M281fdw network connection - wired, wireless or both?

[nemgreen]

I have just purchased a M281fdw and am wondering what the best connection would be?

The printer will be in my office next to my main PC with a wireless router nearby providing both WiFi and 1Gb ethernet, so all options are avilable.

I've discounted USB, so that I can print without needing the PC being switched on.

What are there any benefits of wireless vs wired ethernet?

Can I enable both?

Thanks

[John_Getzke]

> I have just purchased a M281fdw and am wondering what the best connection would be?

The best connection for printers is always USB.  No network overhead to worry about, nice and simple hardware connection. 

When USB isnt an option then the next best is Ethernet cable followed by Wireless.  Wireless has all the headahces of a normal Ethernet cable connection but has added overhead of communciating over Wireless instead of a nice clean cabled connection.

> What are there any benefits of wireless vs wired ethernet?

Wired is faster, more secure and more consistent.  Always use wired Ethernet when there is the option to do so.

Wireless is only more convenient when wires are difficult to install or the printing client happens to be wireless only.  Even in situations where the client is wireless, the printer itself can still be Ethernet cable connected to the home router and be available to the wireless clients on the network. 

Wireless only has an advantage when you want to opperate your printer on a seperate wireless guest network, but dont want to configure a hotspot service on your primary network. That way guests dont have to connect to your production network at all and can still send print jobs to the printer through a direct connection.  I see and use these printing services when I visit various vendor offices.  They dont have the infrastructure to setup and maintian a true guest network so they allow guests to direct connect to a public printer broadcasting its own WiFi network instead.  All they have to do is share the password with people, if they even bother to secure it.

> Can I enable both?

Sure.  Although if you Ethernet cable connect your printer to the home network your printer is going to choose to use that connection over WiFi if both connections are present.

The time and effort to setup wired connections is usually worth it.  There are lots of guides, tips and techniques used to hide and install Ethernet cabling when you have access and the abillity to do so.  However that subject is out of the scope of the HP printer community.