Printer Purchase

[Julio]

I've narrowed down my printer choices, and I'm torn between the Brother MFC9420CN and the Epson Aculaser CX11NF.

Anyone have any experience with these machines or insight into the companies? Both seem Mac friendly enough.

Thanks,
M

[pilot1129]

Unless you are definately looking for a laser printer, you may want to look at Canons. IMO, they are the best printers out there.

Also, what kind of printing are you looking at doing? text/pictures/both?

[tannenhauser]

yea, canon printers are the best in my book too... good looks, good quality, fast and reliable.

i dont know much about laser printers, i for one do not like the quality of the prints, so glossy, not much color levels, everything looks too sharp and unnatural.

[Julio]

I'm printing color business proposals--mostly written word with a few computer screen shots.

[uypeterson]

After reading the reviews on PC Magazine's website, it seems wiser to go with the Epson. The Epson won the Editors' Choice Award, and when they compared it to the Brother, the Epson demonstrated better color performance.

Plus, the Epson comes standard with 128MB of memory, expandable to 576MB.

Two points (as noted by a reader of PC Magazine) give reason to pause -- the Epson may be difficult to setup and designating the optional 500-sheet feeder as the permanent default could become a hassle.

That said, the setup should be endured just once, but you'll have to deal with the printed pages many times over. Since this purchase is needed to print color proposals to clients, impressive color print quality should be the primary concern. And, according to PC Magazine, the Brother falls short.

Make sure you purchase the unit from a store that has a generous return policy, just in case the results aren't up to par for you.