The Brother MFC-6490CW all-in-one color ink jet printer can print 11x17 inch pages, which could be used to print a classroom or school newspaper. This is advantageous where a small number of copies are needed. It also allows the teacher to print pages that are almost poster size and photos can be printed directly from photo memory cards or a camera.
Pros: The Brother MFC-6490CW printer is reasonably priced, has wireless and wired networking built in, has built in media slots for photo memory cards, and can print up to 11 x 17 inches in 6000 x1200 dpi.
Cons: Does not have a multipurpose tray. Because the printer has only 64MB of memory, spooling more than one image is difficult and could result in a network lockup.
Overall evaluation: There are many things that make this printer attractive, and every school needs at least one printer that can print up to 11x 17 inches. Because the printer is reasonably priced, schools can afford to have it set aside to do nothing but print large print jobs. Since it comes network-ready, schools can place it on the network and grant access to all users in a building from just about any location. It uses four different ink cartridges, so schools only need to replace the one color they use up. This is much better than the printers that use a multi-color cartridge.
Retail price: $299.99
-- Joe Huber
