There is something to tell and compare:

• print cost;
• energy consumption;
• service.

Under the cut, all this is in the most compressed form, as well as a brief overview of the models and a few case studies from users.

“I don’t need a color printer”

To begin with, I will briefly tell you why such devices appeared in the Epson catalog.

Monochrome laser printers have long occupied their niche and do a good job where black and white printing is required. Everything seems to be clear with inkjet printers: they are more profitable where color printing is required, they have more options for working with different formats, media types and ink types. Inkjet printing is practically the only option for printing signs, banners, CAD, GIS, fabric printing, etc.

However, it is no secret that color printing is not in high demand in the office. That’s why many customers look at our inkjet solutions and say, “ Very cool, and lots of ink. And is there the same, but only in black and white, so as not to overpay for the possibility of color printing? »

Considering that we have already “traveled around the ears” enough with our cartridgeless printers and MFPs, and there are still users who simply do not notice color devices, some time ago Epson management decided to release a line of monochrome printers and MFPs . And suddenly they were noticed and even began to actively buy.

And now to the specifics.

Cost per print – below

I remember, seven years ago, our PR people bombarded the press with releases showing data from IDC reports comparing cost of ownership to . There was this picture:

Now the jets have gone even further. As an example, I will give links to the Nix.ru price list, where models are sorted by the cost of a print. There is a slightly confusing interface, so I will separately give links to monochrome laser and monochrome inkjet with CISS.

However, even if we take the “average temperature in the hospital”, the difference is obvious. According to our own calculations, Epson monochrome inkjet devices print an A4 sheet for about 22 kopecks (estimated as of 12.2020). At the same time, for laser printers, the cost per printed sheet will be three times more expensive on average.

But don’t believe me, but be sure to check! And the next time you plan to buy a “monochrome”, perhaps this information will come in handy.

Energy consumption – less

Monochrome inkjet printers work on the basis of Epson’s patented Heat-Free piezoelectric printing technology: ink is transferred to paper without heating the ink or head by pointing an electrical pulse to a piezoelectric element. Compared to a laser print path that involves a fuser (“furnace”) and drum(s), it’s easy to assume that the difference in power consumption will be decent.

That’s right: inkjet printer consumes up to 96% less electricity when compared with similar laser devices (conditionally it is 18 W against 400+ W).

And this can make a difference in certain cases. For example, when several jets can be powered from a regular uninterruptible power supply along with a computer . And if there are many devices installed in the office, even the savings on energy bills can be significant. We in Russia and some CIS countries are accustomed to the fact that electricity is relatively inexpensive, and in European countries, electricity prices are such that be healthy.

Ready to print – always

Our inkjet printer delivers the first sheet after about 5-7 seconds from the moment the print job is received (video proof, see from 0:25): it does not need to warm up the “stove”, which will then “bake” the toner onto the paper. Accordingly, for those who print often, but 4-5 sheets at a time, inkjet printing is better suited.

Consumables – less than

The fuser (“oven”), the transfer unit and the drum are the minimum set of resource elements for a laser printer. In addition, one drum is required for each color if the apparatus is colored. Due to constant temperature changes and other physical and electrostatic conditions, all these parts have a very specific limited resource. And in the event of a failure, they will cost a lot. Especially the oven. Those who have previously encountered a fuser failure and found out in the SC the cost of a new + replacement understand very well what is at stake.

Compared to laser printers, piezoelectric inkjet technology has fewer additional consumable consumable components that need to be replaced periodically. These are ink, paper pick-up rollers (however, their resource is estimated at tens of thousands of sheets) and a container for waste ink. Moreover, the latter in devices for office printing can be changed independently. But the print head and all other internal mechanisms of the printer are designed for the entire life of the printing device.

Green – better

… due to the absence of ozone emission (in the domestic classification – substances of the highest hazard class). Strictly speaking, it’s even more about safety , because. ozone is toxic , contrary to misconceptions about its magical “healing” properties. In particular, ozonizers are really well suited for decontaminating premises… When there is no one in them and no one comes in to regularly take printed documents from a constantly heavily ozonized room. In this post, I touched on this topic as part of one of the cases of replacing a fleet of laser printers with two devices from the Epson WorkForce Enterprise series.

