Samsung ML-2851ND Laser Printer Drivers and Software

The Samsung ML-2851ND isn’t the cheapest home and small office monochrome laser on the planet, but it may be the best bargain. In my testing, one strength after another emerged, with no unpleasant surprises to steal any thunder from the strengths.

Even the worst features, especially graphics and photo quality, are easily beaten for this category. The best features—text quality, speed, and paper handling—leave performance in the dust. With all that, the ML-2851ND easily earns an Editor’s Choice for monochrome laser printers for home and small offices.

Like most printers suitable for both personal use and small offices, the Samsung ML-2851ND is small enough to share space and light enough for one person to move. It measures 8.3 x 14.3 x 14.5 inches (HWD) and weighs just 19.4 pounds.

The printer’s text quality is as impressive as its speed. More than half of the fonts in our test suite were rated as easy to read and well-formed on 5 points, with some exceeding both thresholds on 4 points.

A highly stylized font with thick strokes required 20 points to pass both tests, but no other font required more than 8 points. Unless you require unusually small fonts, the printer should be able to handle any text you print with crisp, professional-looking output.

As already mentioned, graphics and photo quality are typical of a black and white laser. This results in a graphics output that is easily suitable for all internal business needs, but does not meet the requirements you would want to place on an important client if you want to develop a sense of professionalism. The two most annoying issues I saw in the output were banding and visible dithering in the form of repeating patterns.

Photos were good enough to print web pages with photos. They were also usable for customer newsletters and the like, but again a little too short to be happy with if you were trying to convey a sense of professionalism.

The above-average paper handling of the ML-2851ND is very worth mentioning. The standard input is 250 sheets, which is enough for most personal use and even most small offices.

Even better, it is complemented by a 1-sheet manual feeder, allowing you to print on an envelope or special paper without having to replace the paper in the tray. A built-in duplexer for printing on both sides of a page is also standard. For small offices that need more capacity, Samsung sells a 250-sheet tray ($165 street) for a total capacity of 500 sheets.

Related Printer: Samsung ML-3312ND Driver

For everything the ML-2851ND offers – fast speed, high-quality text, better-than-average paper handling, and better-than-average cost per page – this is an editorial choice. If you don’t plan on printing a lot, you should consider a much cheaper printer like the Brother HL-2170W. However, in the long run, if you’re looking for a personal printer or a small office printer, the ML-2851ND is hard to beat.