Minolta South Africa predicts a boom in the entry-level colour laser printer market, aimed at small office/home office (SOHO) users, as volume shipments and stable currencies allow for prices to be dropped to under R4 000 per unit.
In addition, colour printing is coming of age in the office environment and moving into the mainstream of everyday business communications. Proposals, presentations and reports are being created and reproduced in colour to communicate messages more persuasively and with greater impact.
Minolta laser printer division product manager, Marc Pillay, says the first entry-level colour laser printer was introduced to the market about three years ago.
"These machines were expensive and out of the range of home office users. Only now has the price reached a point where home users can really afford to purchase these machines.
"Since the introduction of our more competitively priced Magicolor 2300W, Minolta`s entry-level colour laser printer sales are up by 27% on last year, and that`s just in the first three months of our new financial year," he says.
The lower cost of the actual unit, combined with the lower total cost of ownership (TCO) of colour laser printers makes these machines more attractive than colour inkjets.
Pillay says an increasing number of printer users who have had their fingers burnt by the exorbitant costs of inkjet consumables are recognising the benefits of lower TCO of laser printers. "The hardware cost of an inkjet printer is 1% of the total cost to keep the machine operational," he says.
"A printer`s total expense is mostly found in the running costs of ink, toner, paper, imaging cartridges and fusing units. If you consider that ink for an inkjet printer costs approximately R8 750 per litre, the running costs can amount to 99% of the TCO," says Pillay.
In addition to a more viable TCO, colour laser printers offer enhanced reliability, speed and higher monthly duty cycle than inkjets.
Minolta`s Magicolor 2300W features print speeds of four colour pages per minute and 16 black and white pages per minute. It is compatible with Windows XP, 2000, NT4, Me, 98 and 95 and includes built-in USB and parallel interfaces for seamless connectivity. It delivers colour in 1 200 x 600dpi resolution with fine lines, improved halftones and vibrant image quality.
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