By the way, in China, any printing equipment must be certified and receive an environmental label that ozone emission does not exceed certain values ​​and meets the standards adopted in the country. Our Chinese colleagues have already received the appropriate certificate for all models of the EcoTank cartridgeless printer series.

You definitely have not seen such advertising on this topic:

Maintenance is easier

Those who have ever tried to refill the laser printer cartridge with toner themselves are unlikely to forget this entertaining procedure. Replacing the entire toner cartridge is much easier, but also more expensive. At the same time, to refill, say, a cartridgeless inkjet, no special skills are required: open the ink container, insert it into the printer vertically (for “non-spill”) and you’re done.

See at 00:23:

A brief overview of Epson monochrome product lines

It would be wrong not to talk about Epson’s monochrome devices, which I just so diligently praised.

Epson EcoTank (or “Print Factory” in our opinion)

The most popular cartridgeless monochrome models are, of course, the Print Factory. Refueled from containers, designed for home or work in small groups – 5-15 people. The print speed in draft mode is 38 pages per minute, according to ISO – 20. In this case, the first page will appear after 5-7 seconds. There is a limit on the load – it should not exceed 20 thousand pages per month.

A rather detailed review of one monochrome EcoTank model was done even by the editors of Igromania (see from the 9th minute, because the color model is first described):

There is also a “simpler” video – with experience after 8 months of use.

Epson WorkForce

Epson WorkForce Enterprise – “the best” in all respects. I talked in detail about devices of this class in a post about a level 80 printer.

Epson WorkForce Enterprise WF-M21000D4TW is a new model for monochrome printing tasks. Super-durable inline print head, up to 100 pages per minute, five seconds to first sheet and up to 100,000 pages per month.

Summary table with main differences:

And some cases

Finally – some interesting examples of the introduction of monochrome devices with a “cold” head in different industries. Let’s start with WorkForce Enterprise. A year ago, we already talked about the first installations of this equipment, and now fresh projects have appeared.

Printing house of the National Research University Higher School of Economics (Higher School of Economics) Epson WF-M20590D4TW monochrome model replaced two laser MFPs at the copier shop on ul. Staraya Basmannaya: saved usable space, won in terms of speed.

At the Irkutsk State University of Communications (IrGUPS), a color Epson WorkForce Enterprise WF was installed in the publishing and printing center. The device helped reduce the cost of producing educational literature. Users note that when printing “short” runs, the cost competes with risography.

The Stockholm office of Bonver Logistics, one of the largest logistic operators in Sweden, prints about 1.5 million waybills, bills of lading and other documents per year. After the laser printer ruined a thousand pages out of the required 5000 (the toner was running out, but they didn’t notice right away), Epson Workforce Enterprise was purchased. Now one refueling is enough for 150,000 documents.

Let’s move on to desktop models. Epson M1170 printers have recently appeared in the doctors’ offices of the Minsk Polyclinic No. 30. Previously, lasers were used, but they often failed due to the small printed area – for example, when printing recipes. Doctors also appreciated the fact that inkjet monochromes do not exude a specific smell when printing, which is characteristic of laser devices. This is important in small offices.

The Department of Health and Social Protection of the Belgorod Region has been testing our devices for a year and a half, and according to the results, they took more than a thousand monochrome EcoTanks. Epson M2170 work in doctors’ offices, the load is about 500 pages per month per device. Among other things, physicians appreciated the quick-drying pigment ink that does not smear when highlighted with a marker or water ingress. In addition, over time, they do not crumble, as is the case with prints of laser printers.

In the Arkhangelsk Clinical Hospital, desktop cartridgeless models were installed in the doctors’ offices: 18 Epson M3170 MFPs and 54 Epson M1170 printers. When choosing, they evaluated the quality and speed of printing, considered the total cost of ownership for several years in advance. I liked that it was easy to pour ink.

