Well, it’s been just under a month since I bought my own Brother MFC-7340 laser multifunction center, and it’s about time I wrote the review on the unit.
When I got the drive home, it was very well packaged and came with everything I needed to get started, plus the USB cable. It included the power cord, phone cord, phone adapter, a printed manual, and a CD with drivers and OCR software (software that reads text from a scan and converts it into an editable document).
It took a couple of minutes for the unit to come out of all the packaging, remove the protective tape and insert the toner/drum, after that it was all ready to be plugged in and turned on.
Power-up was seamless, booting up in about 20 seconds, and I was able to set my initial Preferences easily using the built-in screen, with the simple questions of Location (already defaulted to Australia) and Date and Time.
Once this was done, the system was instantly ready to use for copying and faxing without any additional configuration. All three modes have illuminated buttons, so you can easily see which mode is active, and you have an informative 2-line display for adjusting settings.
Installing the software was also very easy, after a few simple prompts when you put in the CD, the software installed automatically and was ready to go in about 5 minutes.
Impression
This printer is one of the best lasers I’ve ever used, with extremely clear prints and typically this first page out in around 7 seconds, with a page about every 2-3 seconds after that.
If the printer is in sleep mode (you can set the time before it goes to sleep), it usually takes about 13 seconds before the first page is output. It’s also one of the quietest printers I’ve ever used, using it in a small office I could easily talk on the phone without it causing too much background noise as the printer was in the middle of the room.
I have also found the single media tray useful as it allows me to easily print on letterhead or envelopes. The only drawback is that sometimes it is a bit difficult to load the media.
Exploration
You can use the software on your computer to start the scanning process or use the controls directly on the printer. Speed is excellent with the automatic document feeder set to standard quality black and white, with a page scanned approximately every 8 seconds.
Color quality could be a bit better, however the results experienced are perfectly adequate for general office scanning where exact colors are not important.
The only thing I like about this machine’s scanner is that the ADF and flatbed scanner cover are designed so the tray doesn’t slam shut if you drop it, it stays up and allows you to load the document with both hands. .
The software allows you to save the finished files in many formats, including standard still images or even a PDF, where each scan in that set is combined into one PDF file.
Fax
Personally, I haven’t been able to test the fax functionality of this printer other than to see how it reacts to scanned documents. If you scan the documents with the ADF, it will automatically go through all the pages and then start the fax call.
If you need to scan with the flatbed scanner, it will ask you after scanning the first page if there are more pages to scan or if you want to start the fax call.
Once you start the fax call, the built-in speakerphone is extremely clear and lets you easily know if the fax is going as it should.
You also have the option of having the fax automatically print a transmission report or not after each fax.
conclusion
For the price, I find this to be a great value multifunction system. Performance is excellent and consistent, toner refills are inexpensive and they hold 250 sheets of A4 paper so you only need to refill occasionally.
The unit feels sturdy and well built, and I think it would last through constant office use. I wouldn’t recommend it if it’s going to be used to print on special media such as envelopes on a regular basis, only holding one envelope at a time and being a bit difficult to load would cause delays in a busy office.
The other thing I would complain about is that the screen is not backlit, which means you have to use it in a well-lit room to see the screen clearly.