Brother International marked a milestone with the introduction of its two latest color laser printers using an in-house designed and manufactured laser engine.
While the company has used its own technology for its monochrome and inkjet printers, the HL-4040CN and HL-4070CDW are the first Brother color laser units that do not use an OEM laser engines, said Jeff Sandler, Brother’s printers marketing director.
“Brother can now chart its own course,” Sandler said, adding that the company considers this one of the company’s most important breakthroughs. The primary benefit of using Brother-created technology is the company is no longer at the beck and call of an OEM when it comes to product development.
The additional engineering work is being done at Brother’s Japanese offices with the manufacturing taking place in China.
The specifications set for the two new models:
The HL-4040CN has a 21 ppm print rate for monochrome and color, 2,400 by 600 dpi print resolution, 300-sheet paper capacity, a USB port and Ethernet port, and it will carry an estimated street price of $399. It will ship in April.
The HL-4070CDW adds built-in Wi-Fi, duplex printing, optional 500-sheet paper tray and an estimated $499 street price. It will ship in June.
