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| INDEPENDENT PRINTER REVIEW
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Lexmark Goes Extra Large (17 November 2008)
Rather than wholesale replacement of its large workgroup colour laser printer line-up, Lexmark has opted for a make-over, with the C782 series attracting a suffix to become the
C782 "XL" series.
XL changes are minor, but no matter - the revised models still pump out A4 colour pages at up to 38 ppm in colour, still up with the class-leaders.
Kyocera Launches to Different Drum Beat (10 November 2008)
Kyocera has upgraded their colour laser range with three new models - covering the small to mid-range workgroup segment. As usual, high-capacity
drum life will pay a big part in the promotion of these
printers - starting at 100K pages for the 21 ppm FS-C5100, and culminating at 200K for the 26 ppm FS-C5300. Paper input capacity is also ahead of the industry average - the
FS-C5300 can be upgraded to take up to 2150 sheets. Details here.
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Lexmark Shock and Awe Launch (22 October 2008)
Just when it looked like most new product launches were over for 2008, Lexmark has anounced a raft of new laser models - encompassing both stand-alone printers in both mono and colour
plus their MFD derivatives. Apart from snappy new styling, major highlights of this release are the adoption of on-demand fusing and 'n' series wireless connectivity. Automatic duplexing
also comes standard with most models. Click here for new mono laser
models, here
for new colour models, and here for new laser MFD models.
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Inkjets to Assist manufacture of DIY Body Parts (22 October 2008)
A while back IPR reported on the use of inkjet technology to assist in the creation of live tissue, and ultimately body parts. Seems like the idea hasn't gone away,
if this report is anything to go by.
For those squeamish about such prospects - a warning - don't watch a movie call "The Island".
Fuji Xerox Ramps up MFD Speed (29 September 2008)
Two new model releases
from FX show how important to vendor growth the MFD market in general has become. At the lower end, the Phaser 3300MFP is rated at 30 ppm, while the higher end is targeted
by the Phaser 4260MFP - boasting 55 ppm engine speed, and a host of optional add-ons. As much as these platforms will put pressure on other vendors, the real casualty may just be traditional copy sales staff -
struggling to retain margin against new, low-cost MFD, printer-based hardware.
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River Becomes Flood (19 September 2008)
The mid-range colour laser MFD market is about to get even more competitive with the introduction of Canon's new MF8450c platform. While down at speed compared to the opposition (17 ppm colour and mono),
Canon has spec'd the MF8450c with a duplexing scanner and a user interface that wouldn't look out of place on a heavy-duty copier.
More details here.
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Kyocera Rolls out New Platforms (19 Setpember 2008)
An interesting article
from "centredaily.com" regarding Kyocera's plans for the North American market.
Low-end Refresh from OKI (19 September 2008)
OKI has always been a leader when it comes to the "bang-for-buck" ratio, or price divided by engine speed.
Two new printers
in the low-end of the market continue this tradition - with OKI's colour
entry speed starting at 16 ppm. Also new from OKI is the C710 platform
- a 30 ppm colour laser with updated styling.
Samsung On Target for No 1 Spot (9 September 2008)
Samsungs's self-confessed desire to be no 1 in colour laser sales seems to coming true - according to
this report quoting IDC.
Brother Says Open Wide (5 September 2008)
In an industry first, Brother has got brave in the inkjet market and relased an A3, consumer-class inkjet MFD (MFC-5890CN).
Time will tell whether this format is a solution looking for a problem.
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Inkjets Du Jour (5 September 2008)
New model releases by Canon and Epson show inkjet vendors continue to push technology in order to capture high-end consumers (not the ones where $39.95 is a stretch and only use
one re-filled cartridge every 5 years). LCD screens are getting larger and going touch - witness Epson's newly-named
Artisan series, sporting up to 7.8" screens plus Wi-Fi. Canon's reply also focuses
on Wi-Fi and larger LCD control panels - with the new PIXMA MP920 topping the range.
