A do-it-all inkjet
This multi-function printer makes a neat and businesslike impression. Functions are controlled using a large colour touchscreen on the front panel, which is thoughtfully angled upwards. And if you’re working from your PC, Brother’s software makes things straightforward. The top of the unit has a flatbed scanner with a 20-page automatic document feeder (ADF) that makes scanning or copying multi-page documents stress free. Black-and-white and colour faxing are also supported. Wi-Fi is built in, but Ethernet isn’t, which won’t bother many home users.
While loading paper and ink is a little fiddly, we had no serious problems. Once up and running, the MFC-J680DW reached an acceptable 5.5 pages per minute (ppm) printing colour graphics pages, and printed a borderless postcard-size colour photo in two minutes. Black-text documents came out at 12ppm, or 15.5ppm in draft quality.
Scanning was also fairly pacey. It took 10 seconds to preview an A4 page and 15 to scan it in colour at a high-quality 300 dots per inch (dpi). Colour photocopies took 22 seconds, black and white took 17, falling to 18 or 15 when multiple pages were fed through the ADF. Using the maximum 1200dpi resolution to capture more detail, a 6x4in colour photo scanned in a reasonable 53 seconds.
The MFC-J680DW can print both sides of the paper (called duplex printing), but the ink showed through when we tried it. Black text looked solid, if a little ragged on close inspection, and colour graphics were vivid. Photos looked fine, but you wouldn’t choose this model primarily for photo printing, or for digitisting a collection of prints: scans were sharp, but dark areas could get muddy. Ink costs work out at 7p per colour page, which is about average.
Brother lists a retail price of £128 for the MFC-J680DW. We found most dealers were asking about £106, while Viking, the office-supplies company, had it for £20 less. That sounds like a bargain, but Brother’s MFC-J5320DW (recommended retail price £155) is even more heavily discounted at the moment (£80 from Amazon) and superior in various important aspects. With similar features overall, it also prints A3 pages, was even quicker in our tests, and supports XL ink cartridges that can halve the cost per page.
At the recommended retail prices, the MFC-J680DW would be worth considering, but at these prices the J5320DW is clearly the better buy.
VERDICT
There’s nothing much wrong with this multi-function printer, but thanks to the vagaries of discounting it’s not Brother’s best bargain.
SPECIFICATIONS
6000x1200dpi maximum print resolution • 1200x2400dpi maximum scan resolution • 6.8cm colour touchscreen • USB • 802.11n Wi-Fi • 240x490x290mm (HxWxD) • 10.8kg • One-year warranty