When shopping for a new printer, spending money is inevitable. But there are ways to reduce the costs of ownership. HP’s Instant Print Utility function, now in version 3.1, provides a print preview of a job, with scaling options, by right-clicking the file. “You’ll see exactly what the print job is going to look like before you ever hit ‘print,’” saving on cost per print, says Eric DuPaul, DesignJet business development manager at HP Graphics Solutions Business. Reed Hecht, professional imaging product manager for Epson America, emphasizes low maintenance and built-in networking, as well as software that monitors how much your firm is spending on printing: “Tracking software like Epson’s myepsonprinter.com can play an integral role in an architect’s design workflow.”
Canon U.S.A. iPF8300, iPF6350, and iPF6300
A 12-pigment ink set helps Canon’s three latest printers increase achievable colors by about 20 percent over previous, CMYK-based models, and can reproduce more than 90 percent of Pantone colors. The 44-inch iPF8300, as well as the 24-inch iPF6350 and iPF6300, features 2,560 nozzles per color at 2400x1200 resolution, and all three are Energy Star compliant. The 8300 and 6350 offer an 80GB hard drive for faster spooling of large files. iPF8300: $5,995. iPF6350: $3,995. iPF6300: $3,695.
usa.canon.com
Epson Stylus Pro 7700 and 9700
The Epson Stylus Pro 7700 (24-inch printer) and 9700 (44-inch printer) both feature 720 nozzles per color with MicroPiezo TFP print heads that work twice as quickly as the previous generation of Epson printers. They have two black inks, one for matte paper and another for glossy. The 7700 and 9700 can produce plots at speeds ranging from 20 seconds at 360 dpi for a C-sized plot to 3 minutes, 9 seconds at 1440 dpi for a D-sized plot. Stylus Pro 7700: $2,995. Stylus Pro 9700: $4,995.
proimaging.epson.com
HP DesignJet T Series
HP’s 44-inch T1200 takes on the task of printing both CAD and GIS documents, producing line drawings at 28 seconds per page and color images at 445 square feet per hour. Options for the 44-inch T770 include a front-loading top roll, built-in networking, and memory upgrades. The 24-inch T620 series prints line drawings at 35 seconds per page and color images at up to 364 square feet per hour. All three are Energy Star qualified. T1200: $7,000. T770: $4,670. T620: $2,450.
hp.com/designjet
Xerox Wide Format 6604 and 6605
Xerox’s 6604 and 6605 are capable of simultaneous copying, scanning, and printing. Both models can scan in color and in sizes from E to A0, at 600x600 dpi, to make electronic files and print duplicates. The 6604 can produce up to four D- or A1-sized images per minute; the 6605 is capable of five per minute. An optional second roll of paper increases print capacity. Xerox’s FreeFlow Accxes print server allows users to preview scans while they print, copy, and scan other documents. Starting at $19,300.
xerox.com
