Brother DCP-L2640DW Compact Monochrome Laser Multifunction Printer

After 24 years, my Canon photocopier went belly up. Turns out you can’t find a dedicated copy machine these days, only all in one printers. Okay. I already have two good HP laser printers in my home office so I thought I’d look at an inexpensive laser AIO to use primarily as a standalone copier. After a little checking around, the Brother L-2640DW seemed to fit my needs, has excellent reviews, and is at a very good price point. I didn’t expect much for $200, but then again I don’t need much from it other than to perform basic copying duties. Well, I am pleasantly surprised.

The printer was very well packaged and is surprisingly well constructed. If you have any technical knowledge whatsoever, setup should go smoothly and quickly. It identified my WiFi network quickly and had no problem connecting (though it would have been easier if there was a keypad – even a virtual one on the screen – rather than having to scroll through the alphabet and digits to enter each character of the ssid). Software download and installation was flawless, easy, and quick. There is a software update you are prompted to install (which is done simply by highlighting the update and clicking on “OK”), and as has been previously mentioned that update is required for the scanning utility to work. I installed the driver s/w on several computers and all quickly identified and connected to the printer.

Unpacking and physical set up took less than 15 minutes (including connecting to the network), and software another 10 -15 minutes. All in all, there’s no way it should take anyone longer than 20 – 30 minutes to have the printer up and running. If you are looking for an all in one laser printer at a very reasonable price, I have no qualms recommending the L2640DW. The only drawback so far is that it does not handle legal size paper, but in my case that’s not an issue since my HP MFP 281fdw does.

* Overall Impression:
-This is a good value for a good, smaller sized, monochromatic laser printer that prints, scans and copies. The print quality is excellent and it’s WiFi connectable.

-Note: This is not a color printer, it’s monochrome with no color.

-Note: It does not have a fax capability. You will not be able to fax with this.

* Pros-what I liked and what worked well:
-Good value for the quality and features.

-Monochromatic (no color).

-Laser printer (not an ink-jet). (Laser doesn’t run, fade, dry out and over time costs less to use than an ink-jet printer.)

-Duplex printing, automatic vs manual. You can print on both sides (select the option when you print in the print dialog and settings) and don’t have to manually flip and duplex it to print on both sides of the paper.

-Smaller size and lighter weight than some printers, especially the older Brother ones that also faxed.

-Weighs 25 pounds.

-Size: 16.1 inches wide, 15.7 inches depth, 12.5 inches tall.

-Windows 10, Windows 11 friendly.

-Scanning capability.

-Standard printing capability.

-Photocopy capability.

-Large paper tray size. Holds a lot of paper at 250 sheets capacity.

-Prints up to 36 pages per minute.

-Scans up 23.6/7.9 per minute.

-Energy star rated.

-Power cord included. (Good length, standard 3 prong plug in, not a large block plug in).

-Dual-band wireless (2.4GHz / 5GHz)

-You can connect with: WiFi, Ethernet, standard printer cable, USB.

-50 page auto document feeder. (for copying or scanning).

-Brother app can be used with it (IOS, Android)

-Instructions included.

-Excellent print quality, even photos look crisp and clear.

-Easy to install the toner.

-Uses standard letter A4 size paper (legal size won’t fit in the paper holder).

-Can print envelopes (in the paper feeder).

-Paper weight range: 60 to 163.

-You can print stickers and use label paper (if laser friendly, some are only ink-jet friendly).

* Cons-what I didn’t like and what didn’t work well:
-No installation media included. You will need to go to the Brother site and enter the model number and download it to install it.

-No fax feature or capability.

-No printer to computer USB cable included.

-The larger sized toner cartridge (there is a smaller one with 1,500 pages max) will only print 3,000 pages max. This is smaller than some of the other larger cartridges. My older Brother printer (about 12 years old and still going strong) uses the TN650 toner cartridges rated at a far higher 8,000 pages max vs this one’s 3,000 max. It is a larger cartridge for a larger printer (much heavier, larger and that old one faxes as well). So if you’re moving away from the larger faxing printers, do note that the page capacity is a lot smaller in this one even in the larger toner cartridge. It’s 3,000 vs 8,000 in some of the older larger cartridges. and printers.

-It comes with a low toner cartridge with only 700 page rating. You don’t get a large or even standard size toner of 1,500 pages much less a larger toner of 3,000 pages. You will get less toner in this than a standard cartridge. They should provide a standard cartridge vs lower cartridge.

