In the second post in our Business-to-Business Office Equipment 102 series, we present to you a definitive guide to choosing a black-and-white printer. Although they may not be as, well, colorful as their color-printing counterparts, black-and-white printers still get the job done.
Black-and-white printing gives your documents an official, business-like appearance that commands respect and serious attention. Black-and-white printing means business. Now let’s take a look at the best black-and-white printers for your business. After all, getting the right black-and-white printer for your organization is just one of the many solutions that we here at ClearView provide.
ClearView gives fair and equal consideration to all brands. Our goal is to help you identify the best printer for your office, so we’ll approach each review from an honest and transparent perspective.
What are black-and-white printers?
Before we consider specific printers, let’s look at these devices as a class.
Black-and-white printers are also known as monochrome printers. Generally speaking, these are efficient, affordable devices that can be easily purchased online or at brick-and-mortar locations.
For these devices, their signature features include a low cost of printing per page, fast print speeds and durability. Monochrome machines are best used to print legal documents, business documents and other black-and-white outputs.
Evaluating black-and-white office printers
We will review some of the most popular printers, highlighting some of the functionality and capabilities of each. We’ll begin with the printers that print fewer pages per minute (PPM), followed by devices with higher PPMs. Organizations with lower volumes of printing could look for printers with lower PPMs, and organizations with higher volumes of printing might be better off with higher-PPM printers.
HP® Laserjet Pro® M15w
Not all printers are the same. For a lower-volume printer, take a look at the HP® Laserjet Pro® M15w. This small-but-mighty machine, weighing in at only eight pounds and measuring only a pencil-length tall, gets the job done at 19 ppm with a 150-sheet paper capacity.
HP offers the HP Smart app so you can print instantly from a mobile device and scan documents straight to your phone. This modern device even features a built-in auto on/off technology, so that users can tailor power settings to their unique printing volume. One downside of this device is its noise.
This machine’s cartridge produces about 1,000 pages.
Samsung ProXpress SL-M3820DW
Samsung doesn’t just make TVs and smartphones, now does it? It also makes the Samsung Printer ProXpress M3820DW, a small-but-mighty machine that can print as many as 40 pages per minute. It features a technology called Built-in ReCP, known as a Rendering Engine for Clean Pages, which dramatically enhances print quality.
You can even print from mobile devices with Google Cloud Print or the Samsung Mobile Print application. For those who care about environmental sustainability, this device has a One Touch Eco Button to reduce paper and toner usage. This device is, of course, wirelessly capable, so it can seamlessly fit into your office environment.
Canon® imageCLASS MF424dw
The Canon imageCLASS MF424dw is a monochrome multi-function copier capable of printing, scanning, copying and faxing. This extremely technologically-capable device features a five-inch color touchscreen and an onscreen application library, which handles the most commonly used printer settings. This device can pump out up to 40 pages per minute, and its single pass two-sided scanner can scan as many as 70 pages per minute. It even has an optional 900-sheet paper tray.
This Canon device is equipped to hold both standard and high yield cartridges, which can print 3,100 pages and 9,200 pages, respectively. Wow!
Brother Monochrome Laser Multifunction All-in-One Printer
Oh, brother. Check out the Brother Monochrome Laser Multifunction All-in-One Printer, that can copy and print up to 42 pages per minute. This all-in-one beast of a device can produce high-quality, unbelievably clear graphics and text. It also quickly produces monochrome copies and scans.
There’s even a duplex auto document feeder to quicken your print and copy jobs, as well as a legal-sized document glass for all of your documents. Finally, you can perform scans via cloud services, USB, SSH server, e-mail, a network folder or SharePoint.
Xerox Versalink B600DN
This Xerox machine truly is a speed demon, maxing out at 55 pages per minute. It’s engineered to handle high-capacity toner cartridges, and a high volume of paper, thereby reducing long-term supply and maintenance expenses. This machine’s no lightweight – it’s heavy, sturdy, durable and noisy, making it a high-volume printing workhorse. It’s heavy-duty and fast; what a great combination!
Important features of a black-and-white printer
A monochrome printer is perhaps so essential that all organizations should have one. Here’s what makes this device so indispensable:
- Speed
Many monochrome printers can print at least 40 ppm, making them powerful, efficient, capable machines.
- Print size
Most printers are A4 machines, meaning they’ll print up to legal- and letter-sized documents. For larger documents, you’ll need to get an A3 printer.
- Duplex printing
Don’t you want a device that prints on both sides? Double-sided (duplex) printing saves paper, although you might want the convenience of not having to flip a paper over to read the other side.
- Print quality
Monochrome printers tend to have a high print quality, measured in DPI (dots per inch).
- Print affordability
“High yield and extra high yield cartridges typically offer a lower cost per page,” according to LD Products. “Although high yield cartridges can be more expensive than standard yield cartridges, they are often a better value thanks to their high page yield.” High yield cartridges will save your organization money and allow you to order cartridges less frequently.
- Low maintenance
Like with other things in life, low maintenance is a desirable quality in a printer. Good thing that monochrome printers require only one cartridge (and thus less money). And of course, black ink cartridges are generally cheaper than color cartridges.
Printers, according to LD Products, “can be frustrating at times and if something goes wrong in the middle of an important print job, it may take a bit of detective work to figure out which cartridge is causing the issue.” That’s simply not the case with the single cartridge featured in monochrome printers.
These days, you should also probably find a printer that features both Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity, affordable replacement toner and connectivity to Google Cloud Print and/or other cloud printing services. Such technology is becoming more and more common in the digital age.
Unique printing needs
Not all printing needs are the same.
For legal documents, you should be in the market for machines that print such documents with at least 600 or 1200 DPI at a minimum of 30 PPM.
For shipping or printing labels, a lower-end monochrome printer might suffice, but you’ll end up paying more for such printers in the long-term future by footing the bill for toner and ink replacement.
Where can I find the best black-and-white printer for my business?
There you have it! Now that you’re familiar with some of the best monochrome printers and their most important features, you are well-positioned to go forth and buy (or lease) one for your organization.
Still not sure what printer might best suit your unique business needs? At ClearView, we work with businesses daily and help them identify the best monochrome systems for them. Give us a call at (844) 282-2737 today.