HP Plugs Gap in Colour Laser MFD Line-up (5 September 2008)
Up to now, it's been a curiosity that heavyweight HP has never had an offereing in the mid-range colour laser MFD class - despite competitors' burgeoning offerings. HP has now plugged that gap with
the release of the CM2320 MPF series - a 20 ppm colour laser
with the usual MFD bits on top, such as ADF, colour scanner and fax (model dependent). Also sharing the same engine is the
new CP2025 colour laser series.
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New Canon's Ahoy! (20 August 2008)
Of course, it was only a matter of time before Canon brought out its own version of HP's new low-end colour lasers - those of you who enjoy deciphering Kanji over Sudoku, may want to try
this link
to the new Canon LBP-5050.
Black is the New White (20 August 2008)
Star Wars fans may fret no longer over the fate of Darth Vader - judging by the new design language popping up in printers from Dell, Samsung and now Epson, Darth's shiny black legacy
lives on! Click here for news of 4 new Epson ink jets
, where style doesn't take a back seat to function.
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The Chill Winds of Change (14 August 2004)
An interesting article
outlining how HP's changing hard copy strategy is effecting a North American community - courtesy of "The Oregonian".
More Photo Kiosk Fighters From Canon (14 August 2008)
Ink jet vendors must be tearing their hair out wondering what they have to do to wrench customers away from in-store photo printing kiosks and into the joys of home-based DIY photo printing.
Click here for Canon's latest attempt.
Of course, the solution to this riddle surely must be the provision of extra features to enhance hum-drum printer specifications - an obvious enhancement being
a built-in espresso-making function with arms-length, Wallace and Gromit style controls.
Form Before Function (14 August 2008)
Dells newest foray into the hard copy market comes by way of the 2135cn
- a multi-function colour laser that appears to leverage off Fuji Xerox's 12 ppm C1110 engine. Like Samsung,
Dell seems to be putting a lot of effort into design - paying off handsomely for the 2135 with a stylish black case and cantilevered control panel/document feeder. Not so hot is Dell's
web-based product description. Feeds and speeds aren't everything these days, but potential buyers may want to know just a little more than the skimpy specs on view.
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Ricoh Predicts Majority Sales From Printers (25 July 2008)
A fascinating article courstesy
of CRN has highlighted the dramatic shift in print share from traditional copier platforms to printer platforms.
According to Ricoh's Nigel Palmer, within 2 years three quarters of Ricoh's UK sales will be from printers - already tracking at half of sales. - Must Read (ed)
Ve Know Vat you Print! (23 July 2008)
Kyocera has added another piece of software to the print-management mix with the announcement of
PrintQ.
According to Kyocera, PrintQ will enable organisations to better fine-tune hard copy
infrastructure through real-time analysis of print user patterns.
Inkjet News (23 July 2008)
'Tis the season for inkjet news and Lexmark has delivered with
6 new variants - split between its home series and professional series. Meanwhile, HP continues to lure users away from DIY photo
printing kiosks with a
new range of portable 5-color photo printers - including the "my LCD is bigger than your LCD" A630.
Stealth Raid on Mid-range Colour Laser Market (23 July 2008)
When it comes to an impressive model line-up in the workgroup colour laser market, Konica Minolta certainly have the range to deliver. It's about to get larger. New models include the 35 ppm
magicolor 5670EN and the 30 ppm magicolor 5650EN. Both printers chug down large files via their gigabit ethernet interfaces. Also announced is KM's 24 ppm colour laser MFD - the magicolor 4690MF.
More news here.
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Small - but Brainy (11 July 2008)
The recent release of OKI's new C3600 colour laser has added some real punch to OKI's diminutive and attractive low-end colour laser line-up.
C3000 series buyers now have access to a 400 Mhz processor, heaps of memory, plus PCL and PostScript - all wrapped up in a pint-sized package.
Details here.
Fuji Xerox Printers Intensify Low-end Mono Laser MFD Bunfight (9 July 2008)
As testimony to the hot action in the low-end mono laser MFD market segment, FX printers has launched the
Phaser 3200MFP. While the 3200's feature set is typical for SOHO-orientated platforms
(24 ppm, ethernet, ADF, fax), the price point is low - pushing the product firmly into retail sales territory.
