12 best office multifunction devices

A multifunction device, also known as an MFP, is an essential attribute of a modern, successful office. The quality and capabilities of this useful device, as well as its presence, reflect the level of well-being of the company, like a mirror. And it’s not so much the cost of the most efficient and durable MFPs, but the requirements for them. After all, for a small office of a company that is only gaining momentum, it is often sufficient and quite affordable basic printing device, often a black and white device, combining only three main functions: copying, scanning and printing itself. At the same time, the most large-scale and progressive offices seek to acquire the best innovative MFPs with a wide range of specific functions.

However, even within the framework of devices of one class and one field of application, there are many differences. Some manufacturers seek to include in their development literally the entire infrastructure of the office, while others focus on a particular opportunity or perfect the basic properties. In order not to get lost in all this diversity, when choosing any MFP for an office, we recommend to remember the following basic parameters:

1. Print speed If for the home option some sluggishness is acceptable, then for a working MFP, speed is one of the most important advantages, especially in offices with large document flow. Therefore, for small companies it is recommended to choose a model with a speed of 15 pages per minute; for large enterprises, the indicator should be calculated in dozens of sheets.
2. Cartridge resource. Consumables, as a rule, cost a lot, and their purchase and installation takes time. A device with a large cartridge volume will greatly simplify the life of the entire office.
3. Print quality. For a black and white MFP, this is just clarity and no stripes. With color printing, attention should also be paid to resolution and color reproduction.
4. Overall system performance. The higher the frequency of the processor, the more efficient the MFP.
5. Memory. A good amount of memory not only allows you to store a lot of scanned materials, but also speeds up the system.
6. Formats. All office multifunction devices support the A4 album page. Some are also suitable for printing on A3, labels, films for projection equipment, and so on.
7. Additions. The latest models can connect to Wi-Fi, mobile devices, scan documents from two sides, sort them and divide them into sets for printing.

In the distribution of places in the ranking, we took into account the most reliable indicators of the quality and properties of the MFP:

• user reviews;
• expert reviews;
• test results;
• technical description;
• developer recommendations.

Best MFP for small office

Multifunctional devices for a small office is a special category at the home-type junction and devices designed for the medium intensity of an average enterprise. From the first MFPs for a small office, they differ mainly in better speed and increased resource of consumables, as well as a capacious paper tray and an adequate margin for printing thousands of sheets per month.

At the same time, unlike medium office multifunction printers, the models for a small firm are relatively compact, affordable, and, surprisingly, not too demanding on paper density, more functional and diverse. However, all this is achieved at the expense of lower speed and suitability for slightly smaller loads.

4 Canon PIXMA TS6140

The rating of the best multifunctional devices opens a universal model recommended for both small office and personal use. Miniature and weighing only a little more than 6 kilograms, the most profitable multifunctional device for review has become the golden mean between economy, speed and quality for small companies that require both black-and-white and color prints. The speed of 15 images per minute, support for printing from two sides, borderless mode, and a resolution of 4800х1200 dpi make the inexpensive Canon one of the best.

In addition, Pixma pleases with a richer set of interfaces than any other expensive unit. Interaction with other technology via Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, direct printing with AirPrint and Google Cloud simplifies the work. Also, according to reviews, the MFP is easy to use, it is controlled by both buttons and a touch screen, and is compatible with many modern operating systems. But it is worth considering that the resource for the office is small.

3 Canon i-SENSYS MF633Cdw

Bronze goes to another successful invention of the famous Japanese brand - a laser MFP with a good color printing speed, reaching 18 sheets in 60 seconds, and a versatile connection. Canon i-SENSYS got drivers for working not only with Windows and iOS, but also with Linux. At the same time, the model supports most versions of these systems, thanks to which it can be connected to almost any computer or laptop. A variety of interfaces allows you to print documents also from tablets or smartphones, including iPhone. The bright 5-inch screen greatly simplifies the configuration of the MFP. The high resolution of the 9600 dpi scanner makes the office device indispensable for scanning important documents and pictures.

In addition, users note the excellent scanner speed and speed of printing, practicality, and even the ability to print images and PDF files directly from the flash drive. Also, the MFP is equipped with a device for automatic feeding of originals.

2 Epson L4160

Despite the fact that black-and-white laser multifunction devices are more often associated with offices, even small ones, color models with CISS in some cases not only successfully compete with them, but also excel, and this rating participant was able to prove it. Epson defeated the main competitor of inkjet technology with its own weapon - a toner resource of 7,500 pages. At the same time, the cost of refilling one cartridge of the system of continuous ink supply costs slightly more than 500 rubles, several times cheaper than a laser cartridge. Therefore, MFP with a CISS is a very profitable solution.

