HP Color LaserJet Enterprise 4701dw Review: 35 ppm Workgroup Printer, Security and Toner Costs

For IT administrators and small-business buyers evaluating whether this $730 (£590) machine belongs on the office network, the hardware story comes down to a sharp divide between backend muscle and front-panel austerity.

Under the Hood: Enterprise Muscle vs. Pro Hardware​

At a glance, the HP Color LaserJet Enterprise 4701dw shares its refreshed blue-and-white industrial styling—and even its core print quality—with the less expensive HP Color LaserJet Pro 4201. However, popping the metaphorical hood reveals why HP badges the 4701 as an Enterprise machine.

While both the Pro 4201 and the Enterprise 4701 top out at the same 35 pages per minute (ppm) engine speed, the Enterprise 4701 upgrades the internal hardware substantially:

• Processor: 1.4 GHz dual-core processor
• Memory: 2 GB of RAM—four times the memory of the Pro model
• Recommended Monthly Volume: Up to 4,200 pages per month
• Print Resolution: 600 x 600 dpi native, up to 1,200 x 1,200 dpi enhanced
• Dimensions and Weight: 421 x 427 x 297 mm (W x D x H) and 36 lb (16.3 kg) as reported by TechRadar, making it hefty enough to stay planted yet compact enough to share a desk
• Connectivity: USB, Wi-Fi, Gigabit Ethernet, Apple AirPrint, and a walk-up USB Host port for printing files directly from a flash drive without a PC

Watch the Model Suffixes When Ordering​

Before cutting a purchase order, IT buyers should pay close attention to HP's model suffixes rather than assuming every 4701 box on a vendor sheet has identical networking. TechRadar tested the 4701dw (part number 67P99A), where the "dw" denotes automatic two-sided (duplex) printing and built-in wireless networking. HP and enterprise resellers such as SHI also list the HP Color LaserJet Enterprise 4701dn, a duplex and networked variant equipped with Gigabit LAN, USB 2.0, and USB 2.0 host connectivity for offices that prohibit wireless radios or only need wired Ethernet. Always verify whether your quote specifies the 4701dw or 4701dn so you do not inadvertently lose Wi-Fi on deployment day.

Section Summary: The 4701dw justifies its Enterprise badge not by printing faster than its Pro sibling, but by packing a 1.4 GHz dual-core chip, 2 GB of RAM, a 4,200-page monthly duty recommendation, and deeper paper tray expansion.

Security and Setup: Built for Sysadmins, Not Smartphones​

If you are accustomed to consumer printers that pair with a smartphone over Bluetooth in ninety seconds flat, the 4701dw will remind you immediately that it was engineered for corporate networks. TechRadar noted that the printer lacks Bluetooth-assisted phone onboarding, forcing local setup through a small, non-touch display and physical push-button keypad. At Least HP replaced the awkward rotary dial used on the Pro 4201 with a standard keypad here, though watching a small screen while pecking through menus on a $730 printer feels decidedly retro when budget competitors like the Xerox C320 include a touchscreen.

From an enterprise security perspective, however, the friction during setup is intentional.

1. No Default Printed Admin Password: Unlike consumer hardware with a static PIN stickered to the chassis, the 4701 prompts the installer to create a custom administrator password right at setup. That password must satisfy HP's complexity rules: at least eight characters incorporating uppercase and lowercase letters, a number, and a special character.
2. Embedded Web Server (EWS) Fallback: If an admin skips password creation on the tiny keypad during physical installation, the credentials can—and should—be configured right afterward over the network via HP's Embedded Web Server (EWS).
3. Wolf Pro Enterprise Security & Post-Quantum Cryptography: The 4701 ships with HP Wolf Pro Enterprise security, which includes post-quantum cryptography (PQC) designed to help guard firmware against future quantum-computer-based attacks alongside standard fleet management tools.

For a Windows Server or cloud-managed office environment, our practical recommendation is simple: do only the bare minimum network verification on the front keypad, get the printer onto a managed VLAN via Gigabit Ethernet, and finish all security hardening, password configuration, and driver provisioning from a desktop browser via the Embedded Web Server.

Section Summary: Local setup on the non-touch keypad is tedious, and there is no Bluetooth phone onboarding, but enforced admin password complexity, EWS management, and Wolf Pro security with post-quantum cryptography fit right into strict corporate IT policies.

