Strengths:Does It All - Prints, Scans, Faxes, Copies in Color and Black and White. Network & Duplex come Standard. Prints from USB key. Security settings. Works with Windows Vista (among other OSs.) WIRELESS!
Weaknesses:Color can appear washed out. Won\'t auto-duplex scan legal size documents. No multi-format card reader. No color (touch) screen for displays. Menu settings are a bit confusing. No finishing options.
Summary:Brother hits a home-run with this Multi-Function device. For those with discerning tastes who require nothing but the best, but refuse to spend upwards of $4000 for a heavy-duty office device, this is the ultimate \"Do-It-All-arator.\" Yes, this unit does it all - Copies, Faxes, Prints, and Scans.
=DUPLEX=
Unlike other devices which offer \"duplex\" via a manual mode where the user needs to turn the pages, the duplex functions on this unit are automatic. (If you don\'t like auto-duplex, you can turn them off.) Also, the ability to auto-duplex comes STANDARD on this model.
=LASER=
Another huge benefit not specific to this model is that it is a LASER device. To understand why this is a benefit, you need to understand the drawbacks to other printing methods:
1 - Ink runs if it gets wet - because this unit uses toner, once something\'s printed or copied, it won\'t smudge / smear.
2 - Wax based (aka \"solid ink\") printing methods are essentially high tech \"crayon\" printers. They deliver a high-gloss image which, while it has a more vibrant look, can crack if the page is folded. Also, because the wax binds the paper, days and areas with high humidity can cause the paper to curl. Because the 9840CDW is laser / toner based, it doesn\'t suffer these afflictions.
=PRINTING=
Installing the printer drivers Windows Vista was the easiest thing I\'ve ever had Vista do. The standard setup function installed all of the drivers, utilities, and extras with all of 3-4 clicks of the mouse.
Prints are crisp and clear, if not a bit \"fine.\" (It\'s not that the text is a shade of grey instead of black, it\'s that if a given line [say, from a letter \"L\"] should be 17 pixels wide, this printer seems to only print 15 pixels. This is an example, and not some result from a test, so take what I say with a grain of salt.) This can apparently be adjusted by turning up the contrast via the menus either via the printer directly, or via the printer control software.
=SCANNING=
With its integrated flat-bed scanner with automatic document feeder (ADF,) this device also scans. The ADF is capable of scanning up to 50 pages before at a time before needing to be reloaded. While these features are all mentioned on the Brother website, what is not mentioned (or buried somewhere,) is that the scanner is ALSO auto-duplex capable! That means it can copy BOTH sides of a letter sized (11\" long) piece of paper. What makes this of such great value is that this device can replace a dedicated duplex scanner, which can typically cost about $300 on the lower end! (This is great for scanning invoices or checks from clients for a \"digital proof\" version to be stored electronically...)
The scanner can scan to a number of formats, such as JPG and PDF. (Of course, once the file is in the computer, the user can convert the file, but why not save an extra step?)
Scanning is easy. Insert what you want to scan into either the ADF or onto the flat-bed scanning area, press scan, select the scan type (scan to FTP, Image, E-Mail, File, and OCR,) select if the item to be scanned is 1 sided or 2 sided, and press GO! (Technically, there is no \"GO\" button. Instead, there are two buttons which determine if the selected function should be done in b/w or color modes, but they do make the selected function begin right after being pressed, so they\'re like a \"GO\" button.)
Whatsmore, if the 9840 is connected via a LAN connection (wired or wireless,) the unit will ask which computer to scan to. This feature is GREAT for workgroups. It means people can share the scanner with amazing ease!
As far as negatives go, the ADF won\'t duplex scan pages longer than 11\" (letter-sized.) (This is due to a physical design limitation of the scanner - the paper path isn\'t long enough to handle 14\" worth of paper.) Simplex scans of longer (ie 14\" / legal) pages are handled admirably.
When scanning via the flat-bed glass, the paper must be centered on the glass. I prefer that the item being scanned be positioned in a corner, which affords more stabilization on the item, especially for scanning things like books, where the flat-bed cover doesn\'t close all the way, or the item may slip.
=FAXING=
It faxes. It will print default cover sheets from memory when requested (good for when someone else used up the last pre-printed one.)
=COPYING=
It copies! Again, since this is a combination of the SCAN and PRINT functions, see those for the good points & limitations.
=WHAT IT NEEDS=
- Finishing options (ie: staple, collate, etc...)
- A larger standard input tray (1/2 ream of paper is too small.)
- Media-Card Reader (for printing from Compact Flash, et al...)
- Color User Screen (Good for more / better info in menus, and for previewing media card images.)
Aside from that, this printer is EXCELLENT! It does nearly everything that a VERY costly (> $4000) office copier can, and adds color!
I HIGHLY recommend this model to any small business own
