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  1. Home
  2. Printer
  3. Compare
  1. Table of Contents
  2. Top
  3. Main Differences
  4. Design
    1. Build Quality
    2. Dimensions
    3. Expected Maintenance
    4. Display Screen
    5. Cartridge
    6. Scanner Features
    7. Scan Quality
    8. In The Box
    9. Battery
  5. Document
    1. Black & White Documents
    2. Color Documents
    3. Cost-Per-Print
    4. Printing Speed
    5. Document Printing Sizes
  6. Photo
    1. Color Gamut
    2. Color Accuracy
    3. Small Details
    4. Photo Printing Sizes
  7. Mobile App And Connectivity
    1. Connectivity
    2. Mobile App
    3. OS Compatibility
  8. Comments

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W vs Epson WorkForce WF-2850

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W
Epson WorkForce WF-2850

Tested using Methodology v1.2

Updated Feb 12, 2025 07:40 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v1.2

Updated Jun 28, 2024 01:16 PM

Unavailable
Missing store
Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Picture
TypeAll-In-One
TechnologyInkjet
SuperTank
No
Wireless
Yes
ColorYes
TypeAll in One
TechnologyInkjet
SuperTank
No
Wireless
Yes
ColorYes
  1. Recommended in 7 articles:
  2. All-In-One
  3. Cheap And Budget
  4. Inkjet
  5. Small
  6. Office
  7. Brother
  8. College Students

Variants

  • MFC-J1205W (White)
  • MFC-J1205W XL (White)
  • MFC-J1215W (White)
  • WorkForce WF-2850 (Black)

Review

See Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Review
See Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Review
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Our Verdict

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W

Epson WorkForce WF-2850

The Brother MFC-J1205W is better than the Epson WorkForce WF-2850 for most uses. The Brother produces higher-quality documents, yields significantly more prints, and is much cheaper to maintain. However, the Epson has an automatic feeder and supports automatic duplex printing. It also has a better display, making it easier to navigate the settings menu. For photo printing, the Epson can produce a wider range of colors, but its color accuracy isn't as good as the Brother's.

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White
MFC-J1205W
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Black
WorkForce WF-2850
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White
MFC-J1205W XL
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Black
WorkForce WF-2850
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White
MFC-J1215W
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Black
WorkForce WF-2850
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Black
WorkForce WF-2850
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Black
WorkForce WF-2850
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Main Differences for
Family

Threshold 

0.10

Family 

7.9
7.0

Cost-Per-Print 
 

9.5
6.3

Black & White Documents 
 

9.0
7.5

Scan Quality 
 

8.0
6.0

Color Gamut 
 

6.5
8.0

Scanner Features 
 

6.2
7.2

Full Comparison

Design

Build Quality 
 

8.0
6.5

Build Quality Close Up  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Build Quality Close Up
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Build Quality Close Up

Type  

All-In-One
All in One
Show Text 

Dimensions 
 

ISO View Picture  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W ISO View Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 ISO View Picture

Height  

6.3" (16.0 cm)
8.5" (21.5 cm)

Width  

17.1" (43.5 cm)
14.8" (37.5 cm)

Depth  

14.0" (35.5 cm)
11.6" (29.5 cm)

In Use Picture  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W In Use Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 In Use Picture

Height When In Use 
 

6.3" (16.0 cm)
9.4" (24.0 cm)

Width When In Use 
 

17.1" (43.5 cm)
14.8" (37.5 cm)

Depth When In Use 
 

18.7" (47.5 cm)
23.0" (58.5 cm)

Weight 
 

12.8 lbs (5.8 kg)
12.0 lbs (5.4 kg)

Expected Maintenance 
 

6.0
6.5

Ink Related Maintenance 
 

Expected
Expected

Drum Unit 
 

No Drum Unit
No Drum Unit
Show Text 

Display Screen 
 

0.0
6.5

Display Screen Picture  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Display Screen Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Display Screen Picture

Display Screen  

No
Yes

Display Screen Size 
 

N/A
2.4" (6.1 cm)

Touchscreen  

No
No
Show Text 

Cartridge 
 

8.1
4.2

Cartridge Picture In The Printer  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Cartridge Picture In The Printer
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Cartridge Picture In The Printer

Technology  

Inkjet
Inkjet

SuperTank 
 

No
No

Photo Cartridge 
 

No
No

Color  

Yes
Yes

Number Of Color Cartridges 
 

3
3

Black Cartridge Model 
 

LC404 BK
Epson 212 Black

Tested Black Page Yield 
 

62 prints
8 prints

Estimated Black Page Yield 
 

1,178 prints
152 prints

Color Cartridge Model 
 

LC404 C/M/Y
Epson 212 C/M/Y

Tested Color Page Yield 
 

36 prints
5 prints

Estimated Color Page Yield 
 

766 prints
106 prints

Third Party Cartridge 
 

No Cartridges
Purchased One Did Not Work

Ink Type 
 

Dye And Pigment
Dye And Pigment

High Yield Cartridge 
 

No
Yes
Show Text 

Scanner Features 
 

6.2
7.2

Scanner Flatbed Picture  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Scanner Flatbed Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Scanner Flatbed Picture

Scanner 
 

Flatbed
ADF + Flatbed

ADF Capacity 
 

N/A
30 pages

Scan Speed 
 

2 PPM
4 PPM

Duplex Scanning 
 

No
No

Max Flatbed Scan Size 
 

8.5" x 11"
8.5" x 11"