The ability to produce 33 black-and-white prints per minute and the best quality of color printing in the category make the MFP an excellent solution for small offices that need very fast black-and-white printing and decent color, including photos. Also in the Epson reviews mentioned nimble duplex printing, rich functionality, instant connection to Wi-Fi and durable pigment ink.

1 KYOCERA ECOSYS M2640idw

The leading position was taken by the most versatile laser MFP for a small office, combining as many as four functions: printing, copying, scanning and even fax. The fax itself is also not without add-ons. The PC Fax feature allows you to receive all embedded fax messages electronically on a computer. Wi-Fi and Ethernet interfaces will be useful for communicating with other devices and working with documents in cloud services. A device for reading SD memory cards is also among the advantages of the MFP, and the lightning-fast black-and-white printing of 40 sheets per minute in combination with the paper tray enlarged up to 350 pages makes it possible to call the device the best for the office with an impressive document flow.

In reviews, the MFP is often praised for permeability of up to 50,000 pages per month, which is an order of magnitude higher than that of counterparts. Also, many note the ease of maintenance, including convenient refueling, a large resource, the ability to connect to the PC of each employee.

Best MFPs for the average office

Unlike printing equipment for a small enterprise, MFPs for medium-sized offices are mostly easy to handle loads of several tens of thousands of documents per month and are convenient with capacious trays designed for hundreds or even thousands of pages. Among them, there are practically no models suitable for working with photos, but they do show a fairly good speed and are equipped with a large LCD display, which makes management and settings much easier.

Thus, most of the categories are represented by black-and-white laser devices, whose main task is to scan and print documents. However, the rest of the MFP for the average office is very different both in cost and in features.

4 Canon i-SENSYS MF231

The top four would be incomplete without the most profitable representative of the category. Inexpensive and designed for moderate loads, the Canon Canon MFP for printing black-and-white texts and images is ideal for an average office with a relatively small turnover of documents. Although in the indicator of the recommended print volume the device slightly loses to the strongest participants in the rating, it has a better print speed than many much more expensive models. Printing out 23 black and white pages per minute, the MFP is also pleased with the quick response to the start of printing, thanks to which the user will receive the first copy 6 seconds after sending the file to print.

Surprisingly, at the same time i-SENSYS boasts excellent quality prints with a resolution of 1200 dpi. Unlike many competitors, this MFP is recommended by 100 percent of users. In the reviews, he is called a quick and reliable, good decision for his money.

3 HP LaserJet Pro MFP M426dw

The MFP from the most widespread brand of printing equipment becomes not only the bronze medalist of the rating, but also the most nimble device for a medium-sized office. HP LaserJet Pro, which focuses on intensive use, not only easily prints up to 80,000 sheets in a few weeks, but can also produce 38 pages per minute for an employee who works with him, which will significantly speed up office-related documentation processes. Waiting for the first print is minimal - 5.6 seconds. Also, the life of the state will simplify the availability of automatic feeding of originals for scanning or copying. Although it is one-sided, automation will save time and free up employees' hands for something more important.

According to a number of reviews, the main advantages of the MFP can be considered high speed printing, the overall system speed and the accompanying cartridge. Also among the benefits include resource consumables, reaching 3100 pages.

2 Konica Minolta bizhub C227

Outdoor multifunction is not considered the most common, but extremely useful phenomenon with the best capacity of cartridges and paper trays and this model Konica is an excellent proof of this. Many of the most important properties of the MFP brought to the manufacturer to the maximum. 2 GB of RAM can be expanded twice, which is useful for large loads. At the same time, the number of sheets that can be loaded at one time is increased to 1,100 pieces, and the total paper feed, counting optional trays, reaches a figure of 3,600 pages. The cartridge resource is a record 24,000 sheets.

Thus, when working with consumables, the Konica color multifunction printer leaves behind not only its category neighbors, but also many representatives of the class for large offices. Moreover, the device copes well even with sheets of type A3, which is good for printing posters and other large images. It is also often praised for clarity and stability.

1 Xerox VersaLink C405DN

Contrary to the opinion that productive MFPs can be heard throughout the entire office, and an abundance of functions can slow down the system, Xerox managed to combine the three most important features of an ideal office device. With a low noise level in the standby mode, not exceeding 28 with a small decibel, and 52.3 decibels during operation, a color MFP easily implements 35 sheets per minute, be it printing, scanning or copying. High performance is combined with Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi direct interfaces, as well as NFC support, direct printing from mobile devices via AirPrint or the Xerox Print Service plug-in. In this case, the laser model provides printing from cloud services Google Drive, DropBox and Microsoft OneDrive.

