BROTHER DCP-7040 DRUM

Brother DCP-7040 Review

Overview:

Three in one units such as the Brother DCP-7040 are excellent ways to add some bare essential hardware to a small office environment without spending a whole lot of money. The absence of a fax modem in this printer makes it the perfect combination of elements for those looking for high volume printing, copying, and scanning and not much else.

Pros:

The Brother DCP-7040 comes complete with solid print, copy, and scan functions accompanied by a built in automatic document feeder. With an ADF, users can trust the machine to automatically process multiple pages of scan and copy projects without user intervention. In this case, the device’s ADF can hold up to 35 pages at a time, though more pages can be loaded mid process.

The print resolution that the Brother DCP-7040 can produce is outstanding for a monochrome laser and tops out at 2400 x 600 dots per inch. Scan resolution is equal to this and can be executed in full color. Additionally, interpolated scans can be done at resolutions up to 19,200 x 19,200 dots per inch, making realistic photo scanning entirely possible.

With a flatbed design, copying and scanning three dimensional objects, such as books, along with standard paper is also possible. Copy functions can be adjusted by dedicated controls and include reduction and enlargement at ratios of 25 – 400%, as well as stand alone copying, a poster function, and an N in 1 function. When using the Brother DCP-7040’s N in 1 function, users can squeeze 2 or 4 pages of input onto a single page of output via reduction.

Along with the standard paper storage supply of the unit, users can also load special media types via the printer’s single sheet bypass slot. When using the manual feed slot, users do not need to unload standard paper supplies but instead can simply insert most special media types by hand into the machine, one page at a time.

The printer is equipped with a rear door that can open to provide a straight through paper path that allows thicker media, such as card stock, to pass through the machine without being bended. It is always recommended that envelopes are processed in this matter, as they will turn out with a higher success rate than from machines without an available straight through paper path.

Cons:

The Brother DCP-7040’s maximum print speed of only 23 pages per minute places it well behind its competitors in the speed category. The device underperforms almost all current laser printers, personal and otherwise, along with many inkjets in the device’s price range. The printers standard memory is also a little on the low side at 16 MBs. Furthermore, the on board memory is not expandable and there are no additional memory card slots.

Also non expandable on the Brother DCP-7040 is paper storage capacity. While the device comes with a sturdy 250 sheet paper drawer, the unit does not accept additional paper trays like almost all other laser printers on the market do. Another notable downside to the machine is its undersized document glass that can only accommodate letter and A4 sized paper, not legal.