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PRINT.IT
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Bulletin
In the last quarter of 2011,
Canon introduced a raft of
new laser printers and MFPs,
including the entry-level
i-SENSYS LBP7010C. With
print speeds of 16 pages per
minute in B&W and 4ppm in
colour, a compact design and
sleek good looks, this single
function colour laser printer
is pitched very much at home
users and small businesses
with low print volumes.
As a single function printer,
the LBP7010C is not sufficiently
versatile to be deployed as the
sole device in a home office
or small business. However, it
would suit someone who needs
to be able to print in colour
and who already has a mono
all-in-one or a desktop scanner.
With a price tag of £129, it is
cheap enough to be used as a
stop-gap until the time is right
to replace the mono MFP with a
colour one.
Theoretically, it could also
serve as a personal colour
printer for a senior employee
who also has access to a shared
workgroup/departmental MFP
– theoretically, because the
LBP7010C (like other printers
in its category) has one or two
fundamental flaws that make it
unsuitable for use in a business
environment and possibly in a
home office too.
Before getting onto that,
it’s worth mentioning the
printer’s many good points.
These include an attractive,
simple design; great ease of
use; a tiny footprint; superb
print quality with excellent
colour reproduction and clean,
precise lines; remarkably quiet
and odour-free operation; low
energy consumption; and an
impressively rapid recovery from
sleep mode.
In other words, the LBP7010C
offers the ergonomic benefits
of an inkjet device plus the
advantages of laser technology
i.e. no drying times and good
print quality even on poor
quality paper.
Print speeds are on the slow
side – it took more than seven
and a half minutes to output a
32 page PDF of the last issue
of
Sustainable Times
(in line
with the rated print speed) – but
the rapid wake-up from sleep
mode means
that one, two
and three page
print jobs are
output relatively
quickly, especially
if printing in black
and white.
At first glance, another point
in the LBP7010C’s favour is its
suggested retail price of £129
(even less online). Such a low
price tag should start alarm
bells ringing and, sure enough,
running costs are high, coming
in at about 20p per colour
page (inc. VAT). Users with low
print volumes might be able
to live with such a high cost
per page, but even they might
baulk at paying circa £50 for
each replacement single colour
toner cartridge (capacity: 1,000
pages).
Another limitation of the
LBP7010C, which it shares with
other colour laser printers below
the £350 mark, is the lack of
automatic two-sided printing.
Duplex is rapidly becoming the
default setting in corporate
environments and home users
and small businesses, too,
should be able to print on both
sides of the page, not just to
save paper, but because it looks
more professional.
Overall, the i-SENSYS
LBP7010CA is an excellent
example of an entry-level colour
laser printer and is in many
respects an ideal desktop
printer. Yet the question
remains: ‘Why buy an entry-
level laser with high running
costs and no duplex capability,
when for the same price you
can buy an HP Officejet 6500A
Plus e-all-in-one with print, copy,
scan and fax functions, wireless
connectivity, automatic two-
sided printing and 50% lower
running costs?
If you answer ‘Because I
value high quality laser output
above all other considerations
and have only £129 to spend’,
then the LBP7010C is the
device for you.
On test: Canon i-SENSYS LBP7010C
Flawed beauty
The case for secure print?
As part of the launch programme
for Avery’s new range of Multi-
function labels, Onepoll surveyed
2,000 people to find out what
they had trouble remembering.
Collecting print-outs from
printers/MFPs appears at
Number 9 on the list, supporting
the argument for implementing
a pull print system to protect
confidential data. Number 6 on
the list was forgetting passwords,
perhaps indicating that you
should opt for a card-based
authentication system. The Top
3 entries were forgetting to
return phone calls, to reply to
emails and forgetting
people’s names.
OKI gets creative
OKI is appealing to the creative
instincts of its customers with a
new range of promotional print
media, known as OKI Creative
Media. Interested customers
can request a free sample pack
containing everything needed to
create personalised wine boxes
and sleeves, calendars, CD/DVD
wraps and tent cards from
http://creativemedia.oki.
co.uk/
De-inking trial
HP and Arjowiggins Graphic
have announced the successful
completion of a trial into the
de-inking of paper printed on HP
in brief...
Indigo digital presses. In the trial
at its Greenfield Mill in France,
Arjowiggins successfully de-inked
a mix of print waste, which
included a small proportion (5%)
of HP Indigo prints on coated
and uncoated wood-free papers.
Using standard processes and
conditions, Arjowiggins was able
to produce high quality de-inked
pulp suitable for the production
of recycled paper.
Big growth potential
The Western European
photobook market is on track to
achieve 20% growth this year,
with shipments of 20 million
units and a value of 650 million
euros, according to a new report
from Futuresource Consulting.
Despite healthy growth rates,
senior market analyst Joanna
Wright warns that awareness
of photobooks is still relatively
low in most countries. “The UK
and Italy are performing least
favourably, with only 2% to 3%
of households purchasing a
photobook, while Benelux leads
the way at 15%. When compared
with households that printed
their photos this year – around
30% across Western Europe
– and digital cameras at 70%
household penetration, there
are definite opportunities for
growth,” she said.