If you're going to get a printer, why settle for one that can only print? A multifunction or all-in-one printer will let you get a lot of utility out of a single device. While most of them will primarily do the heaviest lifting in printing, they often have a bit of muscle for copying and scanning as well. Some excel as photo printers, and a few even keep faxing functionality around.
Now, perhaps unfortunately, there are many multifunction printers on the market, and they can vary in quality dramatically. Some will let you churn out documents at a blazing pace while others might keep you waiting on prints of anything less than a couple of pages. A slower printer might be fine for you, but then you'll also need to be sure that it doesn't need a ton of maintenance between each periodic use. So, it pays to be sure you're getting a good printer regardless of whether you're going for the high-end or looking for a budget pick.
We'll guide you through a variety of quality printers that are well suited to varying needs, whether you're running a hectic home office or just print a few photos a month.
TL;DR – These are the Multifunction Printers:
- HP OfficeJet Pro 9015e
- HP Envy Pro 6455e
- Epson WorkForce Pro WF-7820
- Brother DCP-L2550DW
- Canon Pixma TS9520
- Brother HL-L2340DW
1. HP OfficeJet Pro 9015e
Best Multifunction Printer
A multifunction printer needs to be able to do a lot, and the more work it can take off your hands, the better. The HP OfficeJet Pro 9015e gets the job done with some smart considerations to boot. This thermal inkjet printer can spit out 22 black-and-white prints per minute, and it's not much slower when it comes to color prints. It also handles those prints at a sharp resolution.You'll have your bases covered for copying, scanning, and faxing as well. With Wi-Fi connectivity, you'll easily be able to send print jobs over to the OfficeJet Pro 9015e or have it send scanned files to your computer, phone, or even to the cloud. This printer includes an auto document feeder to help with some of the more tedious tasks, and it has individual ink cartridges for each color, so you won't need to waste the other colors when one runs out.
2. HP Envy Pro 6455e
Best Budget Multifunction Printer
For simple printing needs, you don’t need to buy the fastest laser printer or the sharpest inkjet printer. The HP Envy 6455e is your run-of-the-mill option and comes in at a fair $150 price point. It only gives you a little to worry about with a single black ink cartridge and a single tri-color cartridge. If you don’t even want to worry about ink, you can sign up for HP’s Instant Ink program, with six months of the service coming free with the printer.
The HP Envy 6455e doesn’t fall short in capabilities with a modest 10ppm printing speed for typical documents, and that only dips to 7ppm when color gets added to the mix. You can also use the printer to turn out photo prints and some larger prints up to 8.5 by 14 inches. The printer offers sharp scanning, and it can handle copying as well. With an automatic document feeder and an auto two-sided printing feature, it can also take some of the tedium out of certain copying and printing tasks.
3. Epson WorkForce Pro WF-7820
Best Color Laser Alternative Inkjet Printer
You’ll find inkjet printers around every corner, but if you want speed, you’ve likely seen laser printers as the only option. Epson is turning the tide, though. The Epson WorkForce Pro WF78 Series, namely the WF-7820, may be an inkjet model, but it’s capable of churning out black and white prints at speeds getting close to that of laser prints. You can get 25 pages per minute from this work horse, and you can even have it do duplex prints automatically from its 50-sheet ADF.
Your monochrome document print speeds aren’t the only thing that’ll benefit from using this printer as it can also churn out color prints at 12 ppm. With a heat-free technology, the WorkForce Pro WF-7820 is also going to manage this printing while drawing a maximum 20 watts of power — much lower than you’ll see laser printers spiking up to. And, as an all-in-one, this device will let you copy, scan, and fax from it as well.
4. Brother DCP-L2550DW
Best Multifunction Monochrome Laser Printer
If you're inundated with tons of printing and copying tasks of basic, black-and-white documents, then the Brother DCP-L2550DW is going to be your new best friend. This laser printer is built for speed and comes at a reasonable price. It can churn out prints at 36 ppm, which will let you get even the lengthiest documents done in no time. With automatic duplex printing and a toner-saver mode, it can also help you save not just time but also supplies.The Brother DCP-L2550DW has a 250-sheet paper tray to keep it well-fed for long print jobs, and it has a 50-sheet ADF that can let you remain hands-off while copying or scanning multi-page documents. It can also connect to Wi-Fi for more convenient use from all of your devices.
5. Canon Pixma TS9520
Best Multifunction Printer for Photos
Though a lot of multifunction printers can spit out photos, they aren’t always going to offer as impressive results as a printer that has a little more specialization. The Canon Pixma TS9520 sets itself apart by using five separate ink cartridges, with one of those being a pigment-based black and another being a dye-based black, giving the printer a wider tonal range than would be achieved with just a single black ink source. This separation of each color to its own ink cartridge also makes it more economical to operate the Canon Pixma TS9520, as you won’t have to throw out a multi-color ink cartridge that’s half-full when only one color has run out.
The Canon Pixma TS9520 offers more capability beyond just the prowess of its coloring. It has a fast printing speed at 15ppm for monochrome prints. It can even print some extra large formats at up to 11 x 17 inches. With an SD card reader built into the printer, you can also go straight from camera to printing.
6. Brother HL-L2340DW
Best Multifunction Printer for Documents
Yeah, this breaks the rules a bit, but if you just need to print term papers, receipts, and various other non-glamorous computer-related tasks, a simple laser printer is hard to beat. The Brother HL-2340DW is a personal favorite of mine.The minimal, rounded design of this printer doesn't draw attention to itself —the two paper guides thankfully fold flat—but it's a dorm room or home office hot rod where it counts: printing speed and cost of ownership. We're talking 26 ppm and the toner will last you between 1,200 - 2,600 pages depending on whether you go for the standard- or high-yield toner, respectively. I personally print lots of documents for work and I've purchased exactly three high-yield toner cartridges since 2011. The pack-in cart that came with my Brother HL-L2340DW lasted almost two years.
Automatic duplex printing is here too, as is Wi-Fi. If you can live without the latter though, you can save $80 by going with the Brother HL-L2300D to drive the value proposition even higher. Best of all? No matter which you choose, neither have a crappy touchscreen.
What to look for in a Multifunction Printer
When it comes to multifunction printers there are really only two options: inkjet or laser.
Inkjet printers work just like they sound by spraying ink through a print head full of nozzles. They're fantastic for printing high-quality photos with rich colors and sharp details, but they aren't particularly fast at spitting out pages. Inkjet printers also often cost less than their laser-based counterparts, but you'll end up paying more for new ink cartridges in the long run as they don't last as long as toner cartridges.
Laser printers utilize a process of rolling toner onto pages and baking this powder onto them using lasers, which is why the copies that come out of laser printers are usually warm. The biggest advantage of laser printers is they can produce a lot of prints in a short amount of time.
The bad news is laser printers and toner cartridges are usually more expensive than inkjet tanks, especially if you're looking to buy one that also prints in color. That said, toner cartridges often last much ink cartridges, so you likely be able to use the one that came with the printer for more than a year even if you're making a lot of copies every day.
Picking the right type of multifunction printer comes down to considering how often and what you'll be printing.
If you won't be printing any photos or color documents, a monochrome laser all-in-one is much more suited to your needs than one geared towards high-quality photos. And if you stumbled down here looking for something to just print documents, quickly, always go for a laser printer.
Mark Knapp is a regular contributor to IGN and an irregular Tweeter on Twitter @Techn0Mark
