WEEKEND MFP INDUSTRY NOTES
9-9-07
The following is a quick review of copier/MFP industry news from industry publications.
- According to Pantone, now a division of X-Rite Corp, consumers are up to 78% more likely to remember a word or phrase printed in color than in black and white.
- Pantone announced a new color matching system called Pantone Goe.
o Current Pantone Matching System (PMS) is based on 14 different inks to create 1,114 different colors
o New system will be based on only 10 different inks, but a choices of 2,058 colors
o No direct translation from the current system to “Goe”. In fact, there is only 40% crossover.
o Xerox has already announced that a Pantone Goe color lookup table will be available for the FreeFlow print controller for the Xerox iGen3 110 production color system.
o EFI also announced that future Fiery print controllers will support the Goe system. Pricing and availability not announced.
o Hewlett Packard announced support in future for Indigo systems
o Quark announced compatibility with QuarkXPress software
- InfoTrends states that full color variable data documents:
o Generate a 34% faster response time
o 48% increase in repeat orders
o 32% increase in overall revenues
o Also states that there are 42,000 full color hardware placements in the U.S.
- Institute for Color Research finds that up to 90% of subconscious judgments about a person, environment, or item are based on color alone
- Correction from last issue: The Riso HC5500 has top speed of 120cpm color, and can handle up to 12”x18” paper.
- A company in England hopes to launch a new high speed inkjet color press. FFEI Inc., formerly a division of Fuji, plans to launch the “Caslon” offering:
o co-developed with Nilpeter of Holland.
o Uses Xaar 1001 piezo crystal printhead
o 360x360dpi
o Spot sizes from 6 to 42 picoliters
o 12.9” x 16.14” sheet sizes
o Uses UV curable inks
o Pricing not available
o Will be shown at DRUPA show
- Agfa of Germany plans on launching the Anapurna M, a production color inkjet printer.
- Barr Systems announced it will work with Canon’s MEAP system, allowing end users to access the software from the MFP control panel. Barr makes products to allow printing from IBM mainframes or AS400 computer systems. Pricing and ship date are unknown.
- Some Canon monochrome MFPs received certification from Cerner Millenium Software, which is used in the healthcare industry.
- Kodak states that 70% of all photos taken are of people.
- Samsung of Korea announced the creation of “The Business Customer Solutions Team” which is tasked with creating vertical market solutions to promote Samsung-made laser printers and MFPs.
- XPEDX, a major paper supplier to the print for pay industry., announced that it will resell production color laser engines using a CPC lease. It advertises this as “Pay Per Click” or “Pay Only For Each Piece Printed” program. XPEDX resells Xerox DocuColor and Konica Minolta Graphic Imaging Division LD6500 (relabeled version of bizhub PRO C6500).
- Hewlett Packard announced it will launch a new feature called “HP Print It!”, which will reformat HTML web pages for hard-copy output as cleaned-up PDFs.
- Hewlett Packard claims:
o In 2006, 49 trillion pages were printed, of which 9% were digital
o HP claims that 2% of the total was done with an HP device
o Predicts that in 2010, 53 trillion pages will be printed, of which 10% will be digital
o 48% of all printing now originates straight from Internet
- Hewlett Packard says it now has 4,000 Indigo production color systems installed worldwide:
o Total amount of pages printed per year = 10 billion
o Average selling price of 50 cents each
o Cost per page for print shop owner as low as 3 cents per page
o R&R Images of Phoenix announced it has purchased a Hewlett Packard Indigo 5500 production color system. It already owns an Indigo 3050 and 5000 models.
- Xerox announced a new option for its production color engines called “Xerox VIPP PRO Publisher”. This software works with Adobe InDesign to create variable data documents, however, it is proprietary, unlike the PPML that other vendors (like PrintShopMail) uses. This is part of the $20,000 package called “Xerox FreeFlow”.
