New York, NY -- Released in September 2009 the MFC-495cw by Brother USA, PrinterComparison.com examined the printer for the first time in November 2009. The printer is a 4-in-1 (print, scan, copy, fax) which will offer great convenience to home offices and home users alike. It also offers a specific photo printing mode so it could almost be called a 5-in-1, depending on how you look at it. At any rate, it has enough functionality that even small businesses could be satisfied depending on the size of the office.
Measuring 7.1" x 14.8" x 15.4" (HxWxD) and weighing only 17.9lbs., the MFC-495cw is easy to place even in a cramped office. It comes with the convenience of an ADF, though rated for only 15 pages, it may serve the needs of all small businesses as we alluded to above. The 100-sheet capacity input tray, while likely good enough for home or home office, may leave some businesses having to refill the tray often, depending on their print volume.
One nice feature of this device is its 3.3” adjustable widescreen color LCD screen. It allows users to preview photos before printing them using the built in photo bypass tray which can accommodate up to 20 sheets of 4x6” glossy paper. The MFC-495cw has a variety of built-in picture card slots (CompactFlash, SD/MemoryCard/xD, PictBridge/USB) for direct photo printing without your PC or Mac. It also offers the convenience of multiple connectivity options: USB 2.0, Ethernet, and wireless. The front panel is nicely laid out and intuitive.
In terms of ink, the MFC-495cw uses four individual Innobella ink cartridges: black (LC61BK), cyan (LC61C), magenta (LC61M), and yellow (LC61Y). Unfortunately, there are no high-capacity equivalents. The black cartridge yields 450 pages and costs $14.27 while the color cartridges each yield 325 pages and cost $9.26 from Amazon.com. The Castle Ink equivalents (same cartridge number) all cost $8.95.
Overall, this printer should serve every need of a home user or home office user, especially if their print volume is low.
