2005 Ushers In New Printers And Scanners

The New Year (and CES in Las Vegas) has brought with it a flurry of product announcements for new and upcoming printers and scanners.

Konica Minolta magicolor 5440 DL and 2400 series
Konica Minolta led the way by introducing two color laser printers: a high-speed color workgroup laser and a lower-cost home office device. The 27ppm magicolor 5440 DL single-pass workgroup laser is being marketed to small-to-medium businesses for $1,299. According to the company, it offers built-in 10/100BaseTX Ethernet and USB 2.0 interfaces; 2400 x 600 dpi resolution; a claimed 12,000 prints per toner cartridge; an optional automatic duplexer; and a maximum paper capacity of 1,600 pages. The magicolor 5440 DL also supports up to 110 lb. index paper, in sizes from 3.6 x 5.8 inches to 8.5 x 14 inches (legal). In addition, there is an optional photo printing card that provides offers camera direct photo printing.

The lower-end magicolor 2400-series of compact color laser printers is designed for the home office user and small business environment. These printers offer maximum speeds of up to 20ppm (black) and 5ppm (color) with 2400 x 600 dpi resolution. Wednesday's announcement centered on the the magicolor 2400W and the magicolor 2430DL devices. The former, which has an estimated street price of $399, features a USB 2.0 interface and optional 10/100BaseTX network interface. The magicolor 2430 DL comes standard with both the USB and Ethernet 10/100Base TX connections, and has an optional automatic duplexer. The magicolor 2430 DL has a list price of $499 (estimated street price).

Panasonic UF-7000
Panasonic announced its new UF-7000 fax-printer. The device is capable of scanning at up to 1.4 seconds per sheet and printing up to 15ppm, and offers a standard print resolution of 600 x 600 dpi. An optional PCL printer module can bring that to 1200 x 600 dpi (interpolated). Other features include a 100-sheet automatic document feeder, built-in Ethernet LAN port and USB 1.1 interface. The UF-7000 carries an MSRP of $2,095.

Brother QL-500 and QL-550
Brother is going for a more specific usership with its two new PC label printers: the Brother QL-500 and QL-550. The compact devices boast print speeds up to 50 labels per minute, and produces labels, banners and signs up to 2.4 inches wide and up to 3 feet long. The Brother QL-500 with manual cutter has an estimated street price of around $100; the Brother QL-550, which features an automatic cutter, has an estimated street price of around $130.

Pacific PowerSlide 3600 and PrimeFilm 3650u
Photographers who need to scan slides and other film media have been given two new options by Pacific Image Electronics.

The PowerSlide 3600 allows users to scan up to 50 2 x 2-inch slides per batch run. It operates at 3600dpi optical resolution, which produces a digital image of approximately 28-mega pixels. Also included is a view window built into the scanner allowing the user to see what is being scanned. The PowerSlide 3600 includes USB 1.1 and 2.0, as well as FireWire (IEEE 1394) compatibility for Windows and Macintosh systems. The PowerSlide 3600 launches with an MSRP of $699.

The PrimeFilm 3650u is an upgrade to Pacific's basic model, and is designed for photography enthusiasts. The PF3650u operates at 3600dpi optical resolution, which produces a digital image of approximately 17.9 million pixels (3,456 X 5,184). An LED light source is used, versus a CCFL (cold cathode florescent light) to assure consistent and exact color conformity in scans. With a 3.2 dynamic range, 48-bit color capability and 3600 X 3600 dpi optical resolution, the PF3650u launches at an MSRP of $299.