Although formal ratification of a new ISO standard for testing colour printer consumables has not yet been completed, manufacturers have started to quote yield figures based on the new system - a sure indicator that the new agreed test methods will not change. Amongst manufacturers adopting the new system are Epson and Hewlett Packard, both of whom implementing it for their inkjet printer ranges.
What is the new Colour Printer Yield Standard System?
Essentially, the new ISO system does away with the old "5% coverage" (ink on paper) maxim, and the lack of standards on testing and consumables quoting methods. These methods that consumers have been faced with the need for a great deal of guidance when attempting to calculate the Total Cost Of Ownership equation when specifying new printer installations. The ISO system is designed to ensure that yield figures quoted by printer manufacturers for the number of pages per cartridge can now be compared for machines from different manufacturers, whereas until now the figures were only really meaningful for comparisons between different printer models from the same manufacturer.
The main lines of approach with the new ISO system has been to eliminate discrepancies due to
- Different test pages used, with differing page coverage - No uniform testing method - Yields quoted in different statistical standards
Colour Printer Yield Standards- Going Forward
So now the situation has changed to some extent. The ISO 19752 standard for testing and quoting of yield for mono printing on mono laser printers already exists, and now we are on the cusp of this latest ISO standard for colour printing on colour printers (ISO 24712).
It is easy to see how the ISO standards offer a big improvement ? standard test pages, standard test methodology and standard way of calculating and quoting the yield.
However, even at this stage there is the view that perhaps the new standards do not go far enough, in that the standard does not address all the issues surrounding printing of monochrome pages on colour systems.
In essence, the test programme specifies a five-page document to be printed as continuously as the paper feed of the printer allows. The 5 pages are mono letter, two data presentation pages and a block and line test pattern. The yield is quoted as the number of pages printed when the cartridge runs out.
The difficulty is that in the real-world environment, the mix between colour and monochrome printing varies according to workgroup and individual. Thus it seems more useful to test to two standards, for mono and for colour, separately on the same machine. Having such data would further assist in addressing any decision to upgrade to colour printers - and indeed make realistic comparisons with the yield on Multifunction, All-in-One systems which add a further major dimension to the cost equation.
Today's choice of computer printers is huge, and competition amongst retailers is fierce. Discounts of 60-70% from the manufacturers' recommended retail price are not uncommon amongst multifunctional printer devices, and it is rare not to find at least 25% discounts amongst print-only devices. So, should we consider anything more than the purchase price?
Without doubt, print speed, brand reputation, connectivity to existing equipment and print quality are all part of the mix. But budgeting for the total cost of the selected printer in terms of the consumables used - this is the real challenge for buyers. This is the area where the manufacturers and distributors are battling for the income streams from consumables - inks, toner cartridges, print media, replacement parts and the like. Here the discounts are less obvious, and for good reason. The onus is squarely on the buyer to consider these costs, and to ensure they are not buying into an expensive cost of ownership.
So, rather than going with the brand and the technology they are used to, and looking for the biggest purchase price discount, what do buyers have to gain by doing their research? The answer, of course, is a great deal.
Inkjet or Laser Printer?
First off, the mantra from IT departments is often fixed in stone, that laser printers should always be specified as the more "professional" choice for any organisation. But for small groups, inkjet provides a perfectly professional print quality, and would suit small networked teams, not least because of the quiet operation compared with some extremely noisy laser systems in operation.
On the other hand, in terms of purchase price alone, the cost of entry-level colour laser has also made laser very attractive to corporations, so that they can follow the advice of their IT departments, upgrade monochrome laser to colour and then absorb the supplies and consumables costs in their departmental stationery budgets.
But in another scenario, price discounting has also brought the colour laser printer within reach of the home-office worker, or sole trader company, where the "mantra" factor tempts buyers away from inkjet simply through the belief that laser provides better print quality at faster print speeds. Here, it is quite possible that low page counts and colour content would not justify the higher cost of many laser printers currently available.
On the other hand again, by looking amongst the best discounted prices, colour laser printers in the Canon range can be found at a very similar prices to Hewlett-Packard business inkjet machines, and as we shall see, can offer laser technology at a competitive overall Cost of Printing, when print volumes are below average.
High volume or low volume usage?
In the debate about the best route - laser or inkjet - a major deciding factor is, without doubt, the anticipated volume of use. Even considering the above examples, discounting would have to be far too heavy in order for any laser printer to match the low overall cost of printing available with, say, the HP Officejet Pro K550. Tests have shown that overall cost of printing on this printer, in a high-volume environment, has been shown to be as low as two pence per page taking into account a purchase price that is well below ?100.
Conversely, users with low volume needs might aim to avoid replacing the more expensive laser parts. Some might hope not even to need to replenish the colour toners.
At the level of 250 pages per month, for example, a user will print 9,000 pages over three years. Calculating at at black-only to colour page ratio of 70%/30% (in favour of black-only), then only 2,700 of those pages will be colour.
At this level, many laser printers will need a toner change during the life - or the capital cost write-off period - of the printer. But it is not impossible to find a low-end entry-level laser printer with a 2,000-page starter toner capacity so that for such users there is no need for a colour toner change within three years.
Other factors affecting colour printer choice
Colour is desirable of course, when working with presentation materials. But a large proportion of printing can still usefully involve only monochrome output. How much colour is used will always be a factor in costs. Discipline is needed to ensure correct printer settings for the task in hand. Discipline is also needed, of course, for test printing, where draft settings are important to ensure no unnecessary, cumulative wastage.
With the choice in technologies, and with the choice in entry-level pricing inkjets, against high specification or workhorse lasers, and against the additional complexities of multifunctional printers, it pays to think hard about the actual tasks to which a new printer is to address and the number of users it is to serve. This is the starting point for an understanding of the actual costs of owning the printer over its lifetime in the workplace.
Jimi St Pierre has sinced written about articles on various topics from . Jimi St. Pierre writes for several Travel Companies and Office Equipment suppliers and in the UK, including , BCP Ltd and. Jimi St Pierre's top article . to your Favourites.