Ordered one, must be closeout time at brother.

brother has a new model printer that replaces this one.

Good printers.

Have the HL-2170W and I love it. Noisy while it's working, but it goes into sleep mode and wakes up pretty quickly when I'm ready to print. My version does have wireless, though, which I think is essential if you use a laptop with any frequency.

I've also found Brother to be very Linux-friendly, if it matters.

Good price for a color laser. Not for a B&W. You decide which one this is.

It gets a bit pricey to maintain a color laser, refill/replace 4 cartridges after 1200 to 1500 prints on a low end color laser.

Lower end B&W lasers that sell for $50 or $60 on sale come with starter toner cartridges that are rated at around 1000 pages, this one comes with a 3500 page rated starter cartridge, upgradable memory, prints a few pages more per minute and can print up to 1200 x 1200 dpi. Print a 8x10 B&W photo on a HL-2140 and you get a not enough memory so resolution was lowered message. For most everyday printing needs the HL-2140 has enough built in non upgradable memory though. For me the ability to upgrade the memory is an essential need.

One has to look at more than just the initial cost if they wish to get the best bang for their buck when buying a laser printer to be certain it fits their personal needs. $50 printer for a 1000 initial pages or $100 printer for 3500 initial pages. Color laser, again, take 4 cartridges so replacement cost at around 1500 pages is much more than B&W.

Often is less expensive to buy a new printer than to replace drum and or cartridges.

Both will do HQ1200 (up to 2400 x 600 dpi)
HL-5240
(1) TN550 Standard Yield Toner Cartridge (3,500 Pages)
(1) DR520 Drum Unit (25,000 Pages)

Standard Memory (MB) 16MB Memory
Optional Memory (MB) 64MB, 128MB, 256MB, 512MB (144-pin DIMM)‡ - 1 slot available

HL-2140
(1) Starter Toner Cartridge (1,000 pages)
(1) DR360 Drum Unit (12,000 pages)
Standard Memory (MB) 8MB Memory
Optional Memory (MB) No

I have the HL-5250DN which is $250 full price, occasionally near $100 for refurbished, often $150 for new. At $100 for this 5240 I would buy just for the drum if I was in need.

There are 3rd party toner reload kits for under $20 for this printer resulting in 7,000+ pages. Reloading is as simple as pulling a plastic plug from the cartridge and pouring the new toner. Best done outside just in case one makes a mess.

The 5250DN adds a Postscript clone, network printing, and duplex. The 5240 is about as bare and minimal as they can ship this engine and still print.

http://www.brother-usa.com/Printer/CompareList.aspx?ModelList=HL5250DN,HL5240&tab=full

5240
Emulation(s) PCL6, BR-Script3‡, IBM Proprinter, Epson FX
Resident Fonts 66 scalable fonts, 12 bitmap fonts, 11 bar codes (PCL); 66 scalable fonts (BR-Script3)

5250DN
Emulation(s) PCL6, BR-Script3‡, IBM Proprinter, Epson FX
Resident Fonts 66 scalable fonts, 12 bitmap fonts, 11 bar codes (PCL); 66 scalable fonts (BR-Script3)

5250DN has 32MB versus the 5240 16MB. From what I understand, more memory is needed for network features and with either it would be a good idea to add additional memory.
If you need auto duplexing keep your eye out for a sale on the HL-5340D - onsale at Staples for $149
If you need networking keep an eye out for a sale on the HL-5370DW, $229 plus S/H at newegg.

Saying the 5240 is "about as bare and minimal they can ship this engine and still print" in reality ia just pointing out that it does not have auto duplexing and networking. LOL, just another ridiculous "mine is bigger than yours" type of useless comment. I cannot see how duplexing and networking increases print quality or ability to print, just additional features for those who need/want them. Why should I pay for features I d... [Truncated]

If you want/need dual trays office depot online has the HL-5250DNT refurb at $199. Looks like the cheapest way to get a new drum, 3500 page toner cartridge plus a LT5300 tray for busy offices that switch between legal and letter sizes often.

buy.com sells the LT5300 tray separately for $123

I have one and it works great, especially for this price. Not a full commercial model, but will handle a lot of copies.

I've also had the HL-2170W for a while, and I have found it to be quite dependable. I don't do a lot of printing, so I'm still using the starter drum, but it's holding up a lot better than the HP, Dell, and Kodak printers that I've had so far.

Currently out of stock.