Canon imageClass MF4880dw

The Canon imageClass MF4880dw is one step up in Canon's latest generation of mono laser MFPs from the Canon imageClass MF4770n ($199 direct, 4.0 stars). It costs a little more, but what you get for the higher cost includes automatic duplexing (two-sided printing). That's enough by itself to make the difference between the Canon MF4770n being a potentially attractive choice and the MF4880dw being an Editors' Choice.

Like the Canon MF4770n, the MF4880dw can fit well as either a shared printer in a micro or small office or as a heavy-duty personal printer in any size office. Along with an Ethernet connector, however, the MF4880dw adds Wi-Fi. Unfortunately, if you were hoping for Wi-Fi Direct for easy connection to smartphones and tablets, note that the MF4880dw doesn't offer it. The only choice is infrastructure mode, which connects only to an access point.

Basics and Setup
Basic features for the MF4880dw include printing and faxing from, as well as scanning to, a PC, including over a network, and working as a standalone copier and fax machine. For scanning, it offers both a letter-size flatbed and a 35-page automatic document feeder (ADF), which can scan up to legal-size pages.

Paper capacity for printing is limited to one 250-sheet tray plus a manual feed, so you can print on different paper stock without having to swap out the paper in the tray. Together with the duplexer, this should be enough for most micro or small offices and more than enough for most personal use. If you need more, however, note that there aren't any options available to add more capacity.

Setup is absolutely standard. At roughly 14.2 by 15.4 by 17.0 inches (HWD), the MF4880dw is a little large to share a desk with, but small enough so it shouldn't be hard to find space for, even in a small office. For my tests I connected it to a network using the Ethernet port and installed the drivers on a Windows Vista system.

Speed and Output Quality
By default, the MF4880dw driver is set for duplex printing, which means its default speed rating is also for duplex mode, at 16 pages per minute (ppm). If you change the setting to simplex (for one-sided printing), the rating jumps to 26 ppm. In both cases, these are close to the speeds you should see when printing a text file with little or no formatting. On our tests, I timed the printer in its default mode (using QualityLogic's hardware and software for timing) at 9.6 ppm, which counts as the official time for our tests. However, switching to simplex mode speeded up the printer to 12.5 ppm.

That makes the MF4880dw a little slower in duplex mode than the MF4770n's 12.3 ppm, but essentially tied in simplex mode. As another point of reference, however, even in duplex mode it's not much slower than the similarly priced HP LaserJet Pro M1217nfw MFP at 11.1 ppm.

The MF4880dw's output quality is best described as easily good enough for most business needs. Text quality is at the high end of the range that includes most mono laser MFPs, making it suitable for essentially any business use short of high-quality desktop publishing.

Graphics and photo quality are also within the range that includes most mono laser MFPs, but at the low end of the range in each case. That makes graphics output good enough for any internal business need and potentially good enough for, say, PowerPoint handouts, depending on how much of a perfectionist you are. For photos, that translates to being good enough to print Web pages with recognizable photos, and potentially good enough for, say, client or company newsletters, depending once again on your level of perfectionism.

The Canon imageClass MF4880dw earns its points not with some single exciting feature, but with its balance of features. The combination of reasonably good speed and output quality, sufficient paper capacity for most small offices, and essential conveniences that include an ADF and duplex printing adds up to a lot of printer for the price, a good fit for a micro or small office, and an easy pick for Editors' Choice.

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