Printing The Brother HL-L2480DW prints using laser technology, which picks up powdered "toner" on a roller and fuses it to the paper with heat. It prints black-and-white text with excellent quality. Text printing was reasonably fast, 5 pages took 17 seconds, costing 5.4 cents per page. It prints mono graphics with some obvious defects, but OK for casual use, costing 18 cents per page. It has auto-duplex printing to print both on sides of the page. The capacity of the main paper tray is 250 sheets, a generous amount. There's a second single-sheet input tray for full-size paper, in case you just need a printout on letterhead, for instance.
Scanning and Copying This is a multi-function printer. Scanning performance was very good, fine for general-purpose scanning. It can scan or copy paper up to letter size.
Ease of Use This printer's usability is good. When connecting to a new access point, entering the WiFi password is easier than most. It has a color display screen with a 2.7-inch diagonal size and touch-input capability.
Versatility It's slightly versatile and has a limited featureset: a USB port, WiFi, Ethernet, and auto-duplex printing. The main tray can hold up to 250 pages, a generous amount. It has 2 input paper trays, which you can preload with different paper types. It can handle heavy paper—230 gsm—great for printing lightweight card stock. The largest paper size it may accept is 8.5 x 14 inches, larger than most models. It has a second input paper tray that can store another 1 sheets, a small amount. The output tray can hold up to 100 sheets, helpful when you need print a largish amount all at once. It's a small design that may find a place on a crowded desktop, and a heavyweight at 22.2 pounds.
Connectivity and Networking It can print documents via USB, Ethernet and WiFi. We found it relatively easy to setup the WiFi connection on this printer.
You can also print from your smartphone or tablet. One option is "cloud printing" which most phones and tablets natively support. If yours doesn't, look for the Brother printer app at the online store. For more details see
Brother's website. Be aware that cloud printing transmits your document outside your home network, to a cloud server before reaching your printer. If you're near the printer, then the second, more-private option found on most printers is "WiFi Direct" which wirelessly connects the printer exclusively to your phone or tablet. A third option is wired—a "USB OTG cable for printer" with the USB that's compatible with your device—an inexpensive accessory, but it may not be supported on older devices.
Costs and Toner When this page was last updated, the printer's purchase price was about $ 250, typical for an all-in-one black and white laser printer. Printing uses up toner and the costs add up over time. This printer uses one cartridge. When the toner runs low, you replace the empty cartridge. The toner we used in testing was the Brother TN-830 BK cartridge—at the time, the price was $ 61. According to our tests, one cartridge will print approximately 1133 pages of black text, a fair amount. We estimate each cartridge of toner to last at least 4 years—a long time—following a typical printing cadence of 26 text pages per month. After 2 years of typical use, we estimate your total equivalent cost to be $ 284—typical among mono laser printers. The theoretical total cost after 5 years is $ 334.
Notes The printer needs a moderate amount of space.
Printer Firmware Firmware is software that exists inside the printer. All models are evaluated using the latest firmware version available at the time of testing. The firmware version of the Brother HL-L2480DW was 1.10.
Software The collection of software accompanying the printer may include: the printer driver, printer applications, electronic user manual and scanning, faxing, and OCR apps. These get installed on your personal computer. All models are evaluated with a PC and the Windows operating system, using the latest version of printer software (driver) and printer support apps available at the time of testing. The software version was 1.6.0.0.
About the toner, software and firmware Our test results are valid only for the Brother-brand toner, and the software and firmware versions indicated. If your printer's software or firmware differ from the ones shown, you either have an older or a newer version of these. Manufacturers may periodically upgrade the printer's firmware to enhance operation, fix bugs, or add features. Firmware updates are downloadable directly to your printer via a wired or wireless network (if internet capable). You can check your printer's firmware version, or upgrade to the latest firmware: Either (1) run the Brother printer-update app on the PC, or (2) access the "Settings" section of the printer menu and navigating to the firmware update option. Consult the user manual or Brother's website for further guidance.
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