best quality and most choices for scanning, I downloaded Brother’s desktop iPrint&Scan app.
Worth
Brother costs $400 for the MFC-L3720CDW, a pleasant value for small companies that want a sturdy coloration laser printer. It’s additionally reasonably priced sufficient for dwelling workplaces. The higher concern is how shortly toner prices will accumulate.
The MFC-L3720CDW ships with starter cartridges that may print as much as 1,000 black and 1,000 coloration pages. If you happen to print typically or in excessive quantity, you’ll need to order extra toner quickly.
Excessive-yield cartridges supply probably the most worth. The MFC-L3720CDW can print monochrome pages with a median value of three to 4 cents per web page. Shade prices will add up shortly at 13 to 17 cents per web page.
If you would like coloration laser printer velocity at a extra reasonably priced value per web page, Brother’s MFC-L3780CDW is quicker and accepts XXL cartridges to cut back printing prices to 2 cents for black and 10 cents for coloration pages.
Is that this the printer for you?
Brother’s MFC-L3720CDW is designed for workplaces and is rated to print as much as 40,000 pages per 30 days with a sustained quantity of three,000 pages. Brother contains safety features and cloud connectivity which may attraction to small companies.
Sadly, the options are limiting, missing Ethernet and duplex copying. Because the most economical cartridges received’t match, the MFC-L3720CDW has worse long-term worth than different Brother printers.
Brother’s MFC-L3720CDW faces stiff competitors from higher printers just like the Canon imageClass MF654cdw. Even the HP OfficeJet Professional 9125e, a business-oriented inkjet printer, is as quick as Brother’s price range laser printe,r with a decrease preliminary value and extra economical value per web page for ink.
If you happen to just like the look of the MFC-L3720CDW, however desire a sooner printer with extra options, Brother’s MFC-L3780CDW solely prices $100 extra, comes with extra toner, and accepts the biggest XXL cartridges.
