PRINTING. The HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M281fdw prints using laser technology, which picks up powdered 'toner' on a roller and fuses it to the paper with heat. Its text quality is Excellent, as we've come to expect from a laser printer. Text printing speed is typical, about 14.3 pages per minute, costing 2.2 cents per page. Its color graphics printing is Very Good for reports, newsletters and web pages, at 4.6 pages per minute, costing 16.5 cents per page. It prints photos poorly, like early color laser printers. It has auto-duplex printing to print both on sides of the page, with no loss of quality. If the black ink runs out, it stops printing—it can't be set to just use the remaining color ink. The capacity of the main paper tray is 250 sheets, a generous size. 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. Scanning performance was Very Good, fine for general-purpose scanning. It can scan or copy an area up to 11.7 x 8.5 inches (letter size). Copying was only Fair in performance, not as good as most all-in-ones. It has an Automatic Document Feeder (ADF) for easily scanning/copying a stack of pages.
CONTROLS and DISPLAY. The printer has a 2.5-inch (diagonal size) color display screen that can preview each image in a 1.8-inch window and a touchscreen.
CONNECTIVITY and NETWORKING. You can connect directly to a PC with a USB cable, or to your network router either wirelessly with WiFi or with an Ethernet cable. Apple AirPrint is built in, to print wirelessly from Apple devices via your local network. You can also install an app on your smartphone or tablet, as another option for printing over your WiFi network. You can also print an email remotely by forwarding it directly to this printer. This model has built-in faxing, can store incoming faxes if the paper runs out, and can send faxes from an attached PC.
COST OF OWNERSHIP AND TONER. When this section was last updated, the printer's purchase price was about $430, typical for an all-in-one color laser printer. Printing uses up toner. Over time, as you print, the costs add up. This printer uses 4 cartridges. The HP toner cartridges used in testing were the 202A BK, 202A C, 202A M and 202A Y. At the time, their prices were all $75 each. We estimate the toner cartridges to last an extraordinarily long time — over 5 years — following a typical printing schedule. After 2 years of typical use, we estimate the total equivalent cost to be $504, typical for a color laser. The estimated yearly cost is $37, very low for this printer type. So the 3-, 4- and 5-year estimates are $541, $578 and $614 respectively.
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 HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M281fdw was 20170719.
SOFTWARE. The collection of software accompanying the printer may include: the printer driver, printer applications, electronic user manual, (and for all-in-ones:) scanning, faxing, and OCR apps. These get installed on your personal computer. All models are evaluated with a Windows 10 PC using the latest version of printer driver and printer support apps available at the time of testing. The software version was 61.210.1.22695.
ABOUT THE TONER CARTRIDGES, SOFTWARE AND FIRMWARE. Our test results are valid only for the HP-brand toner cartridges, 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 by either (1) running the HP printer-update app installed on the PC, or (2) accessing the "Settings" section of the printer menu and navigating to the firmware update option. Consult the user manual or HP's website for further guidance. Try searching online.