We normally pit printers of the same type together, but inkjet and laser technologies have gotten so similar in terms of price and performance that we decided to do a categorical comparison, with no restrictions in the type of print engine used.
BROTHER DCP-L3551CDW
The Brother DCP-L3551CDW had the largest footprint of the three SOHO printers tested and was also the heaviest. This certainly has the look of an office laser printer with the body coming in at 410 mm x 475 mm x 414 mm and weighing a sturdy 23.5 kg.
Its 250-sheet paper tray was very handy. Coupled with a 50-sheet ADF made this a SOHO workhorse. we really liked the dual auto document feeder and multi-purpose paper tray. However, for all its large size, it had a small LCD that was fixed in position.
While it has a stated print speed of 18 ppm for both black and colour documents, we found that it took less time to buffer after the print button was pressed and thus, was actually the fastest SOHO printer we tested. The printer offers up to 2,400 dpi print quality and also has optional high-yield toner cartridges.
It has connectivity options that are stated as 802.11b/g/n and WiFi Direct, and from mobile devices using AirPrint, Google Cloud Print, and Brother iPrint&Scan. But we found it could only detect our 2.4GHz network and not our 5GHz one.
Our main complaint was with the small LCD. The small size meant that there was space for only two lines of text that made it difficult to type out passwords and navigate through menu options. fortunately, unlike the Canon G7070, the buttons on the control panel all had descriptions explaining what each did.
Also, since it isn’t an inkjet, toner replacements can be pricier than inkjet replacements although its overall print load is higher. Text printing was sharp and clear like the rest, with text and serifs sharp and clear. However, there was more colour spotting around the text than the other two printers tested.
Overall while able to provide print results close to a laser-based device, its size and weight played against the DCP-L3551CDW in this case. And while the text in the print results came out fine, the image quality was what let it down, with noticeable halo around images and over-saturated blues.
A large paper tray is always welcome in an office.
The fixed LCD made it difficult to view at certain angles.
(+) Close to laser print quality. Fast.
(-) No 5GHz wifi. Small LCD. LCD fixed.
AT A GLANCE
TYPE LED
PRINT RESOLUTION 600 x 2400 dpi
DIMENSIONS 410 x 475 x 414 mm
WEIGHT 23.5 kg
PRICE $448.00
CANON PIXMA INK EFFICIENT G7070
Falling under Canon’s PIXMA range, the G7070 is based on inkjet technology. But what sets it apart is that it is one of Canon’s latest Ink Efficient range of printers, using refillable ink cartridges. It also has added productivity features such as automatic two-sided printing, massive paper feeding capacity, large document automatic document feeder, and full network compatibility.
With dimensions of 403 x 369 x 234 mm and weighing under 10 kg, the G7070 has a fairly small footprint, but still able to handle most print, scan, and copy demands of a SOHO. The only protrusions were the paper trays to hold print outs. And these could be kept away when not in use.
The G7070 has a large 35-sheet automatic document feeder and a two-way paper feed design, which can load up to 350- sheets of paper in total per batch for scanning, uninterrupted printing, scanning or copying, up to 8,300 black-and-white documents and up to 7,700 pages in colour from a single ink bottle refill.
Besides network printing capabilities, it could print from various mobile devices and supports a host of connectivity options like USB 2.0, Wireless, Wired LAN, Wireless/Wired LAN Pictbridge. Wireless Direct, allows direct communication and printing from smartphones without the need for a wireless router.
We didn’t like the LCD though. It was small, displaying only two lines of text, and therefore lacked the functionality of something larger. Navigating the menus and entering information like Wi-Fi passwords was fiddly and took some time. Buttons arranged around the LCD only had images to depict their function. Having words would have made things easier to understand.
Overall, it produced one of the better print quality results. Blacks were dark enough and the text was sharp and crisp. Serifs had no bleeding out, though there was some sporadic spotting around the letters, but this could only be seen under a magnifying glass. Colours were closest to source though there was a little colour saturation. And while image prints weren’t the sharpest, you’d hardly notice it with the naked eye.
The small LCD made navigation difficult.
Being able to view the remaining ink levels was handy in planning replacements.
(+) Good print quality. Being able to see the level of ink makes it easy to judge when replacements are needed.
(-) Problems connecting to wifi. Small LCD with fiddly navigation.
AT A GLANCE
TYPE Ink
PRINT RESOLUTION 4,800 x 1,200 dpi
DIMENSIONS 403 x 369 x 234 mm
WEIGHT 9.6 kg
PRICE $499.00
HP OFFICEJET PRO 9020
The HP Officejet Pro 9020 is a multi-function (print, scan, copy and fax) small office, home office (SOHO) printer that has double-sided scanning/printing up to 24 ppm for black and 20 ppm in colour at 1,200 x 1,200 dpi. At 30,000 pages per month, the duty cycle is enough for most business needs. A set of CMYK ink cartridges will be able to print about 700 pages in colour or 1,000 pages in black. There are also high yield cartridges available that can print 1,600 pages in colour or 2,000 pages in black.
HP is one of the last printer manufacturers yet to embrace the refillable ink cartridge revolution. As a result, you need to use, or at least it is recommended that you use HP original ink cartridges.
At 437 x 396.3 x 318.3 mm and weighing 12 kg, we found the HP Officejet Pro 9020 adequately small-sized with few protrusions. This meant that it took up little space with its squat footprint. Its 2.7-inch LCD, although small, is able to swivel and is large enough to make navigation and entering information easy.
