Paying a few hundred dollars more will net you an entry-level Brother colour LED multifunction printer. Brother uses LED lights instead of lasers in their colour multifunction printers. According to Brother, this cuts down on power consumption, and, because of the long lifespan of LEDs, increases reliability. The cheapest Brother colour LED multifunction printer you can buy is the $729 DCP-9010CN, which has comparable print handling specifications to entry-level single-function models but the additional benefit of scanning and copying with a 35-sheet automatic document feeder. Other low-priced Brother colour LED multifunction devices you can buy are the $829 MFC-9120CN and the $929 MFC-9320CW.

Brother's best printer in terms of features and performance is the MFC-9460CDN, which costs $1299. It's suitable for anything up to a medium business -- it can print 24 colour A4 pages per minute, has a fax machine integrated and includes a host of network features like fax forwarding to email. It's still relatively compact, though, and could fit on a desk -- if office space is a concern then buying a printer like this could be a smart move.

If all-out printing capacity and speed is your aim, then you'd be well advised to look at a dedicated high speed single-function colour laser printer. The is the best printer that Brother makes for this purpose, and can reach up to 28 pages per minute for both black and white and colour page prints. Other fast Brother printers include the HL-4050CDN, which is also $799, and the $599 HL-4150DN.