Real-World Print Performance and Media Versatility​

Once the HP Color LaserJet Enterprise 4701dw is on the network, its day-to-day manners improve dramatically. Backed by its 2 GB of memory and dual-core processor, the printer delivered a tested first page out time (FPOT) of just 5.7 seconds in TechRadar's evaluation, hitting its rated 35 ppm on Letter paper (33 ppm on A4) without a single paper jam or misprint. While its raw single-sided speed matches rivals like the Xerox C320, Hill observed that its brisk duplexing mechanism flips sheets quickly enough to give it a slight edge on two-sided jobs.

Print quality shows a classic laser split between text and photography:

• Monochrome Text: Black-and-white output is razor-sharp. Even at tiny point sizes examined under a magnifying glass, text characters stay crisp and clean on standard office paper.
• Color Graphics and Photos: HP's TerraJet toner produces bright, punchy colors for charts, presentations, and marketing handouts, especially when set to the "best" quality mode. Photographic prints, however, exhibited a slight drop in contrast that softened fine detail compared with the source image.
• Heavy Cardstock and Media Options: Where many office lasers give you four or five basic paper presets in the Windows print driver, the 4701 presents 33 selectable media types. Although HP recommends media weights up to 200 g/m², TechRadar successfully fed heavier 240 g/m² card stock through the printer with clean results.

Out of the box, the printer holds 250 sheets in its main lower drawer and another 50 sheets in the front multipurpose tray for envelopes or letterhead, totaling 300 sheets. Unlike entry-level color lasers such as the Brother HL-L3230CDW that lock you into their factory paper capacity, the 4701dw accepts up to two optional 550-sheet paper cassettes (priced around $370 each at the time of review), allowing growing departments to scale capacity or dedicate separate trays to plain paper, legal stock, and heavy card.

Section Summary: Fast 5.7-second wake-up times, rapid two-sided flipping, 33 driver media profiles, and reliable handling of thick cardstock make the 4701dw a dependable workhorse for text documents and business graphics.

TerraJet Toner Economics and Maintenance​

No printer analysis is complete without doing the math on consumables—because the purchase price is only the cover charge. The 4701dw uses HP's TerraJet toner formulation, which features a lower melting point that TechRadar reports cuts printing energy consumption by roughly 27% while producing brighter output.

To HP's credit, the printer does not ship with nearly empty "sample" cartridges. Inside the box are four introductory HP Original LaserJet cartridges rated for approximately 2,300 black pages and 2,000 pages each for cyan, magenta, and yellow. When those run dry, buyers can step up to high-capacity cartridges rated for up to 9,000 black pages and 6,900 color pages.

Based on the pricing cited in TechRadar's review—with high-yield black cartridges running around $252 (£239)—the operating economics break down into two very different tiers:

• Monochrome Cost Per Page: Approximately 2.8 cents (2.1p) per page, which is competitive for a small-workgroup laser printer.
• Color Cost Per Page: Approximately 5.6 cents (4.2p) per page, which runs noticeably higher than competing machines like the Xerox C320.

Routine upkeep is thankfully hands-off for busy IT staff. Because HP integrates the imaging drums directly into the replaceable toner cartridges, there are no separate drum units to track, clean, or swap. The printer monitors its own component wear and provides a built-in Cleaning Page and calibration routine under its support tools menu if print quality ever begins to drift.

The Verdict for Windows and Enterprise Buyers​

So, does the HP Color LaserJet Enterprise 4701dw deserve a spot on your office network? If you are equipping a home office or printing reams of full-color brochures every afternoon, look elsewhere—the $730 upfront sticker price, awkward non-touch LCD, and 5.6-cent color page cost make it overkill for solo users and pricey for heavy color shops.

However, if you manage an expanding five-to-ten-person workgroup that prints predominantly black-and-white documents with occasional bursts of color presentations or heavy cardstock, the 4701dw hits a practical sweet spot. You get enterprise-grade Wolf Pro security with post-quantum firmware protection, effortless EWS network administration, a fast 35 ppm duplexing engine, and the freedom to bolt on two 550-sheet trays as your team grows. Set it up once through its web console, point your Windows print server at it, and let it quietly chew through the morning queue.