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HP Puts Blow Torch to Hard Copy Divisions (20 June 2008)
Over the years, HP's printing services have been fantastic profit generators relative to total group turnover - by far eclipsing other areas of the IT giant. Well, if it aint broke - fix it!
Can HP's newly-announced plans for printing cough-up yet more revenue?
You be the judge.
Report on Big Iron at DRUPA (20 June 2008)
An interesting report for those of you whose bosses were too tight to send you to DRUPA.
You Don't Do This, Do You? (20 June 2008)
According to this report, it seems that resume production is not the only unofficial job perk employees take advantage of -
read on!
Ricoh's Printer Model Range Expansion (8 June 2008)
Ricoh's latest addition to their printer-based model line-up certainly strengthens their ability to backfill color capability into Ricoh dominated sites. The new
Aficio SP C420DN offers 31 ppm color
speed and a front USB port.
Don't Spill Coffee on This One! (8 June 2008)
This month has seen the unliikely confluence of three new A3+ sized colour laser platfroms arriving in the market. Fuji Xerox's contribution - the
DocuPrint C2255 is a high-performance, low-cost platform
with some interesting new features. FX has now joined OKI by employing LED print head technology, while also touting plastics made with the help of corn-based biomass.
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Xerox US Release GIves Clue to AP FX Product Line-up (3 June 2008)
Five new products released in the US by Xerox should signal the future of Fuji Xerox's strengthening model line-up in AP. Of particluar interest is a 35 ppm, A4-format, mono laser MFD.
Details here.
Hunky Processor Speeds Workflow (3 June 2008)
Konica Minolta's new A3 color laser has some notable features to differentiate it from competitors. Firstly, a 1 ghz processor provides some serious punch to speed print times, while
a quick glance at consumable specs reveals outstanding longevity for imaging units - quoted as lasting from 90,000 to 120,000 prints.
According to one reviewer, real-life print
quality is also impressive.
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HP Says More Inks Not Necessarily Better (3 June 2008)
HP's announcement that its new HP 60 ink cartridge with 3-colors, 1248 nozzles and variable drop technology will produce pictures as smooth as 6-color systems maybe a case of less is more. Of course,
color gamut won't be as wide, but that may not be a problem for users printing off the occasional snapshot.
Details here.
Brother Leverages Laser Engine (23 May 2008)
Its almost a tradition for Brother to first launch a new laser printer engine - then to follow this up around 4 months later with MFD designs leveraging the same internals.
Snap with the HL-2140/2150/2170 series mono lasers, as the MFD versions have just been announced.
Click here for more news on Brother's latest 23 ppm mono laser MFDs.
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26 New Printing Devices from Samsung (17 May 2008)
As Samsung totals up y-on-y revenue growth of US $100 billion, printers - considered to be Samsung's 'fourth wave' - are now contributing US $2.5 billion to revenue.
Read here about Samsung's plans
to boost printing's percentage share of the take.
Canon's Smallest Carries 5-Color Punch (5 May 2008)
New to Canon's inkjet line-up is the
iP100 - a portable A4 capable printer
that can also spit 4 x 6 photos out in 50 seconds with 5-colour precision. So good so far - but wireles
connectivity to mobile devices such as phones is via Bluetooth - parents don't try this at home!
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Clues to Kodak's Direction (5 May 2008)
In the inkjet world, Canon, HP and Epson pretty much have the intellectual property rights sewn-up, neatly ring-fencing income streams from late-players to the market. Or have they? In an intriguing
NYT article,
mention is made of Kodak's Stream technology, where ink is controlled by air deflection. If this technology can be down-sized for consumer products, Kodak may have a royalty-free road to
inkjet market share.
