Brother MFC-8500 Laser Multifunction Center

• All-in-one fax, laser printer, copier, scanner
• Prints and copies up to 15 ppm
• 30-page auto document feeder for fax
• Scans up to 9,600 dpi, prints 600 dpi
• Parallel and USB interfaces, PC and Mac compatible

The truth is that a "really good fax" will separate you from about a thousand of your beloved George Washingtons; they don''t sell them at places where most of us shop. For the average SOHO buyer the options in Laser multi functions are limited at best. This is my fifth printer and second multi function through the years, my first Brother product. I am a retired Network Engineer and I have personally laid hands on some of HPs biggest and badest printers, lets just say I have been around the block.

I bought the MFC 4800 and a Panasonic and returned both within three weeks because of misfeeds; so far the 8500 has not skipped a beat yet. Is it fast? Yes, very fast and the print quality is as good as it gets. Notable differences from the 4800; prints faster, scans faster, copies more clearly, has a larger capacity sheet feeder, has one touch faxing, is network capable, holds more paper, can add another 250 sheet paper tray, has a larger LCD, and ships with a full toner instead of a starter. The warranty may also be better. Also the feed mechanism is better than the 4800 thus eliminating misfeeds. The 8500 will suck up your 20-page fax faster than you can say, "I''m a nine to five slave", spit it out, and let you get back to playing solitaire while it takes care of business.

For those of us who own real office equipment the 8500 feels light and flimsy but remember it is only four hundred street price, you get what you pay for. I like the fact that it goes silent in sleep mode, that''s good. The dedicated left and right arrow keys make programming the unit such a snap that even a CEO can do it. For support ask for a supervisor when you call Brother, the front line people don''t know how to turn it on much less trouble shoot it. The manual is horribly lacking, it will do more than the manual tells you it will and Brothers web site about using the online manual is wrong, it is not any better. If you have trouble with the software and want to just install the drivers they are on the CD. Use the Distinctive Ring feature from your phone company if you don''t have a dedicated line but be sure to read the manual to set up the unit.

In my epinion this is a great unit, full of features at an entry-level price. It''s a laser and remember a few years ago these things did not even exist yet so we are lucky just to have them at all. Stay away from ink jets, they are loud, slow, messy, very expensive, and just don''t belong in a real office setting. Go for the high capacity toner, for ten more bucks you get twice the toner, it''s a no brainer and it gives you about a penny a page printing cost. Get the 8500, take it home, love it and it will love you back but watch the return date on your receipt in case you want to file for divorce but I doubt that will happen, this is one sexy, snappy little baby....

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I have owned this printer about 2 months now, and could not be happier. It is silent when not in operation, warm-up is only 2-3 seconds, and a single sheet pops out in seconds. Have done print jobs as large as 300 pages or so, and the printer really does crank them at 10-12 pages/minute. Print quality is excellent. Mac OS 10.1 works great with the printer; kudos to Brother for staying up-to-date. Don''t know about long-term durability, but seems solid enough. The Fax works fine. Can''t go wrong at this price.

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I really hesitated before purchasing this Multifunction, as I had a low-end Brother fax years ago and wasn''t thrilled with it. Alas I wanted a laser based multi-function, and at anywhere near the ($$$) price point, Brother''s currently the only game in town.

While the mechanics and electronics of the unit seem reasonable, the print speed fast, and the unit very quiet when not in use, the software and documentation just flat-out stinks... The installation process was buggy, and even when finally installed, the "tools" they give you to scan, print, fax, copy and manage the printer from your PC (as opposed the printers front panel) are primitive, lacking any help screens, buggy, slow, and do not play well with other PC applications. Brother, develop some real specifications for what this software needs to do as well as looking at how other vendors create a polished user interface, then hire (or outsource) a good development team to complete these tasks!

Till then... the 8500 get''s returned and I''ll buy another HP and live with the slightly higher cost, slightly slower ink-jet engine.

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What a major improvement after switching from my HP OfficeJet piece of junk! I realize this is an apples to oranges comparison, but I was ready to throw that HP in the street and run it over. I''ve been using this machine for nearly 8 months. It is a true workhorse and I am very pleased with performance. Faxes, copies and prints very quickly. Scanning feature is pretty good, too. Help via email was ok, but not stellar. My only reason for giving this machine 4 stars and not 5 is that I have a hard time believing I''m really getting 6000 pages with its larger toner drum. Then again, some of the stuff I print and copy is hardly standard text. Overall--a great performing machine and I highly recommend it.

i bought this this multifunction center for my new medical practice...i''ve had it for seven months now with over 3000+ trouble-free pages thus far...i''m quite pleased with this product...well worth the money for home use or small business.