In conclusion

There are more and more monochrome inkjet models, now they appear also in other major manufacturers of equipment. There really is a demand for them, and we see it.

Finally, we have a post about “monochrome”, in which all the main “chips” are collected and put on the shelves. I hope it was useful to you too!

Thank you for your attention.

The legendary manufacturer, who introduced Russians to printers, is destroying his production and preparing a “revolution” on the market

Technique

28 November 2022 17:59 28 Nov 2022 17:59

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Epson, among the first to start delivering printers to Russia, stops production. This applies only to laser models, which are very popular all over the world, especially in offices. She is going to promote inkjet printers, claiming that they are better in everything and even more economical than laser ones. At the same time, Epson hushed up their numerous shortcomings, for which they are not loved in the business environment.

It’s time for laser printers to rest

Epson, one of the pioneers of the global printer market, announced the cessation of production of laser printers. According to a publication on the official website of the company, she does this out of concern for the environment.

Epson will gradually phase out the production and sales of laser printers to completely stop them by 2026. At the same time, the company decided not to abandon those who preferred laser printers with its logo on the case. She intends to continue to produce spare parts and consumables for them. However, Epson’s statement did not say how long this would last.

Epson launched its first printer, called the EP-101 (Electronic Printer), in 1968, still under its former name, Shinshu Seiki. Under the brand, which would later become known throughout the world, printers began to be produced in 1975. In Russia, Epson printers appeared, if not the very first, then one of the very first, almost immediately becoming mass.

Epson’s departure will be a serious blow to the market for office laser printers

Saying goodbye to “laser printers”, Epson is not going to leave the printer market at all. Instead, she intends to arrange a kind of revolution on him.

Ink is better than toner

Epson wants to focus on producing exclusively inkjet printers, not only for home use, but also for office use. The company said in a statement that they are much more environmentally friendly than lasers, as they use less energy and consume fewer consumables.

Epson has begun to prepare its customers for the transition from toner to ink in advance. Immediately after the publication of a statement about the imminent discontinuation of laser printers, she announced a new series of office inkjet MFPs (printer, scanner and copier in one device) WorkForce Enterprise AM. This line, according to Epson marketers, is as environmentally friendly as possible – due to proprietary Heat-Free technology, these printers do without warming up when turned on and out of standby mode, which saves energy. During what time, on average, Heat-Free will save 1 kWh, Epson does not specify.

More flaws

Claiming the advantages of inkjet printers over laser printers, Epson mentions that in the latter it is necessary to change the drum and photocells regularly. Often the developer also fails. In inkjet, according to Epson, you only need to change the cartridges and the waste ink tank. Epson estimates that inkjet printers have 59% fewer parts that need to be replaced regularly.

In addition, laser printers use more electricity to heat up and fuse the toner onto the paper. The difference reaches 85% in favor of inkjet printers, when compared with identical “laser” printers in terms of print speed.

What are mediation class solutions and how can they be useful for business?

Digitalization

At the same time, the company does not write about the obvious disadvantages of inkjet printers. For example, documents printed on the vast majority of them are afraid of water – a few drops are enough to make the text unreadable and the document unusable. In this case, the amount of paper used increases, which does not have the best effect on the environment. However, this is offset by the widespread transition of companies to electronic document management, which implies a complete refusal to print any documents.

New trend

Other major players in the global printer market at the time of publication of the material were not ready to follow Epson in its quest to leave the world without laser printers in the name of the environment. In particular, neither HP Inc. nor Canon made such statements or even hints, occupying 39.6% in the global market by the number of devices sold (first place, IDC statistics for Q2 2022) and 20.1% (second place) respectively.

Epson in this case closes the top three with 17.6%, the fourth is Brother with 8.4%, the fifth is Pantum with 2.2%. Samsung is not included in the rating, since its printer business was bought out by HP Inc back in 2016. for $1 billion

There is no leader in the domestic messenger market yet

business communications

In this case, Epson’s competitors have two options. They can either declare that everyone who wants to buy a laser printer can contact them at any time, or join the now fashionable environmental agenda.