HP LaserJet 3380 lowers print costs, provides faxing functionality

One of the most valuable innovations in the printing market over the past decade has been the integration of numerous complementary devices into what is today commonly termed a multifunction device (MFD) or all-in-one device.

The latest instalment in HP`s range of MFDs, namely the LaserJet 3380, provides business users with cost-effective printing, scanning, copying and faxing functionality, through the use of the more affordable laser technology.

"The benefits of using laser technology in a MFD stretch far beyond reduction in costs, however," says Drikus van der Walt, product manager at Tarsus Technologies. "The monochrome laser printing unit utilised by the LaserJet 3380 is capable of printing and copying pages at a rate of 19 pages per minute (ppm) and delivers the first page within eight seconds of the user sending the print command from their computer.

"Furthermore, the flatbed design of the scanning unit allows for a variety of media to be copied, while the 50-page auto-document feeder gives users the ability to copy multiple pages and send multi-page faxes with ease," Van der Walt continues.

"Faxing is a valuable addition to HP`s range of laser-based MFDs, since it provides a substantial speed gain on the use of inkjet-based technology and goes a long way to ensuring that costs are kept at a lower level than what a conventional standalone fax machine would deliver. Providing the receiving fax machine is capable of the same high-speed, the 3380 has the ability to transmit pages at 33.6kbp, once again saving on the business`s phone bill," Van der Walt says.

In terms of resolution, printed and copied pages are delivered at 1 200dpi, while scanned documents are sampled at 9 600dpi, ensuring crisp, high-quality results. The 3380 also features built-in optical character recognition (OCR) functionality which allows text documents to be scanned into an editable format, allaying the need for re-typing documents.

Echoing the market`s sentiments about addressing the SME and departmental space, the LaserJet 3380 is aimed squarely at offices within the region of five staff members, delivering a 10 000-page per month duty cycle.

"With its small footprint and high-quality components, the 3380 delivers the kind of functionality smaller offices both need and can rely on. Most importantly, however, all-in-one devices lower the company`s total cost of ownership and are priced far more competitively than the various standalone devices put together," Van der Walt concludes.