XEROX LAUNCHES REVOLUTIONARY COLOR PRINTER

[Anonymous]

http://www.printercomparison.com/default.asp?newsID=477
Xerox introduces ‘world first’ with ColorQube series
Xerox
took their solid ink line a step further today with announcement of the
Xerox ColorQube 9200 series, “the world’s first high-speed solid ink
multifunction printer.”The ColorQube 9200 uses Xerox’s solid ink
technology instead of traditional laser technology involving messy,
sometimes toxic toner.  The non-toxic solid ink sticks -made from resin
– resemble large crayons (for more information, check out our solid ink
article or Xerox Phaser 8560 review) and can reduce waste by 90 percent
compared to a laser printer using toner cartridges.  The sticks are
also specially designed for easy loading.Xerox also estimates that the
ColorQube 9200 series “uses 9 percent less lifecycle energy and
produces 10 percent fewer greenhouse gases” based on a study done by
the Rochester Institute of Technology.Beyond the environmental impacts,
the ColorQube series is offered with new Hybrid Color pricing plans
that reduce color page costs by up to 62 percent since customers will
pay for only the amount of color they use per page.   Documents using
only a small amount of color will cost the same as if it were in black
(one penny), while documents using a medium or full amount of color
will cost less than 10 cents a page.

Xerox set up a new site
with the launch of this series so that customers can compare their
current costs to what the ColorQube might cost them.The new ColorQube
series is available in three models: the 9201, 9202, and 9203.  The top
model – the 9203 – is a five function device that features print and
copy speeds up to 50 pages per minute (ppm) in black and color, a
300,000 page monthly duty cycle, built-in duplexing and is network
ready.Other features across all three models include: a large color
touch screen, standard paper capacity of 3,300 sheets, 100-sheet ADF,
front door access illuminated by LED lights, Intelligent Ready system
that cycles the series into sleep modes, PANTONE color and advanced
security features.The ColorQube 9200 series starts at $23,500 and Xerox
is taking orders for the new machines in North America now.

http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2009/05/06/xerox-launches-revolutionary-color-printer/
Xerox Launches Revolutionary Color Printer
Many
companies restrict the use of color printers because of high costs — up
to eight cents a page, compared to a penny a page for black and white.
Xerox hopes to loosen up the color pursestrings with a new $20,000
printer that is says will sharply cut those costs.
Xerox says
printing color using the new machine, which uses a proprietary “solid
ink” technology, will be up to 62% cheaper than the price of current
laser prints. Robert Palmer, an analyst with InfoTrends, a market
research firm in Weymouth, Mass., said in a research report that the
new product “could have a major impact on the office imaging
landscape,” due to its pricing.The machine, called ColorQube, is
expected to be unveiled Thursday. It’s a multi-function device that
prints, copies, scans and faxes, and is designed to be shared over a
computer network by several dozen people in an office.

ColorQube
uses a new formulation of Xerox’s solid ink, a waxy crayon-like
substance that is melted and sprayed onto a spinning drum that deposits
the ink on a sheet of paper. Color laser printers use powdered
toner.“The goal here is to try to break the price barrier and get more
customers to use color,” said Ursula Burns, Xerox’s president. “We’re
trying to replace a lot of black-and-white machines.” Ms. Burns said
that only 15% of the 2.25 trillion pages printed in offices world-wide
last year were in color.

Angele Boyd, an analyst with market
researcher IDC Corp., says that Xerox is the leader in color printing
in the office with a 23% share. She said the new device will have “to
displace other vendors’ color lasers” to be successful. If customers
simply swap the machine for another Xerox model, Ms. Boyd said usage
revenue could be lower.

Office printing is a huge market,
amounting to $81 billion last year, according to IDC. However, the
market is growing very slowly, and it is expected to decline this year
along with the world-wide economy.

Xerox said that on the
per-click pricing plans, a page with limited color, such as a small
color chart, would cost two cents, and a page that was about half color
would be three cents. In these pricing plans, used by both Xerox and
its rivals, customers place a meter on their color printers and are
charged by vendors per printed page.

Tom Codd, a marketing
executive at Hewlett-Packard, said he didn’t know about Xerox’s pricing
plans, but he said “making a lot of noise about a printing technology
isn’t news.” He said H-P is trying to help customers cut their overall
printing costs by consolidating on a few standard models and removing
desktop machines. Xerox also has a big business managing print services
for customers.Xerox acquired the solid-ink technology in 2001 from
Tektronix for $925 million. Since then it has used it in machines that
run at up to 30 pages per minute. The ColorQube runs at up to 85 pages
per minute, in the middle range of current speeds.Xerox says solid ink
provides some ecological benefits by eliminating the need for
replaceable cartridges — under its system, the solid ink stick is
dropped into printer reservoirs. Solid ink printers usually use more
energy than lasers because of the need to melt the ink, but Xerox said
it had closed that gap by reducing the melting temperature. Solid ink
can also be used on recycled paper and other paper that doesn’t work
well in laser printers, said Infotrend’s Mr. Palmer.

[Author]

May 11, 2009 at 11:48 AM