Brother HL-L3270CDW: Setup, Drivers, Ink and Common Problems

Is the Brother HL-L3270CDW right for you?

The HL-L3270CDW adds a color touchscreen, NFC tap-to-print and Web Connect cloud printing to the HL-L3230CDW engine. Speed, duplex and consumables are identical, so it is worth choosing only if you want to manage the printer from the panel rather than a web page. It was popular in schools and clinics where several people share one color printer. Expect the waste toner box and belt to come due around the 50,000-page mark.

Best for: Shared office color printing with a touchscreen

Setting up the Brother HL-L3270CDW

The touchscreen wireless wizard makes 2.4 GHz setup quick, and Ethernet works instantly. Add cloud services through Web Connect on the screen to print from Google Drive or Dropbox without a PC. Windows users still want the Full Driver & Software Package for color controls.

1. Unbox and prepare. Remove every piece of shipping tape and packing material, install the ink cartridges, and load paper in the tray.
2. Join your Wi-Fi. Keep the printer close to the router for setup. Most printers only connect to the 2.4GHz band, so if your router broadcasts one merged network name you may need to split the bands temporarily. See our Wi-Fi guide if it will not join.
3. Install the setup app. Use Brother's official app rather than a driver you found on a search result — third-party driver sites are the most common source of printer malware.
4. Add the printer. On Windows 11: Settings › Bluetooth & devices › Printers & scanners › Add device. On macOS: System Settings › Printers & Scanners › Add Printer.
5. Print a test page and run a scan if this is an all-in-one, so you find any problem now rather than when you are in a hurry.

Ink, toner and supplies

The Brother HL-L3270CDW uses the following consumables. Match the number exactly when you buy: the same printer family often uses several different cartridge numbers by region.

• TN-227BK high-yield toner (3,000 pages)
• TN-227C/M/Y high-yield toner (2,300 pages each)
• DR-223CL drum unit
• BU-223CL belt unit
• WT-223CL waste toner box

High-yield (XL) versions almost always cost less per page if you print regularly. On third-party ink and toner, read our honest assessment first, and note that some manufacturers push firmware that rejects non-original chips.

Full specifications