Brother DCP-J525W Basic Equipment

The Brother DCP-J525W is a 3-in-1 printer from Brother’s latest range: Wi-Fi and touchscreen. It is aimed at both individuals and small businesses looking for versatility. Located at the entry-level, its recommended price of €99 is the lowest of the latest models offered by the manufacturer. The standard 40 MB memory ensures easy sharing within a group of 10 people. Its dimensions (40.5 x 37.8 x 16 cm for a weight of 8.7 kg). Make it a compact model that will easily find its place on a desk.

Brother DCP-J525W

The equipment of the device is more limited. Than that of its high-end counterpart the Brother DCP-J925DW. It nevertheless retains the touch screen and Wi-Fi. On the other hand, exit the card reader and the recto-verso. By unpacking this DCP-J525W, we see that it is quite bulky. We will have to clear the desk (at least 60 x 60 cm of free space). To put it down and be able to use it in peace. With the DCP-J525W, Brother offers a 3-in-1 multifunction printer. Which tries to meet several conditions: attractive price and good printing performance (quality and speed). Is the bet won? Let’s check!

Brother DCP-J525W Brief Review

By unpacking this DCP-J525W, we see that it is quite bulky. We will have to clear the desk (at least 60 x 60 cm of free space) to put it down and be able to use it in peace. That said, thanks to this bulky format. Some unpleasant details could be avoided. Thus, we were able to appreciate the fact that the sheets are stored in an internal drawer. Well protected from dust, also avoiding the risk of curling and settling. Too bad this tray only holds 100 sheets. Can only accommodate one format at a time. A4 paper or 10 x 15 cm photos, you have to choose!

We also liked the control panel and the ease of use provided by its color touch screen. However, in the absence of a memory card reader and USB PictBridge port. You cannot easily print photos without a computer. Fortunately, this DCP-J525W has a Wi-Fi n interface as standard. Thanks to this you can print and scan from and to a smartphone with ease. Thanks to the Brother iPrint & Scan application running on iOS and Android.

Decent Performance

In our first print test, that of 20 pages of black and white text. In fast or draft mode, the printer did not sparkle. Indeed, the copy is pale, with characters singularly lacking in precision. That said, we get it in just 1 minute and 15 seconds, which equates to a throughput of around 16 pages per minute. In normal mode, the print quality becomes much better. But the speed is almost halved (8.5 pages/minute to be exact).

Our second test, that of 20 mixed pages (text and graphics) in color, took 2 minutes and 33 seconds, which corresponds to a speed of around 7.8 pages/minute. All with satisfactory quality. Finally, for printing a 10 x 15 cm photo in standard quality, we had to wait about 1 minute. It is necessary to count the double, in improved quality. Whereas the difference is not very obvious! As for photocopies, the entry-level DCP-J525W gave us good-quality reproductions in 18 seconds in black and white and 23 seconds in color. As it also allowed us to do such good scans in just 42s for a color A4 page at 600dpi and just 11s for a gray A4 page at 300dpi, which is pretty decent.

A software offer to improve

The supplied Brother DCP-J525W software suite, although quite complete, disappointed us a little with its lack of user-friendliness. In addition, some modules such as text recognition (OCR) are quite basic and lack simplicity (interpretation errors, poor layout, etc.). That said, for basic functions, it is correct but no more. Finally, we cannot close the test of this DCP-J525W without addressing the comfort of use. Unfortunately, the device is quite noisy. Indeed, it emits about sixty decibels. On the other hand, it is quite economical from an electrical point of view: 1.2 watts on standby for 21 watts in operation.

The four separate cartridges housed in the front of the printer are very easy to access. We appreciate the possibility of choosing a high-capacity format. Which guarantees less maintenance and reduces costs per page. The speeds are slower than those noted on the DCP-J925DW which displays 15 pages per minute (ppm) in color and 17 ppm in black and white. Nevertheless, they will be fine for home use.