A3 printers were once part of big offices, but now many small and mid-sized offices want to print their material on tabloid sized pages. Therefore, not only is the demand for these printers increasing, but they are becoming more and more affordable. As most printer manufacturers are entering the A3 printer segment it’s becoming difficult to choose from a wide variety of offerings. In this guide, we will give you our best A3 printers for office use. We will share the Top 5 A3 printers, but you can rate them based on your own requirements.
Top 5 Best A3 Printers for Office Use
The printers listed below are not numbered in the order of any preference. However, they are the best models available for A3 printers in their category and one of these printers is the best one suited for your requirements is for you to decide.
1) Canon PIXMA Pro-100S
The Canon PIXMA Pro-100S is among the best A3 printers if you are looking for quality and performance. This single-function inkjet printer uses a high-end 8-ink system to deliver professional quality prints. The design and build of this printer is sturdy and its weight is slightly on the higher side as it weighs more than 19 kg.
This printer offers a wide-range of connectivity options as unlike its predecessor, the Canon Pro 100, this printer supports full Wi-Fi connectivity. You can connect this printer directly with your smart devices via Wi-Fi or you can use the Canon Easy PhotoPrint+ app to send print commands. You can also print images stored in cloud storage services like One Drive, Facebook, DropBox, Google Drive, Flickr, etc. This printer also supports wired LAN and USB connectivity options.
When it comes to performance this Canon printer is an excellent performer, especially if you are looking for an A3+ desktop printer. The sophisticated dye ink used by this printer helps it in delivering superb quality prints. Both monochrome and color prints contain plenty of details and there is no noticeable time difference between the printing times of color and mono prints.
This printer delivers its best performance with glossy and semi-gloss papers and is best suited for offices which desire top quality graphic and photo prints. Also, the eight ink cartridges used by this printer are small in size and costly to replace.
Pros
- Print quality delivered by this printer is one of the best in the market.
- Print speed is truly impressive as it can print both mono and color prints at almost same speeds.
- There are a lot of features available which makes this printer highly versatile.
Cons
- This is a costly printer to purchase and refill cartridges.
- The weight of this printer is heavier than its competitors.
2) HP OfficeJet Pro 7720
The HP OfficeJet Pro 7720 is an all-in-one (AIO) printer best suited for small offices that need to print A3+ pages. This printer comes with a 35-sheets automatic document feeder (ADF) which can be used to send for scanning up to legal sized documents. Although this printer can print up to tabloid sized pages, but it can scan up to legal sized sheets. If you need tabloid size scanning capability with the same printing specifications, then you will get it in HP Pro 7740.
This multi-function machine supports USB connectivity and has an Ethernet port to connect to a wired LAN. Most importantly, this device has a built-in Wi-Fi and supports Wi-Fi Direct, which the HP calls HP wireless direct. Therefore, you can easily connect your wireless smart devices directly with this AIO and use the HP Smart app to send commands. This printer is compatible with Google Cloud Print and Apple AirPrint.
The print speed of this inkjet printer is truly impressive for an A3+ printer as it can print at speeds of up to 23 ppm. The output print quality is good for text documents, but is below par for graphics and photos. Therefore, this printer is best suited for businesses which want to print tabloid sized text documents with low image content. Also, the running costs of this printer are not impressive as its cartridges are costly to replace. This printer has duplex printing capability, which does help in reducing costs and increasing productivity.
Pros
- Low purchase price.
- Truly impressive print speeds.
- Good quality prints for up to tabloids sized text documents.
- Supports Wi-Fi, Ethernet, Wi-Fi Direct and USB connectivity.
- Supports Duplex printing.
Cons
- High printing costs.
- Can’t scan tabloid sized documents.
- Print quality not good for photos and graphics.
3) Epson EcoTank ET-7750
The Epson EcoTank ET-7750 is an all-in-one with a high initial purchase price, but it compensates this drawback by delivering very cheap running costs. The Epson EcoTank printer uses 5 ink tanks for printing, two of these ink tanks use black ink, which means this printer uses a 4-color ink system for printing. Epson says the additional photo black ink helps in delivering enriching blacks in graphics and photos, which makes the output print richer in colors and provide better overall quality. This is visible in the results as the print quality delivered by this printer is truly impressive for both text and photo prints.