Like others tested, the Officejet Pro 9020 can print from various mobile devices and has wired and wireless connectivity. During our tests when connecting to our wireless network, this was the easiest to set up and it was able to detect both 2.4GHz and 5GHz networks with no problems. Additionally, a smartphone, tablet, or PC can work with a downloadable app from HP that can automate some functions. For example, allowing you to set scan resolution, file type to save as, and where it will be saved.
We really liked the results we got from the Officejet Pro 9020. Text was dark and clear with no bleeding around the serifs. The image printing, while clear enough, had slight saturation around the dark areas and some loss of sharpness. It was also fast, with hardly any discernible difference between the HP and the Brother.
However, this did have the most expensive ink replacements. And that’s what will hurt the HP. Most SOHOs tend to be cost-conscious and paying a higher price over the long run would hurt their operational costs.
The most user-friendly LCD of the bunch.
Easy accessibility is always a plus point.
(+) Easy to setup. Good print quality.
(-) Vibrated a lot and noisy. Can be expensive in the long run.
AT A GLANCE
TYPE Ink
PRINT RESOLUTION 4,800 x 1,200 dpi
DIMENSIONS 437 x 519.8 x 318.3 mm
WEIGHT 12.02 kg
PRICE $459.00
SPECIFICATIONS
MODEL BROTHER DCP-L3551CDW
TYPE LED
PAPER CAPACITY Max. 250 sheets
PAPER TYPES A4, Letter, A5, A5(Long Edge), A6, Executive, Legal, Folio, Mexico Legal, India Legal
PRINT RESOLUTION 600 x 2400 dpi
PRINTSPEED B&W/COLOUR 18 ppm
CONNECTIVITY USB 2.0 Hi-Speed, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Ethernet, Wireless Direct, Windows® Server 2008 (Network only), Server 2008 R2 (Network only), 7 SP1, 8, 8.1, Server 2012 (Network only), Server 2012 R2 (Network only), 10, Server 2016 (Network only), Mac OS v10.11.6/10.12.x/10.13.x, Linux CUPS, LPD/LPRng (x86/x64 environment)
SCAN RESOLUTION 1,200 × 2,400 dpi
DIMENSIONS 410 x 475 x 414 mm
WEIGHT 23.5 kg
PRICE $448.00
MODEL CANON PIXMA G7070
TYPE Ink
PAPER CAPACITY Rear tray: 100 sheets Paper Cassette: 250 sheets
PAPER TYPES A4, A5, B5, LTR, LGL, 4”x6”, 5”x7”, 8”x10”, Envelopes(DL, COM10), Square (5” x 5”,3.5”x3.5”), Card Size(91 x 55mm)
PRINT RESOLUTION 4,800 x 1,200 dpi
PRINTSPEED B&W/COLOUR -
SCAN RESOLUTION 1,200 x 2,400 dpi
CONNECTIVITY USB 2.0 Hi-Speed, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Ethernet,Wireless Direct, Windows 10 / 8.1 / 7 SP1 OS X 10.11.6 , mac OS 10.12, mac OS 10.14
DIMENSIONS 403 x 369 x 234 mm
WEIGHT 9.6 kg
PRICE $499.00
MODEL HP OFFICEJET PRO 9020
TYPE Ink
PAPER CAPACITY Input capacity Up to 250 sheets, Standard input capacity (secondary tray) Up to 250 sheets
PAPER TYPES HP OFFICEJET PRO 9020 Ink Input capacity Up to 250 sheets, Standard input capacity (secondary tray) Up to 250 sheets A4, A5, A6, B5 (JIS), Envelope (DL, C5, C6, Chou #3, Chou #4), Card (Hagaki, Ofuku Hagaki), Plain Paper, HP Photo Papers, HP Matte Brochure or Professional Paper, HP Matte Presentation Paper, HP Glossy Brochure or Professional Paper, Other Photo Inkjet Papers, Other Matte Inkjet Papers, Other Glossy Inkjet Papers, Thick Plain Paper, Light/ Recycled Plain Paper, HP Tri-fold Brochure Paper, Glossy
PRINT RESOLUTION 4,800 x 1,200 dpi
PRINTSPEED B&W/COLOUR Letter: 39/39 ppm
SCAN RESOLUTION 1,200 x 1,200 dpi
CONNECTIVITY USB 2.0, Host USB (print from JPEG, TIFF, DPOF 1.1, Exif 2.3, PNG), Ethernet, Wireless 802.11b/g/n,2 RJ -11 modem ports, Apple AirPrint, Wi-Fi Direct Printing, Mopria Certified, HP Smart
DIMENSIONS 437 x 519.8 x 318.3 mm
WEIGHT 12.02 kg
PRICE $459.00
AND THE BEST SOHO PRINTER IS.... CANON PIXMA INK EFFICIENT G7070
With its fairly small footprint, the Canon PIXMA Ink Efficient G7070 was still able to handle most print, scan, and copy demands we threw at it.
While it was the slowest to print in this group, the results for both text and image quality were the most accurate with little colour saturation or bleeding. The best, and probably most important feature as a SOHO printer, is its low operational costs. With high print volume and the lowest cost for replacement cartridges makes the G7070 an easy choice to recommend.
