Brother MFC-7820N 5-in-1 Network Monochrome Laser Multifunction Center
by Brother Printer
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List Price: Our Price: $199.00 You Save: $50.99 (20%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Brother MFC-7820N 5-in-1 Network Monochrome Laser Multifunction Center
Customer Review: Mac OS X software is terrible
Summary: 3 Stars
I had the printer set up and working on my network in a few minutes. I downloaded the latest software from Brother's website and had no trouble getting my Mac OS X 10.4.4 machines printing and scanning.
My major gripe is that while the Mac OS X software works, it is terrible. I've now used scanners from Epson, HP, Canon, and Brother. And while it all has been pretty bad, Brother's is the worst.
There is the TWAIN software from Brother, which is very limited in functionality. For example, there is no way to change the scale of your scan. The only way around it is to enlarge the DPI resolution, then in photoshop adjust the DPI. It also doesn't allow you to scan from the Automatic Document Feeder, which appears to be possible under Windows.
Then Presto! PageManager 4 from NewSoft Inc. is included for performing tasks like OCR and scanning without using Photoshop. This appears to be ancient software that doesn't follow normal Mac OS X conventions. The interface uses old Mac OS 9 icons along with really cheesy custom icons. Images are saved to the PageManager application folder (along with a zillion other random files). The interface is completely bizarre. For example, for no particular reason a clock is included. The software crashes on a regular basis. I've yet to get the OCR functionality to actualy work. It doesn't support scanning to PDF.
Version 7 of PageManager is now available from NewSoft Inc, but it is 80 dollars. It really should be included with the printer.
So while it technically supports Mac OS X, it is not a enjoyable experience.
Customer Review: Great value
Summary: 4 Stars
I own a small business - emphasis on small. I tried my best to research all-in-ones before buying and ended up with this one.
The printing (computer to printer) is fast and the laser quality is very good. It also has a manual feed so you can print on envelopes, labels, etc. I wish it had a second tray so I could have bond paper in one and regular paper in the main tray - but it's a small inconvenience.
The fax works well, and there's a lovely option to turn off the ring when you receive faxes (so if it is in your office, a fax will come in without ringing, which is handy if you're in the middle of meeting clients). Of course you can turn on and off the option to have a fax confirmation report.
The scanning leaves something to be desired. I like that it has a flatbed scanner so you can scan items smaller than a 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper. I also like that you can configure it to send images directly to certain files (rather than having to hunt through the one scanned folder for whatever you just scanned). But the scanning speed is very slow. Even scanning on low quality takes forever. Although the scanner comes with the option of scanning to an OCR (optical character recognition), the software to actually do this is not included. So if you want to use this option, be prepared to buy some expensive version of Adobe or other OCR program.
Overall, I'm pleased with my little printer. It's not a heavy duty copier, but it can copy small stacks (about 35 pages) without too much trouble. One day I hope to upgrade, but for now this works just fine for me.
Customer Review: pretty good
Summary: 5 Stars
I followed the directions for setting up with a USB connection and all functions worked flawlessly.
There seems to be some confusion on how to use an external telephone answering machine. I connected the external answering machine as described in the drawing. Then I set the FAX mode to manual as described on page 4-1 of the manual. The machine is set by default to answer the phone when it receives the FAX beeping sound from the other end. With this combination, if the incoming call is a voice type, the answering machine answers in the usual way and the FAX machine does not disturb it. If the incoming call is a FAX type, the answering machine answers but the FAX beeping signals activate the FAX machine to receive and it cuts off the telephone answering machine.
All in all a satisfactory situation for myself who receives very few FAX transmissions.
The unit goes into hibernate when nothing is happening and draws 10 W of power from the line. If you want to save even more energy you can turn the power switch off but the date and time are lost after a few days.
I especially like the way all functions are run by keys on the unit. On the scan you have several choices for storage of the results. The OCR mode has some problems. When scanning the printout of an email, it missed several strings of asterisks used as separators between text sections. When scanning a legal document with signatures it got confused around the signatures and reformatted the text and made spelling errors. However correcting them was faster than retyping the whole document.
Customer Review: Pretty slick
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm using the 7820N plugged into a Linksys router. Absolutely painless installation-I downloaded the latest drivers,run them and am happy. For faxing, I'm using Vonage VoIP. I was getting some line errors, went to Vonage's help, reset the default fax speed as directed and it seems fine.
I'm happy with this device so far and would buy it again. Having said that, things I would change ;-)
1) The computer interface is fairly primitive. It works fine, just not what I've come to expect. One neat function-it'll scan directly into a .pdf file. That has proven useful.
2) It's fairly noisy when printing. There are 3 noise levels,none of whic are really objectionable, but noticeable. The loudest level is only when it's actually printing.
3) The machine control panel display is fairly primitive. Small and narrow viewing angle.
4) It would be nice if the various fax settings e.g. resolution, retry interval etc. were settable via PC rather than numbered menus on (did I mention) a fairly primitive screen
5) The single sheet/envelope feed could use some sort of paper support. This hasn't proven a problem-paper has fed straight but having a sheet hanging out of an unsupported feed mechanism doesn't inspire confidence.
In fact, the user interface could do with an update. Don't screw up what works well but update a few facets. Having groused above, A device that simply installs and works without calls to tech support, editing windows registry entries etc. causes me to overlook minor items.
Customer Review: No regrets choosing Brother over HP for multifunction!
Summary: 5 Stars
After months and months of market research and reading endless reviews of Brother multifunction machines, I am so glad I chose the Brother 7820N as my business machine. All my friends and associates said to stick to HP for laser, but I am telling you... HP should stick to 1 function laser printing and ultrasound machines as Brother is the KING of multi-functions!!!!!
I have had this machine since the beginning of March and even with fairly heavy daily use, I have not had one single complaint. The unit is small, but performs better than most of the Canon and HP monstrocities that I have worked with in offices. I guess this proves that bigger isn't better.
I run an outsource admin and bookkeeping company and this machine keeps up just fine. The set-up was easy and the functions are user-friendly. Faxes are clear, photocopies are fast and printing is crisp. The unit seems to take a lot of the heavier card stock and labels through the manual feed just dandy - it hasn't choked yet! I have not had to clear any paper jams so the only time I've been into the front panel was to load the start-up toner, which by the way I have yet to replace!!!!
I highly recommend this machine. I've worked with printers, scanners, copiers and faxes for 16 years and I can tell you... when it comes to multi-function - Brother knows what they're doing. Do yourself a favor and buy one.
Oh yeah... the best part - I already received my $50.00 rebate from Brother!!!!