The HP LaserJet M209dw ($149) is basically the identical printer because the HP LaserJet M209d, however with a small bump up in value and the addition of Wi-Fi help (denoted by the “w” within the identify). It additionally provides Ethernet and each cell and distant printing, however our assessments present it has slower print speeds than the M209d, notably when utilizing the HP Sensible app. So, its USB-only near-twin stays our Editors’ Alternative for a low-cost mono laser for a house or micro workplace. Should you want a community connection or its different extras, nonetheless, the M209dw is price contemplating, particularly because it’s generally discounted to the identical or cheaper price because the M209d.Design: The Distinction a ‘W’ MakesAmong the bodily features the M209dw shares with the M209d are its measurement and weight. At 12.4 kilos and 10.4 by 14 by 16.8 inches (HWD), it is each small and light-weight sufficient for one individual to unpack and unimposing sufficient to share a desk with. The toner cartridge ships already within the printer and is able to use, so all it’s a must to do for bodily setup is discover a spot for the printer, plug it in, flip it on, and cargo some paper.
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Software program set up varies relying on the way you join. For our efficiency assessments, I used an Ethernet connection, which made the method straightforward. Setting as much as print through Wi-Fi is a bit more difficult but in addition moderately easy. Each decisions put in two choices for printing on our customary Home windows testbed: a PCL driver and the HP Sensible app.
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Together with serving as a print driver, HP Sensible additionally provides help for distant printing. As soon as you have put in it for the M209dw in your system, you possibly can set up the app by itself on any Home windows or macOS pc, in addition to on Android or iOS cell gadgets, and use it to ship a print job via the cloud from wherever you will get an web connection.
As well as, HP Sensible provides non-public printing, which helps you to ship a print job however not print it till you are close to the printer and able to take the pages from the output tray. It additionally contains HP’s Cellular Faxing, a characteristic that is restricted to outgoing faxes solely and would not depend on the printer in any respect however will allow you to ship faxes out of your cellphone or PC.Paper dealing with is appropriate for light-to-moderate-duty use in properties and micro places of work. The only paper tray—with no possibility so as to add one other—holds solely 150 sheets. Nonetheless, it is on the backside entrance of the printer, the place you possibly can simply refill it or insert a couple of sheets of a distinct paper sort or measurement as wanted. It helps as much as authorized measurement in addition to automated duplexing (two-sided printing).
(Credit score: M. David Stone)
In keeping with HP, the advisable month-to-month most is 200 to 2,000 pages. Should you assume 20 work days monthly, that might translate to having to refill the tray twice each three days on common (at 100 pages per day) for simplex (one-sided) printing, or roughly twice per week should you print largely in duplex. Should you choose protecting refills all the way down to as soon as per week on common, the utmost can be 600 sheets monthly.A doubtlessly extra vital concern for limiting the utmost you may wish to print monthly is the three.8 cents-per-page operating value. That is a contact larger than some direct competitors, together with the Brother HL-L2460DW, for instance. (It is also a bit of greater than the three.7 cents we reported for the M209d, however solely as a result of the toner cartridge value has gone up within the interim.) Whether or not that might be a difficulty will depend upon how a lot you anticipate to print, however you may have to match prices to search out out. As at all times, the quantity to give attention to is the entire value of possession, as we focus on in The best way to Save Cash on Your Subsequent Printer. Remember that, for the M209dw, the drum is a part of the toner cartridge, whereas another fashions have separate imaging models, which is a further value you might want to embody within the comparability.Testing the M209dw: Speeds Differ, However Textual content High quality Is High-TierTo decide the M209dw’s efficiency in context, we in contrast it with our outcomes for 2 aggressive single-function printers—the M209d and Brother HL-L2460DW—in addition to the HP LaserJet MFP M234sdw, a low-cost multi-function mannequin that gives related print functionality and provides scanning and copying.The M209dw’s efficiency is a bit of onerous to pin down. To start with, preliminary assessments confirmed that the PCL driver delivered sooner speeds than the HP Sensible possibility for our 12-page Phrase file, so we selected PCL for our official assessments. (Observe that HP says it is best to see no vital distinction in velocity between the 2, and it was unable to duplicate our outcomes. Nonetheless the distinction confirmed persistently on repeated assessments, and HP was unable to recommend a purpose for it or a strategy to get rid of it.)
(Credit score: M. David Stone)
I got here throughout different problems, additionally. Most printers’ examined speeds are pretty constant from one run of a given take a look at file to the following, hardly ever various by multiple or two seconds over three to 5 runs. (The extra variation we see within the first runs, the extra instances we run every take a look at earlier than averaging the outcomes.) In our assessments with the M209dw, the printer rapidly confirmed that it had two completely different speeds for its first-page out (FPO) time, which various by as much as eight seconds and affected the entire time as nicely. Extra exactly, for some print runs, it begins printing instantly, which provides it a roughly eight-second FPO time. For others, it runs via some kind of audible cycle first, then quiets down for a beat, and eventually begins printing. Briefly, we are able to divide the timings into two units, every of which is constant inside its set however not with the opposite set.
