The Brother HL-L3270CDW colour laser printer is the printer-only version of the top-tier laser-class LED multifunction printer from Brother the MFC-L3770CDW.
For both home offices and student use, the Brother HL-L3270CDW is a respectable printer. Even when you are finishing big printing jobs, it prints at an impressive rate and costs little per print. It also features a display screen that can be raised to the user’s preference and a large input tray that can hold a lot of paper. Paper jams from the back are much simpler to remove thanks to their excellent design. Sadly, there is a lack of a scanner with this printer, and there is significant color banding when printing photos.
Do you intend to purchase it? If so, you are in the right place. Read on for more of our assessment of this printer.
Table of Contents
Pros And Cons
Pros
- high-quality printing.
- numerous options for mobile device connections.
- 250-sheet paper tray.
- Web Connect connects a printer to the cloud and social media platforms.
- Fast print speed.
- Low cost-per-print.
Cons
- The cost of operation is a bit high.
- neither a slot nor a tray with multiple uses.
- lacks a scanner.
Fast For Entry-level
Brother rates the HL-L3270CDW at 25 pages per minute (ppm), while the HP M252dw and Canon LBP612Cdw are both rated at 19 ppm, and the higher-volume Brother HL-L8360CDW ($449.99 at Amazon)(Opens in a new window) is rated at 33 ppm. Using the standard Intel Core i5 testbed PC from PCMag running Windows 10 Professional, I performed an Ethernet test on the HL-L3270CDW. I timed the printing of my 12-page, 12-point Microsoft Word text document at precisely 25 ppm.
It would not be appropriate to compare the results of the M252dw and LBP612Cdw here because they were both tested using a different benchmarking procedure. However, based on my experience with both machines, they both produce documents at a rate that is very close to their 19ppm ratings. The HL-L8630CDW, a higher-volume variant, printed the same text pages at a 33.2ppm rate.
Terrific-looking Output
The HL-L3270CDW produces excellent output on every front, just like its AIO sibling. Crisp, well-formed text is used throughout. The text rendering of most business documents, including those requiring small type, is suitable for most serif and sans-serif fonts because they are readable at the smallest point size that can be read without magnification (in my case, about 6 points).
The business graphics output from the HL-L3270CDW also looks good. My Excel and PowerPoint documents’ charts and graphs came out with solid fills, smoothly flowing gradients, and clearly defined hairlines and rules. The graphics output is more than adequate for internal use as well as for marketing materials directed at current and potential customers, as well as anyone else you’re trying to impress.
I printed PCMag’s collection of 4-by-6-inch snapshots and 8-by-10-inch test photos even though laser-class printers are not the ideal devices for printing photos. Compared to some other laser printers, the results were impressive, with brighter, more vibrant colors. Additionally, the level of detail is slightly above average. Even though photos printed on laser printers are rarely, if ever, as good as those printed on photo-focused inkjets, the HL-L3270CDW’s photos are still more than adequate for business documents and possibly even applications where images are crucial, like, say, real estate marketing materials.
High Running Costs Limit Volume
Most entry-level, low-cost laser printers have the disadvantage of being more expensive to operate than their more expensive, higher-volume laser competitors and inkjet printers that can replace lasers. The HL-L3270CDW’s operating costs, which are about 2.6 cents for black pages and 15.5 cents for color pages, are slightly better than average when compared to its entry-level rivals. The average price for a black page on the Canon LBP612Cdw is 3.2 cents, while the average price for a color page on the HP M252dw is 16.3 cents.
Entry-level All The Way
For small offices that don’t print more than 200 to 300 pages per month, the HL-L3270CDW makes sense as a quick entry-level $250 laser-class printer with above-average output and competitive running costs. Brother’s HL-8630CDW is a good option if, on the other hand, you require a higher output volume and lower running costs; an inkjet alternative, such as the previously mentioned HP 452dw, can provide an output of an even higher quality and even lower CPPs. However, the actual price of both of those options will be several hundred dollars higher. The HL-L3270CDW, on the other hand, is our Editors’ Choice for a personal or light-duty color laser-class printer for a micro office if you’re looking for moderate-volume laser-quality output.
Read More: How To Connect Brother Printer To iPhone?
What Are The Customers Saying?
- “This was a perfect replacement for an old color laser printer. The duplex feature is faultless and produces excellent color copies. Setup took no time.”
- “I should have spent more money and ordered one with a scan function, but it still works!”
- “I’ve had this for about two months, and I must say that it has exceeded my expectations. I had to make only a SMALL amount of adjustments to get the desired results on this laser because all of my files (vector and raster graphics) were set up to print on inkjet.”
- “The vendor who resells it does not meet the requirements even though it is a fantastic printer. The power cable was missing when I received the printer. Thank goodness I always have those extra cables.”
- “I adored how simple the wireless setup was. Plugging in the electrical cord, inserting the provided CD into the computer, and repeatedly pressing the next button were all required.”
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The Bottom Line
For use in a home or small office, the Brother HL-L3270CDW printer is adequate. It produces amazing black-and-white and color pages.
Furthermore, it is well-made, and thanks to its design, paper jams can be easily removed from the printer’s back. Furthermore, it is made of sturdy plastic.