* Tips & Thoughts:
-Even if your computer recognizes it and installs drivers for it, I still would go to the manufacturer and install the full software set for it. You get more options and print and scan options and control vs standard Windows drivers and print software. They have some good scanning and PDF software downloads (free, no extra charge) for this printer on the Brother site. You can also download the manuals and guides in PDF form and I highly recommend doing so.

-I found the Paper Port software (from Brother) difficult to install. It was worth figuring it out as it’s excellent and works well. I had no issues with the other software, but this one kept giving me errors on installation. It couldn’t see the printer though it was installed, working and on. I had to on Windows 11, go to the security center and on my security scan exclusion list add the folder (the entire folder I was installing the software from, not just the file) to the exclusions list. It installed perfectly after I did this and was able to see the printer. You don’t turn off your system protection, just manually allow the installation folder for the software through it so it can be installed. Also install as administrator as possible.

-Be sure and either write down, or better yet take a picture of and save and print out the serial number and password on the back of the printer. It’s on the back lower side. There are two stickers, one with that and another one with some of the network info. Get a picture of both.

-You will need the password (on the back of the printer) to set up some of the software or register the device. They then allow you to change it to your own password after using the included one to install it.

-You may want to consider getting your own printer cable (it’s not included) if your WiFi isn’t as strong in the signal where you’re using it. You do notice that it is quicker to print and respond over a wired connection vs WiFi.

-You do have to install the toner yourself. It installs from the front side, not the back. See the instructions.

-If you’re used to the larger ones with fax, this one is quite a bit smaller and lighter.

-I like to have my color and monochrome laser printers separate (2 different printers) because it saves in cost over time, especially if you print mostly in monochrome. I find the larger toner cartridges in a monochrome printer are less expensive and save money over time even with the expense of two vs one printers. The cost of the color and smaller cartridges in color printers is so much pricier than the larger sized toner cartridges. You may pay more up front, but for the page count they are a lot cheaper and you save money over time.

-Note there are two different sizes of toner refill cartridges. You only need to pick one of the two you don’t install them both. I’d suggest the higher capacity one even at a higher upfront cost, but lower cost per page overall. The larger cartridge is the TN2560XL will print up to 3,000 pages. The smaller TN2560 cartridge will only print up to 1,500 pages max. The printer only comes with a cartridge that will print up to 700 pages.

-You can also eventually as needed buy and replace the drum unit. It’s easy to do, it’s where the toner cartridge goes. You won’t have to do this very often, maybe every few years (3-5) depending on how heavily you print. I find I need to do this (on any printer) when print is streaky (dark spots, stripes on the paper) or inconsistent (blank areas, not looking normal) and the toner is a new cartridge vs empty. This keeps your printer going a lot longer vs a new printer.

-I found the WiFi setup to be a little difficult. You set it up on the printer itself, not in the software or on your computer or device. You have to go into the menu (read the instructions well) and then scan for the WiFi network, then enter your password (using the up down keys, as there are no number keys). Then you press OK. I ended up having to do this several times, as I pressed the button and ended up back in the previous menu vs it accepting the password. It worked well once I was able to get it to take the WiFi password. It wasn’t as easy or an intuitive setup as I would have expected or liked.

-Be really careful about ever using anything but genuine Brother toner. Aftermarket and off brand toner will void it and often the print quality is lower, looks faded and lighter and they tend to leak toner powder and make a mess.

Installation was confusing. Do not use the brother help people. They want to charge you. Once I got installed to Wi-Fi from my phone, it seems you are good to go with the desktop. I wasted time trying to install drivers and I am in a mac so following their website made things complicated and I did not even need to do that. So machine is real nice, print quality is excellent and I am happy to have my first laser. The app is great and printing from phone is so amazing and easy. I have tried to scan and it was perfect and easy so am excited as I have lots of things to digitize. I am excited about this unit and so far, very happy!

When scanning it has weird dimensions for what it cuts off at the edge of the paper (it’s not the same all the way around). Seems to print okay although the text seems just not totally crisp. Is fine otherwise, autofeed, etc is nice.

So easy to set up, Although I did have to use a YouTube Video. Once done…. Print from your phone..No Problem….Laptop…No Problem. It scans files into your computer along with have a smooth document feeder. This is what you’re looking for!