(Credit score: M. David Stone)
Utilizing an Ethernet connection and the PCL driver, the printer turned within the sooner FPO instances for the primary two runs of our 12-page Phrase file, then added the longer FPO instances to each remaining take a look at run of each file. As a result of we did not see this conduct once we examined the M209d, we then tried printing through USB to see if the problem was associated to being on the community, however I nonetheless noticed the longer FPO instances. I additionally tried putting in the printer with a Wi-Fi connection and located the longer FPO confirmed up with some recordsdata however not others. In keeping with HP, delays in delivering print information may cause longer FPO instances. The printer will get what quantities to an preliminary wake-up name and spins up the engine to print, however with no information, it has to spin down earlier than it could spin up once more when the info arrives. HP additionally stated the delay is extra more likely to occur when printing through Wi-Fi or Ethernet than through USB.For our official outcomes, we’re reporting the instances for printing through Ethernet. We’re not together with the primary few runs with quick FPO instances within the averages as a result of all the remainder of the person take a look at runs had longer instances. Nonetheless, needless to say you could generally see sooner FPO speeds than our outcomes point out.For our 12-page Phrase file, the M209d delivered the quickest FPO time, the M209dw got here in slowest, and the 2 different printers tied for second place. For pages two via 12, the Brother HL-L2460DW was the quickest within the group, with all of the others coming in primarily tied for second place.
For real-world use, that interprets to the M209d being the quickest by a couple of seconds for one- and two-page textual content recordsdata and the M209dw being slowest by sufficient to note (at the very least, once you add the additional pause earlier than beginning the primary web page). For recordsdata within the vary of 10 or 12 pages, the M209dw will equally be simply sufficient slower to note, with little distinction among the many different three. (The vary for the opposite three was 29 to 33 seconds.) For longer recordsdata, the Brother printer’s quick print velocity after the primary web page will give it the benefit, whereas the M209dw will nonetheless be slowest total due to the gradual begin, nevertheless it should not fall any additional behind. For the total enterprise functions suite—which provides PowerPoint, Excel, and PDF recordsdata—the M209dw was firmly in final place, primarily due to the additional pause earlier than printing every file. The opposite three fashions had been primarily tied total.
For duplex printing of the Phrase file, all 4 printers tied for the total 12 pages, and even with the pause earlier than printing, the M209dw tied the opposite two HP fashions for each the primary sheet out (pages one and two) and the remainder of the file. The HL-L2460DW was quickest for the primary sheet however slower for the remaining. What that interprets to for printing in duplex is that each one three HP printers might be slower than the HL-L2460 for one or two sheets (one to 4 pages), roughly the identical velocity for 10 and 12 pages, and tied with one another (however sooner than the Brother printer) for longer recordsdata.
For 4-by-6-inch photographs, the M209dw averaged 13 seconds per picture.The M209dw’s textual content high quality was near the highest tier for a mono laser. Most fonts we examined, together with each that might be acceptable for a enterprise doc, had been simply legible at 4 factors, aside from an italic font, which was simply legible at 5 factors. Even one of many two extremely stylized fonts in our assessments with heavy strokes was simply legible at 5 factors, whereas the opposite was simply legible at eight factors. Characters had been fashioned nicely sufficient that it took a loupe to see some minor flaws within the 4-point textual content.Graphics offered only a bit decrease high quality total, with some qualifying as prime tier for a mono laser and others displaying minor flaws. For instance, one line in a line graph was rendered in practically the identical shade of grey because the background fill, so it might be straightforward to overlook at a fast look, nevertheless it nonetheless stood out nicely sufficient with a better look. On the plus facet, skinny strains held nicely, together with in a graph with a black background, and not one of the graphics misplaced any info.
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The photographs confirmed some minor dithering that gave them a grainy look, they usually had been only a contact darker than they need to be. Nonetheless, they produced respectable distinction and shadow element. Relying on how skilled you want the brochure to look, they had been at the very least high quality sufficient to function a advertising and marketing handout like a trifold brochure.Verdict: A Dependable Contender for Mild-Responsibility Community PrintingIf you needn’t join your printer to a community, the M209d stays our best choice. It gives sooner velocity than the M209dw together with the identical primary print options on the lowest record value of the printers talked about right here. Nonetheless, any of the opposite three fashions could possibly be the correct alternative should you want community help and cell printing. All three help Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and Wi-Fi Direct. Amongst them, the HL-L2460DW has the highest-capacity paper tray, at 250 sheets, and it is the one one which provides a single-sheet bypass for a second paper feed. Nonetheless, each HP community fashions present higher output high quality.Selecting between the 2 HP community fashions is straightforward if higher-quality output is a key consideration. Each embody related print options, together with help for HP Sensible. The important thing distinction between them is that the M234sdw is the one multifunction printer on this group. Should you do not want scanning and copying, nonetheless, you have obtained no purpose to pay further for the scanner. Briefly, if you’d like a cheap community printer with high-quality output and do not want an MFP, the M209dw is an apparent choose.
Professionals
Computerized duplexing
Entrance-loading paper tray permits straightforward refills and switching between paper varieties
150-sheet capability
Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and USB connectivity
Helps cell and distant printing
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The Backside Line
The HP LaserJet M209dw prints decent-quality textual content and line graphics, and it connects through Ethernet or Wi-Fi, making it a lovely mono laser printer for budget-conscious properties and micro places of work.
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About M. David Stone
Contributing Editor
Most of my present work for PCMag is about printers and projectors, however I’ve lined all kinds of different topics—in additional than 4,000 items, over greater than 40 years—together with each computer-related areas and others starting from ape language experiments, to politics, to cosmology, to house colonies. I’ve written for PCMag.com from its begin, and for PC Journal earlier than that, as a Contributor, then a Contributing Editor, then because the Lead Analyst for Printers, Scanners, and Projectors, and now, after a brief hiatus, again to Contributing Editor.
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