Not surprisingly, the MFP receives extremely positive feedback. Many people appreciate Xerox for speed, low cost of printing and innovativeness. Scanning and copying pages from two sides also became a useful plus.

Best MFP for large office

For most offices, printing equipment of several thousand or several tens of thousands of standard pages per month is enough, but for the largest companies, MFPs with a safety margin of hundreds of thousands of prints are recommended. There are few such and often somewhat more expensive than less powerful counterparts, but such units differ not only in long service life and incredible performance, due to which they are periodically compared with mini-printers, but also with amazing functionality.

Some representatives of this class of MFPs can even replace the lion’s share of office infrastructure, including a telephone, and perform a number of tasks that employees previously had to solve. At the same time, they economically consume the paint and are designed to supply about a thousand sheets at once.

4 Ricoh SP 4510SF

Enough miniature for its capabilities, the most popular laser MFP for an office with a huge amount of paper to print attracts not too exorbitant price, and a good balance between print quality and speed. A rather average for this category, but still a good resource of 6,000 pages, prevents the device from rising higher. Nevertheless, the right to enter the rating of the multifunctional device earned first and foremost the opportunity to print 40 sheets with a resolution of 1200 dpi in only 60 seconds. At the same time, Ricoh works not only with plain A4 paper, but also with labels, films, glossy paper, and, unlike its counterparts, is equipped with a device for reading memory cards for direct printing from SD-type media.

The main advantages of a monochrome MFP, most of them include the availability of a fax and a reversing automatic feeder, the separation of consumables into toner and cartridge, excellent speed and high accuracy of copies. At the same time, Ricoh is easy to maintain and use.

3 Sharp MX-2630N

The best three solutions for a large office are closed by a floor-mounted giant with color cartridges and phenomenal opportunities to restore order in copies. Thanks to the electronic sorting, the MFP can save scans to a hard disk during scanning, the capacity of which in this case is as much as 250 GB, and “remember” their order for the subsequent printing page to the page. Moreover, the manufacturers Sharp freed office workers from having to sort copies by sets of documents, equipping the laser multifunction printer with a mechanical shift sorting module. Therefore, if necessary, make several copies of one set of Sharp shifts the new set relative to the previous one, dividing them into neat stacks.

Intellectual properties and resistance to loads of 200 thousand sheets each month forced the brand to install a huge RAM - 5 GB. The downside was just not the best, albeit decent, print speed.

2 Panasonic DP-MB545RU

The silver medalist of the rating was the most versatile and versatile device that combines a number of useful functions and even 5 different devices. In the development of Panasonic with a triple of standard instruments, a fax and a telephone harmoniously coexist with the identification of the caller’s number and even the speakerphone, also known as the hands-free mode. Also, the MFP doesn’t cost much for this category by connecting to Wi-Fi, an Ethernet interface for organizing a local area network in the office, printing from the Google Cloud Print cloud and from virtually any mobile device, including the iPad.

In addition to the functionality, the black-and-white Panasonic will surprise you with a high level of basic functions. The MFP scanner is capable of forming an image with a resolution up to a record 19,200 pixels, while the number of dots in prints reaches a good 1200 dpi, and a speed of 45 A4 pages or 24 A3 posters. At the same time, a resource of 25 thousand sheets makes the model the most economical.

1 HP PageWide Pro 777z

Top Leader is designed specifically for giant corporations interested in prints of all formats - from everyday documents, cards, labels and beautiful photos to A3 posters. A versatile color multifunction device shows excellent quality when printing in any format and color, which is especially facilitated by durable pigment inks. At the same time, the invention of HP for large offices was a record for the number of pages per minute with the figure of 65, which is several times higher than that of counterparts. A nice addition to the gorgeous basic embedded devices was a color fax with 500 pages of memory and all sorts of interfaces, including Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

Also, companies seeking to save electricity, which is always spent a lot in a large office, will appreciate the energy-efficient MFP. With all its functions, HP spends only a little more than 3 watts in standby mode and modest, compared to its competitors, 75 at work.

Popular vote - who is the best manufacturer of multifunctional office equipment?
We vote!

Canon

Epson

HP

Konica

KYOCERA

Panasonic

Ricoh

Sharp

Xerox

Total votes: 105

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