This multi-function machine doesn’t come with an ADF, which means you will have to manually insert each document for scanning. The control panel has a non-touch color LCD of 2.7 inch with a lot of buttons to navigate the screen. You can easily Start, Stop, Cancel copy and scan jobs using these buttons.
Setting-up this printer is really easy as the ink from the bottles can be transferred without any spills. The connectivity options available with this multi-function machine include USB, Ethernet, Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Direct connectivity. Additionally, there is support for SD memory cards and USB thumb drives.
This inkjet printer can print at speeds of up to 13 ppm for black and 10 ppm for color prints. Although the print speed is not on the higher side, the calculated running costs make-up for this loss. The printing cost of monochrome pages for this printer is as low as 0.3 cents and for color pages is almost 1.1 cents. Therefore, if your business requires regular printing of documents and images, then you can easily recover its purchase price.
Pros
- Very cheap running costs.
- Excellent print quality for both photos and text documents.
- Multiple connectivity options.
- Zero spillage ink bottles available.
- Can directly print from the SD card and USB drive.
Cons
- High initial purchase price.
- Doesn’t have an automatic document feeder.
- Small display screen which lacks touch function.
4) Brother MFC-J5330DW
The Brother MFC-J5330DW all-in-one is a robust machine designed for good performance, bundled with versatile features and best suited for people who work from home and for small businesses. The design of this printer is bulky and unattractive, but since it can print up to A3 sized pages you can adjust with this drawback, especially after seeing its features and performance. The AIO has a much needed 50-sheet automatic document feeder (ADF), but doesn’t support duplex printing.
The 2.7 inch color touchscreen on the control panel gives easy access to all its functions, thus, improving the user experience. The maximum print resolution offered by this printer is up to 4800 x 1200 dpi, while its top print speed is 22 ppm for black and 20 ppm for color prints. Both these details are truly impressive for a printer which can print tabloid sized pages.
If you want to connect this MFP with a single computer, then there is support for USB. However, for multiple user connectivity there are more versatile connectivity options like Ethernet, Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Direct. There are other wireless connectivity options available such as the Brother iPrint&Scan app, Google Cloud Print, Apple AirPrint and Cortado Workplace. You also get access to document management programs like PageManager and PaperPort, both of which add value to the scanning and ADF features of this device.
Overall, this Brother AIO offers strong performance and competitive running costs, and bundled with its versatile features, this machine may look appealing to many small business owners.
Pros
- Fast print speeds.
- Good print quality.
- Versatile connectivity options.
- Automatic document feeder (ADF).
Cons
- Doesn’t support duplex printing.
- Subpar print quality for graphics.
5) Xerox VersaLink C7000DN
The Xerox VersaLink C7000DN is a single-function laser printer designed for mid-sized businesses and small businesses which print a high volume of A3+ sized pages. This color laser printer has many features which makes it a great choice for high volume printing.
The maximum print resolution offered by this color printer is 1200 x 2400 dpi and it can print at speeds of up to 35 ppm. The print speed is truly fast for tabloid sized documents. The monthly duty cycle of this printer is a massive 153,000 pages. This is a large printer designed for heavy usage and weighs more than 45 kg. This printer supports duplex printing, which further enhances its productivity.
The purchase price of this printer is very high and despite being a laser printer its print costs are also on the higher side as its cartridges are expensive. However, the quality of prints is superb for both text and image documents.
This Xerox laser printer supports Ethernet, USB, Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi Direct connectivity options. Primarily, this laser printer is best suited for businesses which want to print A3 sized documents and photos in large volumes on a constant basis.
Pros
- Impressive print speed.
- Superb print quality.
- Supports Wi-Fi, Ethernet and USB connectivity.
- Supports duplex printing.
- Build for heavy duty usage.
Cons
- High purchase and operational costs.
- Bulky size and heavy weight.
Conclusion
This wraps up our list of the top 5 best A3 printers for office use. We have tried to give you a balanced option to select the best printer for your needs. Make sure you look at your personal preferences because only then will you be able to choose the printer which will give you the best experience and maximum value for your money.