A common misperception in the printer market today is that laser printers are an expensive option suited to only large corporations with deep pockets. In reality, nothing can be further from the truth.
"The idea that lasers are costly probably stems from the initial purchase price of lasers and their consumables when compared to the price of inkjet printers," says Neil Rom, MD of Printacom, local Oki representative. "But as Gartner found with PC prices, the purchase price of a printer is only a small portion of the total cost of ownership (TCO) over the life of the product."
A recent study from a well-known US PC publication calculated the average costs per page for mono and colour printing with inkjet printers. When compared to the per-page and consumable costs, the savings of using an Oki colour laser printer are enormous - far greater than the purchase price of the laser printer. Oki colour lasers deliver lower costs for both colour and mono printing.
"These figures show that laser printing costs are lower, delivering substantial savings over the course of a year," Rom explains.
In the mono segment, the cost to print a page at 15% coverage from an inkjet is R2.25, while a page at 35% coverage comes in at R5.25. An Oki laser prints the same pages for R0.32 and R0.59 respectively, that`s an average saving of 87%. An inkjet colour copy at 15% coverage costs R4.59 or R10.64 at 35% coverage. The Oki laser manages to cut the cost to R0.80 and R1.42 respectively, an average saving of 85%.
The total costs of consumables per month to cater for printing 10 pages per day (colour and mono) at 15% coverage come to R1 436.40 for inkjets and R235.20 for the Oki colour laser; at 35% coverage, the monthly costs run to R3 336.90 for inkjets and R422.10 for the Oki laser.
"This translates to a direct annual saving of R14 414.40 for 15% coverage prints, or R34 977.60 for 35% coverage when using an Oki colour laser instead of an inkjet," states Rom. The initial purchase price of an Oki colour laser will more than pay for itself within five months of purchase, just by the saving on consumables usage.
"No matter how cheap the inkjet, the operational and consumable cost savings obtainable from an Oki colour laser more than compensate for any differences in the initial purchase price after only one year of use. Most companies have greater printing requirements than this, which will make the TCO savings even greater."
The lower costs of Oki colour lasers are due to the advanced technology packed into these machines. First in the market with single-pass printing, Oki has managed to substantially increase its performance while also reducing the cost per page. Oki`s unmatched reliability also contributes to its lower TCO by subjecting customers to less printer downtime.
"Small and medium-sized businesses no longer have to be penalised with inkjet printer and consumables pricing if they want to print high-quality colour sales or marketing materials," concludes Rom. "Oki colour laser printers are available at the lowest cost in their class and at the lowest TCO per page over their lifespan."
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