Brother HL-5250DN Network Ready Laser Printer with Duplex
by BROTHER
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Our Price: $649.88 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $148.00 (click here) Category: CE See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Brother HL-5250DN Network Ready Laser Printer with Duplex
Customer Review: Clarifying UPS problems
Summary: 5 Stars
I have this printer and I am very happy with it. It performs exactly as advertised, and it is very fast.
I'd like to clarify the power supply issue that so many reviewers have commented on.
First of all, this problem is NOT limited to users who plug their printer into the UPS. Many UPSes will detect the line voltage drop caused by this printer as a brownout and go online to protect the attached equipment. This happens even when the printer is plugged directly into the wall (as it should be). This is not just a matter of reading the instructions, it is a real problem.
Whether or not you see this problem in practice depends on a number of factors, including whether the printer is plugged into the same circuit as your UPS, whether you have 15 or 20A service, how far the printer is from the breaker panel, how old your wiring is, whether your UPS has undervoltage regulation or not, etc.
When this printer is heating up and printing, I have seen power draws of 900+ watts and voltages around 104 volts on recent 15A residential wiring. This did not cause my UPS to go online, however it is equipped with undervoltage regulation. Many UPSes would go online at this voltage. In any case, your mileage may vary.
On a completely different note, one small drawback compared with the model it replaces (HL-5140) is that it no longer has a straight through paper path for thicker paper or envelopes to prevent curling.
Customer Review: Be Prepared to Tinker
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a great printer so far, I haven't had it long but it so far, so good. Before the goodness however, there was a bit of tinkering I had to do.
Like someone mentioned earlier, there is a PROBLEM. You can't print "peer-to-peer" over the network when the printer is in sleep mode.
To fix this problem, you need to go to the brother website and download the latest "network firmware" update. It is an .exe file so you need to click it to decompress it. The file you should get is something like "64_108.blf".
Then you need to install the BRAdmin Pro Utility found on your cd-rom. Run the program and locate your printer in the list, only highlight the printer you want to update, then at the top click on "control" > "load firmware".
Under the window firmware download, select "tftp put" and click "ok". In the new window, the default password should be "access" and just put the path to the "network firmware" file that ends in ".blf". (Make sure you have no print jobs running and also for me, I took the printer out of sleep mode before upgrading the firmware). Click Load, wait a few seconds and it should all be done.
The printer will take a minute to load and restart and after that you are good as gold. It may seem a little complex but it is a great printer. For the price and a little tinkering, you end up with a great deal.
Customer Review: I love Brother printers. I hate them. I buy them.
Summary: 4 Stars
I've had mine for over four years, possibly six if it's been out that long. About two years ago it became unable to pick up and move paper from the tray through its guts, merely producing clicking noises. I considered having it serviced, but finally bought a cheaper Brother on sale for around $100. I missed the duplex abilities and the higher speed of this one, so I found a place that might be able to repair it. Before taking it off for repair, I hauled it out of the pile of assorted junk I'd left it under, dusted it off, plugged it in, and... it worked perfectly again and has not had problems since. It can be noisy, and it curls paper quite thoroughly (especially in duplex printing), but the print speed is good and the print quality adequate. There's probably no need to buy one of these -- there are surely better models out there now -- but if you can pick one up used or refurbished for a good price, you shouldn't rule it out.
My experience with Brother printers has truly been mixed. They're reliable for a time, and then they suddenly fail -- and sometimes return from the dead. Time to failure varies from "shortly after the warranty expires" to quite some years. The low prices keep me coming back, but sometimes I wonder whether I can find some old workhorse laser printer out there, refurbished, that takes toner from a bottle and will last me a decade with luck.
Customer Review: Fast clean print with poor paper handling and noise
Summary: 2 Stars
Output is very quick. Printouts are very clean. Graphics look excellent. Noise from paper path is excessive-- I've actually returned (2) under warranty hoping that the sound of marbles it makes when moving paper through the path would go away. The 3rd printer still makes the noise - so I can assume this is hereditary to the machine. Paper path definitely wrinkles paper- but eventually it settles down. Envelope feeder is very finicky as to what envelopes you use. I've noted creases on all envelopes except a Brother specified Office Depot product. For the price, if you can stand the noise and short term wrinkling, it's worth it. But... consider the Samsung alternative. I purchased an ML 3051ND for my other location about 90 days ago. Same speed. Similar outputs - but no paper handling crinkling issues (Samsung gives you the option of a straight paper path by dropping the rear door - Brother has eliminated this capability) and No noise. Plus, it has a display to tell you in English what's going on as opposed to trying to decipher Brother's light codes. It's about $70 more, but significantly better in quality and feel. I'd recommend spending the extra money. Everytime you throw out a crinkled envelope or try to flatten out a stack of printouts or hear the marbles in a tin can sound of the machine's operation you'll be reminded of the $70 you saved. Buy cheap, suffer long.Customer Review: The Little Printer That Could
Summary: 5 Stars
The HP1100 I purchased in the mid-90s for home use was getting pretty long in the tooth, and I was tired of constantly battling the firewall to let my wife's computer print to it, so I looked around for something suitable to replace it. The printer that seemed to fit in terms of price, capability, and size was this one. I was a bit dubious about purchasing anything this inexpensive, and a few of the reviews slammed it. But I took a chance.
So far, my fears have been allayed. It has worked faithfully for several months, and I push the limit on "home" printing. One of the features I was interested in was the double-sided printing feature. Even my much more expensive (but older) HP printer at work won't do this. It has not only worked very well, but it is much more useful than I had imagined. While it is nice to save paper, being able to print out manuals (all of which are supplied in electronic form now) that actually look and read like a real manual is wonderful.
The networking feature has worked flawlessly. To install it on a computer, you simply use the automatic installer provided. I connect to the printer using a USB connection, a cable network connection, and a wireless network connection, and all work without problem.
The jury is still out on how long it will work well, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I really like it.