Brother DCP-L2640DW printer is one of the fastest printers I’ve ever used. For black and white copies this thing does a fantastic job with all the features that it has. Wireless printing worked so effortlessly with the WiFi network; that’s because this was one of the easiest printers to set up. The Brothers app gave me a little trouble setting up but manually used the LCD screen to connect to WiFi.

DCP-L2640DW looks nice inside an office and there is a fax feature here as well. Making. Copies of a document were less than a few seconds with each print. Laptops, Tablets, and cell phones are all connected to the printer without a problem. The packaging was perfect and nothing was broken inside the printer when received. I’ve had a good time printing with this one for B&W documentation. It’s one of the best if you are looking for a printer without color and prints at an insane speed.

It’s perfect for a printer and that alone deserves 5/5 stars. I never had a printer where I set it up with the speed and quickest that I did. No issues concerning WiFi connectivity. As far as ease of use go this is up there on my list. Without being a tech guy I would recommend this printer to anyone.

If you’re in the market for a printer for a small office then look no further. This Brother printer DCP-L2640DW is a beast at productivity when it matters most.

It come well packaged and was very simple to pull out and situate where I wanted it to go. Keep in mind this is a bigger than your normal home style printer, so it needs some space. Once I got it setup I followed the instruction manual and was connected to WiFi and I ever hard lined it in. It does come with dual band wireless which helped the range for printing from my laptop across the office. This is nice as can be placed in a central location and everyone can connect to it.

Testing it out I wanted to put it through its paces, and how else then to print large documents! I print in black and white for legal reason so this printer was perfect for that workload. I printed to large documents totaling 64 pages. I timed it and it took from the moment I sent to print 2 mins and 4 seconds. That was pretty impressive to me as zero errors, zero smudging and smears. Everything was crisp and clear. I tried some duplex printing and the outcome was the same it did take a little longer as expect but no issues.

The scanner function was nice as it allowed me to choose my device I was scanning the pdf document to. The Copy function looked amazing and didn’t loose and detail in the paper I was copying.

Overall the Brother printer performs very well with deep dark black thanks to its toner. If you are a high volume printer snag the XL toner cartridge will be worth it. I can’t express how amazing this printer is and is now the workhorse of the office!

Wow we have pretty much gone paperless and don’t print out many things, I need to print those sometimes pop up… Particularly if we need to print out a shipping label or a form we received an email. Maybe something for our records to put in a hard file.and to be honest, this printer is probably overkill for our needs! It is a top quality printer. Brother has come along way since I first had my first a printer and I’m glad to see has continued to improve over the years. And to be honest, this printer is probably overkill for our needs! It is a top quality printer. Brother has come a long way since I first had my first a jet printer and I’m glad to see the brand has continued to improve over the years. it does a great job printing. And laser printer will get a lot of uses and life out of these cartridges. In addition you can also make copies and scans which just makes it all the more useful! Definitely well worth it!

Immediately out of the box I noticed it comes with only one regular cartridge. Not two as advertised. So add another $60 to the price for that (that’s why it lost 1 star). Seems to work fine so far. It’s louder (lost another star) than my older brother but if it doesn’t die like that one did, I can deal. Time will tell if it’s great or not. It’s no speed demon, but this is just for home use anyways. Setup wasn’t bad. Additionally it’s already saying it needs a firmware update and there are absolutley no directions anywhere on that. I don’t have the cord and the other way it giving me big security risk alerts. Update: after digging deep in manuals online -the password for the WiFi firmware update is on a sticker on the back after the letter PwD.

This is my review of Brother DCP-L2640DW Wireless Compact Monochrome Multi-Function Laser Printer with Copy and Scan. I have wanted a laser printer for my office for a while. I do not print a lot and have had inkjet printer heads dry out and require time to fix the issue. Laser printers do not have this issue, so they are great for those who do not print very often. I tried all the functions of this printer and found them to work. Air print from my phone works great. My PC can print and scan to my PDF software. Scans are available in color which surprises me since this is a monochrome printer. The mobile connect app allows remote access to printing while I am out of the office.
If you are like me and despise those ink or toner refill subscriptions, be careful to fully read all the questions you are asked during setup, so you do not sign up for the service accidentally. If it is like other printers with this option, you will lose access to the printer until you replace the cartage with an OEM model, regardless of toner volume left. All said this printer is exactly what I have been looking for so I will rate it 5 stars.