Brother DCP-L2640DW vs Brother HL-L2405W

The Brother DCP-L2640DW takes the thread's advice one step further: still a Brother monochrome laser, but with the scanner and copier the HL-L2405W leaves out. It is the pick for anyone who occasionally needs to scan or copy a document and does not want a second device for it.

It prints at up to 36 pages per minute, faster than the budget pick, and the 50-page auto document feeder handles multi-page scan and copy jobs without babysitting the glass. Automatic duplex printing is built in, so two-sided documents happen without flipping pages by hand. Dual-band wireless plus Ethernet cover both a home network and a shared office one, and the 250-sheet tray matches the budget pick's capacity.

It is bigger and heavier for the extra functions, 25 pounds against 15.1, and that added footprint is the price of the scanner and copier. Scan quality is built for documents, not photos. And like the budget pick, it is monochrome only.

The Brother HL-L2405W is the print-only answer to the thread's advice: buy a Brother, skip everything else. It is a monochrome laser printer with no scanner or copier attached, built for anyone whose printing needs stop at black-and-white pages.

It prints at up to 30 pages per minute and holds 250 sheets, so it goes a long stretch between refills. Dual-band wireless (2.4GHz and 5GHz) connects it to multiple devices, and a USB 2.0 port covers a direct connection. At 15.1 pounds and a 14.2 by 14 by 7.2 inch footprint, it fits a desktop corner instead of taking one over.

The tradeoffs are the features it left out. There is no auto-duplex, so two-sided printing means flipping the page by hand. There is no scanner or copier, so anything beyond printing needs a separate device. And it is monochrome only, with no path to color if a future job needs it.