- R&D Magazine gave out a “Top 100” award to Xerox for its “Specialty Fonts” option:
o MicroText, ability to print text as small as 0.01”
o GlossText, ability to print text using fuser oil only, so it can only be seen special lighting, and can not be copied
o Correlation Mark prints text that is visible only when a “key” transparency is superimposed
o FlourescentText, where text is visible only UV/Black lighting
o To use, customers must own a Xerox production system, using a Xerox FreeFlow print controller, own FreeFlow interpreter ($10,000 MSRP) and then up to $299 for each font.
- Xerox is updating its iGen3 110 production color device:
o now offers optional Creo print controller, called “CX” for $105,000.00 MSRP
o New options for its Xerox print controller, called FreeFlow DocuSP 5.1 which has base MSRP of $75,000.00. (which makes it more “Fiery-like”)
§ Automated Color Check which prints out color test swatches so end user can visually inspect color
§ Automated Calibration – color calibration utility
§ Spot Color Calibration – a Pantone color lookup table
§ All three are $23,500.00 MSRP
o GRACoL color profile option (general requirements for applications in commercial offset lithography)
- Xerox announced that the FreeFlow DocuSP 5.1 print server is now also an option for the DocuColor 242 and 252 color MFPs, where it will sell for $25,000.00.
- Xerox is also now shipping the DocuColor 260, which is a 60cpm color speed version of the DocuColor 252 and 242 models. In addition to EFI Fiery and Xerox controllers, the Creo CX60 is also an option, while the CX50 is an option for the DocuColor 5000. Base MSRP for 260 is $47,490.00/
- Xerox launched new monochrome b/w production print engines, the Xerox 4112 and 4127. These are not based on the Nuvera platform, but instead are new versions of the low cost 4110 model:
o 4112 offers 110ppm with base MSRP of $63,400.00, fully loaded $80,250
o 4127 offers 125ppm with base MSRP of $76,400.00, fully loaded $93,250
o Handle coated stocks
o Optional 20 sheet booklet maker
o Choice of generic (Xerox FreeFlow) or Fiery print controller
o 8,225 maximum sheet capacity
o Finishing options include hole-punch, staple, cover insert and booklet making
o Support PPML for variable data applications
o 1200x1200dpi actual (advertised as offering 2400dpi with interpolation)
o 106 or 150lpi
o 600K/month max duty cycle
o 3.5 second first copy out time
o Auto duplex
o Large full color touch screen LCD control panel
o 1GB RAM and 160GB hard drive
o 13”x19.2” max paper size
o 140lb. index max paper weight
- Epson now offers optional EFI Fiery print controllers for its color inkjet wide format print engines.
- Scientists at the University of Illinois have developed a new inkjet printer that can:
o draw 700 nanometer lines
o draw 250 nanometer dots
o Use gold plated, Teflon coated, 300 nanometer nozzles
o Fluid is electrically induced to flow out of nozzle
o Will be used to create tiny circuit boards for high tech electronics
- Nipson, maker of super high speed b/w engines called VaryPress Series, announced it plans on adding a spot color option, called VaryPress Spot Color System (SCS), using inkjet technology, even though the engine is toner based.
- Xeikon of Belgium, maker of high speed production color systems, is planning on introducing an in-line finisher that will place UV gloss coating on both sides of postcard stock, and even cut the cards to size and stack them.
- Kodak announced a new feature for its NexPress production color units. Last year, the company announced you could add a fifth toner hopper which would hold clear toner. When the prints come out, you could then place them in an off-line secondary fusing section, and turn the cloudy clear toner into high gloss output, called the NexGlosser. Now Kodak has added a feature to its print driver where you can add the clear toner to the document for a textured effect. However, this would be negated if the output was place in NexGlosser, so you can not have both texture and gloss feature.
- X-Rite announced that two of its color scientists, Steve Peterson and Mark Cargill, had invented a spectrophotometer that can measure color while the paper is moving by, so that the engine does not have to stop printing. Called the “VeriColor Spectro”, it will sell for $20,000.00. It can also see the color, even if it is 10cm from the paper.
