Review on HP M479fdw Color LaserJet Pro Wireless 🖨️ Laser Printer with One-Year Onsite Warranty, Alexa Compatible (W1A80A) by David Turner

I bought the Revain HP M281fdw a week ago for $348 and had no problems with it. Then I saw that the new M479fdw was selling for $398, only $50 more, and decided to buy it as it was supposed to be a newer duplex model. But after using both models over the past week, I can say that the M281fdw is a better device, while the M479fdw has some issues. First, the M479 has a very noisy fan that stays on whenever the machine is on (even when not printing). The only way to stop the fan is to put the device to sleep after 10 minutes of inactivity. There is also a noticeable high voltage electrical noise when printing from the vents on the right side. This is the only laser printer I have ever heard make this noise and it simply sounds like an electrical problem. The M281 doesn't have a noisy fan that runs all the time (actually, I'm not sure if it does), and there's no high-voltage transformer that hums when printing. In terms of actual printing for black and white text and basic color documents, the M479 and M281 are identical. But when it comes to printing a color image, the M281 produces nicer and more realistic colors, while the M479's colors are more dull/faded and don't match the original image. I have verified that both printers are using the same color settings and have the latest firmware and drivers installed. But no matter what I try, color images don't look as good on the M479 as they do on the M281. Finally, both models are the same for black text copying, with the benefit of duplex scanning on the M479. But for color copies, the M479 looks terrible. I've tried copying a few images (those with original film-on-paper or inkjet prints) and the color copies on the M479 look far off. But with the M281, the color copies are much closer to the original. The M479 is made in Mexico and the M281 is made in Vietnam so I'm not sure if it has anything to do with that. I want the M479fdw to be as good at color as the M281fdw as I like the duplex scanning and the large LCD. But the loud fan and the whirring of the high-voltage electronics on the M479 confuse me. Between the two, I like the M281fdw better, it prints better, quieter and smaller and better looking.