- Average user rating: 2.5 stars out of 9 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
Full user review
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4 out of 4 people found this review helpful
4.5 stars
"Excellent value for the price. Perfect for small office activity and home use."
Pros: Duplex function, copy and print with pretty clear & crisp quality
Cons: DO NOT PLUG IT TO THE SAME OUTLET OF YOUR PC !!! It "must" use a seperate power outlet.
Summary: Like many, I was looking for some kind of all-in-one machine that fit my needs which is small office (like 200-300 page a week) with lots of document scanning and for home use (particularly with kids in middle schools where they have lots of projects & reports)
I did a lot of study for it and my final choices were Brothers MFC 8860DN and HP3390. Having been a long time HP user, I am tired of the excessive amount of heat it uses to print (noticeable when printing envelop). Also the running cost and (so so) customer service.
Well. . . after 3 months of using 8860DN - - "I LOVE THIS MACHINE". It does the job perfectly well. Here are my Pros & Cons:
Pros:
- Very fast laser printing with good quality. Print quality equals or exceeds those of HP but definitely it prints faster than HP.
- Duplex function. Help save lots of time and papers. Better yet, it also do a duplex copy and scan. I do not use it often but when I need it, it works flawlessly
- Very very easy to use and set up (on this - you need to understand that I am an engineer and have been in IT/Computer workforce for over 25+ yrs).
- If you are cost concious, I think cost/print in the long run is cheaper than HP. Besides, Brothers has a soup-up version on toner that you can chose for a little more $$ but double the print amount.
- The application for PC scann/fax/email is quite good for the price
- It can recognize the fax ring tone, so you dont have to worry about using the same phone line for voicemail and fax etc etc
- User manual is quite easy to follow. It describes quite well the various functions. A nontechnical background person should be able to follow it through with relative ease.
Cons:
- When I first set it up, I used the same UPS of my desktop PC. When I printed the first test page, it literally freeze my desktop (Gateway Pentium D). Which reminded me of a few feedback I read earlier. Note that this is OK if you plug it through the same outlet that you also plug in power supply of your laptop.
- For Window XP with multi user log ins, some times the non-admin account cannot use the PC SCAN/FAX/PRINT function. This seems to be common (as I saw lots of comment evenon Brothers web site). But I hope the bright people at Brothers are working to improve this and release the fix soon.
A lot of users complaints about the loud noise it produces when printing and some periodic self check before it goes to sleep mode. I found this to be nonsense. I place it right behind my desk in my home office and I spend 6-10 hours nearly everyday at my desk. I do not find that it produces any louder noise than any reasonable laser printer will produce.
Of course, you need to read the manual to understand the various functions and setting and just set it to suite your own needs.
Lastly, I was not in a hurry when I bought it. Once I was certain that this is what I needed, I checked around for best deal - with the promo + rebate + points, I got this at a low $400
I am sure I will be a very happy user with MFC 8860DN for many years to come
Where to buy
MFC-8860DN 5-in-1 Network-Ready Monochrome Laser Duplex Multi-Function Center:
$449.95 - $839.99
| store | price | in stock? | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
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Amazon.com Marketplace
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$839.99 | See Site |
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Supplies Guys
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$493.00 | No |
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Ace Depot
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$449.95 | No |
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