- Brother launched new desktop color laser MFPs
o DCP-9840CDW offering:
§ Print/copy/scan/fax standard for $849.99
§ 21pm color or b/w top speed (based on printing in low quality mode)
§ Letter/legal sizes only
§ 50 sheet document feeder
§ 50 sheet stack bypass, 250 sheet paper tray
§ Can add 500 sheet tray
§ Up to 80gsm paper weights
§ USB, 10/100BaseT and wireless ports standard
§ Comes with Nuance PaperPort scan software
§ 17 second first color copy time
§ 128MB RAM
§ 35K/month max duty cycle based on b/w
§ 600x600dpi (advertised as 2400dpi with interpolation)(not 8 bit)
§ All toners and drums are removed by pulling out tray in front
§ Polymerized toner technology, no fuser oil
§ Black toner yield of 2500 based on 5% coverage (approx. $50 each)
§ Color toners (CMY) have yield of 1500 pages each based on 5% coverage (approx. $70 each)
§ Drum belt life of 17,000 pages (approx. $200 each)
§ Based on testing conducted by TrustedReviews.com, image quality is poor
§ Optional extended warranties do NOT include supplies (toner, drum, fuser, etc.)
o DCP-9440CN offering:
§ Print/copy/scan/fax standard for $699.99
§ 21pm color or b/w top speed (based on printing in low quality mode)
§ Letter/legal sizes only
§ 35 sheet document feeder
§ Scan/print/copy/fax standard
§ 50 sheet stack bypass, 250 sheet paper tray
§ Can add 500 sheet tray
§ Up to 80gsm paper weights
§ USB & 10/100BaseT ports standard
§ 64MB RAM
§ Comes with Nuance PaperPort scan software
§ 17 second first color copy time
§ 600x600dpi (advertised as 2400dpi with interpolation)(not 8 bit)
§ All toners and drums are removed by pulling out tray in front
§ Polymerized toner technology, no fuser oil
§ Black toner yield of 2500 based on 5% coverage (approx. $50 each)
§ Color toners (CMY) have yield of 1500 pages each based on 5% coverage (approx. $70 each)
§ Drum belt life of 17,000 pages (approx. $200 each)
§ Based on testing conducted by TrustedReviews.com, image quality is poor
§ Optional extended warranties do NOT include supplies (toner, drum, fuser, etc.)
- GBC announced new in-line options to punch holes in output from production print engines so that the output can be used with GBC Comb Binding machines. These in-line punching systems will be available for:
o Ricoh
o Xerox
o Toshiba
o Canon
- Toshiba launched new black/white MFP, the e-STUDIO™450s & 500s offering:
o adjustable touch screen LCD
o letter/legal size only desktop model
o speed of 45 pages-per-minute (PPM) and 50 PPM respectively
o first-print-out time of 8.5 seconds
o first-copy-out-time of 7.5 seconds
o direct printing of PDF
o print from a USB flash drive using the USB direct interface on the front of the machine
o Scanned documents also can be saved to the USB flash drive
o 50 sheet automatic document feeder
o e-STUDIO500s comes standard with a 40GB hard drive including color scan preview
o Standard 600 sheet paper capacity (up to 4,100 sheets with options)
o 21,000-page yield black toner cartridge
o security features, including support for IPv6, IPSec, SSL, SNMPv3, 802.1x authentication
o support for Windows Vista
o suggested list price of $1,499 and $2,999 respectively.
o Optional extended warranties do NOT includes supplies
- Corporate Express sells German unit to Konica Minolta
o Dutch office goods supplier Corporate Express said on Friday it agreed to sell its unit Veenman Germany to Konica Minolta
o Veenman Germany, a copier dealership, had 2006 revenues of 36 million euros and employs about 250 people
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