Samsung Reduces Size - Again! (2 May 2008)
Traditionally, color laser vendors have focused on increasing speed with each new model release. Samsung's latest color laser offering -
the CLP-315K, offers an alternative to this strategy - same
4 ppm speed as previous models but with a stunning 20% smaller space requirement. Also new in the line-up is the CLX-3175FNK MFD version. Time will tell whether printer miniaturisation is a
feature that customers really want.
Yet More New HP Products (11 April 2008)
The HP product blitz contines with news of a consumer MFD device based on HP's new low-end colour laser platform, and the expansion of mono laser speeds to 60 ppm with the new LaserJet 4510. Read about it
here.
Brave New Product From Epson (8 April 2008)
The launch of Epson's new B-500-DN
business inkjet looks like a brave move in a business world infatuated with laser technology. Epson has certainly worked up some impressive specs - 33 ppm laser-
quality text speed, auto duplexing, very high optional paper capacity and fantastic ink tank yields (8K black and 7K CMY). There is no word yet on cpp, but this will have to be subtantially lower
than laser page costs to lure users from toner to ink.
HP Plugs Market Gap (8 April 2008)
Fighting off switched-on copier vendors with a piece of ancient kit like the Color LaserJet 9500 MFP has been a tough task for some time. Enter HP's new CM6030/CM6040 models - equipment that should level
the playing field and give HP resellers something to smile about. The new CM MFP series offer A3 capable heavy-duty performance up to 40 ppm, with all the associated benfits of an MFP configuration.
Details here. In a parallel launch, new high-speed, wide-format M9040/9050 mono MFD
devices have also been announced - essentially a make-over of exsiting models.
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Flight to Quality Customers (13 March 2008)
The number 28 seems to have an almost magentic attraction to engine speeds for many laser printer vendors - and so it is with the latest Kyocera
FS-1100/1300D mono laser models.
Kyocera has abandoned the budget market completely, and joined the crowd with a new 28 ppm engine mono laser engine aimed directly at the SMB/SME market. For the price, specs are high, and
of course - cpp is relatively low.
HP Low-end Printer and MFD Blitz (6 March 2008)
After seeing give-away street prices under AUD $200 for the HP Color LaserJet 1600, it wasn't a surprise when HP christened a fesh set of low-end colour lasers.
The newly-engined CP1210 and CP1510
keep colour output at 8 ppm but boost black output to 12 ppm. CM1312 series colour laser MFD platforms also leverage the new 8/12 ppm engine.
Also announced for HP's SOHO customers is a new line-up of mono laser MFD products - starting at 19 ppm for the M1120 through to 23 ppm for the M1522 series. With sharp price points on these products,
features such as automatic duplexing and extra paper bins are left to models higher in the range.
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Remember "Liquid Laser"? (5 March 2008)
More than a few years ago, Lexmark introduced an inkjet that applied a clear basecoat to paper before ink was applied. In a remarkable case of deja vue, Canon's latest assult on the
soho inkjet market via the PIXMA MX7600 uses a very similar technology.
Details here.
Samsung Revs Up High-End Color (25 February 2008)
So far, most of Samsung's expansion into the hard copy world has been via soho and small workgroup printers. Not any longer.
The new MultiXpress CLX-8380ND, despite the over-embellished name, has effectively
leap-frogged over all other brands to launch a 40 ppm color laser MFD into the market an an SRP of USD $4999. A machine with this performance must help Samsung compete
more effectively for large-scale RFPs.
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Just What is 5% Page Coverage? Free IPR 5% A4 Coverage File
Just about every printer manufacturer rates their printer
toner/ink life in numbers of pages (the page 'yield') -
based on a 5% toner/ink coverage. Trouble is - what does
5% coverage really look like on an A4 page? Well, IPR has the solution! Our PDF file uses the entire A4 page area to calcuate coverage - unlike the ISO version which calculates
5% on an A4 area less borders. The IPR file has been calibrated by SpencerLabs for true 5% coverage at source, and is therefore a world-leading document for coverage comparisons.
For a free download of the IPR (Imaging Resources) A4 coverage file - click here.You'll need Adobe Reader v6.0
or above to open the file. Conditions of use - you may not on-sell the file.
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