TCPglobal - news, views and issues on total cost of printing

Issue #0931/2 – More details have emerged since the publication of last week’s article (New Lexmark inkjet range looks very promising for homes and businesses) regarding Lexmark’s claim that “penny-per-page printing” is available on some of its new series of inkjet All-in-One devices. It turns out that the cost of black printing is even lower than a penny-per-page but it does rely on the user deliberately selecting a special ink cartridge.

Issue #0931/1 – Inkjet printer manufacturers are always going on about how important it is to use their own original supplies in our inkjet (or laser) printers. But, do we take any notice of them? After all, ink is just ‘coloured water’ isn’t it? And, photo papers aren’t that different are they? Right?? Wrong!! This article looks at just one implication of ink and media mismatch that will seriously damage a user’s pocket and ‘health’ (mental).

Issue 0930/1 – Lexmark has also introduced a large number of new inkjet models to market in recent weeks and, like Hewlett-Packard, is attempting to inject a degree of inventive naming into the mix. With all products built on the same print engine and offering exactly the same print speed, all models are built for business use of some sort, whether home office or professional business, indicating a major departure from tradition for Lexmark on several fronts. High-end specifications are high and functionality is extensive.

Issue #0929/1 – IBM has provided conclusive proof that, in a harsh economic environment, it is those that have a sold services offering that stand the best chance of surviving and even flourishing. IBM posted net profit for the 3rd quarter of 2009 to the tune of $3.2bn, up 14% on Q3 of last year, while all indications so far are that IT hardware sales, and even sales of printer supplies are still flagging badly.

Issue 0929/2 – Epson has been very active over the last quarter, with a dozen new inkjet printer products launched to market creating a smooth and sensible progression up the market, ranging from 26/14ppm (black/colour) single function printer with pigment inks to 38ppm office multifunction device with pigment inks and 40ppm photo multifunction device with photo dye inks.

Issue #0928/2 – As software packages are upgraded to include more sophisticated features and ‘look and feel’, there can be an impact on Total Cost of Printing. We tested Microsoft’s Office 2007 against Office 2003 to discover that Office 2007 could cost a user as much as 11% more on printing.

Issue #0928/1 – In a typically wide-ranging product launch, Hewlett-Packard has redefined part of its inkjet All-in-One strategy in a new effort to simplify the customers’ decision-making and overall buying experience. The new Photosmart range attempts to remove the worst of the numbers in the nomenclature (partially and for now, at least), instead setting clear product levels – Photosmart AiO series; Photosmart Plus AiO series; Photosmart Premium AiO series. Deskjets still adorn the wider product range and there are two new models there also – Deskjet F2400 and Deskjet F4500.

Editor’s note: TCPglobal wishes to apologise to Kyocera for an error that was introduced to the Total Cost of Printing charts in the article , which resulted in the FS-C5400 appearing to be a more expensive long-term option than it really is. The charts and text have been updated to reflect the correct situation. — END —