Max ADF Scan Size 
 

No ADF
8.5" x 14"

Flatbed Hinge Adjustability 
 

0.43" (11 mm)
0.43" (11 mm)

Fax 
 

No
Yes

Copy 
 

Yes
Yes

OCR Included 
 

Software
Software
Show Text 

Scan Quality 
 

8.0
6.0

Scan Quality Photo  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Scan Quality Photo
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Scan Quality Photo

Max Scan Resolution 
 

1,200 DPI
1,200 DPI

Max Scan Color Depth 
 

24Bit
24Bit
Show Text 

In The Box  

In the Box Picture  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W In the Box Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 In the Box Picture
Show Text 

Battery 
 

Advertised Battery Life 
 

N/A
N/A

Tested Charging Time 
 

N/A
N/A
Document

Black & White Documents 
 

9.0
7.5

B&W Document Picture  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W B&W Document Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 B&W Document Picture

Color Ink Needed For Black & White 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Color Documents 
 

8.0
7.5

Color Document Picture  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Color Document Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Color Document Picture
Show Text 

Cost-Per-Print 
 

9.5
6.3

Printer Total Cost 
 

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Black Cartridge Price 
 

24.99 US$
19.99 US$

Color Cartridge Price 
 

40.99 US$
20.95 US$

Black-Only Printing Cost 
 

0.021 US$/print
0.132 US$/print

Color Printing Cost 
 

0.054 US$/print
0.198 US$/print

Photo Printing Cost 
 

0.142 US$/print
0.524 US$/print

Ink Subscription 
 

No
No
Show Text 

Printing Speed 
 

5.6
6.1

Printing Speed Video  

Black Only Text Document 
 

9 PPM
8 PPM

Color Document 
 

6 PPM
4 PPM

Photo Printing Time 
 

70.0 s
90.0 s

Single Page Out Time (Black Only) 
 

10.4 s
15.0 s

Duplex Printing 
 

Manual
Automatic

Input Tray Capacity 
 

150 pages
100 pages
Show Text 

Document Printing Sizes 
 

Letter (8.5" x 11")  

Yes
Yes

Legal (8.5" x 14")  

Yes
Yes

Tabloid (11" x 17")  

No
No

A6 (105mm x 148mm)  

Yes
Yes

A5 (148mm x 210mm)  

Yes
Yes

A4 (210mm x 297mm)  

Yes
Yes

Max Paper Weight 
 

300 g/m²
297 g/m²
Show Text 
Photo

Color Gamut 
 

6.5
8.0

Parrots Picture  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Parrots Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Parrots Picture

Color Range Picture  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Color Range Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Color Range Picture
Show Text 

Color Accuracy 
 

6.6
5.4

Friends Picture  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Friends Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Friends Picture

Color dE Picture  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Color dE Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Color dE Picture

Color dE Graph  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Color dE Graph
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Color dE Graph

Average Color dE 
 

6.98
9.40
Show Text 

Small Details 
 

9.0
9.0

Small Details Photo  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Small Details Photo
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Small Details Photo

Max Print Resolution (DPI) 
 

1200 x 6000
5760 x 1440
Show Text 

Photo Printing Sizes 
 

8.0
9.5

Glossy Paper (4" x 6")  

Yes
Yes

Glossy Paper (5" x 7")  

Yes
Yes

Glossy Paper (8" x 10")  

No
Yes

Glossy Paper (8.5" x 11")  

Yes
Yes

Glossy Paper (13" x 19")  

No
No

Borderless Printing 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 
Mobile App And Connectivity

Connectivity 
 

7.0
7.0

Inputs Picture  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W Inputs Picture
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 Inputs Picture

Ethernet 
 

No
No

USB Input To Computer 
 

Yes
Yes

Bluetooth 
 

No
No

Wireless 
 

Yes
Yes

Wi-Fi via Router 
 

Yes
Yes

Wi-Fi Direct 
 

Yes
Yes

External Storage Support 
 

No
No

Apple AirPrint 
 

Yes
Yes

Mopria Print Service 
 

Yes
Yes
Show Text 

Mobile App 
 

9.5
10

App Printscreen  

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W App Printscreen
Epson WorkForce WF-2850 App Printscreen

Mobile App  

Yes
Yes

App Name  

Brother Mobile Connect
Epson Smart Panel

iOS  

Yes
Yes

Android  

Yes
Yes

Photo (JPEG, PNG) 
 

Android and iOS
Android and iOS

PDF 
 

Android and iOS
Android and iOS

Microsoft Office Files 
 

Android and iOS
Android Only

Text Files (TXT) 
 

Android and iOS
Android Only

Webpages (HTML) 
 

No
Android and iOS
Show Text 

OS Compatibility 
 

Windows  

Fully
Fully

macOS  

Fully
Fully

Chrome OS  

Fully
Fully
Show Text 

Check Price

White
MFC-J1205W
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Black
WorkForce WF-2850
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White
MFC-J1205W XL
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Black
WorkForce WF-2850
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White
MFC-J1215W
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Black
WorkForce WF-2850
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Black
WorkForce WF-2850
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Black
WorkForce WF-2850
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Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W

Epson WorkForce WF-2850

Comments

  1. Comparison
 • Posted 1 year ago

Brother MFC-J1205W/MFC-J1215W vs Epson WorkForce WF-2850: Main Discussion

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