The HP Color LaserJet Pro Multifunction M479fdw is an outstanding laser printer for home or small offices, especially for those who regularly print in bulk. Whether it's in black only or color, documents are printed at great speed and the cartridge's high yield means you won't have to replace them often. You can scan documents and photos at a high resolution and color depth, and the scanner is also equipped with an automatic document feeder (ADF) that can perform duplex scanning, saving you time. Unfortunately, the quality of printed photos isn't good, and color accuracy will be an issue for those working in graphic design or printed media. On the bright side, its build quality is outstanding and its design gives you easy access to the toner cartridges and various trays. It's relatively inexpensive to print in large numbers, and the printer has excellent wireless connectivity options, providing convenience as well as keeping your setup clean and wire-free.
Our Verdict
The HP LaserJet Pro M479fdw is a decent family printer. Like most laser printers, it isn't the best at printing photos as the quality is quite bad. However, for black only or color documents, this printer can chug out a good number of pages quickly and at a low cost. The scanner is packed with great features, including an automatic document feeder and duplex scanning, and its excellent connectivity options allow the whole family to be connected wirelessly.
- Exceptional black and color page yield.
- Great overall cost-per-print.
- Okay color accuracy.
- Bad photo printing quality.
The HP LaserJet Pro M479fdw is an outstanding printer for home or small offices. Its black and color toner cartridges can yield a lot of pages before they need to be replaced, and the cost-per-print remains low even if you print a large number of copies. Printing speed is excellent, whether it's in black only or color, and the scanner has an automatic document feeder that can perform duplex scanning, which is a huge time-saver if you regularly have to scan long documents.
- Exceptional black and color page yield.
- Fast printing speed.
- Mobile app can't print Microsoft Office files.
The HP LaserJet Pro M479fdw is a good printer for students. Its high yield allows you to print a good amount of black and color documents before you need to replace the cartridges, and the cost of printing in black only remains low over time, which is great for students on a tight budget. It can take some time to print out the first page, but subsequent pages are much faster, so you won't have to stress about having to hand in your assignments and papers at the last minute.
- Exceptional black and color page yield.
- Great overall cost-per-print.
- Fast printing speed.
- No Bluetooth support.
- Mobile app can't print Microsoft Office files.
The HP LaserJet Pro M479fdw is an excellent printer for printing black and white documents. Aside from the first page, documents are printed quickly and you can print a lot of pages on a single black toner cartridge. The cost of printing in black only is fairly consistent, so it won't end up costing much more over time. The printer accepts high-yield cartridges if you need more, and changing the cartridges is easy thanks to its outstanding design.
- Exceptional black and color page yield.
- Great overall cost-per-print.
- Fast printing speed.
The HP M479fdw is a mediocre printer for printing photos, which is expected of most laser printers. Although it can print on glossy paper, photos lack detail, and there's a lot of banding and graininess.
- Exceptional black and color page yield.
- Great overall cost-per-print.
- Okay color accuracy.
- Bad photo printing quality.
- Can't print on glossy photo paper.
- Exceptional black and color page yield.
- Exceptional black and color page yield.
- Exceptional black and color page yield.
- Exceptional black and color page yield.
- Exceptional black and color page yield.
Performance Usages
Changelog
- Updated Aug 03, 2023: We've added a link to the Canon Color imageCLASS MF656Cdw/MF654Cdw in the 'Scan Quality' section of the review to provide an alternative that produces sharper scans.
- Updated Mar 21, 2023: Added mention of the Canon Color imageCLASS MF753Cdw/MF751Cdw as an alternative with extendable scanner lid hinges in the Scanner Features section.
- Updated Feb 01, 2023: We've corrected an error in the Photo summary. This printer can print on glossy paper.
- Updated Aug 25, 2022: Converted to Test Bench 1.2.
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Popular Printer Comparisons
The HP Color LaserJet Pro Multifunction M479fdw is an outstanding printer for small or home offices. It's one of the best laser all-in-ones we've tested so far, as it's able to print quickly, affordably, and it's equipped with a full-feature scanner.
For other options, check out our recommendations for the best all-in-one printers, the best home printers, and the best photo printers.
Overall, the HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M479fdw is slightly better than the Brother MFC-L3770CDW Laser. The HP yields more black and color pages, it prints faster, and its color accuracy is significantly better. The Brother's cost-per-print is lower; however, its drum unit is a separate unit and the cost isn't factored in, while the HP's drum unit is built into the cartridge.
The HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP 4301fdw and the HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M479fdw are both high-end color laser printers with near-identical features. The 4301fdw prints faster at up to 25 pages per minute; however, the M479fdw yields more prints, resulting in a lower cost-per-print.
The HP PageWide Pro 557dw and the HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M479fdw are both fantastic office printers. The LaserJet Pro is a laser printer, while the PageWide uses a combination of laser and inkjet technologies. The PageWide yields significantly more pages at a much lower cost-per-print and its input tray holds more than half the amount of sheets the LaserJet Pro can. However, the LaserJet Pro has a flatbed scanner with a higher color depth, which is important if your job includes retouching scanned photos.
The HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M479fdw and Canon Color imageCLASS MF656Cdw/MF654Cdw each have their advantages, so one might suit you better than the other, depending on your exact needs. The Canon is a marginally lighter, more portable unit with superior scan quality and lower ownership costs thanks to its cheaper toner cartridges. While neither is a great option for photo printing, only the HP can print on glossy paper, and it has a wider color gamut and superior color accuracy compared to the Canon. The HP Smart app also allows you to print HTML files directly, though only from iOS devices; regardless, this isn't a function that Canon's PRINT Business app supports.
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